Rated M for mature content, language, adult situations. Lemons, people! Don't read if you're under 18!
I don't own anything Twilight. SM owns it all, I'm just messing around! I hope you enjoy it.
The moment I told Bella that she was creating the golden dome surrounding us, it snapped away with her shock. Her eyes were wide as she stared up at me in awe, small wisps of her hair floating in the breeze around her head.
"I did that?" She breathed. Her tiny hands gripped my forearm firmly. "How?"
Alice shook herself from her vision of death and blood and tinkled her laughter throughout the yard as she clapped her hands happily.
"The same way you threw Emmett or slammed the door in my husband's face! You have a physical shield, Bella!"
"Let's go inside and wait for Carlisle. He's on his way now." Esme lead the way into the house after her statement. Her thoughts were in turmoil over the Kings coming to visit.
As we took our respective seats around the mahongany antique table, no one spoke a word aloud but their thoughts screamed at me. Jasper was thinking tactically and trying out several peaceful scenarios. Emmett was flexing his biceps, his lips pulled back into a silent snarl as he thought of taking down the Witch Twins single handedly. Alice was replaying the vision slowly to try and suss out the reason for the Volturi's arrival. Esme was anxious for her mate. With the threat looming she was on the edge of her seat with worry. Bella, of course, was silent to me but I imagined she was thinking about her shield. My mind was whizzing around and around with possibilities. Should I snatch my family and run? Do we contact the wolves? They are obviously an integral part of the visit considering they all lie in their own blood in the field of Alice's vision.
Carlisle blurred silently into the dining room and sat regally in the chair at the head of the table. His hair was disheveled and I heard in his thoughts that he had run here frantically after Esme's phone call.
"Alice." Carlisle's coven leader voice - filled with authority - resounded through the first floor of our home and we all turned to look at him. "Please tell us your vision."
He wouldn't ask a bunch of redundant questions knowing they could be answered simply by paying attention.
"They have a spy. Bianca was the Volturi's human secretary and Aro had her changed after a visit from Eleazer. He had told Aro that Bianca would have the ability of transparency. It also helped that Alec had taken a special liking to the brunette." She paused and looked at Carlisle after meeting all of our eyes. "She has been following us for months. She overheard a conversation with Sam Uley that you had when Bella was turned. Aro ordered Bianca to search out Sam and she learned of the wolves. Caius is livid. He wants them liquidated immediately. The vision shows them succeeding in killing every wolf in La Push. Vampires die, but I cannot see who."
Bella stood so quickly her chair flew across the room behind her, only stopping after it crashed into the wall and fell to pieces.
"No! We have to protect them!" Bella's hands dove to her hair as she paced, wild eyed.
Alice pointed at her sister. "And that's why we are involved."
I stood and grabbed Bella's hand and she instantly calmed. I led her back to the table and sat, pulling her into my lap. She nuzzled my neck, gulping deep breaths of my scent, while I smoothed a hand down her back.
She kept whimpering quietly. "They can't have them. They can't have them."
"Of course we will protect them. Jasper, please get Mr. Uley on the line and put him on speaker. We must discuss what to do next." Carlisle directed. Sam was Jake's beta and would be able to keep a clear head in light of the news we were about to give him.
"We have three days."
Everyone froze at Alice's statement. That was no time at all.
Bella began dry sobbing into my neck and started whimpering Lacie's name.
Esme came around and hugged both Bella and myself. "We will protect them, dear. We will!" She said fiercly.
Jasper retrieved his cell phone and put it on speaker, laying it on the table. We all waited, black eyed and nervous, as the phone rang...and rang. After getting no answer for five minutes, Bella softly suggested Jacob, so Jasper retrieved his number from her and called.
"Hello?" I recognized the voice as Bella's friend and Jacob's imprint, Ashlea Black.
"Hello, ma'am. My name is Jasper Hale. I'm calling on behalf of Carlisle Cullen. Is Jacob Black around, please?" He said formally but politely.
We all heard Ashlea's breath hitch and excuse herself to get her husband. Lacie and her little brother, Darren could be heard in the background cooing and laughing. Bella trembled in my arms and I held her tighter.
