Chapter Nine: A Tale of Two Choices

As I lay unconscious, the darkness almost all consuming, the nightmares came. They weren't normal, they were disjointed and un-even.

The start of the dream I was standing on a cliff looking out over the ocean. I heard a noise behind me and I quickly turned to look. There he stood, my perfect gift from God, my Emmett. He smiled his warm smile at me, his hand stretched out and waiting for me. "Come on home baby." He said, his voice full of love. I reached out my hand and was shocked to see the cold pale skin wrapped around it. I looked thru his eyes at what he saw, he saw me tall and beautiful with pale skin and shinning brown eyes. I was perfect like him, I was a vampire.

As I took his hand the dream changed, I was in the woods. I didn't know these woods, I had never been here before. I could feel the cold earth under my feet and felt the radiating heat from a persons body, and I knew who this person was. It was David, I turned to look at him and he was large and beautiful. He reached out his arms and wrapped them around me, and I welcomed his arms, holding me to him. "Welcome home Dream Catcher." His deep voice rumbled as he kissed my head gently. There was a sudden snarl and we both turned to look, it was Emmett. He was standing away from us and I felt the familiar pull to go to him. I worked my arms away from David and walked towards the man I loved. "Emmett?" My voice was soft as I moved closer, I could feel David reaching out to try and stop me. "Stay away from him." David's voice barked from behind me. I felt my feet stop moving but I shook my head, "No, it's Emmett. My Emmett." I muttered and watched pain shoot across Emmett's face. "Not anymore, you chose him." Emmett's voice was low and the sadness that ran thru his words cut me to the core. "You can't be in my life anymore?" I asked feeling the urge to cry over run any emotions I felt towards David. Emmett shook his head and started to back away. "YOU LIED TO ME!" I yelled and watched Emmett stop, "You promised you wouldn't leave me!" I fell to my knees and reached out my hands to Emmett. He made to move closer but I felt David's arms around me before Emmett could get closer. "But he did leave you, the day it happened. He saw the new you, and he ran." David said to us both and I watched the pain run across Emmett's face. Then I saw it in his mind, I had changed like David said I would. Emmett was there and I tried to go to him but he kept backing away looking disgusted. I tried again but he kept moving away. I then turned and ran from him. "I ran." I said flatly. "You didn't want me for what I am so I ran." I stood up and stared into the sad crystal eyes of the man who swore to love me no matter what. "I was in shock, I didn't know what to think. After you ran, I tried to find you. You kept your mind closed to me, it took me two years to find you and now that I have I see who you have chosen." His voice was cold but still somehow sad. "I ran because you didn't want me, you found me repulsive! David found me beautiful for who I was! You only wanted me as a weak mortal, I was only beautiful to you when I could DIE!" I yelled and felt the lightning burn thru me and I watched, thru Emmett's eyes, as the giant black wolf ripped thru my human form.

I felt myself being pulled out of the darkness, the nightmares stopping. I could hear, as if from miles away, someone's voice. "What the hell were you thinking bringing her there?" It was Tatiana, I had never heard her so angry. I didn't have to wait for the responding voice to know who she was talking to. "She begged me, you needed my help and she could find you." His voice was calm, almost bored. I could still, however, hear the sarcasm and joy he was getting out of pointing out they had needed his help at all. "You're supposed to be this super human tracking mutt, couldn't you have just smelt us out?" Rose's voice sounded from a distance. There was silence, I was guessing he was just shrugging. "She wanted to come, couldn't tell her no." I heard many different growls and then I heard David chuckle. "Like she would have gotten hurt, she stayed a safe distance away no blood sucker would have found her."

"Not gotten hurt? What the hell do you think is wrong with her right now? She taking a nap?" Emmett growled and I felt his cool hand over my forehead. David was silent, everyone was silent. I couldn't really remember what had happened, I could almost make out the last few seconds before my world was dark but then it would just slip thru my fingers. "She screamed, like someone was breaking her in two." Allison's voice was almost a whisper but it carried in the silence. I could hear the worry seeping from every word.

