Strategies of uk prescription spectacle market - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 12 Words: 3474 Downloads: 2 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Uncategorized Essay Type Analytical essay Did you like this example? The introduction of the Opticians Acts in 1958 by the parliament led to the creation of the general optical council (GOC) to regulate the optical professions and put an end to the disputes and debates caused by the public complains about the lack of competence of the non medical practitioners in testing eyesight. In order to protect the public, the main purpose of the GOC has since then been to promote high standards of education, formation of students and introduce a disciplined framework amongst opticians. After the 1958 Optician Act only optometrists registered with the General Optical Council were allowed by law to conduct eye-tests and only optometrists or dispensing opticians were allowed to sell spectacles. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Strategies of uk prescription spectacle market" essay for you Create order The same act of Parliament prevented opticians from advertising their services therefore large firms with many branches or franchises did not dominate the business and competition between colleagues were seen as distasteful. The most obvious change in the market since the 1980s deregulation was to allow advertising and marketing of goods and services. It was a great temptation to come back into optics. We were the first to advertise, have showrooms and let people know what our prices were. Buying glasses then was quite expensive so people were not visiting opticians. There is a health aspect as well, so we wanted to get people to visit opticians on a regular basis and provide more choice at affordable prices for everyone. said Dame Mary Perkins, founder of Specsavers the biggest optical retailer in the UK. The current Opticians Act 1989 which replaced the act of 1959 has been amended in 2005. According to the Act and the powers given to the GOC by the Parliament, any optician h as to be registered and recognised by the council to practice; moreover even the selling of spectacles has to be done under the supervision of a registered optician. Actions that would be considered as criminal offences could be: SECTION 24: dispensing sight testing without being registered SECTION 25: fitting of contact lenses without being registered SECTION 27: sale of optical appliances which do not meet legal requirements SECTION 28: use any of the titles dispensing optician while not being appropriately registered. The principal modification of optician law the optician act from 1989. This involved making it a legal requirement that the ophthalmic optician give the customer a paper prescription, so that they could take that and buy their glasses anywhere (which was under the general supervision of a dispensing optician), not just at the place where their eyes were tested. Regulator the General Optical Council came up with the specifications of exactly what a prescription had to contain and this was made into law by a government regulation. That was an opening opportunity to the online trade. In 2005 for the first time Prescription glasses were sold online the chance was given to people to bypass traditional high street opticians, buy glasses directly from the manufacturer, and pay far less (that was us, by the way). 2. The Electronic Commerce Regulations (EC Directive) In 2002 were introduced the Electronic Commerce Regulations to promote e-business and protect consumers and their privacy. The regulations apply to businesses that sell goods and services and advertise on the internet or by email or text messages. The regulations require online sellers to: Provide their customer with a printable receipt (with company name, place of registration, registered number, details of any professional body with which you are registered, VAT registration number) once an order has been placed. The possibility to print out the Website terms and conditions. Provide details such as the technical stages to conclude a contract. Allow the customer on the website to go back in order to correct any mistakes made in the order before is placed. 3. Distance Selling Regulations 2000 The Distance Selling Regulations 2000 were introduced to protect consumers who are not physically present with the seller at the time of purchase. That covers the selling goods or services to consumers by internet, digital television, mail order, including catalogue shopping, phone or fax giving to the consumer the right to: be given clear information about the goods or services before buying. receive the goods within thirty days unless agreed otherwise. a cooling off period of 7 working days where they can cancel the contract for any reason and receive a full refund within 30 days for the cancelled contract. As for the rule applying to high street purchasing goods in distance selling must be of satisfactory quality and fit for purpose. 4. Competition Law Any business should be aware of the competition law so as to meet the requirements first and know its rights and protect its position in the marketplace. In the UK sets of competition rules apply in parallel. Anti-competitive behaviour which may affect trade within the UK is specifically prohibited by Chapters I and II of the Competition Act 1998, the Enterprise Act 2002 and also by Articles 101 and 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). UK and EU competition law prohibit two main types of anti-competitive activity: anti-competitive agreements (under the Chapter I and Article 101 prohibitions); and abuse of dominant market position (under the Chapter II / Article 102 prohibitions). Both UK and EU competition law prohibit: agreements, arrangements, concerted business practices which appreciably prevent, restrict or distort competition and businesses with significant market shares unfairly exploiting their strong market positions. Some co nsequences of breach: fines of up to 10% of group global turnover expose to actions for damages from customers and competitors who can show they have been harmed by the anti-competitive behaviour being disqualified from being a company director and lead to criminal sanctions. Main Threats and Legal Issues 1. Main Threats The deregulations of the Optician Act 1958 has opened up the prescription spectacles market and encouraged competitions among the retailers. The introduction of the internet has brought an unpredictable competitor at time of the deregulation, the online opticians. Ever since, the market demand of prescription spectacles at High Street Opticians have plummeted while the demand on the new online entrants have continue to shore. Below is the illustration of the market demand of prescription spectacles of both markets after the amendment on the original Optician Act; After Before Deregulations Lower prices glasses offered by online retailers contribute to the growing trend of shopping online. More and more consumers are now opting to buy glasses from the online opticians because of the lower prices offered compared to the High Street. The new online entrants are offering items at significantly lower prices because unlike their rivals on the high street, they do not have to spend high cost on the physical stores, the designs, properties rental, staff and maintenance costs, etc. They are saving up all cost spend on these aspects and therefore, they could still make good profit even they are selling items that are half the price of those offered at High Street. In comparison, High Street Opticians cannot avoid spending these costs and these are the attributions to the higher priced prescription glasses. Decline in demand for prescription glasses High Street prescription glasses. The immediate threat brought by the growing trend of purchasing glasses online has lead to the decline in demand for prescription glasses in the High Street retails. The market elasticity towards low price prescription glasses is great. The decrease in price offered by the online retailer has clearly increased the demand. In contrary, the increase demand of online prescription glasses has resulted in the decrease of demand for prescription glasses at High Street retails. With lesser demands, the high street profits plummet. Amendment of The Optician Act 1958 and competition law The amendment of the Optician Act 1958 had posted a great threat to the High Street Opticians. Together with the Competition Law, the original act was amended in order to increase more competition within the industry, thus lower the prices of prescription glasses. However, the introduction of the internet which later leads to e-commerce was an unpredictable obstacle to the business. Internal competition with franchisers Dominant market players such as Specsavers, Vision Express and Boots Opticians have also introduced their own online websites to the public. Albeit many high street opticians are part of large franchises their profits are being eroded by the online services offered by their mother companies. As part of the franchises, high street consumers can opt to purchase cheaper prescription glasses on the main company websites after having their eye tested at the high street retails. In this case, high street opticians are losing their customers to their mother companies while competing with other competitors in the market. Introduction of new technology used by online entrants It is debatable that the advantages of getting personal attention and after-sale care at the High Street Opticians have not yet been threatened however some online opticians are already advancing to take over in these aspects. For example, Specsavers is already giving out eye health and eye care information as well as introducing the try on frame online service, which allows customers to upload their picture and try on the desired frames, on the websites. 2. Legal issues to High Street Opticians and Online Opticians Trades in both High Street and Online optical retails are governed by the Optician Act 1989, the Sale of Goods Act 1979, the Trade Descriptions Act 1968 and a number of other regulations. However, the main acts that differentiate these two business operations are the Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations (DSRs) and the E-Commerce Regulations (ECRs) 2002. Businesses that are selling goods or services without any face-to- face contact such as through the internet, phone calls and mail order must comply with these two regulations. Trading Information provided Both high street and online optical retails are obliged to the Trade Descriptions Act 1968 and the Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations (DSRs) to provide consumers with clear information so that they can make an informed decision to purchase a good or service. This information must include details of the selling organisation, detailed descriptions and the prices of goods or services offered. However the Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations further details in the payment methods, the delivery arrangements and the information of the consumers right to cancel an item purchased. Reaching agreements and accepting offers (forming of contract) According to the Law of Contract, at High Street retails a legally binding contract can be formed when the customer agreeing to accept the terms proposed by the vendor. Neither the offer nor the acceptance needs to be made in writing, or even in words. They may be orally made or implied from conduct. The E-Commerce Regulations states contracts conducted online will only become legally binding when the person who made the offer is able to access to the acceptance. The consumer should be able to print and store a copy of the terms and conditions of the contract. Therefore online opticians will have to receive the acceptance from the consumers where in most cases, by means of clicking the I agree button and they must issues receipts or confirmation emails to the consumers after the contracts are formed to indicate a legal binding contract has been concluded. Refund and exchange policy Subject to the Sale of Goods Act 1979, High Street customers are entitled for a refund or exchange an item if the items are incorrectly described, unfit for the purpose, faulty or not of satisfactory quality given the proof of purchase, in most cases receipts. However, according to the act, proof of purchase could also be a credit card transaction or a bank statement. Customers are entitled for the refund as long as they do so quickly and are not informed of the default of the items before the purchase. The Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations governs the trading of Online Optician and gives consumers more rights as they are disadvantaged in unable to inspect goods before the purchase. The regulations apply the cooling off period of 7 days policy, during which the consumers have the right to cancel their purchase. Written notice of cancelation must be forwarded to the supplier no later than 7 days from the day the item is received. However, section 13 of the regula tions applied here that unless the consumers are informed beforehand, they do not have the right to cancel the order for the prescription spectacles which are made to the consumers own specification. In conclusion, the legal issues that apply to both High Street and Online Opticians are similar in many ways; the main differences are the governing acts and regulations and also the return and refund policy where online consumers enjoy more privileges. While both High Street and Online Opticians might have their own cancellation and return or refund policy, they do have to make them clear to the consumers before they have agreed to purchase the items. On the High Street these policies or conditions can be made orally or in written forms. With Online Opticians terms and conditions must be presented in a clear written form. Legally binding contracts concluded in High Street shops could be verbal, implied by conduct or in written forms whereas legally binding contracts concluded betwee n online opticians and their consumers must be in written forms and their consumers should have access to the agreements and be able to store a copy of the contracts. Strategy SWOT and PEST analysis. Strategy Research As detailed history of the situation, changes in law and the threat faced by High Street opticians, where discussed on the previous pages, let us have a look at the below analysis. The presented, SWOT and PEST analysis help us to identify the right strategy that will prevent your customers for prescription spectacles defecting to the on-line retailers. Considering the factors, determinants of both analysis, it is strongly suggested to High Street opticians to concentrate on one of the strengths customer service, which physically, cannot be supplied by on-line opticians. (Please refer to the diagrams below, page 11 12.) The research on previous strategies, applied by different companies round the world, proves that it is time to return to basic principles. Customer and value creation are one of them. Karl Albrecht mentions in his essay, in Business: The Ultimate Resource that strategic customer focus can serve as powerful organising principle for reinventing business in the age of the Third Wave The Second Coming of Service.. It is known to everyone how important the way of providing customer service is, and that is the way to compete on-line spectacles retailers. Consumers will always prefer the product, which offers more qualities in form of design, service, convenience and price by purchasing it. A marketing strategy could be, rather than focus on the price, to engage in a non-price competition. There is a need for High Street opticians to ensure that once the customer enters the shop, to make an eye test, he/she will buy what he/she wants and needs. That there is a group of experts to exceed customer expectation, to assist him/her and be with him/her until he/she is fully satisfied and purchase the spectacles. It is important to create a joy of purchasing the product and a joy of having it it will let customers believe that they have simply bought the best spectacles in the world. Strategies Advanced training for assistants A customer, who is suffering from low vision, need to feel that he is helped by an experienced and trained person, similar to a trained clinical assistant, and not just sold a new product in the form of spectacles. An eye-test is good to check if you need new glasses or a new prescription, but it also works well for an eye health check. An advanced eye test can spot many health problems and early signs of eye problems. People who may be more at risk from eye disease than others, are above sixty years old, the ones diagnosed with diabetes or glaucoma, and might be from a family with a history of eye disease. Optician assistants should provide a service which is unique and necessary to attract the attention of customers and make the customer feel at home and caring about his/her eyes. Quality Eye-test Opticians could make more detailed and tailored measurement of eyes, which would allow the customer to find the right lenses. People with multi-focal lenses have to be measured to ensure their eyes look through the right part of the lens. Nobody can sell those over the Internet. The Right glasses for the Right Person Highly trained staff is required, who has an up to date awareness of the recent fashion trends related to glass wear and who can provide an advice on the right eye glass type. For example, the staff should be capable of giving an advice on which type of eye glasses fits a certain dress code (e.g., classic, casual, sport-chic,etc), and on which type of glasses can go well with any dress code (i.e., a generic eye glasses). The staff should also have an understanding of how frame colours should be matching skin colours and customer personalities. This concludes a style oriented product choice. Same day replacement service Customers, who break or lose their spectacles will be provided with a à   la minute service, which means they will receive the same lens or a temporary glasses they can wear until a new one is being prepared. Such type of after-sales service cannot be replicated by online spectacles suppliers. While deciding on the extent to which high street options provide this service, we need, however, to take its cost into consideration. Eye tests at home A patients home can be easily transformed into a consulting room, allowing the visiting optician to provide a full and extensive eye test. The mobile optician can carry up-to-date mobile equipment with a variety of spectacle frames, with a different range depending on each budget. It can be an advantage for people who are home bound such as, older people, mothers, disabled people, etc Free prescription Free prescription should be provided for those customers who will also purchase the eye glasses in store. Customers that will only request a prescription will be charged a significant amount. This could lead that customers will prefer to buy the glasses from the high street opticians. The strategic triangle By observing international business it can be easily spotted and admitted that Japan is one of the leaders in worldwide market. And they are the ones, who are strongly convinced that the customer is a key to success. The most important to them is customer-centricity. Kenichi Ohmae presents the strategic triangle in his book: The Mind of the Strategist: The Art of Japanese Business, and these are the key factors, which will let High Street opticians achieve outstanding performance. The Strategic three Cs Kenichi Ohmae (1982), The Mind of the Strategist: The Art of Japanese Business, New York: McGraw-Hill, Inc., pp. 92. Mission statement for High Street opticians I view todays economy as the value economy. Adding value has become more than just a second business principle; it is both the common denominator and the competitive edge. Arthur Levitt Jr, Business: The Ultimate Resource. Key objectives for 2010/11 Focus on customer Invest in employees Ameliorate effectiveness Grow the business Focus on the customer guarantee outstanding customer service maximise unexceptional medical equipment for example: fundus cameras (detailed image of the- back of the eye can be recorded and stored) provide and maximise the sale of the widest range of spectacles, in different designs; provide and maximise the sale of specialised lenses (varifocal, bifocal) improve customer communication by opening call centres, which are open 24/7 and happy to assist the client, when needed. Invest in customer satisfaction random internal checks by mystery clients Invest in employees provide different, regular training for all of the staff including senior one (training centres, training tools, in-store training, distance training, workshops, etc.) reward and motivate the staff by providing competitive salary package improve work conditions make the place to be desired to work in senior management to attract the rest of the staff by working hard and deliver with passion (and vice-versa) Ameliorate effectiveness be able to manage cost risk and sell the spectacles for lower price (provide different promotions, seasonal offers, two-for-one, etc.) Grow the business expend opening hours; provide home visits or mobile appointments invest in advertising (media, as well as, for example: animations on cash machines, etc) if necessary join the companies buying smaller optician companies by giants may let kidnap the higher number of customers, including on-line customers it could allow in the future to globalise the business. In conclusion, it is important for the High Street Opticians to be flexible and fluid, companies need to become amoeba-like able to move one way while always responding to local stimuli and changing direction in response to new information from the environment. Strategy in Turbulent Times by Costas Markides, Business: The Ultimate Resource.

