This chapter is dedicated to linkkinparkk for all your amazing reviews and support. They are most appreciated. I'm sure you guys have noticed Anna has begun to change and I hope you've all enjoyed her own personal journey so far. Enjoy!
Chapter 9: Death Games
I stood in my motel room bathroom, my hands firmly grasping the side of the sink as I looked at my reflection. I seemed the same. My hair was the same colour, my eyes their usual shade, my skin the same tone. Physically nothing was out of place yet I felt different. I felt like me but at the same time I didn't. I searched my face for an answer hoping it would appear in writing on my forehead. Nothing.
I walked back into my room and headed towards the old, beat up dresser. I was still in the dress Alice had given me and I needed to change for later. The shoes, on the other hand, had been whipped off and thrown onto the bed the moment I walked through the door. After six hours they had killed my feet and I vowed never to wear them again.
I pulled out my pair of jeans and my red long sleeved shirt. I quickly, but carefully, pulled off the dress and placed it neatly back into the box. I still couldn't believe that she had bought me the dress and I shook my head. I dressed slowly. Everything had changed and moved so quickly tonight that I needed some time alone and some normalcy. If you could ever call my life normal.
It was 12:45 and the party at the Cullen's had ended at midnight. I had left shortly after that, informing them I needed to change. I had argued with Alice for almost ten minutes before leaving. She had bought me yet another outfit but I insisted that the one she had already given me was one too many. I was due back there at 2:15 in order to meet the wolves at three.
Once I was dressed I sat down at the edge of the bed and once again played around with a blade. I never really knew why I did this. I guess I liked to have my hands busy and I somehow felt more comfortable. Looking at the blade spinning in my hand, the light reflecting lightly off its highly polished surface, I could almost imagine patterns. For some reason I felt very vulnerable at the moment and doing this made me feel strong…safe.
I spent the next hour contemplating what had happened. I considered the army coming to Forks in search of Bella and the new alliance with the Quileute wolves. However, despite their importance and needed attention I didn't linger on them for long. What my mind grappled through was the answer that Alice had given me as she sat by the stereo. She wanted to be my friend. Why?
Could I be her friend, or more importantly did I want to be? I honestly didn't know but I felt guilty at the thought. What would my father think if he were alive? We had spent years together trying to kill their kind. He had died at the hands of one of those monsters. Part of me truly hated what they were but another part told me they weren't the same as others. As I stared at the swirling air my blade created I decided it didn't matter because this would be over soon. We would go our separate ways and would most likely never see each other again. Problem solved.
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I pulled up to the now familiar home, my mind now focused on the events that were to take place soon. The coming meeting should be interesting to say the least. This had to be the most unlikely alliance on the planet, well if they didn't rip each other to shreds. I laughed as I walked up to the door, my world was becoming a whole new definition of weird. I was about to knock when I heard Alice chime.
"Just come in Anna." I was beyond shock now. I merely rolled my eyes and walked in.
They were all there and the room was on its way to being back to normal. The stereo had been removed and the furniture had returned. They sat there, cool and collected and in deep conversation as Alice moved at the speed of light removing lights, picking up garbage, wiping down counters. Did she ever stop? Carlisle gestured for me to join them and I slowly crossed the room. I felt my hair ruffle as Alice breezed behind me.
"I think we'll start off slow. Give them simple instructions and maybe a few demonstrations on how to properly kill them. We can go more into depth tomorrow night, if they join again." Jasper was saying. He was clearly talking about tonight's meeting with the wolves.
"You may want to be careful in how you speak to them Jasper. Telling them how to 'properly' kill vampires may not sit to well with their pride." I said. I had come to stand next to Carlisle and was looking across at him.
"Don't worry I'll be subtle. If your reaction the other day was any indication on how they may react I'll have to choose my worlds carefully." He laughed "Though I hope to limit our conversation as much as possible."
"They are doing us a huge favor Jasper. I'm grateful for their assistance." Carlisle said gently. Jasper shrugged but then nodded his head in agreement.
