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Chapter 8: But She Knew How to Show It

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July 1st -December 31st 2036

In the real world, as well as in enchanted ones, routines can be extremely comforting in a time of uncertainty. Even a simple routine of a morning kiss, followed by Lucky Charms before your first cigarette of the day, or spinning twelve times before landing on Hamlet and reading Shakespeare with your beloved then snuggling up for bed could somehow make the world seem less terrifying, it made the villains, whether they be evil witches or ogres or, in this case, rogue vampires, seem that much further away. Routines though, no matter how sweet and innocent, can mask things like eminent danger or relationship uncertainties, but it's a just cover, like throwing your hand up to cover a gun pointed directly at your face.

Randy and Soli's routine for the last six months was a simple one. Every night they read till they were too exhausted to think of sex and fell asleep in each other's arms. Every morning, whatever time morning happened to be for them that day, and no matter what the state their breath might be in, they would kiss. That was the only kiss of the day so they always tried to make it count. Soli didn't want to complicate things more than they already were so one kiss was the unspoken rule.

Some mornings the kiss would be quick and sweet, others they would be urgent and heavy, leaving them panting and not entirely satisfied. Some mornings, like this morning, the morning of July the 11th—Claire Ateara's thirty-third birthday and the day of Annabelle Cameron's disappearance, and the start of the war— they would end up with their shirts discarded, their skin mashed together as their tongues flipped and turned like acrobats.

"You look so darned beautiful in the morning," he sighed, running his big warm hands down her back. He had ripped her shirt off in a fit of morning lust, she didn't argue, of all the people that had seen her naked Randy was the only one that looked at her the way he did…it was nice.

"It's the afternoon," she chuckled, pulling him closer so that his warm skin touched hers. It had been a long night for them. Randy had trained in combat with Jake and Jasper last night alongside his pack, it was nearly three by the time they were finished and after he'd practiced with her.

He insisted on training with her. He said it because he wanted to be extra-ready but really he just wanted her to be able to take care of herself, if he were not to return from the fight. When he was satisfied she'd be able to take out pretty much any human assailant, he carried her home on his back, and not wanting to break their routine, they did not forego the nightly book club, so that they read until the sun came up.

Soli was the only imprint to come and watch the training, she sat in the forest clearing with Alice whom she had become acquainted with during her travels in Europe and watched as Randy, Melody, Devlin and Levi were trained. Taylor, Mark, David, Seth and Brady also came, which they said it was a sign of solidarity but seeing as Seth had killed the most vampires among them and he was a known pacifist, Soli knew it was their macho way of trying to soak up everything Jake and Jasper knew.

She hated it, she didn't really know why she came but she did, she came every night, while they trained for a few hours and sometimes strategize. She hated it most when they did hand to hand combat, he was her bright eyed snuggle bear and it was torturous seeing him fight. He had to, she knew he did, and she understood this was necessary but she couldn't help but hiss anytime Jasper or Emmett actually managed to hit him.

Randy turned out to be a good fighter, he was big which made some wolves slow but not him, and if he weren't in danger, she might have found it hot even, but things were serious, too serious for her to play games and not spend every second of her day with him, worrying about how much longer she had with him.

She was right to worry, she was probably the only one worrying as much as was necessary because their opposition was expanding. Jun's crew of seven had grown to fifteen though not all of them were vampires. There were also two extremely dim-witted humans, his ability for persuasion worked better on those with less going on upstairs. The humans, both male and nameless as far as Jun was concerned, were quite handy as long as he could keep the rest of the coven from eating them. They had had a few mishaps with the first three Blood Bags, because as the coven grew Jun's ability to keep them in line was less potent.

His persuasive powers did not stem from the eyes, that was a common misconception most vampires got when they heard tale of his power. It was a feeling, a pulsating energy that surrounded him and seeped into the corners of your mind. He did not need to look into your eyes to control you—though he enjoyed watching those around him avoid eye contact—in fact it was not control at all, it was a bit more limited than that, though frightening all the same.

