Disclaimer: I do not own these characters. One can dream though...
Chapter 3: Reception
It was dark when the world seemed to start turning again. I had slept without nightmares or dreams, dead to the world. I didn't sit up yet though, I was enjoying, for the moment, the lack of burning around my wrists. It was a nice change, I suppose since she believed me asleep the need to please her, obey her, faded. As I lay there, my eyes tightly closed, I heard a voice, Emmett's if I wasn't mistaken. His voice was low but urgent.
"Isabella?" She must not have been looking at him because I could hear a shift in the seat and then her voice.
"Yes Emmett?" Maybe he chickened out then on whatever he had wanted to say because he didn't say anything. I was going to return to my previous thoughts when his voice interrupted them again.
"Are you sure about this? Him calling you...? You never... I just..." He didn't seem to be able to complete a sentence. Apparently this first name basis thing was a big deal to him.
"Emmett I know this is new but I know what I am doing. It may be hard for you to understand but I have to be able to trust him. I appreciate your concern and I know it is not normal with humans but there is something different about him. You know as well as I do that he wont be staying human for long."
"I know this... but the Voltu-" something seemed to cut him off and I almost sat up out of curiosity. I wanted to ask what he was about to say. The silence stretched on and I slid my eyes open slowly only to be greeted by a pair of excessively interested sea green eyes. My first thought was to apologize but I held my tongue and rubbed my eyes to break from her gaze.
"You know... it is rude to eaves drop." Her voice was soft, angelic. I could feel the tips of my ears darken at my embarrassment of having been caught in the act. It was so easy to know when something embarrassed me, I always turned red, always. It made it impossible to hide anything.
"S'rry." I mumbled as I pulled my hands away and sat up, being careful not to look directly into her eyes again. She leaned back against the glove compartment, like she had earlier and I remembered that I didn't know how long I'd slept.
"So... how long was I out for?" I looked over at Emmett, wondering how long he had been driving and if they had switched off at all so he could sleep.
"About 3 hours." I stared at her surprised which was definitely a bad choice. Her gaze met mine holding me captive again. I sighed in frustration, this was going to get annoying after a while.
"We will be arriving shortly so would you like me to tell you where we are going, seeing as how I cut that conversation short earlier?" Now this was a conversation I was interested in. She seemed to take my expression as a yes and she gestured for me to find my own comfortable position. I balanced my elbows on the front two seat, clasped my fingers together and rested my chin there facing her.
"Alright... well I believe we left off on you being dead if we had not come to get you when we did. There is a very powerful group out to kill you right now and we," she pointed to herself and Emmett, "know why. We also know how to stop them, with your help of course." I was starting to get annoyed, she was being so cryptic. Some group wanted me dead, they were helping me, and I had to help somehow. I felt so enlightened... not.
"Please just listen," she seemed adamant on giving me the choice so I worked to look indifferent instead of annoyed. She smiled, it was warm and soft on her face, and my breath caught. She was beautiful there was no doubt about that.
"I am sorry that I can't tell you any more about the history of this kidnapping but I will tell you that right now we are headed to my home. It will be safest for you there. I believe you understand why I can't tell you where it is exactly. It would be only too easy for your pursuers to get that information out of you, you have some experience of Jane in action. At least in theory you do. She belongs with them." I shuddered at that thought. The pain her gaze seemed to inflict was something I was positive I never wanted to experience again, even subconsciously. It seemed that was not the only place we were headed though because Bella continued speaking.
"Yes well I can see why your reaction would be fear, Jane is, no doubt, something to be feared. We wont be staying there long mind you. Only a few days will be spent there and then we will leave to seek out an old friend of mine." I was still confused but at least I had been given some information on what the hell was going on right now. It was then that I remembered something she had said.
"I'm sorry but you said that they were going to kill me... which means they know where I live... Bella, what about my family? What about my little sister and my parents?" Please tell me you didn't leave them there to be killed in my stead. I flinched as the word killed rolled through my thoughts, and it would be all my fault, their blood on my hands. I was startled out of my panic by Emmett responding to my question.
"Alice called the day we came to your house. She said that they would not go after your family, they are safe although I'll bet their worried about you. Once they got wind of your disappearance your home no longer held any interest to them. They'll be safe Edward." I didn't know who the hell Alice was but I was a bit shocked at his words. He had used my name and he sounded just as worried about my family as I was. Well maybe not that much but I was surprised he cared at all.
"Well..." my voice sounded skeptical in my own ears so I kept going before they could take it the wrong way, "I don't know who Alice is but as long as your sure they're safe." I glanced over at Bella again and she looked conflicted again. I could feel the questions pushing to be asked but I kept quiet. She seemed to make up her mind very quickly though, after a minute she was smiling at me again.