A Essay About A Hot Cuppa Life - 1273 Words

A Hot Cuppa Life Many people pose the question â€Å"Do you like coffee or tea?† If you were to ask me that today, I would wave red flags and scream â€Å"False Dichotomy!† to the heavens, but that hasn t always been the case. Coffee used to be my favorite drink, and at that point in my life I would certainly consider it superior to tea. Tea s for snobby Brits, right? Coffee s functional; It makes you faster, more focused, and more energetic, and it s healthy to boot! Right? Well, all those things seemed true until a little old Irish lady showed me the world of tea, and drastically changed my outlook on the subject. My perspective on the matter begins back in the late 90 s, when I was only around 6 years old. My mother was a big coffee†¦show more content†¦She had to buy a coffee maker, and that rid me of any opportunity to steal a sip here or there, so instead I had to beg for them. Luckily my mom is easy to persuade. I was still at an age where I could cuddle her arm and look at the cup and she would cave nearly instantly. Eventually, for some reason or other, that stopped working. I had to find other ways to steal a sip. If she ever left her cup somewhere I would sneak over have a taste, or if she didn t finish it I d ask if she wanted me to put the cup away. Even if it was cold, I d try to drink the rest before I got to the sink. I remember once, I held her at Nerf gunpoint and demanded a sip, or else. Eventually, say around 12 years old, my shenanigans must have gotten abrasive, because one day she put a rest to them. We were in the living room watching TV, and my mom got up and headed to the kitchen. She was about to go make a cup of coffee, as usual, but I was surprised when she called me over with her. Taking out the coffee, she started explaining how to use the machine and what amount of coffee you need per cup of water, and how much sugar and cream you should put in if you want it strong or sweet. In her mind, I m sure, she was teaching me so she d never have to make a cup herself again, and so I d finally stop bothering her about wanting a taste, but to me this was express permission to have as much coffee as I want, whenever I want. That

Effects of Media on Adolescents Free Essays

Effects of the Media on Adolescents Effects of the Media on Adolescents Sex and the secular lifestyle, seems to be the biggest selling industry on the marked, next to electronics; however has its fair share of effects on the adolescents of today. The media identifies or portrays the act of sexuality as the norm. The average television show often shows young girls being flirtatious, performing sexual acts, and disrespecting their parents. We will write a custom essay sample on Effects of Media on Adolescents or any similar topic only for you Order Now The media often display young men as sexual predators, acting like horn dogs, pressuring the girls for sex. Homosexuality is now more prevalent in the media, as other aspects of sexuality are. The good thing about the media and its advanced sexual content is that it helps to educate the youths about what is out there in these streets, such as sexually transmitted diseases, sexual predators, and how to deal with people such as homosexuals; who might be considered different. With the exposure to this type of media, the adolescents will be more aware and better equipped to deal with the situations that the might face while growing up. On the other hand, others may disagree with sexuality being so prevalent in the media. On the down side, too much sexual exposure may influence the youths to be more eager, and ready to participate in such acts. Even a young boy may think that the men they see dominating and assaulting women are cool, because of the level of control and power the men assume when the commit rape. It is very difficult to determine what may happen from viewing or listening to sexual media, so its best that some material be limited to the a specific age group; hence the rating on certain films. The media portrayal of sexuality was a big influence on me growing up. Being born on the Island of Jamaica, I grew up with a strong Christian background; loaded with good teachings of how to live with thy neighbor. So treating others as good as I would like to be treated, and honoring the commandments was my guide. However, the Island is also known for its culture of dancing carnival and whining, which are very sexual displays; also reggae music is either roots and culture or usually sexual lyrics. Along with the music, most parents or grandparents usually tell their children, that they know they might be growing pubic hair, but they are still children, and must respect their elders. As a child we could not watch any movies with sex scene, not even kissing, and public television had more fighting omitted romantic scenes. Though we understood sexuality, being limited to its exposure, in my opinion, helped to maintain a safer and less sexual environment, because we were less exposed to sex and more exposed to dancing dirty and fine art. Overall, the media can be good and it can be bad. It is for the parents and adults of today, to help censor some of the things that’s in the media as we deem fit for our youths and their households. At the end of the day, each home differs and people may react differently to the same type of exposure. I am more for less sexuality in the media, because the less a child knows about a certain thing, the less they will explore it. Eventually they will know it, but it will happen over time. How to cite Effects of Media on Adolescents, Papers