If he told you to kill yourself for example, and there was no part of you that was already considering it as an option, he would not be able to sway you. Jun amplified your inner most desires, thoughts, ideas and molded them to fit his will. As a human he was a salesman, a computer salesman in Seoul during a time when computers were still new and relatively useless when compared to what they are now. Nowadays computers play a vital part in our lives, like an extension of ourselves, but when personal computers were first introduced to the consumer market, their biggest functions were computation, basic record keeping and lo-fi games made for English language users, therefore entirely useless to the common Korean. He was the highest selling worker in his company though, because even then he had the unique ability to convince just about any small business owner and house wife that a personal computer was essential.

So his quest for power therefore was quite simple, because basic human fact, one that he knew well, was the need for power. This need was enlarged in the spirit of vampires so it did not take much to collect a team ready to put themselves in danger for any sort of power. Cannon fodder the most of them, he knew he'd lose the lot, and other than his right-hand woman, Cassie, and Edgar he didn't much care. Cassie had no ability, no ability that one would be able to discern but Jun, who had been a spiritual capitalist in his lifetime, considered her the ying to his yang. She was not his mate, he was not in possession of a mate and he had no desire to obtain one, in fact she was a lesbian and was partnered, (though her mate Gina was on his list of expendable minions) Cassandra just balanced him. While he was brash and abrupt, Cassie, who had been a housewife and mother of three in her human life, was the sugar cookie sweet accomplice he needed for stabilization.

In fact, Edgar was the only other member of his coven that possessed an ability, the only reason Jun was keen on keeping him alive. An ability is much rarer than one would come to believe and it was a hell of a thing to waste. Add to that, Edgar was one of the few Jun did not have to persuade at all, he was not under Jun's thumb in any way, he genuinely craved the power as much as Jun did. Edgar's human life was a life of crime, crime of the organized variety.

Edgar was a mafia Kingpin in a ring based in the southern city of Guadalajara, Mexico, where he was known for his ruthless tactics and fondness for torture. When he was turned it was part of a two pack, his maker the lovely Miss Sofia, saw his soullessness even as a human as an asset and when she set eyes on his brother, the large and dense henchman Manuel, she turned them together. Jun had collected them as a trio in Texas, he actively sought then after whispered rumors of his skill. Edgar's power would scare most people more readily; he quite literally was the master of fear. Within seconds who could make any of those within a reasonable distance believe their biggest fear was about to occur, and if you were unfortunate enough to be within grasping distance, he could make you see it as clearly as if it were truly happening.

They were currently in stage one of their uprising, because while Jun was the leader of this leg of the race, there was still one above him, one that used him as a puppet. Maria had maneuvered and plotted this for years, since she helped the Cullen's eradicate the Volturi. Jasper knew when he asked her she would be helping for her own selfish reasons but desperate times called for desperate measures and those measures sparked a fire.

Maria had met Jun in the mid-1990's but it wasn't until the fall of the Volturi that she took him under her employ. She walked a fine line, playing as a casual informant for the newly formed vampire council, while taking in all knowledge of their daily operations and planning an revolt. Stage one was to get rid of the pups and no amount of training would prepare them for what was to come.

"So last night…" Randy started uncertainly after a long bout of silence, she blushed rolling so her bare back was to him.

"Can we not talk about that?" She asked as he kissed along her shoulder, letting his fingers come around front and trace the raised outline of her pert nipple. She moaned loudly, with each explorative touch.

"I'm your boyfriend?" He pressed, turning her so he could attack her collarbone with kisses.

"What would you like me to call you?" She asked harshly.

Last night in a rare sign of combat prowess, Devlin pinned Randy who had been distracted by a waft of Soli's sweet scent and she growled. So loudly and noticeably that Bella Cullen, watching from the sidelines with Rosalie at her side, laughed.

"Can't stand seeing your boyfriend manhandled?" Rosalie asked with a raise of her perfectly arched eyebrows. Soli had stupidly answered a resounding "no," thus agreeing to the word boyfriend.

"I would like you to call me your husband, father to your many, many children but boyfriend would be cool for now," Randy joked, his big perfect smile lighting his face.

All the baby fat had vanished from his cheeks so that he no longer looked much like the boy she grew up with, he was for all intents and purposes a man. An attractive, nice, funny, sweet, mature, loving man she had a hard time believing was hers. She wanted claims on him, she really did, but it just didn't seem right that she of all people would get him.