"What time are we leaving?" I asked. I knew what I had to do soon and I was not looking forward to it.
"In a few minutes. We'd leave now but Alice insists on taking down the lights first." Everyone laughed and Alice appeared at the top of the stairs her tongue sticking out.
Emmett turned to me, "Speaking of leaving looks like you and me are travel buddies." He laughed and Rosalie gave me a look that could burn a hole through cement. This is what I did not want to do but if I was going to meet them in the clearing before dawn I really had no choice. I groaned. The vampires back pack.
"I'm ready." Alice skipped down the stairs and walked to towards the back door. "You guys comin?" We followed her out back. Once my foot hit the damp earth the others took off into the night. Emmett got down on one knee and waited for me to get on. I hesitated, its one thing to talk with them but this…
"I'm not getting any younger here, well I'm not getting any older either but you get the idea." He chuckled, "Just pretend it's all a bad dream. Unless, of course, you're scared." He grinned.
I held my head up and walked over, trying to preserve as much dignity as possible, hooked my leg around his hip and wrapped my arms around his neck. Awkward! He took off with no warning into the trees and I swore heavily under my breath. As he pushed himself faster my gripped tightened. I wondered if this is how a bullet felt being shot of a gun. The wind whipped my face and I saw nothing but darkness. He ran as if he had nothing but the clothes on his back.
We arrived in the clearing a few minutes later. As I jumped down I let out a deep breath, I wasn't sure if I had taken one since we left the house. "Never, ever, ever again!" I exclaimed, "I'm walking back."
"C'mon it couldn't have been that bad." He punched my shoulder. OW! I began rubbing my shoulder as I walked over to the rest of the Cullens. "Opps, I didn't hurt ya did I?"
"You wish." I said under my breath. He just laughed and began walking at human pace alongside me. Nothing ever seemed to darken Emmett's mood. While I knew where everyone was it took me a few moments for my eyes to adjust. We were in an enormous open field that rested in the shadow of the nearby mountains. It had to be twice the size of a baseball stadium. The sky overhead produced virtually no light for the clouds were smothering the moon like they did the sun. I lifted my hand to check my watch, which luckily had a light built in, 2:40am twenty minutes to go.
Everyone was talking casually and Jasper seemed to be doing stretches though I didn't see the point. Alice stood a little away from everyone and she seemed to be concentrating. I didn't want to bother her but her mouth suddenly turned into a pout and she didn't looks very optimistic. She actually seemed to be wallowing a bit. I walked over to her side. "Anything new?" I asked.
She shook her head, "No. The wolves will be here soon so I can't see what will happen." This clearly frustrated her. Her eyes glazed over for a fraction of a second, "but I can see that Edward and Bella will be here in 4 minutes and 22 seconds."
"Alice, why can't you see the wolves?" I asked. No one had really explained that one to me.
"We don't know. Carlisle thinks it has something to do with their constant changing of forms. They aren't solid or consistent and so neither is their future. But that's only a guess."
"You don't like being blind do you?" I asked. She looked at me and stuck out her tongue out as she did back at the house. I couldn't help but laugh. I take that as a yes.
We continued to stand in silence while the others mingled and Jasper continued his warm up. A few minutes later, 4 minutes and 22 seconds to be exact, Bella and Edward had entered the clearing. They began walking slowly towards us, deep in conversation. I'm surprised Bella came, she must be exhausted but I guess if I were her I would insist on coming to. Hell I did. Emmett's booming laughter once again filled the wide space.
Carlisle approached them, "When will they arrive?" he asked
Edward looked west and concentrated for a moment. "In about a minute but I'm going to have to translate. They don't trust us enough to come in their human forms." Carlisle nodded and walked back over to Esme. I hadn't seen the wolves since that first, and only, trip to La Push. It seemed like a lifetime ago I was there but I still remembered the enormous black wolf as if it were only yesterday. I wondered how they would react seeing me here with them.
Suddenly Edward said, "Prepare yourselves, they've been holding out on us."