"Alice is my sister." Emmett looked panicked again, I almost laughed aloud at his expression but thought better of it. I still didn't know them at all and I didn't know how he would react. Although his reaction gave me a clue that maybe I shouldn't know that Alice was Bella's sister.
This was the second time he had looked shocked at her words, for the most part he seemed to do everything she said and go along with what she said too. Yet when ever she gave out any kind of personal information he looked shocked and confused, mostly confused. I gathered this wasn't her normal behavior with the people they kidnapped.
Well I couldn't really say they kidnapped people often, just me, just my luck. Bella was watching me now and Emmett was staring, eyes narrowed, out the windshield.
"I suppose that does not help you much as far as an explanation," Bella commented quietly. Emmett looked murderous but he didn't say a word, "Alice is my sister, in theory, and she can see the future." It was my turn to look shocked and confused. I didn't understand these people at all, was her whole family not human and why was Alice only her sister in theory?
"I don't... she can... is she like you? Not human, I mean? Can you see the future?" I knew I needed to stop and wait for answers but I had so many questions and I could only hold them back for so long. Her musical laugh filled the car and Emmett flinched.
"Well yes she is like me, I am sure my little display alerted you to our differences," she pointed between the two of us, "and no I cannot see the future, you are already experiencing my gift." I felt my wrists burn a bit then and I winced. She sighed and I looked back at her again, she looked upset.
"I do not like using my gift this way, though it is useful. It can be used in a much less painful way but I did not want to have Emmett carry you out of the house, it would not have helped protect your family if anyone saw us dragging you away." Her voice was saturated in apology but I knew how easily she could lie. She had done it before, that is what had gotten me into this mess.
"Can you make it go away then, I mean if I chose to stay with you guys would you take the burning away?" She looked up at me with troubled eyes. I was pretty sure that gave me my answer, they did not trust me not to run away. I suppose I agreed with that, although with her speed I was positive I couldn't run fast enough to get away.
As I contemplated it seemed we had driven off the highway and into the forest around us. We drove for another ten minutes or so and then Emmett whipped the car into a practically invisible driveway. I wasn't even sure how he could have seen that entrance but I didn't linger on that long.
He drove, winding too fast, for a few miles and then the trees broke outward into a large clearing. Clearly their family was supernatural and rich. They lived in a mansion, the house was huge and open with huge bay windows in front. I couldn't decide what to make of this quite yet.
"Who are you people?" My voice was incredulous and Bella chuckled. Maybe the better question was, what were they? I sighed, at some point I would get my answer. Bella seemed to be pretty adamant on me being non human at some point too. I didn't like that idea at all. I had my family after all, my little sister. Didn't I have a choice in the matter?
"Alright, time to go." The burning flared, surprising me, and before I could bite it back I yelped. Emmett looked at me with confusion in his eyes but as soon as he saw the pain twisting my face the confusion vanished and he just laughed.
"Tough luck man." I just growled at him and hurried to get out of the car and as close to Bella as I could to ease the burning. It was hard to pay attention to my surroundings with the pain overriding everything. Bella took one look at me and her eyes widened in surprise.
"Shoot," the burning lessened considerably, "Sorry about that. I do not use this part of my gift much, it slips my mind." I rolled my eyes as she apologized.
"Thanks so much." I immediately regretted the sarcasm though as the hurt flitted across her face before she could hide her expression. She moved away from me then and started towards the house. Emmett just glared at me, so I hurried to stay close. Apparently accidently hurting her would be good enough cause to hurt me.
The house was beautiful, open and inviting but that wasn't really what caught my attention. When we walked in another girl, well more of a woman, joined us. She looked like a woman who would be found on the cover of a Sports Illustrated magazine.
She was a little taller then Emmett, with blond hair gently waving to the middle of her back. She was in a pair of impossibly high heels and her clothes only accentuated her beauty although I was certain she could have worn dish rags and pulled it off. I wasn't quite sure she could even be real. As she approached Emmett threw his arms around her and kissed her hard on her perfect full mouth.
I was surprised at the passion they seemed to have for one another and I had to look away in embarrassment. I looked over at Bella who was looking at me, she didn't seem to thrilled at their actions either.
"Is that Alice?" I whispered. She chuckled and I heard Emmett's booming laugh behind me. I turned to look and froze in my tracks. Emmett's girlfriend, wife?, was glaring at me balefully. The phrase if looks could kill ran through my mind and that gaze was enough to make me want to run from the house but as soon as that idea popped up my wrist started to burn and I was able to break her death glare. I shuddered involuntarily and looked back at Bella.
"That," she looked pointedly at the woman behind me, "is Rosalie, Emmett's wife. Rosalie would you please stop glaring at Edward? He had no way of knowing who you are." I didn't bother to look behind me on the off chance she had decided to keep glaring.
"Stupid human." I heard her mutter.