He looked so grown up now, broad and smooth. He buzzed his hair with Levi and Devlin two nights before, Soli almost cried as she did it, gently making sure not to knick his ear through her teary eyes. She was still trying to adjust to it. In a way it made him look like a solider, a soldier on his way to a war. She rubbed her fingers over the sandy brown stubble that remained as she spoke.

"Why do you love me?" It was a heavy question, they hadn't had heavy questions since February when he dragged her back to La Push.

Since then she had done as he instructed, she liked this manly possessive part of him. She hated that she liked it, it was so chauvinistic of her but when he told her she would take care of her body because it was his, she shivered and complied. When he told her she needed to stop thinking about the town and worry about herself, she cleaned out the apartment given to her and got to work. She didn't actually sleep there most nights but it was still hers and it was inhabitable, something she did all on her own.

"Is that a test? Like do I have to answer that correctly to deserve the honor of being called your boyfriend?" He asked settling on top of her and allowing his body to smash against her; she liked it. He was big, at just over 6 foot 3 now, a full foot taller than her. That's not to mention the well over a hundred pounds of muscle heavier than her he was, but she loved to feel his weight and once he knew she was sturdy enough to handle it, he complied. It was just proof perfect that they were meant to be because no normal human woman would be able to survive his full weight on top of her and she loved it. He loved it too, it was the closest he could get to her… without being inside of her, which he was still holding out on though it got harder and harder knowing now the silky perfection of her golden tanned skin.

"It's just a question," she smiled curtly. He knew by the stiffness that he had to answer correctly or suffer her wrath, the wrath that covered her pain. It was hard to believe almost like a disease, it had to be a mental sickness of some kind that made her believe she were not enough for him, but she did.

"I've always loved you," he said simply, inhaling the deep attractive aroma that clung to her hair.

"But why?" She asked curiously, nibbling playfully at his shoulder. She wanted to bite him, bad, there was a vampire urge in her whenever he was this close smelling so good. She wanted to taste him but she knew he wouldn't appreciate it so she fought the urge.

"Well, I imprinted on you, so obviously we're meant to be," he said matter-of-factly, she scoffed, she didn't like that answer.

"According to some people, but we've seen imprinting not work that doesn't automatically mean love—and besides you said you loved me before that. Why?"

"You're the most beautiful girl I've ever met," he offered unsurely.

"Vampire blood, can't be factored in to our relationship. All vamps are beautiful, it's an illusion."

"So this is a relationship?" He asked with an excited grin.

"I need to know why Randy… I don't… I'm not good, I'm not good enough for you," she said seriously.

He hated this seriousness, because this serious brought forward other seriouses, like the fact that the vampire coven they were dealing with was a real threat. They became even more threatening and impressive as they grew, and they were growing quickly or at least that's what they'd heard. They were no longer in the Washington area, they had retreated but they weren't exactly hiding, making noise in Oregon as if to mock the pack.

"Because you are good Soli, you are so good," he sighed, lifting himself off of her with his elbows so that he could look her in the eye.

"That's debatable."

"Well then let's debate it because I know you better than anyone in the whole world, and Soli, you are almost as beautiful on the outside as you are inside, and that's why I love you," he said breaking the one kiss minimum for the day and kissing her again.

"You don't know me like you think," she argued, not taking her lips from his because once their lips separated then it could no longer be counted as one kiss.

"I know you hate it when people kill bugs, because it's cruel, especially mosquitoes because they remind you of vampires and you feel like it's an attack on you. I know you cry whenever you watch movies where kids are separated from their mommies, even if you hide it. I know that when you cum your toes curl and you stop breathing, which scares me, because the thought of you not existing makes me physically sick and I know that in the world, there is nothing you love more than your brother Freddie. You see him as the only other person who understands, which makes me jealous," he said sliding his hand down the front of her body and under the rim of her shorts and panties.

This was a new development in their relationship, after months of sleeping in the same bed together without release, Soli became irritable. It had become unbearable for the both of them, and Randy started to remedy it, using his mammoth hands to please her. She tried to reciprocate but he stopped it, he wasn't sure he could handle it, he wanted all of her and it was an all or nothing kind of thing for him.