Nestle Digital and Social Media Marketing Strategies Management

Question: Discuss about the Nestle Digital and Social Media Marketing Strategies Management. Answer: Introduction Nestle is one of the largest brand of the world, it is a Swiss transnational food and drink company, it has the headquarter Switzerland; it has been one of the largest food company in the years 2014 to 2016 by the revenues and other metrics. It was ranked no. 72 in the fortune global 500 in the year 2014 and in 2016 no.33 of 2000 list of largest public companies. The products of nestle include the baby foods, bottled water, coffee and tea, dairy products, pet foods, frozen food, snacks, medical food, breakfast cereals and ice creams. The annual sales of Nestles twenty nine brands is a over one billion, the Nespresso, Nescafe, kit-Kat, Maggie,Vittel, Nesquik, Stouffers, Smarties, these brands have been strongly used and liked by the people around the globe. Nestle has 447 factories in 194 countries of the world and around 339,000 employees working, nestle entered in a joint venture with the Cadbury and was very close to purchase the Hersheys the iconic American company. In the year 2006 it became the worlds largest ice cream maker of about 17.5% of the market share. In the year 2007 it entered into a strategic partnership with the Belgian chocolate maker. Social media can be easily accessed and it is also a meeting point of todays internet audiences. The major possibility of directly accessing the clients without any third party interventions, social media advertising is costly other than any other sources of advertising. It also helps in the search engine and ranking of the website of the company. Analysis On analyzing the company and acknowledging its data, the social media presence shows that as everyone wants to gain the social media recognition for their companies, when it comes to social media presence Nestle uses the highly active social media networks, face book, twitter, Instagram, Google plus, Pinterest etc, there are a number of countless other websites too which are used by the company. It can be highly beneficial for a company to have a good social media presence but it is only possible after developing a large following and giving them what they actually want. Nestle also uses the social networks to socially make people aware about the products and services and also gain competitive advantages and public feedback and use these feedbacks to improve globally. Nestle has socially enlarged and built their consumer engagement center in 2011, the CEC of the Nestle monitors the extensive social media presence. One of most challenging activity of the company is, to analyze the enormous amount of information and data they have been receiving and interactions of the activities with the content they produce. Evaluation The production of the company is about 1,500 pieces of the unique content daily, and the fan following of Nestle on face book is about 210 million, they have also been managing the 2,000 brand profiles in different product categories and markets. Not only the monitoring of the social performance is a critical aspect of their analysis, but also they need the capabilities to ensure their performance of the social strategy against the competition. They also need to recognize the areas where to improve. The social media presence has certain advantages and has brought about a great change in the performance ofNestle and recognizes the competitors by getting an overview of the local companies and local brands (Morgan, 2016). Analysis It is very important to evaluate and plan about the company, connect with the audiences and get engaged socially through social media. It is very likely to know the consumers of your product and who is interested in the product or services. It is also very important to bring up with something unique product that would appeal to a certain audiences through social media by connecting with those who are associated with them directly or indirectly. The word of mouth is rightly a powerful thing that would connect with those who are connected with your target audience in the social media. Now day half of the people interact socially and communicate with each other and analyze the views of one another about a certain product or a brand. There are so many types of audiences that should be looked for: Current clients or customers Potential clients or customers Associates of current/potential clients or customers Journalists and editors Bloggers Suppliers Affiliate businesses Thought-leaders. Evaluation The company nestle has profiled with the certain social networking sites for connecting with people and make them aware with the certain types of products that they come up with. Nestle connects with the people on Twitter, face book, Google plus, LinkedIn and many more other social media networks to reach its audiences. The different efforts are made by the company to make Nestle a public oriented brand. Nestle makes sure that the products have been positioned in the most appropriate audience, it produces and makes advertising ideas that is creative, also ensures the product to be appealed to a wide range of the audiences (Cohen, 2015). Analysis The social media marketing is a form of internet marketing, it uses the various social media networking in order to achieve the products branding, goals and the marketing communications. It covers the various activities that involve the social sharing of the videos, contents, images for the marketing purposes as well as the social media advertising. The process of social media marketing gains traffic and attention using the social media sites for seeking, integrating and developing the marketing concepts, the social media marketing of Nestle is considered to be as one of the leading company in the food and beverage industry and strongly focus on the development and the implementation of the social media strategy. The company nestle uses the social media to drive the innovations marketing and the leadership potential, but very likely the company is focusing on to transforming its operations and the efficiency of the of the supply chain. The social media marketing dynamics of the company has been redefined and raise the effective social media practices. The analysis of the social media marketing of nestle focuses on the overall digital goals: The branding and targeting market strategies: there has been an analysis of the detailed key aspects of the advertising the products digitally and socially. The strategy also analyzes the ways the company implements its social networks and digital formats to achieve its goals(Research and markets, 2015). The channel strategy: the strategy provides an overview on how the social networks implemented initiates the capitalization the various capabilities of the channels (Research and markets, 2015). The format strategy: the analysis of the social media marketing of the Nestls capitalization of the gaming and videos and the interaction with the display formats to engage the customers (Research and markets, 2015). Evaluation The communication to all the consumers must reflect the good taste and social responsibility in relation to the standards. The advertising and the content of the advertising depicts the attitudes and must not be offensive so that it hurts the religious beliefs and ethics of any consumer, it should be in a way that may avoid the media contents that is bad in taste. The company should keep in mind that the products advertised should not misfortune others. The communication to the consumers should show the right consumption of the product in a safe way, it should not depict the people who are engaged in dangerous activities. It is against the principles of Nestle to sponsor or place advertising in the television, radio programmes, magazines or websites, who attracts the viewers by the offensive behavior and exploiting violence or sexual means (PRNewswire, 2014). Ethics, privacy and security The ethics of a company is that which examines the ethical principles, moral or ethical problems that may at times arise in a business environment. It applies to all the aspects of the companies and individuals conduct and also to the entire organization. The survey conducted by the charity Oxfam had scored ten food and beverage companies, out of which Nestle was marked the first rank for the security of the products produced by the company, but the scorecard in the Behinds the Brands magazine had made it clear that, the companies listed in the survey needs to show improvements. The privacy is considered to be one of the most troubling personal and professional issues, but it cannot be addressed without the consideration of the ethics. Evaluation The ethics of nestle aims to determine the fundamental purposes of the organization and also governs the decisions on the daily basis; it is also the internal code that governs the individuals conduct. The actual meaning of privacy in a company or industry cannot be concluded without the actual understanding of the ethical basis and individual motivations in concern of organization. Although considering the fact that Nestle was ranked the number one in the survey, the company itself said in a statement that the improvement of the food security worldwide requires a lot of efforts by all the shareholders (Nestle good food, good life, 2013). Analysis Social media technologies are the technologies that: Facilitate the social interactions, Facilitate the use of techniques by enabling the capability of communication. Use of internet, the mobile devices, the social media software examples are wikis, social networks, communication capabilities and the blogs (Galli, 2017). Technologies are the most important part of the research and development, there are number of engineers working in different fields in the research and development of Nestle, from processing technologies of the foods, to manufacturing of the new beverages and packaging of the products equipments with latest technologies are used. The Nespresso, Nescafe, BabyNesetc are some brands of the Nestle that use these latest techniques for production. Evaluation The food scientists technologies that enable the safe and nutritious foods and beverages keeping in mind the new techniques and methods. Nestle is developing and is a world leader in using the different technologies: Portion dispensing systems. On the eastern edge of the Jonesboro city, a Craighead technology park has been constructed for the frozen food plant on around 73 acres site. The plants in Nestle are customers- built refrigerated warehouses and distribution centre. In prior to the distribution of the Nestle finished products 20.000ft refrigerated warehouse provides temperature controlled storage warehouses (Nestle good food, good life, 2017). Conclusion The company nestle being the largest FMCG Company all around the globe uses its social media presence and audiences for interaction and also leads in the food and beverages industry with its products being highly consumer satisfactory. The report analyzes the social media presence, audiences, marketing, the ethics, privacy and security of the company with its target consumers The company has the annual sales of its brands that have been flourishing all around the globe about a billion, the company has been ranked as one of the leading company amongst the 2000 list of public companies. The social media concerns of nestle has been making it in public recognition and providing an open market opportunities for the company to advertise its products and make it a public iconic brand. The company ensures that the product are so positioned in such a way that; it may reach the right audience of the product, the social networks like face book, Google plus, twitter etc These networks are used by the company to connect with the target audience. The ethics, privacy and security of nestle are in concern with the consumers data privacy, protection and utilization of the information that has been provided by the consumer. The privacy and security of Nestle aims at determining the code of conduct to all of the individuals and the company as a whole. The social media technologies used by Nestle are; Upgraded The tools used are in consideration of the present day environment. Beneficial for the company Worth giving and useful. The large warehouses with the latest technologies for the storage of the finished products of Nestle is constructed, the latest technologies in the RD departments are used by the engineers to produce a number of variety products. Reference Cohen, H, 2015, Social Media Marketing 2015: Where Is Your Audience?, retrieved on 11th of January 2017, from https://heidicohen.com/social-media-marketing-2015/ Galli, A, 2017, Nestl the Digital Acceleration Team Take Social to the Next Level with Socialbakers, retrieved on 11th of January 2017, from https://www.socialbakers.com/social-media-content/client-stories/nestle/ Morgan, W, 2016, Social Marketing Definition, retrieved on 11th January 2017, from https://www.i-socialmarketing.org/index.php?option=com_contentview=articleid=84:social-marketing-definitioncatid=28:front-pagegclid=CLDK6u7TudECFdiGaAodFEYJDA#.WHcN21V97IW Nestle good food, good life, 2013, Nestls efforts on food security recognized by Oxfam, retrieved on 11th January 2017, from https://www.nestle.com/media/newsandfeatures/nestle-food-security-oxfam-behind-the-brands Nestle good food, good life, 2015, Privacy Notes, retrieved on 11th January 2017, from https://www.nestle.com/info/yourdata Nestle good food, good life, 2017, Food science and technology, retrieved on 11th January 2017, from https://www.nestle.com/randd/technologies PRNewswire, 2014, Nestle%s Effectiveness of Digital and Social Media Marketing Strategies and Innovations, retrieved on 11th January 2017, from https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nestles-effectiveness-of-digital-and-social-media-marketing-strategies-and-innovations-273846691.html Research and markets, 2015, Nestl Digital and Social Media Marketing Strategies - Format Strategy, retrieved on 11th January 2017, from https://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/3238998/nestl%C3%A9-digital-and-social-media-marketing#rela1 Research and markets, 2015, Nestl Digital and Social Media Marketing Strategies branding targeting strategy, retrieved on 11th January 2017, from https://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/3238995/nestl%C3%A9-digital-and-social-media-marketing#rela0 Research and markets, 2015, Nestl Digital and Social Media Marketing Strategies -Channel Strategy, retrieved on 11th January 2017, fromhttps://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/3238997/nestl%C3%A9-digital-and-social-media-marketing#rela0