I couldn't lay still anymore, I had to move. I started to shift on whatever it was I was laying on, a sofa by the feel of it. "Stop." I muttered and felt the words scratch my dry throat. "Baby? You okay?" It was Emmett again and I could feel his cool breath on my ear. I started to sit up and felt more then on pair of cold hands move around me to hold me up. "I would be if you all would stop fighting." My voice was still hoarse, I tried to clear it and wished I hadn't. I opened my eyes slowly and took in every face, Emmett's first then the others. David's dark skin stood out against the many pale ones around him. His eyes were brimming with worry and sadness. He mouthed the words 'I'm sorry' and then looked at his feet. "You should be sorry!" Emmett growled and I reached up a hand to lay on his shoulder. "Emmett stop it, it was my fault I made him bring me." The vampires in the room all turned their eyes on me, everyone glaring. Some a worried mother's glare and others a faux glare-Edward's eyes shined with silent pride at my bravado-. "We know that and don't think you're going to get out of trouble just because you blacked out." Michael's voice was stern and I felt like a small child being lectured by their father. "But why did she black out Michael?" Allison asked as I felt her sit next to me on the sofa.

"I don't know." Michael said, and I watched him shake his head. I looked around the room, trying to count heads. Emmett was sitting at the foot of the sofa, I had pulled my feet up and had my knees at my chest, and Allison was sitting next to me. Rose was sitting in a chair across from me with Jasper sitting on the arm, in a chair about a two feet from me to the left Edward sat. Michael and Tatiana were standing by my head. "Why don't you people just ask her?" David said, sighing heavily and crossing his arms across his chest. "I don't like him, but he has a point." Edward said, ignoring David as he looked over at me. "Just ask her what happened."

I knew I couldn't really hear them all turn to look at me, but it almost seemed like I could. I kept my head down, watching my hands, I could feel every pair of eyes on me. "Why did you black out?" It was Tatiana's mothering voice, and her cool hand on my shoulder. I still refused to look up as I cleared my throat and started to talk, "I felt pain, lots of pain." I could feel every eye boring into me. I could even feel Emmett trying to dig into my mind, I kept it close I didn't want him inside my head right now. "Who's pain?" Tatiana asked, her voice soft and comforting. I looked up, thru my eyelashes, into David's stern but curious face then looked back down. I didn't look up when I heard David leave the room and head outside, he had understood who's pain I had felt. "Just pain, everyones pain. All the screaming, and then I saw David get grabbed by that big one and heard his bones break." I stopped talking and tried not to let the sound come back into my mind. I looked to Emmett, he seemed to know what I wanted to know "He's fine, their bones heal extremely fast. Michael looked him over and he was just fine by about three hours ago."

As he said it, a question dawned on me "How long was I out?" Everyone fidgeted in their seats and I looked at all of the faces I could, "How long?" I kept my eyes on Emmett and watched him sigh heavily, "You've been out for about eighteen hours, we were about to take you to a hospital if you didn't wake up soon." I nodded slowly, Eighteen hours? Wow. "I feel okay now, I do really." Emmett watched me skeptically. "I am a little hungry though." I turned to look up at Tatiana. "Of course you are dear, come on into the kitchen. I'll fix you something to eat." I stood up slowly, Allison taking one of my arms to keep my balance, and started towards the kitchen. "What would you like sweetie?" Tatiana asked as I sat on one of the large barstools. I guess they cleaned up my mess when they got home. I noticed the plates and pans I had used the night before were gone. "I'm sorry I left a mess." I muttered. Allison laughed and patted my arm gently, "Don't worry about it. I'm more upset you let the dog in the house." She teased. I laughed a little, not feeling up to telling her I didn't like it when they called David 'the dog'.

What did you really feel out there? It was Emmett's voice in my head, I turned to watch him lean against the door frame with his eyes staring into mine. Just pain. I heard a scoff in my head and I had to turn away. Who's pain Renee'? I sighed heavily, but kept my back to him. David's, I felt David's pain. When his bones broke, I felt it. There was a low rumbling growl in my mind and when I turned to look at Emmett, he was already heading in the same direction David was. "Oh no." I muttered. "What's the matter honey?" Tatiana asked looking at me with a soft motherly smile on her face. "He's going after David." It wasn't just me who spoke, it was Rose. Her eyes were un-focused as she stood in the doorway. "No, no no." I almost yelled as I jumped off the barstool and headed to the door. As I made it to the door I felt a pair of cold hands on my waist then I felt myself being pulled around. Before I could even take it all in, I was on Rose's back and she was running full speed into the woods. "What was he thinking?" I groaned as the wind whipped at my face. I knew Rose could hear me but she didn't say anything until we reached the center of the woods.