"You're wrong," she panted as he used his middle finger to draw soft lazy circles around her clit sending rippling pulses of pleasure though her body so that her hands made fist and her back arched involuntarily.

"I'm not, you're amazing, Soli," he breathed in her ear picking up speed. She pushed his hand down, urging him to enter her. He used one thick finger and it was enough, so warm and gentle it was almost wrong, things shouldn't feel that good. She felt warm and perfect and yet there was an itch. She loved the journey but the release was too addicting and she smiled, thrashed against him, moving her pelvis feverishly.

"No, no you're wrong about Freddie… I love him of course—But—oh god another, another," she begged and he complied adding a second finger.

"It's you though," she said seriously. "In the world… there's nothing… I love… more than you," she panted finding a steady rhythm against his hand.

"What?" Had she just said I love you? Could that be counted as an official 'I love you'?

"I love you," she screamed as she clenched around him hard, releasing intoxicatingly sweet warmth onto his hand.

That was indisputable, a real 'I love you', it didn't matter to him that it was in mid-orgasmic delight. She glowed, the post-orgasm glow that he loved more than any other face she made, even the 'Randy, I want you face,' which was a close second.

"I love you too," he said dumbfounded. He'd always imagine that when she would finally say it, it'd be some huge battle and he'd have to force it out but it wasn't, he didn't have to push her, she just said it.

"So I guess you're my boyfriend then," she said quickly turning her face so that she didn't have to see his shock anymore, it made her nervous.

She'd always imagined when she finally did have the guts to tell him how much she loved him, he'd ravage her. He'd use his super human speed to remove all of their clothing and take her, wherever they were but he didn't. He rolled them over to their side so that he was hugging her from behind, his big hand rested on her cheek, she kissed the palm, holding it closer to her face with her tiny ones.

"Yeah," he choked and she turned over facing him. He was teary eyed and she loved him that much more for it. She kissed the corner of his eye where the slight dampness was accumulating and sighed.

"Are you okay?"

"I did it," he exhaled, rubbing the small of her back absentmindedly, it sent chills throughout her body, goosebumps sprouting so quick she shivered.

"Yeah…you tamed the Shrew," she giggled, reaching up and kissing him for the third time today. She couldn't help counting, it was a habit she needed to break. He wasn't thinking about it, he kissed her repeatedly experimenting with pressure, intensity and style. He turned their innocent peck into a battle that made her wet, soaking a small ring into her underwear.

"Do you have a condom?" She asked as he removed her shorts, careful to leave the tiny underwear intact.

"Fuck," he spat. He rarely swore, and when he did, it turned her on more. Throwing himself back on the bed in defeat, he cursed his stupidity, condoms, of course they would need condoms! She had waited for this, longer than she would like to admit and now that he was willing, now that he wanted to do it she wasn't letting up. She mounted his body, using her free hand to tug at his pants.

"I need you," she moaned, just as a scream filled the house and Collin, too worried to register the scent of heightened arousal burst into his room where a topless Soli still mounted him. Thankfully for her super speed and Collin's distraction, he didn't see much.

"We have to go," Collin said covering his face as Soli threw on a sundress.

"Where?" Both Soli and Randy asked, Randy praying his erection would go down already. Helen burst through the door, Randy covered his crotch with a pillow blushing profusely.

"They took Annabelle," Helen said evenly but her eyes were blazing in a way that terrified Soli, it was the way she looked at her when they argued about Randy.

"Who took what?" Randy was slower to the uptake than Soli who gasped, almost flipping over the bed to get to his side.

"The vamps," Soli whispered, pulling his arm with a razor sharp grip. This couldn't be. They had promised, they had sworn they would be prepared. Alice had assured her quite clearly there would be no battle until September.

"Solace is on his way, Michael, Anna and Jordan are going with us." Coming out of retirement, it was a big thing, Michael, Anna and Jordan hadn't run with the pack for awhile, though they continued to phase from occasion to assure they didn't start aging.

"Us? Took her?" The words didn't quite register.

