What would have happened if Jake had gone wolf before Bella got obsessed with Edward? Continues from Twilight P.325 BxJ
This first chapter is the lead up to the story, so bear with it. A lot of this chapter is from twilight, but there are changes. Hope you enjoy!
All Stephanie Meyers.
Carlisle was up to bat, Edward catching, when Alice suddenly gasped. My eyes were on Edward, as usual, and I saw his head snap up to look at her. Their eyes met and something flowed between them in an instant. He was at my side before the others could ask Alice what was wrong.
"Alice?" Esme's voice was tense.
"I didn't see - I couldn't tell," she whispered.
All the others were gathered by this time.
"What is it, Alice?" Carlisle asked with the calm voice of authority.
"They were traveling much quicker than I thought. I can see I had the perspective wrong before," she murmured.
Jasper leaned over her, his posture protective. "What changed?" he asked.
"They heard us playing, and it changed their path," she said, contrite, as if she felt responsible for whatever had frightened her.
Seven pairs of quick eyes flashed to my face and away.
"How soon?" Carlisle said, turning towards Edward.
A look of intense concentration crossed his face.
"Less than five minutes. There running – they want to play." He scowled.
"Can you make it?" Carlisle asked him, his eyes flicking towards me again.
"No not carrying-" He cut short. "Besides, the last thing we need is for them to catch the scent and start hunting."
"How many?" Emmett asked Alice.
"Three," she answered tersely.
"Three!" he scoffed. "Let them come." The steel bands of muscle flexed along his massive arms.
For a split second that seemed much longer than it really was, Carlisle deliberated. Only Emmett seemed unperturbed; the rest stared at Carlisle's face with anxious eyes.
"Let's just continue the game," Carlisle finally decided. His voice was cool and level. "Alice said they were simply curious."
Said person was once again rendered still, as her eyes glazed over. She gasped once again. Everyone turned to Edward in question.
He pulled me to his side and looked down at me, as if to check I was still there.
"Alice are you sure?" Edward questioned Alice.
"Everyone just disappeared", she said with a sharp edge.
"Everyone?" Carlisle questioned.
She nodded, while Emmett scoffed unbelieving. "You must have lost your vision. No way would three of them beat us!"
"I don't know, but I can see everyone's future for tomorrow, just not for today." She reasoned, while Jasper gave a protective squeeze to her shoulders.
"Everyone except Bella that is," Edward pointed out.
"It's too late now to take her back; we'll have to wait and see, be aware," Carlisle declared, still calm. "Let's continue."
All this was said in a flurry of words that lasted only a few seconds. I had listened carefully and caught most of it, though I couldn't hear what Esme now asked Edward with a silent vibration of her lips. I only saw the slight shake of his head and the look of relief on her face.
"You catch, Esme," he said. "I'll call it now." And he planted himself in front of me.
The others returned to the field, warily sweeping the dark forest with their sharp eyes. Alice and Esme seemed to orient themselves around where I stood.
"Take your hair down," Edward said in a low, even voice.
I obediently slid the rubber band out of my hair and shook it out around me.
I stated the obvious. "The others are coming now."
"Yes, stay very still, keep quiet, and don't move from my side, please." He hid the stress in his voice well, but I could hear it. He pulled my long hair forward, around my face.
"That won't help," Alice said softly. "I could smell her across the field."
"I know." A hint of frustration coloured his tone.
Carlisle stood at the plate, and the others joined the game half-heartedly.
"What did Esme ask you?" I whispered.
He hesitated for a second before he answered. "Whether they were thirsty," he muttered unwillingly.
The seconds ticked by; the game progressed with apathy now. No one dared to hit harder than a bunt, and Emmett, Rosalie, and Jasper hovered in the infield. Now and again, despite the fear that numbed my brain, I was aware of Rosalie's eyes on me. They were expressionless, but something about the way she held her mouth made me think she was angry.
Edward paid no attention to the game at all, eyes and mind ranging the forest.
"I'm sorry, Bella," he muttered fiercely. "It was stupid, irresponsible, to expose you like this. I'm sorry."
I heard his breath stop, and his eyed zeroed in on right field. He took a half step, angling himself between me and what was coming.
Carlisle, Emmett, and the others turned in the same direction, hearing sounds of passage much too faint for my ears.