Outsiders Essays - Films, The Outsiders, Greaser, Grease, Plot

Outsiders In this book analysis, about the book "The Outsiders" by S. E. Hinton I will discuss character and plot development, as well as the setting, the author's style and my opinions about the book. In this part of the analysis I will give some information about the subjects of the book, and about the author. The author wrote the story when she was just 16 years old, in the 1950s. The book was successful, and it was sold, and still being sold, in many copies as a young adults novel. There was a movie made about it, and today there are still many schools that use this book in junior high and high schools for English classes. There were plays made about the book too. The Outsiders is about a gang. They live in a city in Oklahoma. Ponyboy Curtis, a 14 year old greaser, tells the story. Other characters include Sodapop and Darry, Ponyboy's brothers, Johnny, Dallas, and Two- Bit, that were also gang members and Ponyboy's friends. This story deals with two forms of social classes: the socs, the rich kids, and the greasers, the poor kids. The socs go around looking for trouble and greasers to beat up, and then the greasers are blamed for it, because they are poor and cannot affect the authorities. I hope you would enjoy and learn something about the book from reading this analysis. Plot Development The plot development in the book, "The Outsiders" by S.E. Hinton, was easy to follow. In this part of the book analysis I will give some more details about the plot development. There were no hooks or hurdles in the beginning of the book, the first sentence starts right away with the plot?without any forewords. This is the beginning of the first sentence: "When I stepped out into the bright sunlight from the darkness of the movie house..." (page 9). As you can see, it goes straight to the point without any prologues or any kind of introduction. The plot development in the middle of the story was sensible and easy to understand. It was clear and simple, and the events have occurred in a reasonable order. The ending of the story was a bit expected. I anticipated the death of Johnny because a broken neck usually means death. The death of Dally was not as predictable as Johnny's death because it was said that: "He was tougher than the rest of us?tougher, colder, meaner." (page 19). I did not think that such a tough person would get himself killed because of a death of a friend, although it was said a short time before the death of Dally that: "Johnny was the only thing Dally loved." (page 160). The climaxes at the end of the story were the deaths of Johnny and Dally. Here are quotations about the deaths: Johnny's death: "The pillow seemed to sink a little, and Johnny died." (page 157). Dally's death: "He was jerked half around by the impact of the bullets, then slowly crumpled with a look of grim triumph on his face. He was dead before he hit the ground." (page 162). To conclude I can say that the plot development was simple and easy to understand and to follow. The author organized it in a way that fits the actual content of the plot. Character Development The characters in the book, "The Outsiders" by S.E. Hinton, were not very heroic?they were just humans?it was easy to believe that this is the way they should be. The characters in the plot give the reader a feeling this can be a true story. The author has created the personality of the characters through the descriptions of Ponyboy?the narrator?and through their actions. Following are some examples of these methods of getting familiar with a character. Here is an example for a description of Ponyboy: "Steve Randle was seventeen, tall and lean, with thick greasy hair he kept combed in complicated swirls. He was cocky, smart, and Soda's best buddy since grade school. Steve's specialty was cars..." (page 17). The reader can find this kind of descriptions almost everywhere in the story, but especially in the beginning. I think the author put them there because the reader does not know the characters, and he needs to get familiar with them. The descriptions make the reader know the characters better and understand their actions. A good example of an action that was taken and suggested something about a character is the way Dally was killed. He wanted the

Where to Buy Saltpeter or Potassium Nitrate

Where to Buy Saltpeter or Potassium Nitrate You used to be able to buy potassium nitrate as saltpeter in many garden supply stores. While it is difficult to find saltpeter, you can still purchase potassium nitrate, which is used to make smoke bombs and certain other fireworks. Stores That Sell Potassium Nitrate One of the most common sources of pure potassium nitrate is stump remover. In the United States, you can find it at Lowes or Home Depot, among other places. Look for the Spectracide brand in those stores near the insecticides. Be sure to check the label to make certain potassium nitrate is the first (and preferably only) ingredient. If you cant find potassium nitrate  at a store in your area, you can  order it online at Amazon, plus its a chemical you can make it yourself. Make Potassium Nitrate Even if you cant find potassium nitrate, you can make it. All you need is a cold pack that lists potassium nitrate as an ingredient and salt substitute that lists potassium chloride as the only ingredient. It has to be salt substitute and not lite salt, because the latter also contains sodium chloride. If you use lite salt, youll end up with a mixture of sodium nitrate and potassium nitrate, which might be useful for your purpose, but isnt the same as pure potassium nitrate and will burn yellow rather than purple. You need; 40 grams ammonium nitrate from the cold pack37 grams potassium chloride from the salt substitute100 milliliters water Dissolve the ammonium nitrate in the water.Filter the solution to remove any undissolved matter. You can use a coffee filter or a paper towel.Add the potassium chloride to the liquid and gently heat the mixture to dissolve the salt. Dont boil it.Filter the solution to remove solids.Chill the liquid on ice or in the freezer. The potassium chloride will freeze out as crystals, leaving ammonium chloride in solution.Pour off the liquid and let the crystals dry. This is your potassium nitrate. You could also save the ammonium chloride, too. If you want the ammonium chloride, let the water evaporate and recover the solid material. The reaction exchanges the ions in the compounds: NH4NO3   KCl → KNO3   NH4Cl The products can be separated because they have different solubilities. As you chill the mixture, potassium nitrate readily solidifies. Ammonium chloride is more soluble, so it remains in solution. Even though the solution is on ice or in the freezer, it wont freeze because the particles cause freezing point depression of the water. This is why these chemicals can be used to de-ice roads! Keep in mind, the potassium nitrate you get from the reaction wont be reagent-grade purity. However, it should be pure enough for most chemistry experiments and fireworks projects.

A Membrane-Enclosed Nucleus Essay Example for Free

A Membrane-Enclosed Nucleus Essay ? They are very small–individually not more than one single cell–however there are normally millions of them together, for they can multiply really fast. A number of bacteria cause disease, these are called pathogenic bacteria. Fortunately our immune system knows how to deal with them. However not all bacteria are ‘bad guys’. We need bacteria to stay alive. Bacteria are prokaryotes (single cells that do not contain a nucleus). Microbiology is the study of prokaryotes, eukaryotes and viruses. Did you know that bacteria can get sick too. Bacteriophages are able to attach themselves to certain types of bacteria and inject their genetic material in the bacterial cell. Then, using the bacterial machinery, the DNA multiplies itself. Eventually from this multiplied genetic information so many new bacteriophages are formed that the cell bursts. The offspring of the bacteriophage has destroyed its bacterial host, and in so doing millions of new bacteriophages are released. These can attach themselves to new bacteria to complete their life cycle. With our immune system we defend ourselves against a bacterial infection. Antibiotics can help us win the battle. When you report a bacterial infection to your physician, you are probably prescribed antibiotics. The term ‘antibiotics’ (literally ‘against living things’) is mainly used for substances that kill or prevent the growth of bacteria, as opposed to antiviral or antifungal substances. Antibiotics are not active against viral infections. Antibiotics are extremely important in medicine, but unfortunately bacteria can become resistant to them. Antibiotics have probably been around nearly as long as microorganisms have, and nature has provided bacteria with means to overcome their action. Resistance to antibiotics can become problematic, for it makes these powerful medicines completely ineffective. Some bacteria have learned to deal with practically all types of antibiotics we have available, and this can cause real problems in health institutions. Strict quarantine measures are needed to prevent the spread of such superbugs for we have little weapons left against them. A Membrane-Enclosed Nucleus. (2018, Nov 06).