"She's gone, Randy, and their launching an attack, we have to go. I'm not letting you go out there alone," Collin continued. He was his only child and he would not could not lose him, he would like most fathers, die for his boy, it was not a question. But what Randy was stuck on was the 'they' and not the 'we' part of the sentence. They were coming here? The vampires? To La Push, where Soli was?

"But Soli—"

"She'll be at Kim's house with Jared, Paul, Sam, and Quil, if anyone comes near, they can still phase, and they are some of the best fighters we've had, she'll be fine but we need to go," Collin said pulling his son towards the door. They walked quickly, Randy and Collin on either side of Helen and Soli as if they thought something would pop out and at this point no one could be sure, because Annabelle had been taken by a human. The human was of course in the employ of vampires but it made things less certain, the wolves could trust no one.

When they arrived at the Cameron house, Soli and Randy said their goodbyes, they weren't sure if he would come back. She stayed strong for him, she gave him repeated kisses and no one watched because they were all giving their own goodbyes. Mark was attached to his mother next to them and they didn't even register their stolen kisses.

Fifteen wolves were leaving: Randy, Collin, Brady, Seth, Phil, Krys, Michael, Anna, Jordan, Mark, David, Taylor, Melody, Devlin and Levi, the house was booming but it was a quiet boom, tons of small circles in every direction.

"I love you. I love you so much, Randy. I can't live right without you, so you have to come back to me, promise please," Soli whispered.

He had her wrapped around the waist, her arms grasping at his head and pulling him down to her, kissing along his hairline as she spoke. Solace arrived with his wife Amber, as Randy promised repeatedly to fight his hardest. Randy didn't hear when Jasper announced they had to go, and he didn't stop kissing her till Solace pulled him off of her.

"I'd guard her with my life," Solace promised, shaking his hand roughly. Amber was pregnant, only about a month along and it had been decided he would stay behind with the retired wolves, keeping watch on La Push. They had found a way around Alice's shield, Alice knew there was a group near the northern border of Forks but the wolves involvement made everything beyond that a blur. With Annabelle gone, they couldn't be sure who, where or how they would strike, and Solace, one of the most highly trained, was not taking a chance leaving Amber's side. He had wanted and waited for children for a long time.

When Helen was done crying over her son and kissing her husband, they were gone, and like many a fairytale of yore, the women left behind, those without their imprints, children, friends where left shaking. This was something the wolf-girls had not had to bond over in a long time, a possible reason their ties were not as strong. The bonds grew and multiplied over the course of a night. Amber and Soli sat hand in hand for the majority of the first day, Harley and Maddox fastened in their laps. Tara and Trisha stood huddled, their children kept close at their sides. Claire and Helen did not separate, Helen distracting herself by coddling and holding Claire's son Addison, while Emily and Rachel stayed with Kim, not speaking, not even attempting to console Kim who had two children in mortal danger, possibly three.

Ethan had stayed behind in Volterra, a command from Jake who was hesitant about leaving his wife and newborn son William so unprotected, Embry and Freddie were also there as an order from their Alpha. Alice knew from vision, they would attempt to take over Volterra next, but he didn't trust they would keep to that plan or that they didn't have forces already set up in Europe.

At the end of the night when the logistics of sleeping had to be figured out, Soli brought Amber and Solace back to her apartment above Quil's shop, Tara and her daughters following along. Solace had made the same promise he gave to Randy to Phil, who had been his best friend for over thirty years. He was a man of his word and he stayed in wolf form, stationed at the back door of the shop the entire night.

Paul, Rachel, Trisha and her daughters stayed with the Uley's, Sam and Paul pacing six hours of the first night. Quil, Claire, Kim and Jared stayed together with the three young Atearas at the Cameron house, Kim couldn't sleep and Maddox, though she did not understand the seriousness of the situation, felt antsy now that Solace was back. She kept Kim company as Jared and Quil took turns patrolling the immediate area, feeling not all together right.

This went on for three weeks, though the sleeping arrangements varied from time to time. It was 22 days before the scent of vampire filled Solace's nose.