They emerged one by one from the forest edge, ranging a dozen metres apart. The first male in the clearing fell back immediately, allowing the other male to take the front, orienting himself around the tall, dark-haired man in a manner that clearly displayed who led the pack. The third was a woman; from this distance, all I could see of her was that her hair was a startling shade of red.
They closed ranks before they continued cautiously towards Edward's family, exhibiting the natural respect of a troop of predators as it encounter a larger, unfamiliar group of its own kind.
As they approached, I could see how different they were to the Cullens. Their walk was catlike, a gait that seemed constantly on the edge of shifting into a crouch. They dressed in ordinary gear for backpackers: jeans and casual button-down shirts in heavy waterproof fabrics. The clothes were frayed, though, with wear, and they were barefoot. Both men had cropped hair, but the woman's brilliant orange hair was filled leaves and debris from the woods.
Their sharp eyes carefully took in the more polished, urbane stance of Carlisle, who, flanked by Emmett and Jasper, stepped guardedly forward to meet them. Without any seeming communication between them, they each straightened into a more casual, erect bearing.
The man in the front was easily the most beautiful, his skin olive-toned beneath the typical pallor, his hair a glossy black. He was of a medium build, hard-muscled, of course, but nothing next to Emmett's brawn. He smiled an easy smile, exposing a flash of gleaming white teeth.
The woman was wilder, her eyes shifting restlessly between the men facing her, and the loose grouping around me, her chaotic hair quivering in the slight breeze. Her posture was distinctly feline. The second male hovered unobtrusively behind them, slighter than the leader, his light brown hair and regular features both nondescript. His eyes, though completely still, somehow seemed the most vigilant.
Their eyes were different, too. Not the gold or black I had come to expect, but a deep burgundy colour that was disturbing and sinister.
The dark-haired man, still smiling, stepped towards Carlisle.
"We thought we heard a game," he said in a relaxed voice with the slightest of French accents. "I'm Laurent, these are Victoria and James." He gestured to the vampires beside him.
"I'm Carlisle. This is my family, Emmett and Jasper, Rosalie, Esme and Alice, Edward and Bella." He pointed us out in groups, deliberately not calling attention to individuals. I felt a shock when he said my name.
"Do you have room for a few more players?" Laurent asked sociably.
Carlisle matched Laurent's friendly tone. "Actually, we were just finishing up. But we'd certainly be interested another time. Are you planning on staying in the area for long?"
"We're headed north, in fact, but we were curious to see who was in the neighbourhood. We haven't run into any company in a long time."
"No, this region is usually empty except for us and the occasional visitor, like yourselves."
The tense atmosphere had slowly subsided into a casual conversation; I guessed that Jasper was using his peculiar to control the situation.
"What's your hunting range?" Laurent casually inquired.
Carlisle ignored the assumption behind the inquiry. "The Olympic Range here, up and down the Coast Ranges on occasion. We keep a permanent residence nearby. There's another permanent settlement like ours up near Denali."
Laurent rocked back on his heels slightly.
"Permanent? How do you manage that?" There was honest curiosity in his voice.
"Why don't you come back to our home with us and we can talk comfortably?" Carlisle invited. "It's rather a long story."
James and Victoria exchanged a surprised look at the mention of the word "home," but Laurent controlled his expression better.
"That sounds very interesting, and welcome." His smile was genial. "We've been on the hunt all the way from Ontario, and we haven't had a chance to clean up in a while." His eyes moved appreciatively over Carlisle's refined appearance.
"Please don't take offense, but we'd appreciate it if you'd refrain from hunting in this immediate area. We have to stay inconspicuous, you understand," Carlisle explained.
"Of course." Laurent nodded. "We certainly won't encroach on your territory. We just ate outside of Seattle, anyway," he laughed. A shiver ran up my spine.
"We'll show you the way if you'd like to run with us – Emmett and Alice, you can go with Edward and Bella to get the Jeep," he casually added.
Three things seemed to happen simultaneously while Carlisle was speaking. My hair ruffled with the light breeze, Edward stiffened, and the second male, James, suddenly whipped his head around, scrutinizing me, his nostrils flaring.
A swift rigidity fell on all of them as James lurched one step forward into a crouch. Edward bared his teeth, crouching in defence, a feral snarl ripping from his throat. It was nothing like the playful sounds I'd heard from him this morning; it was the single most menacing thing I had ever heard, and chills ran from the crown of my head to the back of my head, as I took a step backwards in fright.
Everyone froze in alarm.
BPOV