"Don't come at me like it's my fault your girlfriend felt my pain." I heard David's deep rumbling voice as they both came into view. He was leaning against a massive tree, totally calm, staring at Emmett. Emmett was standing stock still, his hands balled into fists at his side. "Don't push me dog." Emmett growled thru his teeth. "You came to me, what do you want?" David said casually. Emmett cleared his throat and tried to un-clinch his fists. "She is getting a stronger connection to you, I don't like it but it's happening. You seem convinced she is like you, but she isn't." He wasn't making a lot of since to me, it was like he was just saying the thoughts that were coming to him as they came. "She is more like me then you. She has a beating heart, and the ability to give life not rip it away from someone." David said as he moved away from the tree. I watched as Emmett's stance went from stiff to totally limp, "I know that." He replied in a soft voice I could hardly hear.

"She needs someone more human, someone who can give her a proper life. I know you can do that, you may have to one day." Emmett said looking up into David's face. I wished I could read David's mind to know what the look was. My mind was racing as I moved off of Rose's back and tried to go to Emmett. Rose held me with one hand, keeping me back. David scoffed and walked closer to Emmett, "What? Are you just going to hand her over fifty years from now when she isn't young any more? When she is on her death bed and the new has worn off for you?" Emmett growled deep in his throat but David stood his ground. "That isn't it, I know she'll grow old one day and die. I will always love her, but she needs someone who can grow old with her. You can do that, if you can ever choose not to be a wolf. You will grow old, she needs someone who can grow old." I kept fighting as they talked and I finally pulled away from Rose and ran at Emmett. "YOU. STUPID. VAMPIRE!" I yelled as I ran between the two, turning around to look into Emmett's perfect face. "Renee'?" He seemed shocked that I had been near. "Who the HELL said I wanted to grow old at all!" I yelled and watched the hurt flash across his face. "I wont let you be like this, I'd rather you be a dog for the rest of your life then like me." My mind told me not to but my hand didn't listen, I reached up and punched Emmett in the jaw. I could feel and hear the sound of two of my knuckles break, I pulled my hand away quickly and held it with my free hand. "Renee'." Emmett said reaching for me as I back away glaring at him.

"Nice work leach." David said as he moved to get closer to me. "STAY AWAY FROM ME!" I yelled at David, feeling the searing pain in my hand. "I don't care about mortality, and I don't care that you're a vampire. I am with you forever no matter if I die today or in fifty years." I glared at Emmett and watched the sadness take over any other emotion on his face. I heard David growl and I turned just in time to watch him start turning away. "Stop David." I said in a level voice, and I saw him stop with his back still to me. "You don't have to stay away from me." My voice lost it's level and become soft. "Even if I left I'd never be far from you, and I'll never give up on you." His voice was soft, if such a deep voice could be soft, as he started to walk into the woods again. I sighed heavily then felt the cold massive arms of Emmett around me. "I'm still mad at you." I muttered and turned to walk back into the house. "I'm sorry, but you have to know the choices you have." He said as he took me back into his arms. "I know what they are, and I've already made mine. I will want you forever, even if the day comes you don't want me anymore." I said as I kissed his chest thru his shirt. "I will always want you forever."

"This is all well and good but someone has broken fingers." Rose's voice came from ahead of us as we made our way back to the house. As I looked into her face she was glaring at me. "Sorry." I muttered as I felt more pain shoot thru my hand. "I'm mad at my brother not you Renee'." She said turning her icy glare on him. "Sorry Rose." He said as he kept one arm around me as we walked. "You had better be. How could you say that about her, you knew she wouldn't react well." Rose was walking beside me and her voice was getting huffy the more she talked. I was in to much pain to care that they were talking like I wasn't there. "I know Rose." Emmett kept saying as we made it to the house.

When we reached the house I was in more trouble then Emmett, "What were you thinking trying to hit him?" Tatiana reprimanded me while Edward laughed himself silly. "I wasn't, I'm sorry." I felt tiny again, like a small child getting yelled at by a parent. "It's not that badly broken, it will heal in a few weeks." Michael said as he fixed a brace to my hand. "Allison will have to drive you home." I sighed heavily, and nodded. I'll miss you my beautiful car. I thought to myself as I stared at the brace on my hand.