"Careful—careful," Rosalie almost slapped her hand out of the way as she struggled to get the strap to rest correctly on her shoulder, "you're going to snap it if you keep fidgeting with that. And then you're really going to have a reason to be embarrassed out there."
Alice tapped her foot impatiently. She knew she wasn't going to rip the thick strap of the dress but if it didn't stop twisting, Alice might just have to take her frustrations out on something.
"Now there's the problem," Rosalie clicked her tongue, "you didn't even put it on right."
"I'm nervous," Alice quipped, nearly squeaking in shock while Rosalie pulled the dress up and over her head. "A bit of warning would've been nice." Alice muttered, shyly covering her chest with her hands. The bra she was wearing wasn't too revealing, but it was certainly much different from what she was used to.
"Caught the psychic off guard, did I?" Rosalie grinned, untangling the straps before bunching the fabric up into her hands, "Edward will be jealous. Now, hold still and lift your arms." Following her instructions suddenly Alice felt as the fabric fell over her skin, the straps of the dress finally falling the way they were intended.
She exhaled a long breath. "Thank you," she smiled before turning to catch her reflection in the mirror.
There was never much that could be done with her hair, being cut so close to her scalp, but she did know how to dress it up a bit, combing it through a few times with some hair product until it sat exactly how she wanted to.
Now, clueless with makeup, she certainly was; well, mildly clueless. She was sure she would've been able to figure that out on her own, but she didn't quite own any makeup, so that's where her dilemma began. Bella had straight-up laughed in her face when Alice had sought out her help, instead instructing her to ask Rosalie for help. And Alice couldn't lie, she had definitely been apprehensive about asking the blonde for help, but a quick look into her future had confirmed that the woman would've been quick to assist her.
Staring in the mirror she realized with a funny sort of surprise that she looked good. Certainly not as breathtaking as Rosalie, but if she were being honest, no one could hold a candle to Rosalie's unearthly beauty.
Her eyes now had a bronze glow to them, Rose only dusting a little bit of eyeshadow onto her lids before finishing off the simple look with a dark red lipstick and a little bit of eyeliner and mascara. And as someone who had never worn lipstick before, Alice felt awfully self-conscious.
"I can't stop looking at my lips," she spoke, subconsciously making faces at herself in the mirror. "They look… odd."
"Shut up," Rosalie scoffed, touching up her lip gloss in a different mirror. "You look fine."
Just then, Bella walked into the room through the swinging door, her hand quickly flying up to cover her nose. "What is that god-awful smell?"
Rosalie snorted out a laugh. "It's a human bathroom, Bella." She adjusted her hair slightly, not facing either of them as she spoke. "Either breathe through your mouth or not at all."
Bella removed her hand, a look of disgust on her features as she fully approached. "I'm here to give the five-minute warning before they need us on stage. So hurry up with the primping and let's go."
Alice frowned as she looked back at her reflection in the mirror, adjusting the beautiful blue dress. Now that Rosalie had fixed her minor wardrobe issue and flawlessly added a bit of color to her pale face, she figured this was as good as it was going to get.
"You ready?" Bella asked her, setting a hand on her shoulder.
"No," Alice spoke honestly, the reality of the situation beginning to catch up with her.
"Nervous?"
A half-hysterical laugh bubbled up, "Something like that."
"Don't worry. All you have to do is sit there and look pretty. Carlisle will do all the talking."
"Is it possible for a vampire to get sick?" Leaning up against the sink Alice put the back of her hand against her forehead, willing herself to calm down. Her anxiety was beginning to physically manifest itself and she could feel the knots in her stomach and chest begin to tighten.
"Not in the way you're thinking, no. It's just stage fright," Rosalie backed up from the mirror, recapping her lip gloss. Eyeing Alice up and down, she frowned. "You need to relax."
"I feel dizzy—can vampires get dizzy? I feel like I'm going to faint. Or vomit. Oh god, what if I get sick while we're out there? What if I'm the first vampire to ever faint?"
"You really need to relax," Rosalie repeated, walking up to her and placing her hands on her arms, squeezing slightly.
Quickly, Alice checked her immediate future. "Shit, shit, shit!" She stomped her feet lightly as she swore, careful not to break the small heels off.
Rosalie stared at her in shock.
"What? What's wrong?" Bella asked.
"Someone go get Jasper!" They simply looked at her. "Now!"
"What?" Rosalie asked.
"Seriously?" Bella eyed her curiously.
"Yes! Jasper! Get him—I need him!"
The two woman shared a confused look.
"Alright, alright," Rosalie turned toward the door, shaking her head.
"Why on Earth do you need Jasper so bad?" Bella demanded. "We have barely three minutes!"