"What do you mean?" Alice demanded. Poor Alice, she wasn't used to asking those types of questions. I suppressed another laugh. Edward merely shook his head and stared straight ahead. Emerging out of the woods were ten auras. Hmmmm, that's two more than I felt last time. Either two more had joined or were just not present when I met them. One of them was female, the only woman actually. That must seriously suck.
Where their stances before were casual and loose, the Cullen's now began to form a line with both Emmett and Jasper front and center. I stood at the end alongside Alice. Though I could not see them the wolves were approaching slowly.
Emmett muttered under his breath, completely shocked, "Damn! Did you ever see anything like this?" The others exchanged cautious glances.
Bella spoke next, "What is it?" I had to strain to hear her. She spoke only in a whisper and was on the opposite side of the line. I forgot she couldn't see or feel anything with regards to the pack that was slowly making its way towards us. She was totally blind.
Edward answered her, "The pack has grown."
A moment later they stopped all at once, as if they were one mind. I could see their eyes shinning subtly in the darkness. There was a large space between the two groups, the line had been drawn. Carlisle walked forward slowly, careful not to make any sudden movements. He was trying to keep things peaceful and his posture was designed to reassure. "Welcome, we are grateful you have come." He greeted them. It reminded me of the first time I had walked into the Cullen's household. He was there greeting me as warmly as he did them. It was hard not to appreciate the genuine kindness and courtesy in his voice.
"Thank you" Edward said in a flat, monotone voice that was clearly not his own. He was speaking Sam's thoughts. "We will watch and listen but no more. That is all we can ask of our self control."
"That is more than enough," Carlisle answered, "My son Jasper has a great deal of experience in this field. He will help to teach us how they are to be defeated. I'm sure you can modify this to your own style of hunting." Carlisle was careful to tack on that last sentence. Allowing the wolves to remain separate and independent from the approaching instructions.
"Are they different from you?" Edward, or should I say Sam asked. While they hunted vampires and clearly viewed them as their natural enemies they sure didn't know a lot about them. Newborns anyway. I wondered if they had ever even killed one before.
Carlisle continued, "Yes. They are all newborn vampires and therefore only months old to the immortal life. They react mostly on instinct and therefore will have little to no skill and only brute strength. Currently they stand at twenty but their numbers may go down for they tend to fight among themselves. We can each take half." I could hear a low grumbling and it sounded like a mix of laughter and excitement though coming from wolves I couldn't be sure.
"Do you know when they will be coming?"
"They will come in four days time in the early morning. Alice will help guide us as they approach." Carlisle finished.
"And the girl?" I felt ten different set of eyes fall upon me and I was intimately aware that I stood but a centimeter away from Alice, a vampire. Carlisle looked over at me, allowing me to speak for myself.
I resented being called girl but I answered calmly as this situation was tense enough "I will be fighting and coordinating alongside the Cullens during the fight. My hunting style and abilities will be of better use and far more effective with them in this clearing." I stated. Their stares lingered on me for a moment but soon looked away.
"Thank you for the information. We will watch." Edward repeated one last time before, simultaneously, they all sunk lower to ground to observe. Jasper walked into the empty space. He quickly turned his back on the wolves and while he seemed determined to ignore their presence he looked very uncomfortable.
He spoke, "Carlisle is right. The newborns will be fighting purely on instinct and will act very much like children." Blood thirsty, throw a Volvo through a house like children, "There are two important things you need to remember while fighting them. First, don't let them get their arms around you for they can and will easily crush your body. Second, don't go for the obvious kill because it will be one of the few things they are prepared for. Keep moving and don't come at them head on." No problem, I just gotta wait for one to come to me. "If you do this they will be too confused to fight effectively."
Jasper walked further into the field in the middle space. No man's land. Emmett quickly followed, backing onto the opposite end. "Emmett will be first. His style is closest to that of the newborns."
Emmett's eyes narrowed, a shallow growl emitting from his chest and muttered, "I'll try not to break anything."
