"Take care of yourselves." Katarina gave the woman one last smile, clutching the hand of the small child standing next to her.
"You too." The woman, a young, pale thing with the name of Aaliyah, returned the gesture, coughing once roughly, desperately hoping to not wake the infant in her arms.
"Are you sure you're alright?" She asked, a worried expression on her face. "We could stay together, the girls wouldn't mind…" She added, putting a hand on the younger woman's back.
"I'm alright." Aaliyah replied, sending Katarina a reassuring smile.
"Alright." Katarina said through a sigh. "It was nice knowing you."
"Same to you." She replied, and with one last embrace, and a kiss on the little, blond girl's head, they were gone:
Out of Aaliyah and the infant's life forever.
She watched out the window as the two sped away in the nonchalant, cheap car the two older women had shared for the last three weeks since the arrival.
The planet known as Earth was still foreign to each and every one of them; everything still brand new. Aaliyah and the baby were stationed in Phoenix, Arizona, a hot, desolate landmass in the middle of the desert.
Aaliyah was happy when she was given the baby to overlook. Why, you ask: because the child was ignorant to their previous world. She could raise her like she would any daughter she wished she had the chance to have.
Too bad she would never actually get that chance…
As the weeks went on, the worsening weather took its toll on Aaliyah's body, weakening and weakening her already fragile body.
Knowing she only had a few days left, and even fewer if a Mogadorian decided to pay the pair a visit, Aaliyah tried desperately to contact any of the other Cêpans for help.
When she couldn't, she sobbed silently, cradling the infant she had come to love unconditionally, under her chin as she crept through the woods cradling the infant under her chin. She quickly found a spot to bury the goods, a place where she knew the child would find be able to find them, when she was older.
Suddenly, a wave of pain shot through the young Loric, causing her knees to give out and send her toppling over, baby in hand. Pulling the baby so she wouldn't land on her, the protector pulled the baby into her chest, knowing this was it.
"Shhhhh, Nine, shhhhh." She coaxed the baby's cries. "I love you so much." The adult cried into her infant's light, blond hair.
"Phil!" A woman's voice shrieked.
"Hey! Are you okay?" A man's voice boomed through the darkness, kneeling down at Aaliyah's side.
And that's when Aaliyah knew: The baby would be safe.
~A few hours before~
The pitter-patter of Renesmee's feet echoed through the unnaturally silent house for the fifth day in a row, running straight into her mother's, Bella's, arms. Bella's mother, Renee, watched in awe as her daughter held her granddaughter in her arms, holding her close.
"Are you all packed?" Bella asked, kissing Renesmee's forehead before smiling at her.
"Yeah. Daddy and Grandpa are loading the car right now." She replied. This had been a long awaited visit to Bella's mother in Phoenix, Arizona. The weather had been nothing but cloudy, an excellent thing to be seeing as Bella, her husband, Edward, and their daughter weren't exactly what you'd call human.
You see, the Edward and Bella were vampires. Not the kind that get destroyed in sunlight, but the kind that give off a dazzling, radiance, just enough to prove that they were different.
Renesmee, on the other hand, was a hybrid: half-human, half-vampire, conceived when Bella was still human while Edward was a vampire.
Anyway, Renee and her husband, Phil, said their goodbyes to the little family before they were in the car and on their way home.
Renee looked after the dark Volvo as it disappeared quickly over the dim horizon with a certain glint in her eye that Phil recognized immediately.
"I know that look: you want something." He told the slightly older woman.
"I do." She turned to him as they went back inside.
"And that is?" He asked, looking onto his wife.
"I want another baby." She told him, her tone leaving no room for argument.
"Renee, we've talked about this." The man sighed, running his fingers through his thin hair.
"We don't have to have the baby. We can adopt." Renee replied, her eyes pleading. "C'mon, Phil. You can't even deny that you didn't love having Renesmee around." She added, crossing her slim arms.
"Yeah, I did, but as a grandchild. If we had a baby now, he or she would be younger than their niece. By like eight years." Phil reasoned.
"But Bella and Edward adopted her. She's Edward niece, remember?" Renee said: reciting the story Bella and Edward convinced everyone was true.
"Sweetheart, you know I'd love to have children, but I can't." Phil said remorsefully, tears almost welling in his eyes. Renee nodded, feeling somewhat dejected. "Come on a walk with me." Phil smiled at his wife, taking her hand.
"I'd love to." Renee grinned, interlocking their fingers together and leading him out the door. The two walked down the path hand in hand with smiles on their faces:
If they couldn't have a baby at least they had each other.
They walked slowly, rounding the corner and couldn't believe that they saw.
"Phil!" Renee shrieked.
"Hey! Are you okay?" Phil's voice boomed through the darkness, kneeling down at Aaliyah's side.
"M-y baby…" Aaliyah breathed, already gasping for air. She held the baby out as far as she could.
"Renee, take her and call 911!" The man ordered, gently taking the baby from the woman and handing her to his wife. "You're going to be okay." He whispered.
"T-Take care o-of her. P-Please!" The woman pleaded, a stream of tears rolling down her cheeks.
"You're going to be able to do that yourself." The man told her.
"G-Give her this." Aaliyah begged, weakly reaching into her pocket and handing the man a necklace with the baby's Loric crest, or through the man's eyes, just a weird symbol.