"Aw babe, come on! He doesn't know any better. Come on, lets go hunt, it's been too long." I didn't hear any movement but when I looked back they were gone, vanished without a sound. That was disconcerting, I shook my head and turned back to Bella again. She smiled and turned towards a door to the right of the entrance.
As we stepped through there was another invisible flurry of movement and Bella was being mauled by a streak of black. I moved out of the way against the wall, out of the way of whatever had decided to try and knock over my captor. It took me a moment to realize the blur had been a person and she was tiny.
She had to be under 5 feet, pale, like all the others and she had short, spiky black hair that stuck out everywhere. Though it still framed her face perfectly. Why were they all so perfect looking? It confused me. She was practically bouncing to much to properly hug Bella and her antics made me chuckle.
That got her attention. When she caught me gazing at her she bounded over. I tried to step back but unfortunately I had planted myself against a wall.
"Hi! I'm Alice! You must be Edward! Oh I have been waiting for you to arrive for so long!" She was looked like she wanted to hug me but seemed to settle on more bouncing.
Bella was there then, placing a calming hand on Alice's shoulder.
"So your the fortune teller?" I asked outright. Alice froze then and Bella gave me a reproving look. I shrugged. She seemed to recover rather quickly though because in a moment she was bouncing again.
"Yep! I'm the reason they came to get you." She smiled enthusiastically. I was pretty sure my sarcasm wouldn't be a good idea here so I just kept my mouth shut. I had already hurt one person and angered another within the last ten minutes.
"Jasper come say hello to Edward!" Alice called in a singsong voice. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Bella tense. I felt my body react to that by freezing as well. Alice just laughed again.
"Oh don't worry silly! He wont hurt him." She tapped her forehead and winked at Bella. That seemed to relax her a bit but I couldn't bring myself to do the same. I stared the door to another room as it swung open and a tall blond male stepped into the room. He let the door close behind him but he didn't move any farther into the room.
Alice bounded to his side and slid her arms around his waist. The look and smile he gave her told me all I need to know. Another couple. Where was Bella's boyfriend or husband? They all seemed to be paired up so far. I squashed that idea pretty quickly though, for some reason my mind didn't like the idea of her being taken.
I decided it was merely because I didn't want to be in danger of being attacked by anyone else should I upset her. I refused to look any farther into it then that. My eyes flickered to Bella and she was watching Jasper, she had shifted during my contemplations. She was now standing relaxed in front of me, as though to act as a shield.
"It's a pleasure to finally meet you." Jasper said, his voice was formal but it had the hint of a southern accent in it.
"Yeah, well nice to meet you to." I was pretty sure shaking hands would not be happening with this particular acquaintance. Alice was still watching Jasper as we spoke and once the quick introduction was done she was tugging on his hand to go to the other room.
"We'll see you tonight Bella." She chirped and then they were gone. This seemed to relax her and she turned to face me now, her face calm.
"Let me show you up to your room." She moved then back to the door that led to the open room of the entrance to the house and beckoned for me to follow. The burning flickered and then faded at her gesture.
"I have a room here?" I couldn't disguise the surprise in my voice and she laughed at my reaction but it didn't seem to warrant a response from her, she just kept walking leading me upstairs into a large white hallway, doors branching off on both sides.
We didn't stay on the second floor though. She moved swiftly to the end of the hall and I followed her up another flight of stairs to another, shorter, hallway. There were three doors here, two on either side of the stairs and one straight ahead. She turned to the right and opened the door. There was no sun entering this room but before I could search for a light she was on the opposite side of the room opening the curtains.
The room lit up to reveal a black and white theme, perfect for my tastes and there was a king size bed in the center of the room. If I wasn't careful I would be dangerously close to enjoying my time here.
"What do you think?" She moved again as she spoke, blurring to a stop next to me.
"That's going to take some getting used to." I commented, looking into her eyes again. Of course I only realized this was a bad idea once I had already done it. Once again I couldn't look away and now that we were alone the tension between us was not the same. It was like electricity was flowing between us and it caught me by surprise.
I tore my gaze away with some effort and she sighed.
"Sorry, I can move at your pace if it bothers you." I shook my head no but responded as well just in case she wasn't looking.
"No, it's really intersting and all, it doesn't bother me, it just might take me some time to get accustomed to it that's all." She stepped away from me then, turning towards the door, I turned to watch her.
"Well alright. Carlisle and Esme will be home soon and we will be meeting, all of us together once they arrive. There are clothes in the dresser if you have any interest in changing and cleaning up. Please meet me downstairs in an hour." She blurred again as she vanished out the door and I took a steadying breath before moving farther into my new room.
Again she hadn't explained who these people were but I let it go. I would meet them soon enough. I was glad she had reminded me about changing and cleaning up. With everything that had happened I had forgotten about a most basic need. I didn't bother really studying my new room. After all she had said we wouldn't be staying long.
I walked over to the dresser then and opened the drawer to find some clean clothes and a towel to use after my much needed shower.
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