"Rosalie is right. If I don't calm down then I'm going to go out there and nearly have a panic attack—it's a lot of people Bella. Not in the studio, but I mean, watching on TV! Millions of them! If I don't calm down then I'm going to walk out there as freaked-out as ever, because I'm going to be thinking about all those people of course, and I'm not sure why but I think Jasper gets hurt—I don't know why but… but I think what I feel will end up hurting him." Her words fell out in a quick flurry, only pausing to collect more breath. "I knew they could affect him but no one told me that they could cause him real pain," she said, pointing an accusatory finger at Bella. "So if I go out there freaking out it will just get worse and since the last time Jasper calmed me down I demanded him not to and I know he won't do it unless I ask because he's—I don't know why, actually since it would make more sense for him to do it anyways-but I need to ask him or else we're going to end up making a small scene live on national television."
Finishing in a huff, she turned toward Bella to find her friend staring blankly at her.
"I've never heard you cuss before," she commented dryly.
Alice rolled her eyes, "I'm glad you're enjoying yourself." Bella only laughed.
Not even a second later, two voices could be heard.
"I don't know why, just hurry up."
"I can't go in there!" Jasper hissed.
"And why the hell not?" Rosalie demanded.
"It's the women's room," he stated, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. Alice could almost hear Rosalie rolling her eyes.
"It's only Bella and Alice. Besides, if any human women come in, when they piss their pants at the sight of you, they're in the right place at least."
"Real classy, Rose."
The door finally swung open, Rosalie pulling Jasper through despite his protests.
"Okay here's here. Now what?"
"Perfect," she breathed out before striding up to him swiftly. "Hi, can you please calm me down before I ruin our night?"
Before he even answered, she'd reached forward and grabbed one of his hands, lacing their fingers together before turning toward the door and walking directly back out of it. "Also, we have ten seconds before Esme and a very unhappy producer walk in and scold us for taking so long." Pulling him after her, she looked up at him. "Sorry for asking this of you, especially since last time you did it I freaked out a little bit, but it's absolutely necessary, trust me."
He seemed taken aback, but followed her back out into the hallway regardless. After he gathered himself a slight smirk fell upon his face. "I'm not going to be the one to bet against the psychic, so alright."
She turned her head, looking at him from over her shoulder as she led them toward the sound stage. "Why thank you," she beamed before quickly checking their immediate future and confirming that she'd be fine throughout the event.
She wasn't sure if the burst of confidence she suddenly found herself feeling was authentic or simply a little extra help from Jasper, but when they finally caught up to Esme, she was content. She definitely owed him after this.
And so what if that thought brought forth another burst of visions of the two of them—happy, warm, romantic moments. She'd deal with that later.
Several minutes later, Alice sat almost comfortably in the chair as the minutes ticked down. Eventually a woman with a headset and a clipboard approached her and asked her to stop tapping her foot, (the soft clicking sound was sure to be picked up by the microphones) something she hadn't even realized she'd been doing. She may have felt plenty calm, but her unease was apparently finding ways to show itself regardless.
She'd squeaked out an apology, trying bask in the calm that Jasper was steadily supplying her with. Anything to keep her from feeling like a balloon about to burst.
The moment she'd walked into the room, flashes of camera after camera went off, shocking her so much that she'd stopped dead in her tracks. Jasper had released her hand then, moving his hand to her back to usher her in, mumbling at her to just ignore them. Other than that, the whole thing didn't seem as bad as she had been expecting. Still, she did find it surreal that these strangers were taking pictures of her.
As someone who used to only leave the house when she was sure no one would glance twice at her, that would take a lot of getting used to.
The room was fairly tiny, a small raised platform where Alice and her fellow protectors were located. On the platform were two rows of chairs as well as a podium placed in between the two rows in the center.
Alice counted five microphones posted on the podium alone, not fully understanding the purpose of so many. She'd have to ask someone later—surely one would be enough.
In the seats before them were numerous members of the media and press, all with cameras and devices that Jasper told her were called audio recorders; their purpose very self-explanatory.
Carlisle would, apparently, only be addressing them and not receiving or answering questions. "It's an announcement, not a press conference. He talks, they listen." Jasper muttered to her before a human woman walked up to him and asked him to stand, adjusting his chair slightly.
To her right sat Jasper, Emmett, and Bella, all in the row to the right of the podium. To her left, further down the stage, sat Carlisle, Esme, Edward, and Rosalie. Carlisle was currently reading over a couple of sheets of paper. Probably going over what he was going to say, Alice concluded. She knew he wouldn't need the papers when the time came. Just one of the perks of being a vampire: an eidetic memory.
Soon enough, they were given a two-minute warning.