Answer the questions in Bold Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 3

Answer the questions in Bold - Essay Example Clinicians can gain recognition for quality care knowledge of conditions like diabetes, heart disease, and stroke. They may also take obtain acknowledgement of quality in other aspects of the profession, such as providing patient-centered, up-to-date practice. Employers can receive accreditation for quality health plan coverage, and a variety of care organizations (HMOs, diabetes care, promotion) can received extensive evaluations that are tailored to the quality standards associated with each area of the medical industry (Pawlson, & Lee, 2010). Patients/consumers are necessarily impacted by virtually every service provided by the NCQA, being the end users of the entire profession. While there are understandably no accreditation or recognition programs available for the public, there are materials and projects that are directly aimed at the general population. The NCQA works directly with the government at both state and federal levels to work toward providing the highest quality of health services throughout the country. In addition, there are a variety of educational resources available through the association that serves to inform the public of the many challenges and improvements associated with the delivery of health care. As should be expected from any organization concerned with quality, the NCQA is regularly and repeatedly evaluated. They use a standard formula of measurement, analysis, improvement, and continual repetition. This system is important for both regulation within the organization, and in the development of quality assurance programs. The measurements used to judge their own performance comes from a variety of national health care indicators. Given the scope of the NCQA, data from throughout the nation is valuable in the assessment process, and may come from a number of sources. The organization conducts its own

THE DIET PILLS Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

THE DIET PILLS - Essay Example On the other hand, diet pills are much cheaper than invasive operations such as liposuction and gastric bypass, which cost more than $2000. Diet pills go from $25 a month above. If it’s about safety, the safest way to go as exercise and diet. Liposuction has its own horror stories of pain and permanent damage. Diet pills have been found to cause long-term side-effects and even death in some countries. Currently, only a few pills are FDA approved and this includes Orlistat, Sibutramine and other appetite suppressants. Finally, we all know that exercise and a right diet is still the most recommended way to lose weight but the results of this is subjective. Liposuction is a sure way to take out the fat obviously and is the perhaps the most effective. Studies show that it is effective only at a marginal to moderate rate of weight loss. Whatever you choose as your weight loss scheme, don’t just go for results. Be smart and do research. Always think about its value for money, the possible side effect and how well it fits your lifestyle. Consumer Reports. Are diet pills effective? n.d. Web. September 29, 2011http://www.consumerreports.org/health/healthy-living/diet-nutrition/diets-dieting/diet-pill-effective-fat-chance-1-07/overview/0701_diet-pill-effective-fat-chance.htm Newell, Lori. â€Å"Why Exercise is Healthier Than Weight Loss pills†. Live Strong.com. September 27, 2010. Web. September 29, 2011

Best High School Experience Essay Example for Free

Best High School Experience Essay My best high school experience would be graduating. Me graduation was the highlight of my teenage life. I was happy to be leaving high school and beginning a new chapter in my life. I was excited to step into adulthood and be independent. Of course I mentally prepared myself for what was to come and I was more than prepared for all the challenges I would face with being on my own and starting college. This would be my first year in college and I can say that everything has been going pretty good. There has been some up and downs along this new journey of mine, but I really can’t complain. I am on the road to success and I know my parents couldn’t be any happier. I hope to someday accomplish my dream of becoming a pediatrician and working with children. I feel proud of myself for coming this for and I’m glad to say that this is just the beginning. All of this wouldn’t have been possible if I wouldn’t have graduated high school so graduating high school is by far my best experience.

Government Essay -- Governmental Politcs Political Essays

Government Government! You can't live with it! You can't live without it! It is the "common cold" that everyone dreads. The American Heritage College Dictionary, Third Edition defines government as, "The exercise of authority in a political unit in order to control and administer public policy." Webster's Desk Dictionary of the English Language defines government as, "The political direction and control exercised over a nation, state, community, etc." The common individual might define government as the root of all evil. The thing about government is that no one stops to think about how government came about. Government falls into two categories; monarchy or a republic. A monarchy is a form of government that is always headed by a monarch (king, queen, emperor, etc.) These monarchs develop this status most often by heredity. Monarchies are divided into three different magnitudes; limited, constitutional, and absolute. A limited monarchy is where the sovereign's powers are limited to ceremonial events. They do not interfere with politics. Most countries that have a limited monarchy have a Prime Minister that takes care of the political business. An example of a limited monarchy is in the United Kingdom. Queen Elizabeth II is the monarch. She is the one that holds all the ceremonies, cuts ribbons, and kisses babies. Prime Minister John Major has all political responsibilities. A constitutional monarchy is when the monarch's power is defined in the constitution of that country. The king has the ability to veto bills, but is just like any other citizen of that country. He is not above the law. An example of this type of monarchy is Sweden, or Norway. The last type of monarchy is an absolute monarchy. This monarch ha... ... as a result of conquest and force. Karl Marx was a tremendous supporter of the force theory. He believed that government is genuinely bad and people should try to revolt. He predicted that government would eventually vanquish and the world would be completely government free. Obviously Marx's prediction did not happen. One particular event that occurred was the Industrial Revolution. More jobs resulted from the industrial revolution giving people fewer reasons to revolt. All theories could apply to our government. What it comes down to is that we have a government, we are stuck with a government, therefore we should do our best to make our government the best that it can be. There are many aspects to a government. One should take a good look at other countries and be thankful for the type we have. Government may be the root of evil, but it is a necessary evil.

My life Essay

1.My name is miyuru niwan hettige.I am 28 years old. I was born in Badulla on 10,September,1984.I am the middle in my family. My parents were very happy when i was born. I have one brother and one sister. Brother is elder than me and sister is younger than me. My father was Clark and mother was a teacher. When we were In Monaragala we rented a house. After three years we came to my mother’s home town at Haputhale and built a house there. Since that time we are living In Haputhale. 2.I have done my primary education in B/ Weerakoongama vidyalaya .It is situated in Haldummulla divisional secretariat area. During that period I was very naughty and fight with others. But each term test I was became 1st. In 1995 I was passed year 5 scholarship and I obtain 166 marks as highest marks obtain within the zonal. Then I entered to the Nalanda college Colombo for my secondary education. That is the period which changed my life. Nalanda collage is one of main Buddhist school in Sri Lanka. I was boarded at school’s hostel due to long distance from my home place. At the hostel I learnt how mange myself and. Earlier it was bit harder to adapt to environment and to away from my mother, father, and sister. when I entered to the Nalanda brother also a student there. Because he also entered to the Nalanda College on previous reason of got through from the year 5 scholarships. However I have done lot of extra activities there. I was member of school Hockey and Football team. Same time I was member and vice president of science society. I have done my O/L exam in year 2000 and I got 7 distinction and 3 credit passes. I have done my A/L examination in year 2003 and I got 1 B pass and 02 C passes. Then I followed a driving course in a learner’s school and obtained driving license. At the same time I applied many applications for various occupations. But Luckily I had a chance to join to Sri Lanka Navy. 3.1st February 2005 was the one of unforgettable day of my life. At that day I joined to Sri Lanka navy as officer cadet. There were 40 officer cadets joined with me to the intake of 42.then we were trained for lead the future war. We underwent lot of hard training at that time period. we got a opportunity to on board INS Tharangani we was able to sail from Colombo to Trincimalee. It was five days voyage and we got lots of experience. I was commissioned on 27 April 2007 as Acting sub Lieutenant. During my training period I was 7th in position. 4.After my commissioning I got my 1st appointment as additional officer onboard SLNS Shakthi ship and complete 8 months there .Then I went to India for my sub lieutenant technical course. I had good experience as well as nice chance to interact with foreign officers and share knowledge with them during that period I went to various parts in India for learn various technical subjects. I secured 6th place in academics among 20 other officers. Same time I visited lot of interesting places in India such as Goa city Hyderabad city, saw some waterfall, ect. 5.In 2008 I returned to Sri Lanka and took over appointment as 3rd in command onboard fast attack craft P437. I had a many battle experience during that period. Because final phase of humanitarian operation going on that time. I was serve fast attack craft until end of the war. then I promoted as Lieutenant on 2009and appointed as 2nd in command onboard fast attack. 6.Craft P417, after that I served onboard ship A523 ,ex princes crishsntha which is took over from LTTE. then I obtained my degree certificate from Kelaniya university, as bachelor of Naval studies. It was a result of 3 year training programme including foreign training. It was the highest education certificate I obtained in my career. 7.After complete 4 year service in various crafts and ships I took over my 1st shore appointment which is additional officer SLNS Elara. It is the oldest shore establish in northern peninsula which controlled by Sri Lanka Navy. Firstly I was appointed as officer in charge of sailors advance training school. In addition I have to look after boat officer duties also.SLNS Elara is the one of nice base I ever served. I think it is honour to serve that kind of environment in northern part of Sri Lanka. Other thing is one of famous Buddhist temple situated In that area as well as all the assistance given by this base. I had very good experience during that period. Finally I was appointed as manager of naval sewing centre in Delft Island. It is staff officer appointment and I was under commander northern naval area. It also new experience for me and I have to work with civil girls who are in Delft Island. Normally this type of appointment holds by logistic officers. But as a new concept naval head quarters has decided to appoint executive officers for this appointment. I learned about garment field, How to prepare salary, EPF, ETF, how to deal with cheque, who to prepare account, etc. When I turn back it was many memorable incidents in my life. I ‘ill never forget that day I enter to Nalanda collage.It was turning point of my life. The day I joined Sri Lanka Navy is also memorable for my life. The day that Elam war has ended after 32 years also, one ofthe unforgettable day of my life. I feel proud about my self being part of that humanitarian operation. My father’s expired day was the worst ever experience I ever had. Changed entire my life after that incident. Still painful for remind that incident. Because hero of my life was my beloved father. At that period he was appointed as confidential secretary of examination department. I played many sports during my school period and among them cricket is the favorite game as well as watch cricket is one of my hobby. Other than that I like to visit all over the world. Im still single and expecting to Marie near future.

