Not much to say here. We shall continue onto the wondrous story written by TAPWR!
Chapter One
(Alice's POV)
"Alice, we really should go home now."
Jasper was looking at me lovingly, gently breaking the news to me. We had been out hunting for a good long time and had ended up stargazing together on a rock next to a frozen pond in Canada. It was the dead of winter, two days away from Christmas, and the snow had been covering everything with a soft white layer relentlessly for the past couple of days.
I sighed, sad to see the end of our moment out of the world.
"Go ahead of me," I said. "I'm going to head down to Port Angeles to do some last minute Christmas shopping." Jasper glanced at me before nodding. He had read my wanting for him to have a surprise. He gave me a quick peck on the cheek which I returned with a hug. Then, he sped home.
Maybe five minutes after that, I was running alongside the road, weaving in and out of trees. I didn't feel like going and getting a car, seeing as, really, I wasn't going into the town. There was an adorable little boutique just outside the city limits that hardly anyone knew existed.
That's when I saw them.
A girl was standing by the road, struggling to pull something that had fallen into a snow bank. I stopped and walked over, knowing that I could help, and seeing as I was much stronger than she.
But when I got closer, I heard it. The faint beating of a frenzied heart. Inside the snow bank. Someone was dying in there.
I rushed over as fast as possible at human speed. The girl began talking quickly as soon as she saw me.
"Help! My friend slipped on the ice and hit her head and she said she was fine but then she fell over and there must have been a ditch here because she just went right through it and I can't pull her up!" I shushed the girl.
"What your name and your friends name?" I asked as I leaned over the human shaped hole in the snow bank. Down at the bottom, I could see a figure with dark red hair and pale skin, though that was probably a factor of the cold. She was wearing jeans and a black coat with what looked like a white striped scarf around her neck. Her eyes were closed. I reached down to pull her up as the other girl began to speak again.
"My name is Elizabeth Lôwe and my friends name is Delia Rallas. Is she still…alive?" The girl, Elizabeth's voice became quite and afraid as I pulled Delia out of the snow bank and reached for her wrist, just for show. I already knew the answer to that.
"Yes, but barley. We need to get her to a hospital. Better yet, my father is a doctor and my house isn't far from here." I took my jacket off and laid it over Delia. "Hug her, try and keep her body heat up with yours," I ordered Elizabeth. She nodded and did as I said.
Now, we were in a mess. I couldn't carry her; that would make her already cold body even colder. But…
The future went blank. I hoped that my plan would work.
I pulled out my cell phone and dialed a number that I hadn't used in a long time. He was over so often that I didn't really need it.
"Hello?" came the husky voice on the other end.
"Jacob? I need you here. Right now. It's a matter of life and death." I told him where we were and, with suspicion in his voice, he agreed to come.
"Please work…" I whispered to myself. Then, to Elizabeth, I said, "Help is coming. Let's just hope she lasts long enough for it to arrive."
"Ok, Alice, what do you…?" Jacob trailed off as he caught sight of the two girls.
"Carry the unconscious one to our house. She's almost gone; the hypothermia must be about to set in. I'll carry the other one. Quickly, please!"
Jacob moved to the girls and tapped Elizabeth's shoulder. She looked up.
"I'm supposed to carry your friend. Excuse me," he said briskly. She moved and Jacob pulled Delia up into his arms. She was so tiny compared to him, I was briefly thought of a small child carrying a Raggedy-Ann doll, even though the girl was much taller than me. Then, he turned off into the trees.
"Who was he? Where is he taking her?" Elizabeth asked me as I approached. I regarded her calmly.
"He's a very fast guy who knows the way. I'll walk with you to my house, which is where he's taking her, or I can carry you. It's your choice." She looked at me, who was a good bit shorter and slighter than she was, disbelief clouding her eyes.
"Carry me? I don't think so." I shrugged and took hold of her gloved hand, pulling her into the trees at as fast a pace as she was comfortable with.
(Esme's POV)
When Jacob showed up at our house, carrying a young human girl, I knew something good was going to happen. I don't know how, or why, I just did.
"Esme, why does Jacob have a girl with him?" Renesmee asked me, a little disgruntled. I looked down at her beautiful eight year old face. Laughing to myself, I replied, "I don't know, sweetheart. But I'm sure there's a good reason."
"There better be," she muttered. I mentally laughed again. Renesmee had been beginning to be very protective of Jacob lately. That wasn't always a good thing. When someone (Edward) was chewing him out for doing something dangerous with Nessie, she would pick his side, always.