Alice folded her hands in her lap, gripping her own hands tightly. In her periphery, she watched as Jasper leaned toward her. "Are you still going to need help," he asked, too low for anyone else to hear, "or will you be able to hold onto this?"
"Hold onto it?" Alice asked, frowning as she heard a couple of cameras click, "how exactly?"
"Just how you'd think," he responded.
Alice breathed slowly, thinking over and over, calm. Calm. Calm.
"Thirty seconds," she heard a woman's voice yell. Carlisle stood and walked over to the podium.
Calm, she demanded of herself, breathing in and out deeply to try and give her something to focus on.
"I can still help if you can't do it," he assured, not wanting her to stress herself out all over again, "you going to be okay?" He asked, his tone showing his genuine concern.
Alice nodded slightly. The same woman began to count down.
"And we're on in five, four, three, two—"
Suddenly the room was dead silent as everyone's eyes fell to Carlisle.
Showtime.
"Good evening," he began, not acknowledging the people, vampires and humans alike, that made up the small audience. He gazed solely into the camera; obviously, he'd done this before. "I'm addressing you, my fellow citizens of both Canada and the United States, with this announcement." He smiled, "As of March 26th, 2018, a new Protector has been sworn in with the sole intent of guarding these countries."
He turned to Alice, smiling, and held out his arm toward her, presenting her to the world.
"Mary Alice Brandon, of Biloxi Mississippi, will be our nation's eighth protector." She couldn't help but notice the utter silence that filled the room. No cameras clicked, no humans shifted, and it almost sounded like no one was breathing. You could have heard a pin drop, and Alice just knew that they were all looking at her. "She has already taken her oath and is dedicated to the Protection of her people. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome your new Protector, Alice Brandon."
The room erupted in applause. All Alice could do was stare, shocked.
They were clapping for her.
Now, she knew she wasn't nervous anymore. Instead, other feelings flooded her body. Confusion. Amazement. Shock. She hadn't been expecting this; this acceptance. Not at all.
When the applause died down, Carlisle turned back to the camera, his expression suddenly grim. "Now, I am also here to address some unfortunate occurrences of which I am sure most of you are aware of by now."
Alice looked to the left at Esme, Edward and Rose, and the back to the right at Bella, Emmett, and then Jasper. They all seemed to know what he was talking about—even the audience seemed to know what he was talking about. Jasper, sensing her confusion, shook his head ever so slightly.
He glanced pointedly from her to Carlisle, knowing she'd understand his wordless instruction: listen.
"Our neighbors in the south, Mexico, are experiencing a time of great crisis. Disappearances and murders are taking place just about every day. I now have complete proof, and say with saddening confidence, that Maria is back."
Maria. The name instantly dug the woman from Alice's vision out of her memory. This woman wasn't just terrifying to Alice and her fellow Protectors, but apparently to more people than she knew. Entire countries.
Members of the press began conversing worriedly with one another, the words overlapping and causing the dull roar to make it hard to pick out snippets of conversations.
"This is a disaster—"
"Why now?"
"How are we supposed to prepare for-"
"They told us she died."
"God help us—"
"I wonder if he's known the whole time. He has to have—"
Alice glanced at Jasper uneasily, trying not to be obvious about it, but she had a suspicion that's who they were talking about. After all, half of the occupants in the room were looking at Carlisle, which only made sense because he was speaking.
The other half were shooting nervous glances at Jasper.
Jasper looked tense. More tense than Alice had ever seen since her arrival. His hands were rested on his thighs in front of him, and although he was giving off a calm and aloof appearance, Alice could see the tendons protruding. And not only was he not breathing, but he wasn't moving at all.
No doubt he was carefully watching and listening as well.
Not saying anything, she stared deliberately at his face, knowing that if she concentrated hard enough, he'd feel her concern and curiosity.
He closed his eyes for a moment upon receiving this unspoken message before shaking his head again, the motion nearly imperceptible.
"We must recognize three of these deaths that have shaken Mexico so. Of their six Protectors, three have fallen victim within the past two months to Maria's terror." He paused, taking a moment to gather his thoughts. "Manuel Flores. Antonio Salazar. Beatriz Enriquez."
Beatriz. Alice repeated the name. In one of her visions, Jasper and Rosalie had discussed this woman's disappearance. They knew her.
"Our condolences lie with their friends, family, and fellow Protectors." He took a moment of silence, bowing his head, before continuing. "I have spoken with many advisors, including Gerardo Castilla, of the Protectors of Mexico, as well as Mexico's president, and our own leaders, and the following conclusion was made." He paused again, breathing deeply. "The Protectors of America will not yet be able to travel to Mexico to assist with the situation with Maria." Carlisle stopped, waiting patiently for the disapproving rumble in the crown to die down.