The Twilight Saga 4: Breaking Dawn 13. Good Thing I’ve Got A Strong Stomach

13. Good Thing I've Got A Strong Stomach Carlisle and Rosalie were off in a flash, darting upstairs. I could hear them debating whether they should warm it up for her. Ugh. i wondered what all house-of-horrors stuff they kept around here. Fridge full of blood, check. What else? Torture chamber? Coffin room? Edward stayed, holding Bella's hand. His face was dead again. He didn't seem to have the energy to keep up even that little hint of hope he'd had before. They stared into each other's eyes, but not in a gooey way. It was like they were having a conversation. Kind of reminded me of Sam and Emily. No, it wasn't gooey, but that only made it harder to watch. I knew what it was like for Leah, having to see that all the time. Having to hear it in Sam's head. Of course we all felt bad for her, we weren't monsters – in that sense, anyway. But I guess we'd blamed her for how she handled it. Lashing out at everyone, trying to make us all as miserable as she was. I would never blame her again. How could anyone help spreading this kind of misery around? How could anyone not try to ease some of the burden by shoving a little piece of it off on someone else? And if it meant that I had to have a pack, how could I blame her for taking my freedom? I would do the same. If there was a way to escape this pain, I'd take it, too. Rosalie darted downstairs after a second, flying through the room like a sharp breeze, stirring up the burning smell. She stopped inside the kitchen, and I heard the creak of a cupboard door. â€Å"Note ear, Rosalie,† Edward murmured. He rolled his eyes. Bella looked curious, but Edward just shook his head at her. Rosalie blew back through the room and disappeared again. â€Å"This was your idea?† Bella whispered, her voice rough as she strained to make it loud enough for me to hear. Forgetting that I could hear just fine. I kind of liked how, a lot of the time, she seemed to forget that I wasn't completely human. I moved closer, so that she wouldn't have to work so hard. â€Å"Don't blame me for this one. Your vampire was just picking snide comments out of my head.† She smiled a little. â€Å"I didn't expect to see you again.† â€Å"Yeah, me, either,† I said. It felt weird just standing here, but the vampires had shoved all the furniture out of the way for the medical setup. I imagined that it didn't bother them – sitting or standing didn't make much difference when you were stone. Wouldn't bother me much, either, except that I was so exhausted. â€Å"Edward told me what you had to do. I'm sorry.† â€Å"S'okay. It was probably only a matter of time till I snapped over something Sam wanted me to do,† I lied. â€Å"And Seth,† she whispered. â€Å"He's actually happy to help.† â€Å"I hate causing you trouble.† I laughed once – more a bark than a laugh. She breathed a faint sigh. â€Å"I guess that's nothing new, is it?† â€Å"No, not really.† â€Å"You don't have to stay and watch this,† she said, barely mouthing the words. I could leave. It was probably a good idea. But if I did, with the way she looked right now, I could be missing the last fifteen minutes of her life. â€Å"I don't really have anywhere else to go,† I told her, trying to keep the emotion out of my voice. â€Å"The wolf thing is a lot less appealing since Leah joined up.† â€Å"Leah?† she gasped. â€Å"You didn't tell her?† I asked Edward. He just shrugged without moving his eyes from her face. I could see it wasn't very exciting news to him, not something worth sharing with the more important events that were going down. Bella didn't take it so lightly. It looked like it was bad news to her. â€Å"Why?† she breathed. I didn't want to get into the whole novel-length version. â€Å"To keep an eye on Seth.† â€Å"But Leah hates us,† she whispered. Us.Nice. I could see that she was afraid, though. â€Å"Leah's not going to bug anyone.† But me. â€Å"She's in my pack† – I grimaced at the words – â€Å"so she follows my lead.† Ugh. Bella didn't look convinced. â€Å"You're scared of Leah, but you're best buds with the psychopath blonde?† There was a low hiss from the second floor. Cool, she'd heard me. Bella frowned at me. â€Å"Don't. Rose†¦ understands.† â€Å"Yeah,† i grunted. â€Å"She understands that you're gonna die and she doesn't care, s'long as she gets her mutant spawn out of the deal.† â€Å"Stop being a jerk, Jacob,† she whispered. She looked too weak to get mad at. I tried to smile instead. â€Å"You say that like it's possible.† Bella tried not to smile back for a second, but she couldn't help it in the end; her chalky lips pulled up at the corners. And then Carlisle and the psycho in question were there. Carlisle had a white plastic cup in his hand – the kind with a lid and a bendy straw. Oh – not clear,now I got it. Edward didn't want Bella to have to think about what she was doing any more than necessary. You couldn't see what was in the cup at all. But I could smell it. Carlisle hesitated, the hand with the cup half-extended. Bella eyed it, looking scared again. â€Å"We could try another method,† Carlisle said quietly. â€Å"No,† Bella whispered. â€Å"No,111 try this first. We don't have time†¦.† At first I thought she'd finally gotten a clue and was worried about herself, but then her hand fluttered feebly against her stomach. Bellareached out and took the cup from him. Her hand shook a little, and I could hear the sloshing from inside. She tried to prop herself up on one elbow, but she could barely lift her head. A whisper of heat brushed down my spine as I saw how frail she'd gotten in less than a day. Rosalie put her arm under Bella's shoulders, supporting her head, too, like you did with a newborn. Blondie was all about the babies. â€Å"Thanks,† Bella whispered. Her eyes flickered around at us. Still aware enough to feel self-conscious. If she wasn't so drained, I'd bet she'd've blushed. â€Å"Don't mind them,† Rosalie murmured. It made me feel awkward. I should've left when Bella'd offered the chance. I didn't belong here, being part of this. I thought about ducking out, but then I realized a move like that would only make this worse for Bella – make it harder for her to go through with it. She'd figure I was too disgusted to stay. Which was almost true. Still. While I wasn't going to claim responsibility for this idea, I didn't want to jinx it, either. Bella lifted the cup to her face and sniffed at the end of the straw. She flinched, and then made a face. â€Å"Bella, sweetheart, we can find an easier way,† Edward said, holding his hand out for the cup. â€Å"Plug your nose,† Rosalie suggested. She glared at Edward's hand like she might take a snap at it. I wished she would. I bet Edward wouldn't take that sitting down, and I'd love to see Blondie lose a limb. â€Å"No, that's not it. It's just that it – â€Å"Bella sucked in a deep breath. â€Å"It smells good,† she admitted in a tiny voice. I swallowed hard, fighting to keep the disgust off my face. â€Å"That's a good thing,† Rosalie told Bella eagerly. â€Å"That means we're on the right track. Give it a try.† Given Blondie's new expression, I was surprised she didn't break into a touchdown dance. Bella shoved the straw between her lips, squeezed her eyes shut, and wrinkled her nose. I could hear the blood slopping around in the cup again as her hand shook. She sipped at it for a second, and then moaned quietly with her eyes still closed. Edward and I stepped forward at the same time. He touched her face. I clenched my hands behind my back. â€Å"Bella, love – â€Å" Tm okay,† she whispered. She opened her eyes and stared up at him. Her expression was†¦ apologetic. Pleading. Scared. â€Å"It tastes good, too.† Acid churned in my stomach, threatening to overflow. I ground my teeth together. â€Å"That's good,† Blondie repeated, still jazzed. â€Å"A good sign.† Edward just pressed his hand to her cheek, curling his fingers around the shape of her fragile bones. Bella sighed and put her lips to the straw again. She took a real pull this time. The action wasn't as weak as everything else about her. Like some instinct was taking over. â€Å"How's your stomach? Do you feel nauseated?† Carlisle asked. Bella shook her head. â€Å"No, I don't feel sick,† she whispered. â€Å"There's a first, eh?† Rosalie beamed. â€Å"Excellent.† â€Å"I think it's a bit early for that, Rose,† Carlisle murmured. Bella gulped another mouthful of blood. Then she flashed a look at Edward. â€Å"Does this screw my total?† she whispered. â€Å"Or do we start counting after I'm a vampire?† â€Å"No one is counting, Bella. In any case, no one died for this.† He smiled a lifeless smile. â€Å"Your record is still clean.† They'd lost me. â€Å"I'll explain later,† Edward said, so low the words were just a breath. â€Å"What?† Bella whispered. â€Å"Just talking to myself,† he lied smoothly. If he succeeded with this, if Bella lived, Edward wasn't going to be able to get away with so much when her senses were as sharp as his. He'd have to work on the honesty thing. Edward's lips twitched, fighting a smile. Bella chugged a few more ounces, staring past us toward the window. Probably pretending we weren't here. Or maybe just me. No one else in this group would be disgusted by what she was doing. Just the opposite – they were probably having a tough time not ripping the cup away from her. Edward rolled his eyes. Jeez, how did anyone stand living with him? It was really too bad he couldn't hear Bella's thoughts. Then he'd annoy the crap out of her, too, and she'd get tired of him. Edward chuckled once. Bella's eyes flicked to him immediately, and she half-smiled at the humor in his face. I would guess that wasn't something she'd seen in a while. â€Å"Something funny?† she breathed. â€Å"Jacob,† he answered. She looked over with another weary smile for me. â€Å"Jake's a crack-up,† she agreed. Great, now I was the court jester. â€Å"Bada bing† I mumbled in weak rim-shot impression. She smiled again, and then took another swig from the cup. I flinched when the straw pulled at empty air, making a loud sucking sound. â€Å"I did it,† she said, sounding pleased. Her voice was clearer – rough, but not a whisper for the first time today. â€Å"If I keep this down, Carlisle, will you take the needles out of me?† â€Å"As soon as possible,† he promised. â€Å"Honestly, they aren't doing that much good where they are.