Jasper grinned and clarified, "What I mean is Emmett relies on his strength and so do the newborns. His attacks are simple and straightforward and theirs will be similar. Just go for the easy kill Emmett and try to catch me…if you can." Jasper let out a little laugh and disappeared from my sight. My senses, on the other hand, felt him moving around the field. He was like a lightning strike; fast, deadly and never struck the same area twice. Emmett charged straight forward, nearly as fast as Jasper. I found myself closing my eyes as they moved around the field.
Alice whispered in my ear, "You alright?" Her ice cold breath left goose bumps on my skin. She must wonder why I closed my eyes.
I answered her, "I'm fine it's just easier to watch or rather feel what's going on when my eyes aren't open. My other senses become more dominate." She didn't continue to question me so I turned my attention back Jasper and Emmett. I had never witnessed two vampires fighting before and the ones I met were never alive along enough for me to really observe. This, however, was both fascinating and entertaining. Emmett got close many times but was always a fraction of a second to late. After a moment Jasper went in for the kill and soon Emmett had frozen. Jasper was clearly on his back. I opened my eyes and smiled as I heard Emmett cuss. The wolves rumbled and it was clearly that of appreciation and perhaps admiration.
"Best two out of three" Emmett said, his smile for once gone and annoyance in his eyes.
Jasper merely put up his hand and waved Alice forward. "In a minute, I want to show Bella something first." Emmett stalked back over the rest of us, mumbling the whole way and Alice danced by him. I wondered what Jasper wished to show Bella. "I know you worry about her and I need to show you that it is unnecessary to do so." I looked over at Bella and saw her eyes were both sad and concerned. She clearly loved Alice and I had to admit Alice did look fragile though I knew she was nothing but.
Alice stopped a short distance from Jasper and remained unmoving. She had a smile playing on her lips as she closed her eyes. Jasper slowly sank into a crouch and stalked forward. He moved quickly to her left before he sprang. Though it was almost impossible to see with your eyes, well human eyes, I felt Alice move ever so slightly so that Jasper went past her, landing on her other side gracefully. This continued for over a minute. Alice barely moved and had kept her eyes closed the every time Jasper made another attempt at her. Suddenly they started moving faster, weaving their way through each other like some delicate but complex tapestry. Finally Alice made her move and she was suddenly on his back laughing, her lips at the side of his throat.
"Gotcha" She said playfully and gently kissed his throat.
Jasper laughed and his eyes shown with undying affection for his partner, "You truly are one frightening little monster." The wolves merely muttered and were seemingly caught between being impressed and annoyed.
"My turn." Edward suddenly declared. As he moved towards Jasper, Alice danced her way back and took over Edward's position beside Bella. Alice quickly began whispering in Bella's ear but I couldn't make anything out. I quickly turned my attention to the upcoming match.
I closed my eyes once again as they began moving to fast for my eyes to see. This fight was far more even. Jasper had far more experience but Edward's ability to read his mind allowed him to stay a step ahead. Edward was clearly the fastest, the fastest I had ever felt, but Jasper had moves that were both superior and unfamiliar to him. They kept going after one another but each time it ended in a tie. Neither could gain the upper hand and growls constantly erupted from their chests. Eventually someone cleared their throat, I assumed Carlisle and the movement stopped.
"We'll call it a draw." Jasper said. Both he and Edward were grinning widely. "Lets get back to work."
Emmett stepped forward once again, "Rematch."
I laughed, "Don't the rest of us get a turn Emmett? I for one would like to try my luck." I grinned and Jasper grinned back, curiosity in his eyes.
"No way! If anyone gets to take you on first it's gonna be me." Emmett said. "Unless you're scared?" He flexed his muscles threateningly.
I marched out into the field between the alliance. Jasper walked past me and whispered, "Go easy on him." I chuckled and I heard Emmett growl. After a few meters I turned to face them, Emmett had already sunk into a crouch. I took out my knife and he eyed uneasily.
"Don't worry Emmett, I have excellent control." I threw it into the air and caught it like a baton, twirling it in my hands "I promise not to actually hurt you," his growl deepened and my smile widened. "Just think of it as a ceremonial object." I closed my eyes. "Ready whenever you are" I called.