Even Alice found herself shocked, not understanding why.
"If you will recall the War of 1964, you can realize why this decision was made in the best interest of you, our citizens. We do not want to have to wait for a breach of the United States or Canadian borders to act out towards Maria, and we do not want her reign of terror throughout Mexico to continue without our aid, but we also cannot risk the security of our country. Too many lives are at stake. I hope you can all continue to keep our brothers and sisters in Mexico in your thoughts and prayers. Thank you."
The moment Carlisle stepped back from the podium and the recording finished, the whole room erupted in chaos.
Pictures were being taken at a mile a minute, the bright flashes of the cameras lighting up the entire room. Reporters began yelling out questions at Carlisle. Questions, that Alice knew, he would not be answering.
A few were even yelling out Jasper's name, confirming her suspicion that there was some type of pre-established connection between him and Maria. A connection that could further explain the origin of her vision.
A connection that could potentially explain her eventual death.
Following her fellow Protector's example, she stood up and followed them off the stage and out the door. Eventually they were directed through a series of hallways until they reached a different door than the one they entered through. Swiftly, they jumped into their cars before the press could catch up.
As Rosalie sped out of the parking lot, with Bella in the seat beside her, Alice rested her head back and closed her eyes. Finally, she had experienced—and survived—her first public appearance, even if only barely.
But she couldn't help but shake the thought that there was something they were keeping from her. Something important.
Sitting on the edge of Bella and Edward's bed, Alice watched as Bella sat on the floor in front of a full-length mirror, removing the little makeup she had on.
"What was all of that?" Alice eventually asked, deciding that regardless of what happened tonight, she was getting the answers she wanted.
"Everything it sounded like," Bella responded. "There's been quite a bit going on in Mexico nowadays."
"Maria," Alice nodded, "she's the one that's in my vision."
"Right," Edward confirmed, leaning up against the wall.
"And she's... bad."
Bella turned to face her, "You could say that. Or that she's a heartless monster," her face revealed her disgust.
Alice tried to comprehend what this woman could have done—could be doing—to make so many people fear and hate her. Carlisle had said that three Protectors had been killed. Protectors, who were well known for their fighting abilities. If this woman was responsible for the death of three, there was no doubt that she was dangerous.
But to kill at all…
Alice just didn't understand how anyone could do such a thing.
"It's a hard thing to understand," Edward agreed, responding to her thoughts, "but to understand the severity of the situation at hand, you need to realize something. Maria has been around for hundreds of years with one sole purpose: the control of the human world by vampires." Bella moved to sit next to Alice as Edward spoke. "She truly believed that vampires were meant to gain complete and infallible control of the world; humans living only to serve under vampires as slaves and meals."
"That's…" Alice couldn't find the words to explain it, "absolutely insane."
"It is," Edward agreed, "But Maria knew this. She knew that by herself, her mission was simply impossible. So, she began turning people into vampires—as many people as she could while still maintaining a low profile—to start a war."
"Newborn vampires are difficult to control," Bella added. "A group of them as big as Maria's was next to impossible to control. So not only were they uncontrollable, but they were bloodthirsty to the extremes. And without Self-Control Training that means they were highly, and unbelievably dangerous. It's really a miracle she hasn't been killed by one yet."
"I don't understand," Alice looked at her two friends questioningly. "Why can't we help Mexico? Instead of leaving them all alone to fend for themselves. Carlisle said half of their Protecters had been killed. That's leaving those poor people terribly vulnerable. Surely we have the resources to help."
Bella and Edward exchanged a silent look.
"Have you ever heard of the War of '64?" Alice shook her head, raising an eyebrow at Edward. "It wasn't a human war. It was a full-fledged attempted vampire take over, led by Maria."
Alice's eyes widened. "So she's already tried this before?"
Edward's expression was grim. "A few of us had travelled down to Mexico to aid in what the Protectors down there had called 'massive newborn activity'. It didn't appear to be too much of a threat-we would've never guessed it was an organized assault since we'd never dealt with one before-so Bella, Emmett and I went with a few teams to help." He paused, his frown intensifying. "As soon as we arrived, we met with two of their Protectors who helped us track down the newborn activity. The moment we found them I could tell from their thoughts that it was a diversion. They were distracting us from an attack on the US from her main army.
"The fighting only lasted for eight months, and it took place mainly in Northern Mexico and the bottom half of the US, but it took almost three years after that to round up all the vampires involved." He then hesitated, as if not wanting to tell her the last piece of information, but quickly relented. "Over a hundred thousand people—both vampire and human both—died, and that's only the official body count. There are, and always will be, several thousand people missing or unaccounted for."
"It's the darkest event in our history," Bella spoke softly, moving to stand by Edward, grabbing his hand.