† Rosalie patted Bella's forehead, and they exchanged a hopeful glance. And anyone could see it – the cup full of human blood had made an immediate difference. Her color was returning – there was a tiny hint of pink in her waxy cheeks. Already she didn't seem to need Rosalie's support so much anymore. Her breathing was easier, and I would swear her heartbeat was stronger, more even. Everything accelerated. That ghost of hope in Edward's eyes had turned into the real thing. â€Å"Would you like more?† Rosalie pressed. Bella's shoulders slumped. Edward flashed a glare at Rosalie before he spoke to Bella. â€Å"You don't have to drink more right away.† â€Å"Yeah, I know. But†¦ I want to† she admitted glumly. Rosalie pulled her thin, sharp fingers through Bella's lank hair. â€Å"You don't need to be embarrassed about that, Bella. Your body has cravings. We all understand that.† Her tone was soothing at first, but then she added harshly, â€Å"Anyone who doesn't understand shouldn't be here.† Meant for me, obviously, but I wasn't going to let Blondie get to me. I was glad Bella felt better. So what if the means grossed me out? It wasn't like I'd said anything. Carlisle took the cup from Bella's hand. â€Å"I'll be right back.† Bella stared at me while he disappeared. â€Å"Jake, you look awful,† she croaked. â€Å"Look who's talking.† â€Å"Seriously – when's the last time you slept?† I thought about that for a second. â€Å"Huh. I'm not actually sure.† â€Å"Aw, Jake. Now I'm messing with your health, too. Don't be stupid.† I gritted my teeth. She was allowed to kill herself for a monster, but I wasn't allowed to miss a few nights' sleep to watch her do it? â€Å"Get some rest, please,† she went on. â€Å"There're a few beds upstairs – you're welcome to any of them.† The look on Rosalie's face made it clear that I wasn't welcome to one of them. It made me wonder what Sleepless Beauty needed a bed for anyway. Was she that possessive of her props? â€Å"Thanks, Bells, but I'd rather sleep on the ground. Away from the stench, you know.† She grimaced. â€Å"Right.† Carlisle was back then, and Bella reached out for the blood, absentminded, like she was thinking of something else. With the same distracted expression, she started sucking it down. She really was looking better. She pulled herself forward, being careful of the tubes, and scooted into a sitting position. Rosalie hovered, her hands ready to catch Bella if she sagged. But Bella didn't need her. Taking deep breaths in between swallows, Bella finished the second cup quickly. â€Å"How do you feel now?† Carlisle asked. â€Å"Not sick. Sort of hungry†¦ only I'm not sure if I'm hungry or thirsty, you know?† â€Å"Carlisle, just look at her,† Rosalie murmured, so smug she should have canary feathers on her lips. â€Å"This is obviously what her body wants. She should drink more.† â€Å"She's still human, Rosalie. She needs food, too. Let's give her a little while to see how this affects her, and then maybe we can try some food again. Does anything sound particularly good to you, Bella?† â€Å"Eggs,† she said immediately, and then she exchanged a look and a smile with Edward. His smile was brittle, but there was more life on his face than before. I blinked then, and almost forgot how to open my eyes again. â€Å"Jacob,† Edward murmured. â€Å"You really should sleep. As Bella said, you're certainly welcome to the accommodations here, though you'd probably be more comfortable outside. Don't worry about anything – I promise 111 find you if there's a need.† â€Å"Sure, sure,† I mumbled. Now that it appeared Bella had a few more hours, I could escape. Go curl up under a tree somewhere†¦. Far enough away that the smell couldn't reach me. The bloodsucker would wake me up if something went wrong. He owed me. â€Å"I do,† Edward agreed. I nodded and then put my hand on Bella's. Hers was icy cold. â€Å"Feel better,† I said. â€Å"Thanks, Jacob.† She turned her hand over and squeezed mine. I felt the thin band of her wedding ring riding loose on her skinny finger. â€Å"Get her a blanket or something,† I muttered as I turned for the door. Before I made it, two howls pierced the still morning air. There was no mistaking the urgency of the tone. No misunderstanding this time. â€Å"Dammit,† I snarled, and I threw myself through the door. I hurled my body off the porch, letting the fire rip me apart midair. There was a sharp tearing sound as my shorts shredded. Crap. Those were the only clothes I had. Didn't matter now. I landed on paws and took off toward the west. What is it?I shouted in my head. Incoming,Seth answered. At least three. Did they split up? I'm running the line back to Seth at the speed of lightLeah promised. I could feel the air huffing through her lungs as she pushed herself to an incredible velocity. The forest whipped around her. So far, no other point of attack. Seth, donot challenge them. Wait forme. They're slowing. Ugh – its sooff not being able to hear them. I think†¦ What? I think they've stopped. Waiting for the rest of the pack? Shh. Feel that? I absorbed his impressions. The faint, soundless shimmer in the air. Someone's phasing? Feels like it,Seth agreed. Leah flew into the small open space where Seth waited. She raked her claws into the dirt, spinning out like a race car. Got your back, bro. They're coming,Seth said nervously. Slow. Walking. Almost there,I told them. I tried to fly like Leah. It felt horrible being separated from Seth and Leah with potential danger closer to their end than mine. Wrong. I should be with them, between them and whatever was coming. Look who's getting all paternal,Leah thought wryly. Head in the game, Leah. Four,Seth decided. Kid had good ears. Three wolves, one man. I made the little clearing then, moving immediately to the point. Seth sighed with relief and then straightened up, already in place at my right shoulder. Leah fell in on my left with a little less enthusiasm. So now I rank under Seth,she grumbled to herself. First come, first served,Seth thought smugly. ‘Sides, you were never an Alpha's Third before. Still an upgrade. Under my baby brother is not an upgrade. Shh!I complained. don't care where you stand. Shut up and get ready. They came into view a few seconds later, walking, as Seth had thought. Jared in the front, human, hands up. Paul and Quil and Collin on four legs behind him. There was no aggression in their postures. They hung back behind Jared, ears up, alert but calm. But†¦ it was weird that Sam would send Collin rather than Embry. That wasn't what I would do if I were sending a diplomacy party into enemy territory. I wouldn't send a kid. I'd send the experienced fighter. A diversion?Leah thought. Were Sam, Embry, and Brady making a move alone? That didn't seem likely. Want me to check? I can run the line and be back in two minutes. Should I warn the Cullens?Seth wondered. What if the point was to divide us?I asked. The Cullens know something's up. They're ready. Sam wouldn't be so stupid†¦,Leah whispered, fear jagged in her mind. She was imagining Sam attacking the Cullens with only the two others beside him. No, he wouldn't,I assured her, though I felt a little sick at the image in her head, too. All the while, Jared and the three wolves stared at us, waiting. It was eerie not to hear what Quil and Paul and Collin were saying to one another. Their expressions were blank – unreadable. Jared cleared his throat, and then he nodded to me. â€Å"White flag of truce, Jake. We're here to talk.† Think it's true?Seth asked. Makes sense, but†¦ Yeah,Leah agreed. But. We didn't relax. Jared frowned. â€Å"It would be easier to talk if I could hear you, too.† I stared him down. I wasn't going to phase back until I felt better about this situation. Until it made sense. Why Collin? That was the part that had me most worried. â€Å"Okay. I guess I'll just talk, then,† Jared said. â€Å"Jake, we want you to come back.† Quil let out a soft whine behind him. Seconding the statement. â€Å"You've torn our family apart. It's not meant to be this way.† I wasn't exactly in disagreement with that, but it was hardly the point. There were a few unresolved differences of opinion between me and Sam at the moment. â€Å"We know that you feel†¦ strongly about the situation with the Cullens. We know that's a problem. But this is an overreaction.† Seth growled. Overreaction? And attacking our allies without warning isn't? Seth, you ever heard of a poker face? Cool it. Sorry. Jared's eyes flickered to Seth and back to me. â€Å"Sam is willing to take this slowly, Jacob. He's calmed down, talked to the other Elders. They've decided that immediate action is in no one's best interest at this point.† Translation: They've already lost the element of surprise,Leah thought. It was weird how distinct our joint thinking was. The pack was already Sam's pack, was already â€Å"them† to us. Something outside and other. It was especially weird to have Leah thinking that way – to have her be a solid part of the â€Å"us.† â€Å"Billy and Sue agree with you, Jacob, that we can wait for Bella†¦ to be separated from the problem. Killing her is not something any of us feel comfortable with.† Though I'd just given Seth crap for it, I couldn't hold back a small snarl of my own. So they didn't quite feel comfortablewith murder, huh? Jared raised his hands again. â€Å"Easy, Jake. You know what I mean. The point is, we're going to wait and reassess the situation. Decide later if there's a problem with the†¦ thing.† Ha,Leah thought. What a load. You don't buy it? I know what they're thinking, Jake. WhatSam's thinking. They're betting on Bella dying anyway. And then they figure you'll be so mad. . . That I'll lead the attack myself.My ears pressed against my skull. What Leah was guessing sounded pretty spot-on. And very possible, too. When†¦ if that thing killed Bella, it was going to be easy to forget how I felt about Carlisle's family right now. They would probably look like enemies – like no more than bloodsucking leeches – to me all over again. I'll remind you,Seth whispered. know you will, kid. Question is whether I'll listen to you. â€Å"Jake?† Jared asked. I huffed a sigh. Leah, make a circuit – just to be sure. I'm going to have to talk to him, and I want to bepositive there isn't anything else going on while I'm phased. Give me a break, Jacob. You can phase in front of me. Despite my best efforts, I've seen you naked before – doesn't do much forme, so no worries. I'm not trying to protect the innocence of your eyes, I'm trying to protect our backs. Get out of here. Leah snorted once and then launched herself into the forest. I could hear her claws cutting into the soil, pushing her faster. Nudity was an inconvenient but unavoidable part of pack life. We'd all thought nothing of it before Leah came along. Then it got awkward. Leah had average control when it came to her temper – it took her the usual length of time to stop exploding out of her clothes every time she got pissed. We'd all caught a glimpse. And it wasn't like she wasn't worth looking at; it was just that it was so not worth it when she caught you thinking about it later. Jared and the others were staring at the place where she'd disappeared into the brush with wary expressions. â€Å"Where's she going?