"An ambulance is in the way." The human woman informed them, rocking the now awake baby just watching the scene take place. The Loric woman locked eyes with the baby as she took her last deep breath before saying:
"I-I'm s-s-sorry I…f-failed y-yo-" And then passed away before getting the chance to bury the chest, the knife, and get the baby to safety…
Like she tried so hard to do.
"Shit." Phil snapped, dropping to his knees and trying to resuscitate the young woman.
"Shhh, you're okay, Sweetheart." Renee whispered, desperately trying to comfort the now sobbing baby in her arms. The baby soon quieted, snuggling deep into the unfamiliar woman's neck, her eyes locked on her "mother" that lay dead before her. Renee watched as the baby turned her bright, blue eyes on her. A wave of something hit Renee like a speeding train. What was it: remorse, love? Love. It was love, Renee decided.
The sounds of sirens and flashing lights from afar interrupted the stressful situation surrounding the couple.
"We're over here!" Phil called before continuing CPR on the Loric. The shuffling sounds from the paramedics rushing to the scene pulled Renee from her daze. She looked up, already seeing the paramedics standing over the other woman.
"Let's get her to the hospita-What the hell?" The paramedics and Phil jumped back. Renee moved so she could see better, just in time to see the young mother of the baby in her arm's disappear in a pile of ash.
"Did you guys see that too?" Phil asked, just staring at the pile.
"Uh-huh…" They both mumbled, unsure of what to do.
And that's how they stayed for the next few minutes.
About an hour later, Renee and Phil were at the hospital just waiting to hear news about the baby like: is she was all right, who was going to adopt her now that her mother was gone, or what even happened to her mother in the first place.
Renee had talked to her daughter on the phone; her, Edward, and Renesmee were on their way back to Phoenix.
"Mr. and Mrs. Dwyer?" The doctor called out. The couple stood up and went in the room, seeing the child sprawled out on the examining table, fast asleep.
"How is she?" Phil asked, feeling the same overwhelming wave of love hit him as he watched her sleep, just like his wife before him.
"She's perfectly healthy." Dr. Schmidt said with a smile. "However," His smile faded. "We found no other family members. In fact, we can find no records at all for her. We don't even know her name or her birthday, but we're guessing she's a little over a year old."
"What will happen to her if no one's around to claim her?" Renee asked.
"She'll most likely get dropped into foster care until someone adopts her." The doctor explained, removing his glasses to look at the couple.
"What if, we adopt her?" Phil suggested shyly. Renee turned and looked at her husband, completely shocked. Wasn't he the one that didn't want a baby not even two hours ago? Phil just looked at his wife and offered her a small smile, taking her hand in his.
"A-Are you sure?" The doctor asked, his eyes wide.
"We've never been more sure about anything in our entire lives." Renee replied, squeezing her husband's hand.
"Well, alright then." The doctor smiled broadly at them. "I'll go get the paper work for the beginning stages of the adoption." He explained and left the room. The pair gazed at their new, sleeping daughter, admiring every perfect feature on her face.
"This is so exciting!" Renee squealed quietly.
"What are we going to name her?" Phil asked.
"I don't know." Renee pondered, sitting down at the head of the table at the child's head and immediately stroking her hair.
"My grandmother's name was Quinn…" Phil suggested, afraid Renee wouldn't like his suggestion.
"Quinn…" She breathed. "I like it." She smiled at him.
"Really?" He smiled at her. Renee nodded as the child, Quinn, snuggled into her new mother's leg. "She likes you." Phil chuckled.
"I hope so." Renee laughed.
"What about her middle name?" He asked.
"Isabella. So there's a part of my biological daughter in my adoptive one." Renee said without even having thinking about it.
"Quinn Isabella Dwyer. It's perfect." Phil smiled at the name of his new daughter.
"She's perfect." Renee smiled down at their child.
A few minutes later, Dr. Schmidt came back brandishing a light stack of papers for the parents to sign.
A little while later, Renee's biological daughter showed up at the hospital, immediately being showed to the room where her mother, stepfather, and sister were waiting to be discharged. Seeing the baby, Bella instantly saw what her mother was talking about.
This child looked as if she should be Rosalie's, the most beautiful vampire she knew, daughter; what with her possessing the same golden locks, no matter how few there were on the baby's head. The one difference was the child's naturally tanned skin; setting her apart from everyone else in the room.
"What's her name?" Bella asked.
"Quinn Isabella Dwyer." Renee told her. "After one of the most beautiful people I know." She added. Bella smiled brilliantly.
"I love it." Bella whispered. "Do you need Edward and I to pick anything up for you before you bring her home? Like baby stuff?" Bella suggested. Renee's face went pale.
"Phil, we don't have baby stuff!" She explained. "Bella, go to the store for me and get formula, diapers, and clothes. We'll have to hold off on a crib until tomorrow unless Babies R Us are open 24 hours." She joked, handing Bella her credit card.
Bella took the card and left the hospital with her little family, grinning to herself, admiring how here erratic, harebrained mother never ceased to amaze her.
The three spent another night in Phoenix, with Bella's parents and the newest addition to their family.
Quinn Isabella Dwyer grew up just your average kid, or so everyone thought. But when that first scar bore its way into her leg, questions arose, mostly from Quinn herself, not knowing who she was, until it started to affect her.
Big time.
This is Quinn's story. She is number Nine, and she is The Lost Loric.
Hey, thanks for reading! If you have any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to ask. This is an experimental story and I'm not sure if I'm actually going to stick with it. Let me know what you think! Thank you. :D