"That's why we can't help," Alice whispered, surprised that she was even able to verbalize in that moment. That number—one hundred thousand—just seemed so incomprehensible. "I can't believe it. That's unreal."
"But unfortunately, it happened." Edward said, pausing momentarily. "I don't agree with Carlisle," he spoke, his voice quiet. "Not on this. I think we need to be down there now, and help before it gets worse. But the leaders of these countries are terrified. They don't want an offense, they want a defense. So that's why we're staying here."
She couldn't help but feel immense sorrow for all those lives lost. Thousands upon thousands slain viciously. All because of this one woman's strive for power. It was almost too much for her heart to take.
Standing up, she headed for the door.
"Where are you going?" Bella asked, her voice carrying her concern.
"On a walk," she replied, not turning to face either of them, "I'll be back."
Tell her I'll be alright, she thought pointedly at Edward, I just need to think.
When she walked out of their room, he didn't stop her.
Alice decided not to stray too far from the house, especially since she wasn't fully comfortable and familiar with her surroundings outside yet.
The areas directly surrounding the house were beautiful. There was no shortage of foliage. Luscious green trees and other plants spread wide and far over the property, the front and back yards covered with soft, thick grass.
Alice found herself walking into the backyard. As she walked, she passed a closed off section of plowed Earth, un-blossomed plants beginning to grow amongst the dirt.
A garden, Alice assumed. Probably Esme's.
As she continued walking, Alice focused on the scents and the noises. A chorus of crickets and other bugs could be heard chirping away into the night. The wind blew softly, rustling the leaves of the trees and delivering a damp, cold scent to Alice, the rain from that afternoon bringing to life a whole new set of smells.
In the distance, she could hear the quiet trickling sound of moving water. Perhaps a river or a small lake was closer than she realized. Following the sound, she moved at a slow pace, barely faster than a human walk, taking in ever scent, sight, and sound as she languidly wandered through the trees, simply allowing her senses to lead her further and further from the house. Eventually she was brought before a bustling stream, several minutes later.
It was fairly large, maybe forty feet across and several feet deep. Alice sat herself on a large stone on the edge of the river, resting her elbows on her knees and placing her chin in her hands. Staring out into the forest, allowing the sounds of nature to encompass her, she finally let her thoughts run rampant.
She was aware that there were, and always would be, criminals in the world, both humans and vampire alike—it's just how things worked; even she had committed her fair share of crimes in her early years—but she had been wholly blind to the things people could truly do to each other. And for such destruction and death to take place with the amount of devastation to start a war…
It was truly a terrifying thought.
Maria's face was embedded into her mind. Her words reverberating through Alice's head over and over again.
Kill her, Jasper. Kill her. Kill her.
Alice clenched her eyes shut tight, willing the images to leave her mind.
It was crazy—absolutely insane, really—to dwell too much on the stupid little vision. She had visions all the time and not all of them had come true.
They were entirely subjective, based on decisions and choices people made. And at this point, Alice was positive that Jasper didn't plan on betraying the Protectors and killing her. He was a genuinely nice guy and had been nothing but polite to Alice. He'd been responsive to her when she'd asked to be friends and he not only tolerated but seemed to strangely enjoy her odd quirks.
Letting one of the softer visions play in her mind, she almost sighed out loud.
Jumping down from a tree, Alice laughed as Jasper tried to catch her. Launching forward he intended to wrap his arms around her but when she jumped, twisted, and landed on his shoulders, she leaned forward and grinned sneakily. "Gotcha," she kissed his nose before hopping down.
Alice swallowed a lump in her throat and let her face fall into her hands. So, maybe the original vision was wrong.
Or maybe, a tiny insecurity whispered, you're wrong and he's only luring you in before he turns on you.
Quickly removing the nagging thought from her mind, she picked up a pebble and tossed it lightly into the water. The stone made a quiet 'plop' as if sunk to the bottom.
She both wanted and needed to believe that Jasper was being wholly genuine toward her, because the alternative meant she was destined to blindly co-exist with someone who was actively plotting her demise. The thought of him misleading her to lure her into a friendship-and a romance even, her visions reminded her-made her chest ache. But the reality of her situation was that that thought was always on the edge of her mind with every encounter and every conversation they had.
It was an awful thing to consider.
Alice heard the soft sound of footsteps hitting the wet ground, approaching her calmly. Instead of turning to face whoever it was Alice stayed still, tossing another stone into the water.
Whoever it was stopped a couple feet behind Alice and waited. Alice continued to hold still, making no more to acknowledge her visitor.
"Mind if I join you?"
Alice finally turned her head to see Esme standing before her. Her warm smile holding something extra in it, intriguing Alice slightly. Was it understanding? Sympathy? She couldn't be sure.