Jacob burst through the door and shut it with his foot as he marched over to the couch. There, he laid the girl down. "Where's the doc?" he asked. Carlisle was by his side in an instant. My husband leaned over the girl and his medical side took over as he checked the girl.
"She isn't hypothermic, thanks to Jacob, but she has a concussion," he said, touching a spot on the back of her head lightly. "Oddly enough, she isn't shivering, which is what's worrying me. She feels freezing, almost as cold as one of us." He paused, and then raced off to grab his bag. When he returned, he held a thermometer in his hand. He placed it lightly into her ear, the easiest way to get her temperature at this point. When the thermometer beeped, he looked at it and frowned. "She's much too cold to be alive. But her heart still beats, quite well, in fact. I don't get it." Jacob looked at Renesmee.
"Do you want me to…keep her warm?" he asked. Renesmee glowered at the unconscious girl.
"No, no…that can't be comfortable for you. Have another of your pack do it. Seth, maybe?" Carlisle said. Jacob, looking mildly relived, nodded and walked back out the door to call Seth.
Alice walked in the door as he walked out, pulling behind her a tiny girl that was only 4 or so inches taller than Alice. She had brown hair and eyes that looked as though they were a mix of blue, green, and brown. They were wide as she pushed past Alice to her friend's side.
"Shouldn't she be in a hospital? Just until she wakes up. She doesn't have a concussion, does she? Cause if she's just…cold, then she's fine. We can go home. In fact, that sounds like a good idea. Can you take us to my home?"
The girl had said all this in one breath, her expression changing from worry to casual to a slight pleading. Carlisle looked at her oddly.
"She'll be fine here; I'm a doctor and I have everything I need here. No, she does not have a concussion, but she is freezing, beyond the norm, so, I'm sorry, but I can't let you just walk out of here with her." Jacob caught the end of his spiel.
"Seth's on his way; he's coming as fast as he can, says that he'll be happy to stay here for as long as we need him as long as you guys feed him well." The girl looked confused.
"Who's Seth? Why is he coming here? I promise, Red'll be fine if you just let me take her home. I know she's a little…cold but she'll warm up some. Trust me, she's fine. Please?"
"Red? Who's Red? I thought you said her name was Delia." Alice said with a puzzled expression. The girl blushed a little.
"That's-" But everyone stopped listening to her. Alice went into a vision and then came out biting her lower lip.
"Jasper met up with Bella and Edward and they're almost home," she said.
"Where's Rose and Emmet?" I asked. Alice grimaced.
"They got…distracted. They couldn't wait to get home, so they just kinda…walked off a bit and….They're coming home closer to 11:00. What I'm worried about is that Jasper and Bella won't be ok; Bella's still pretty new and Jasper's not confident enough. Elizabeth is flushed…" We all stared at her worriedly.
"Take them upstairs."Carlisle said. "The friend, Elizabeth, did you say? she can stay in Edward's old room and he, Bella, and Renesmee will stay in the cottage tonight. Alice, keep her company and tell her as much as needed to get her to keep her cooperating. Just not everything please! We don't want another Bella incident. Esme and I will stay down here and wait so we can tell everyone everything. Jacob, carry the girl up to the spare room and then take Nessie to the cottage."
"No! But this is so exciting! Can't I stay up?" Nessie pleaded with my husband. Carlisle almost melted. But just then, Seth walked in, snow dripping in his hair. Carlisle was resolved again.
"Seth, carry the unconscious girl to the spare bedroom and keep her warm. Alice, show Elizabeth where she needs to go. Nessie, Jacob," he said, moving to open the door for them. Jacob scooped up an unwilling and protesting Renesmee and carried her out. Seth paused a moment to watch, chuckled, and then picked up the girl, Delia, Alice said, and walked purposefully up the stairs.
Poor Elizabeth looked utterly confused.
"Whoa. Wait a second. Pause!" she said, holding her hands up as if she were directing traffic. Seth ignored her. So did Alice.
"Come on, I'll tell you as much as possible," she assured the girl as she took her hand and tugged her up the stairs. I could hear her nonstop onslaught of questions. I laughed quietly as my husband sighed and sat on the couch. I sat with him.
"It's never normal in our house, is it?" I asked teasingly. He grinned a little.
"Apparently not."
Hehehe! I'm all excited for the next chapter! R&R!