Jared and Solace phased quickly, it took longer for Jared who had not phased in years. They were instantly thrown into the collective minds of the pack. Their brothers had succeeded in taking out ten of their thirteen but three were headed back to La Push with the sole purpose of vengeance. Jun, Gina and Manuel were not the fiercest of the fighters but they had the rage of loss on their side. They had all lost something, Jun lost his commander, Gina had lost her mate and Manuel had lost everything because in his world, there was only his big brother Edgar and Miss Sofia.

Edward made it back to La Push first and side by side, Edward, Solace and Jared fought.

Paul was seconds away from the Cameron house when he heard it, a grotesque grind like a stone being smashed into bits. Before Jun was entirely bifurcated, he made one last vicious move, he fought against Jared's hold on his torso and reached frantically grabbing Solace's hind leg, and squeezing with every last bit of hate in his still heart. He pierced the skin, smashing the bone into tiny shards, some of which were forcefully expelled from Solace's body. The rest of the pack, returned minutes later; fifteen wolves had left and only thirteen had returned but Soli didn't ask, she didn't see anything past Randy. She didn't see as Anna and Mark laid out the body, with reverence, Mark's shoulders shaking from silent tears. She didn't see as Tara and Kim collapsed at the very sight of the lifeless form.

Randy ran to her, covered in sweat, smelling like blood and musk and forest, she didn't care. She climbed him like a tree covering his face in endless kisses, he hurt. He hurt everywhere, he'd never been this close to death, he'd never lost someone he loved. Physically he was just as bad, he'd never worked so hard, every muscle in his body was burning, but he still wanted her. He needed her. The pain of being away from her, worrying about her constantly was almost as bad at the thick chunk of skin ripped from his back, or the three ribs cracked from one roundhouse kick.

"Oh God! Randy. Randy. Randy," she repeated his name is a fevered whisper, kissing everything she could reach.

"I love you so much," she had spent twenty-two days cursing herself for not telling him sooner, for not being woman enough to tell him every day she had known.

He didn't need to look where he was going, his feet led him to her house, up her stairs and through the door, which he placed her firmly against, kissing her with such force, her stomach dropped. He didn't bother removing her dress, he pushed her underwear aside dropping his sweats before he plunged into her.

She moaned and he growled, pounding his fist against the wooden door overcome by the feeling of her tight warmth against him. He stood still as she adjusted around him, nothing and no one had ever felt so perfect, nothing had ever gone so deep inside of her.

They breathed deep ragged breaths, their chest rising and falling at an irregular tempo that managed to stay in unison.

"You're mine," he hissed through clenched teeth. It was hard to believe how good it felt, it brought to life a primal need, energy he'd been tapped into for the last three weeks. She clawed at the wall, grabbing at the door frame as he started to move, thrusting up and into her hard and quick. His warm pelvis pressed hard against her sensitive mound with every push up and she cried from the combined pleasure, a kind she never experienced before, and the relief of his return.

Randy's legs grew weak, the endless running and fighting was starting to catch up to him. He swung her around not breaking their connection and dropping on the couch. She straddled him, ripping off her dress and bra, Randy destroyed her underwear, throwing it behind his head before he grabbed her hips guiding her to a slow deliberate pace.

Her whole body burned from their combined heat, she ran warm but he was burning hot inside of her. She could feel tiny beads of sweat form on her back which made her slightly slick as he grabbed at her ass, his fingers making deep indents in the soft flesh there.

"Randy, you're—so good," she couldn't make sentences. She'd missed talking to him, so much so that words wouldn't form.

She brought herself up, her breast momentarily in his face before she came back down, the feeling of reentering her rejuvenated him. He pulled out placing her gently across the couch, she brought her knees up so high they were almost at his underarms. The new position allowed him to push deep, and she screamed a profound guttural scream as he picked up the pace.

He was bruised, the whole left side of his torso was purple and blue and she fingered it gingerly before the pre-orgasm feeling of drowning in sensations overcame her and she wrapped her legs around his firm ass pulling him closer.

She opened her mouth to let out a torrent of profanities but he moved forward giving her a waft of his scent and clear access to his shoulder. She bit down onto it, too overcome with him to stop herself, and she sucked hard on the wound stopping when a mouthful of his hot blood entered her mouth and she finally reach a plateau, he followed shortly after.