She only nodded.
Esme walked to the edge of the water and sat, as well, on a larger stone a few yards away from where Alice was. The older vampire picked up a small, flat stone, examining it thoughtfully. Then, with a quick flick of her wrist, she shot it up the river.
Alice watched in amazement as the stone appeared to dance on the water, hitting the surface a few times before disappearing inside of it.
"How did you do that?" Alice questioned, her voice full of wonder.
"You've never skipped stones before?" Esme asked, responding with another question.
"Skipping stones," Alice repeated the phrase in awe before picking up a stone by her feet, examining it. Then she swung her arm, releasing the stone where it flew far upstream. Moments later, a distant, single 'plop' could be heard. Alice frowned.
Esme smiled at the girl, picking up another stone, "watch carefully," she instructed.
Alice watched closely as, once more, Esme flicked a stone across the water. Alice watched as it bounced four times before disappearing below the surface.
"It's all in the wrist," Esme informed her, tossing a stone toward her.
Alice caught it and, trying to mimic Esme's technique, flicked the stone towards the water. She groaned as the rock shot, faster than a bullet, straight down into the water. Emse laughed, tossing her another one.
"Try again," she encouraged, "but do it at a more horizontal angle, and a bit less diagonal."
This time Alice shot the rock across the surface of the water, smiling as it bounced over the surface before submerging itself after seven skips.
She beamed, picking up more stones and skipping them across the water, each one carrying farther than the last. When a crushing sound echoed throughout the forest, Alice cringed. The most recently thrown rock had skipped all the way up the river and into a small tree off to the side.
The two women watched as the poor tree shook fiercely for a quick moment before ceasing. The rock had gone right through it.
"Sorry," Alice whispered, setting down the next stone she had been preparing to launch.
Esme only laughed. "Any slower, and instead of going through the tree it would've knocked it over!"
Alice smiled sheepishly, embarrassed at her overzealousness. They sat in silence for a few minutes, listening to the sounds of the forest, alive and buzzing around them.
"You're troubled," Esme spoke. It was not a question nor was it an accusation; only an observation.
"I guess I am." Alice shrugged.
Esme gave her a sympathetic smile.
"I know adjusting is hard, but it's going to take longer than a couple weeks, or even a couple months."
"It's not that," Alice whispered, staring into the water. "It's—" she stopped, feeling foolish suddenly. But Esme waited patiently, obviously not willing to push Alice into talking. They sat in silence for almost ten minutes before she tried again. "Protectors are smart," she continued, "Protectors fight." She stood up and began to pace back and forth along the river. "I am not smart. I do not know how to fight. I—I can't possibly protect anyone, let alone an entire country!" She kicked a rock, frustrated suddenly. The stone simply turned to dust.
"Maybe," she hesitated, "maybe you made a mistake. There's no way I can do this. I—I'm not cut out for this."
Esme made an amused sound. "I was waiting for this," she nodded. "Almost everyone else went through this phase," she explained calmly as Alice sat herself back down. "You're doubting yourself. So did everyone else."
"But you're all so good at what you do."
Esme laughed. "Do you think it started out that way?" Alice didn't respond, instead choosing to fold her arms over her chest. "We all arrived the same way. Inexperienced and unready for that we were all getting ourselves into." Leaning back on her rock, she looked up at the night sky. "I was born in Nice, France in the mid eighteenth century. Back before vampires and humans coexisted in this world together. A few of us were born in that era, actually. Back when vampires feeding off of humans was still commonplace, you know," she gave Alice a severe look, "so of course secrecy was top priority."
"You… you fed off humans?" Alice asked, shocked that Esme—sweet, caring, gentle, Esme—had killed humans once upon of time.
"We all did back then," Esme confirmed with a serious nod. "Well, not all of us," she smiled softly. "I met Carlisle five years after I was changed. He had been staying with the European Protectors. Although they weren't Protectors at the time. They were just a large, powerful, old coven called the Volturi. They were the original peacekeepers for our world, going to great lengths to ensure that our existence remained a secret from humans.
"Carlisle was the first vampire I ever met who didn't have red eyes. I was enchanted, really," she laughed softly, and Alice couldn't help but smile at the lovely expression that crossed her features. "We became close friends, but that was it. I only stayed for a short period of time." She paused for a moment. "I have this strange quirk about myself where I seem to know things at the appropriate time." She shrugged, "It's hard to explain it any other way. Aro, one of the Volturi's leaders, asked me to stay and join his coven after using his gift to read my every thought."
Alice blinked at her. "That's a loaded sentence."
Esme smiled. "Imagine how I felt, younger than you, when he nearly begged me to stay in front of his entire guard—including his own wife."