† Jared asked. I ignored him, closing my eyes and pulling myself together again. It felt like the air was trembling around me, shaking out from me in small waves. I lifted myself up on my hind legs, catching the moment just right so that I was fully upright as I shimmered down into my human self. â€Å"Oh,† Jared said. â€Å"Hey, Jake.† â€Å"Hey, Jared.† â€Å"Thanks for talking to me.† â€Å"Yeah.† â€Å"We want you to come back, man.† Quil whined again. â€Å"I don't know if it's that easy, Jared.† â€Å"Come home,† he said, leaning forward. Pleading. â€Å"We can sort this out. You don't belong here. Let Seth and Leah come home, too.† I laughed. â€Å"Right. Like I haven't been begging them to do that from hour one.† Seth snorted behind me. Jared assessed that, his eyes cautious again. â€Å"So, what now, then?† I thought that over for a minute while he waited. â€Å"I don't know. But I'm not sure things could just go back to normal anyway, Jared. I don't know how it works – it doesn't feel like I can just turn this Alpha thing off and on as the mood strikes. It feels sort of permanent.† â€Å"You still belong with us.† I raised my eyebrows. â€Å"Two Alphas can't belong in the same place, Jared. Remember how close it got last night? The instinct is too competitive.† â€Å"So are you all just going to hang out with the parasites for the rest of your lives?† he demanded. â€Å"You don't have a home here. You're already out of clothes,† he pointed out. â€Å"You gonna stay wolf all the time? You know Leah doesn't like eating that way.† â€Å"Leah can do whatever she wants when she gets hungry. She's here by her own choice. I'm not telling anyone what to do.† Jared sighed. â€Å"Sam is sorry about what he did to you.† I nodded. â€Å"I'm not angry anymore.† â€Å"But?† â€Å"But I'm not coming back, not now. We're going to wait and see how it plays out, too. And we're going to watch out for the Cullens for as long as that seems necessary. Because, despite what you think, this isn't just about Bella. We're protecting those who should be protected. And that applies to the Cullens, too.† At least a fair number of them, anyway. Seth yelped softly in agreement. Jared frowned. â€Å"I guess there's nothing I can say to you, then.† â€Å"Not now. We'll see how things go.† Jared turned to face Seth, concentrating on him now, separate from me. â€Å"Sue asked me to tell you – no, to beg you – to come home. She's brokenhearted, Seth. All alone. I don't know how you and Leah can do this to her. Abandon her this way, when your dad just barely died – â€Å" Seth whimpered. â€Å"Ease up, Jared,† I warned. â€Å"Just letting him know how it is.† I snorted. â€Å"Right.† Sue was tougher than anyone I knew. Tougher than my dad, tougher than me. Tough enough to play on her kids' sympathies if that's what it took to get them home. But it wasn't fair to work Seth that way. â€Å"Sue's known about this for how many hours now? And most of that time spent with Billy and Old Quil and Sam? Yeah, I'm sure she's just perishing of loneliness. ‘Course you're free to go if you want, Seth. You know that.† Seth sniffed. Then, a second later, he cocked an ear to the north. Leah must be close. Jeez, she was fast. Two beats, and Leah skidded to a stop in the brush a few yards away. She trotted in, taking the point in front of Seth. She kept her nose in the air, very obviously not looking in my direction. I appreciated that. â€Å"Leah?† Jared asked. She met his gaze, her muzzle pulling back a little over her teeth. Jared didn't seem surprised by her hostility. â€Å"Leah, you know you don't want to be here.† She snarled at him. I gave her a warning glance she didn't see. Seth whined and nudged her with his shoulder. â€Å"Sorry,† Jared said. â€Å"Guess I shouldn't assume. But you don't have any ties to the bloodsuckers.† Leah very deliberately looked at her brother and then at me. â€Å"So you want to watch out for Seth, I get that,† Jared said. His eyes touched my face and then went back to hers. Probably wondering about that second look – just like I was. â€Å"But Jake's not going to let anything happen to him, and he's not afraid to be here.† Jared made a face. â€Å"Anyway, please, Leah. We want you back. Sam wants you back.† Leah's tail twitched. â€Å"Sam told me to beg. He told me to literally get down on my knees if I have to. He wants you home, Lee-lee, where you belong.† I saw Leah flinch when Jared used Sam's old nickname for her. And then, when he added those last three words, her hackles rose and she was yowling a long stream of snarls through her teeth. I didn't have to be in her head to hear the cussing-out she was giving him, and neither did he. You could almost hear the exact words she was using. I waited till she was done. â€Å"I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that Leah belongs wherever she wants to be.† Leah growled, but, as she was glaring at Jared, I figured it was in agreement. â€Å"Look, Jared, we're still family, okay? We'll get past the feud, but, until we do, you probably ought to stick to your land. Just so there aren't misunderstandings. Nobody wants a family brawl, right? Sam doesn't want that, either, does he?† â€Å"Of course, not,† Jared snapped. â€Å"We'll stick to our land. But where is your land, Jacob? Is it vampire land?† â€Å"No, Jared. Homeless at the moment. But don't worry – this isn't going to last forever.† I had to take a breath. â€Å"There's not that much time†¦ left. Okay? Then the Cullens will probably go, and Seth and Leah will come home.† Leah and Seth whined together, their noses turning my direction in synchronization. â€Å"And what about you, Jake?† â€Å"Back to the forest, I think. I can't really stick around La Push. Two Alphas means too much tension. ‘Sides, I was headed that way anyway. Before this mess.† â€Å"What if we need to talk?† Jared asked. â€Å"Howl – but watch the line, ‘kay? We'll come to you. And Sam doesn't need to send so many. We aren't looking for a fight.† Jared scowled, but nodded. He didn't like me setting conditions for Sam. â€Å"See you around, Jake. Or not.† He waved halfheartedly. â€Å"Wait, Jared. Is Embry okay?† Surprise crossed his face. â€Å"Embry? Sure, he's fine. Why?† â€Å"Just wondering why Sam sent Collin.† I watched his reaction, still suspicious that something was going on. I saw knowledge flash in his eyes, but it didn't look like the kind I was expecting. â€Å"That's not really your business anymore, Jake.† â€Å"Guess not. Just curious.† I saw a twitch from the corner of my eye, but I didn't acknowledge it, because I didn't want to give Quil away. He was reacting to the subject. â€Å"I'll let Sam know about your†¦ instructions. Goodbye, Jacob.† I sighed. â€Å"Yeah. Bye, Jared. Hey, tell my dad that I'm okay, will you? And that I'm sorry, and that I love him.† â€Å"I'll pass that along.† â€Å"Thanks.† â€Å"C'mon, guys,† Jared said. He turned away from us, heading out of sight to phase because Leah was here. Paul and Collin were right on his heels, but Quil hesitated. He yelped softly, and I took a step toward him. â€Å"Yeah, I miss you, too, bro.† Quil jogged over to me, his head hanging down morosely. I patted his shoulder. â€Å"It'll be okay.† He whined. â€Å"Tell Embry I miss having you two on my flanks.† He nodded and then pressed his nose to my forehead. Leah snorted. Quil looked up, but not at her. He looked back over his shoulder at where the others had gone. â€Å"Yeah, go home,† I told him. Quil yelped again and then took off after the others. I'd bet Jared wasn't waiting super-patiently. As soon as he was gone, I pulled the warmth from the center of my body and let it surge through my limbs. In a flash of heat, I was on four legs again. Thought you were going to make out with him,Leah snickered. I ignored her. Was that okay?I asked them. It worried me, speaking for them that way, when I couldn't hear exactly what they were thinking. I didn't want to assume anything. I didn't want to be like Jared that way. Did I say anything you didn't want me to? Did I not say something I should have? You did great, Jake!Seth encouraged. You could have hit Jared,Leah thought. wouldn't have minded that. I guess we know why Embry wasn't allowed to come,Seth thought. I didn't understand. Not allowed? Jake, didya see Quil? He's pretty torn up, right? I'd put ten to one that Embry's even more upset And Embry doesn't have a Claire. There's no way Quil can just pick up and walk away from La Push. Embry might So Sam's not going to take any chances on him getting convinced to jump ship. He doesn't want our pack any bigger than it is now. Really? You think? I doubt Embry would mind shredding some Cullens. But he's your best friend, Jake. He and Quil would rather stand behind you than face you in a fight. Well, I'm glad Sam kept him home, then. This pack is big enough.I sighed. Okay, then. So we're good, for now. Seth, you mind keeping an eye on things for a while? Leah and I both need to crash. This felt on the level, but who knows? Maybe it was a distraction. I wasn't always so paranoid, but I remembered the feel of Sam's commitment. The total one-track focus on destroying the danger he saw. Would he take advantage of the fact that he could lie to us now? No problem!Seth was only too eager to do whatever he could. You want me to explain to the Cullens? They're probably still kinda tense. I got it. I want to check things out anyway. They caught the whir of images from my fried brain. Seth whimpered in surprise. Ew. Leah whipped her head back and forth like she was trying to shake the image out of her mind. That is easily the freakin' grossest thing I've heard in my life. Yuck. If there was anything in my stomach, it would be coming back. Theyare vampires, I guess, Seth allowed after a minute, compensating for Leah's reaction. mean, it makes sense. And if it helps Bella, it's a good thing, right? Both Leah and I stared at him. What? Mom dropped him a lot when he was a baby,Leah told me. On his head, apparently. He used to gnaw on the crib bars, too. Lead paint? Looks like itshe thought. Seth snorted. Funny. Why don't you two shut up and sleep?