He came at me, straight on, and with blinding speed. I latched onto his aura and struck. My eyes were open and my blade was a millimeter from his neck. He stood frozen, his arms outstretched towards me. Like with Jasper he cussed while the others tried to suppress their laughter. I put my arm down, patted him on the head, moved out of his way and allowed him to move again. I walked back to the Cullens at a normal pace. I saw the wolves and I swore they looked impressed. I couldn't help but feel a little smug. Suddenly Emmett tried to pounce on me from behind, probably thinking I was distracted, and I stopped him once again. "Nice try Emmett."
"Dammit." He breathed. Jasper was shaking with unconcealed laughter.
"You wanna give it a shot Jasper?" I asked
"Not really. I'm pretty sure it would produce the same result." He grinned "Impressive by the way."
"Thanks."
I already knew what I had to do so I didn't participate for the rest of the night as the others took turns against Jasper. First Carlisle followed by Rosalie and Esme. Occasionally he would slow down to give more instructions. While I continued to watch and study their moves diligently my head was really starting to hurt and I was getting rather tired. It was approaching twenty four hours that I had been awake and while this was not a first for me it had been a long day.
Almost as if Jasper could read thoughts like his brother he stopped and turned to the wolves for the first time. "We'll be doing this tomorrow. Please feel welcome to observe again."
Edward replied in the same monotone voice as before, "Thank you, we will be here." Edward sighed and spoke once again. "The pack thinks it would be beneficial for them to be familiar with each of our scents as not to confuse us with the others during the fight. Standing still would make that easier." He left Bella's side and walked over to join my family.
"Of course," Carlisle said and took his place in line. As the others followed his lead I backed away and walked over to stand next to Bella. She was watching the pack intensely. I stood beside her as Sam stepped forward and sniffed Carlisle, wrinkling his nose in disgust.
Bella's gaze had locked onto a reddish brown wolf, which I sensed was Jacob, and she seemed deep in thought. The wolf quickly noticed her stare and turned his face towards her. After a moment he left his place in line and trotted over towards us, his tongue hanging out the side. He sat down not two feet away from us and stared intently into Bella's face.
She whispered, "Jacob?" and the wolf smiled, exposing his razor sharp teeth. She reached and touched his fur for a moment. I felt like I was interrupting something and was about to leave when suddenly he licked her face. Nasty!
"EW! Gross, Jake!" She exclaimed and jumped back a bit as the wolf laughed. After a moment, and after she wiped her face, she began laughing alongside him. I backed away a bit, afraid he may do the same to me. The looks on the Cullens faces as they watched was a mix of confusion and disgust. The wolves didn't look to happy either.
The wolves began to back slowly away from the clearing, their eyes never leaving the Cullens, and soon disappeared into the trees. The one named Jacob remained behind. I walked back over to the others as Edward took his place beside Bella. He started having a conversation with the two of them. I turned to Alice.
"Well I think that went well." And she nodded her head in agreement. Jasper came to join us and we started talking about the various tactics and methods we could use in the coming fight. We had been talking for a few minutes when Edward suddenly called Jasper over.
Jasper walked over to them and Alice quickly followed. I heard something about a false trail but was distracted when Carlisle and Esme came to speak with me.
"How are you feeling? Headache?" he asked, in doctor mode.
"I'm fine." I lied smoothly. I really wanted aspirin for my head.
"Well we'll be leaving soon. Edward is just finishing up some last minute plans with regards to Bella's safety. You still want to walk back?" He asked, a smile playing upon his lips.
"I guess I can endure the torture one more time. If Emmett doesn't try to attack me again." I teased
We waited a few more minutes while Edward and Jacob talked and Alice and Jasper played more death games in the clearing. Soon I was gripping tight to Emmett once more as we dashed through the trees with the others.
The sun emerged over the horizon the clouds no longer blanketing its light.
Hey guys, what did ya think? I tried to stay true to the book while providing my own usual twist and I hope I succeeded.
I hope to post more chapters soon! Once Again, PLEASE REVIEW!!! :)