Alice couldn't help but laugh at the ridiculousness of it. "How overwhelming."
"I couldn't have gotten out of there fast enough," Esme agreed, grinning. "But right before that I'd began to wonder about coexisting with humans. The thought was actually inspired by a conversation Carlisle and I had had. He had just began to study medicine and dreamed about blending into the world, not having to hide away in the darkness. I not only admired that dream but really wanted that to be a reality. I still don't know what sold me on the idea, but the very same night I realized that it was possible. Not theoretically, but I somehow just knew that it was something that would happen.
"I suppose Aro saw what I somehow knew to be true and it apparently changed so much about him. He was already so easily drawn toward things that fascinated him and this idea—this reality—that I knew was possible became his obsession. Of course," she sat up a bit straighter, "I didn't know this until years later, when Carlisle joined me in America. It had apparently taken over a hundred years to get his brothers—Caius and Marcus—as well as the rest of the coven on board with the idea."
Alice's eyes widened, "It took them that long to decide that killing people was wrong?"
"There was," Esme sighed, "definitely a bit more to it than that, but that was certainly a main contributor. Only vampires who have fed off of humans before know how difficult it is to try an all-animal-blood lifestyle, and a lot of these vampires had been alive for a millennia. One hundred years in comparison to thousands is hardly a long time at all. In fact, I was surprised the decision had been made so quickly. I had never expected it to be made during that millenium.
"We didn't go public until years after that though. Loose ends had to be tied up. Word had to be spread. Aro and his guard spent decades traveling the Earth, meeting with every vampire that could be found to tell them the new rules."
"And vampires just," Alice shrugged, enraptured with the story, "went along with it all?"
"Oh no, definitely not. But Aro's guard can be very convincing," she admitted, her mouth in a firm line. Alice didn't think she was prepared to know how the ancient coven managed to change the ways of an entire planet of immortals.
"Where were you during all of this?"
"I was here, in America. I came here in 1796 and spent the first few decades of my life traveling, learning about the terrain, the natives, everything really. This country has always been beautiful, and I do love it, but nothing will ever compare to the beauty of it back before the industrial revolution. It really was a magical, heavenly land. That's why I love it so much up here," she spoke, gesturing to the woods around them. "I travelled, I made ties, I learned languages. Fourteen actually, although unfortunately it's rare that I'm able to use my knowledge since the native genocide."
She was sad suddenly, her heart right on her sleeve as she took a moment to mourn the people that had helped her fall in love with the land she called home. Slowly, Alice moved off of her rock and went to move beside Esme.
Resting her head on the older woman's shoulder, she relaxed when the woman wrapped an arm around her. "Thank you, sweet girl."
"But then Carlisle came over, right?"
Esme grinned, staring back up toward the stars. "Right. It was five years after Aro had revealed to the world the existence of vampires. I'd been in contact with him for a few months before he told me he was sending a volunteer to help me 'keep affairs in order'."
Esme paused, letting her eyes drift upward as she gazed at the stars, her memories sweeping her decades and even centuries into the past. "I never really volunteered for the position," she confessed, "I sort of fell into it. But it made sense. I knew the land more than anyone else Aro knew, and he trusted Carlisle and I enough with the responsibility, so the Protectors were born in 1886. Carlisle arrived just after the New Year in 1887, and then one day in 1901, as random as I can explain, I knew there was going to be more than just the two of us."
"Edward," Alice guessed, fascinated by the way things fell into place.
"He was living in Chicago at the time. He agreed to help fairly easily, actually. We didn't know he could read minds until he'd been with us for several months."
Alice laughed, "I'm sure that was quite a reveal."
"Carlisle would've likely had a heart attack were he still human," Esme mused. "That's always how we've added on to our roster though. I start a new day and then suddenly I know that there are going to be more additions. That's how it's been for each of you."
"But I still don't understand," Alice spoke quietly, inhaling Esme's soft scent as she gathered her thoughts as well as the breath to speak. "Why me?"
"A good question," she mused, "but one I do not have the answer to. I've come to learn in my life that 'why' is often the question that most people get hung up on. I've known many vampires in my life who have wasted decades and even centuries attempting to find reason where there is none. Sometimes things simply happen. It's not figuring out why they happen that matters, but it's figuring out what to do afterward that's important.
"Why you were found isn't important. Why you were chosen hardly matters. What matters is that it has happened and you are here. And what you chose to do with this new chapter of life is the most important thing of all."
To think of it like that, with so much wisdom in the reasoning, made Alice suddenly feel like a ridiculous child. She waited a full minute before replying. "I still don't think I'm cut out for this," she mumbled. "I'm really not that smart," she insisted, "I can read and write, but that's it. I don't know historical stuff, I'm horrendous at understanding anything remotely scientific, and don't even get me started on all this new technology that everyone seems to understand except for me."
"If it bothers you that much we could tutor you," Esme offered, "but you are certainly smart in your own way. You like to read?" Alice nodded. "Well there you go! When Emmett joined I tried to get him to read a book for me…" she trailed off, shaking her head and smiling, "he was so embarrassed that he didn't know how to read that he got Rosalie to teach him how just so he could read it and come back to talk about it with me. It took a few months, but he did it. I didn't find out until years later that he hadn't known how."
Alice couldn't help but smile. That was such a sweet and undeniably Emmett thing to do.
"I don't know why it's you," Esme repeated, squeezing Alice's shoulders, "but I know something good will come of it. Trust me."
Standing up, she turned toward Alice and took her hands in her own. "You may not realize it yet, but you are supposed to be here." Alice opened her mouth but Esme shook her head, "You are. I don't know why exactly, but I know. You are essential Alice. The key to a lock we haven't found yet. You're vital."
Alice tried not to let that declaration unsettle her too deeply. "The others must have been ready to serve at least a little bit, though… right?"
"You can ask them," Esme released Alice's hands. "You may be surprised with what you hear."
Alice watched as Esme eventually walked away, back toward the house and disappearing into the night. Leaning over the water, the looked down at her reflection and sighed.
Even though she knew she didn't look like a Protector—after all, she was 4'10 and skinny as they come—she had hope in Esme's words that this was truly all for some unforeseen reason.
It was hope she was going to hold onto.
A/N:
Woo! Ten chapters! Longest chapter! Esme's backstory! Very different! Woah! Look at that!
Yeah, years ago when I wrote this I realized very early on that I wouldn't be able to give everyone the same backstory that they had before. For most of them, the circumstances surrounding the end of their human lives are very similar, but I'll let you read more to learn what's been changed and how. Even Esme's backstory hasn't been explained fully. That's just a little taste of where she came from, and how she came into contact with Carlisle and co.
Be sure to favorite, turn on your story notifications, and leave a review! I respond to every single one and appreciate them all. After all, reviews are your definite way of getting updates quicker. Just a lil life hack for you there.
~*~ review replies ~*~
Reinbeau/Guest: I'm glad you guys are enjoying the story. Almost 50k words and I feel like it's literally just getting started. That's a flaw on my behalf as a writer: can't write short stories to save my soul.
deltagirl74: I'll just use Edward's previous words to Alice about what Jasper is thinking about through all of this: he is certainly fascinated by this strange psychic girl. That's a certainty. Whether that fascination will morph into something else... well, I'm not at liberty to say (yet). ;)
lol (guest): Happy you enjoy the concept: it's the main reason I went back to finish this after almost a decade away. I do understand your criticism of Alice's character. After all, when I developed the idea for this story I was around 15/16 years old, so with her overall character I could have very well been projecting a little (or a lot) onto her. Very normal for a new fiction writer to do in earlier works all across the board. In my re-writes I've actually had to take more of her over-emotional outbursts out than I truly care to admit. Even I was noting that it was... a bit heavy-handed in early drafts.
I will defend my interpretation of her character a little bit though. When we meet Alice in the books she's a vibrant, happy-go-lucky type girl with a quick wit, undeniable charm, and the resident Social Butterfly of the Cullen family. But when we meet Alice she's also been comfortable with her mate and her 'family' for over fifty years, and is fully and comfortably using her gift to her and her family's advantage. One of the reasons I was so drawn toward finishing this story is to flesh-out what Alice could have been like, if all that had been stripped away. If you take away her comforting visions of her living a peaceful happy life with Jasper and the Cullens and instead replace that with a nightmarish vision of her potential demise, what are you left with? Sure she has some stability and belonging with Josie, but what good is that when in this story, even Alice knows that won't last forever. That's why I wanted to change Alice's first vision and explore a new version of Twilight's world. I wanted to see what happened to Alice when you took everything else away.
I do ensure to keep some of her key personality traits in this story: mainly her stubbornness, inclination toward sticking her nose where it may not necessarily belong, and her willingness to go to great lengths for those she cares for. For this Alice, I find that even though she maintains a steady resilience, that doesn't mean that she's going to simply fall into this new strange role with the grace we know book-Alice may have done. This Alice doesn't have that solid foundation, only this fear that she long ago came to terms with, and this new stream of people she's being expected to co-exist with.
I can assure you that you will watch her grow throughout the story: it is her story after all, so it would be a crime if she didn't. But you aren't going to get the Alice you're looking for right off the bat. She's there, of course, but it's going to take some time before she comes into her own. Hopefully you'll stay around long enough to see! 3