"Black. What'daya need bloodsucker?" Jake answered cheekily.
"Jacob, we need to meet, today if possible. You've got trouble headed your way in three days time and we would like to offer our help." Carlisle spoke concisely.
Jake's footsteps sounded over the tinny speaker of the cell phone and we heard a door shut. Lacie and Darren were no longer heard in the background.
"What's going on? Did Alice see something? Why would we need your help?" He was not as patient as our coven leader when it came to waiting for answers.
"Jake."
"Bells?"
"Jake, listen to me. The Volturi are coming. They've been spying on the Cullens and you for months. Please let us help you!" Bella pleaded to the cell phone.
"I don't understand. What did we do to piss off the bloodsucker Kings?"
Emmett answered angrily. "You existed."
"Jacob, one of our Kings has a deep hatred for werewolves. They sent a spy who was capable of invisibility and she has been watching you. She reported her findings to our leaders and they want you exterminated." Carlisle told him.
"We aren't rats! Fuck. We aren't even werewolves!" We heard the distinct sound of flesh tearing as presumably his fist connected with something. "Fuck!"
"That is what we need to get them to hear. You are shape-shifters. Spirit warriors. The issue is getting them to listen. The Kings, especially Caius, are known for their impatience." Carlisle said calmly. Another blow to an unfortunate object was made in La Push by Jake's fist.
"Then how the hell do we get them to listen? How do you know we can't handle this?" Jake's voice was a steady deep growl.
Alice spoke softly but clearly. "I saw your death, Jacob. I saw all of your deaths. Caius will not stop until you are all finished."
"I thought you couldn't see us, Pix?" Jake's voice softened slightly as he spoke to my sister. As much as he hated to admit it, he kind of liked her.
"I have no problems seeing what doesn't exist anymore." She practically whispered but he heard her. A loud roar of despaired anger came through the speaker of the cell phone and Bella clung tighter to me. Her grip was painful but I wouldn't make her ease up now. Jasper sent her some peace but it seemed to bounce off of her.
That was when I realized.
"Her dome! Her shield! Bella, we can get them to listen to us if you put your shield around us." I said eagerly to her before frantically searching Alice's eyes. They were vacant but all I got in her mind was blackness.
"I can't see!" She jumped up and down, laughing loudly and clapping excitedly.
o.o
I listened, horrified and terrified for my family and closest friends. The only things that kept running through my mind were Lacie, Darren, Ashlea, Jacob. Their names were on a constant loop. I couldn't lose them. I wouldn't! How, though, am I supposed to stop them? I only seemed to have minimal control over this shield thing. How the fuck was I supposed to learn anything about it in less than three days?
"Come down now. Meet us in that big field East of the One-oh-One tonight. I'll alert the rest of the pack that you'll be using your house for the next few days. Keep Bells contained please. We can't keep an eye on her bloodlust if we are trying to concentrate on a war." Jake's voice resounded a deep baritone. He was officially done freaking out and in alpha mode. "I'm putting Ashlea and the kids, along with all the imprints up to Neah Bay. I don't want anyone trying to use them as leverage." He growled.
"Yes, that's a perfect idea. I can see them clearly. They'll all be fine." Alice reassured him.
Jacob and I breathed a sigh of relief before we ended the call and started racing around. We closed up the house, pulling the thick metal shutters down over the windows and locking the steel grates over the doors. Emmett had his Jeep started and waiting for us and we all crammed into it, heading to Forks. Emmett pulled off just outside of Brinnon and we jumped out of the vehicle, racing through the Olympic National Forest. It would be a hell of a lot quicker running than taking the One-oh-One the whole way from the outskirts of Seattle.
Everyone was tense as we ran and no one spoke, all lost in our own thoughts. About halfway through the forest, I caught the scent of a bear and veered South for it.
"Good idea. Split up and hunt, guys. We will need it." Alice called to us.
I felt Edward behind me and knew he wasn't about to let me out of his sight. He watched as I downed the bear, elegantly taking down the massive beast effortlessly. I was almost proud of myself. My first hunt had gone terribly but this was perfect. I hadn't dropped a spot of blood. Edward's eyes were black and I pointed West. The heartbeats of a few deer weren't far and he took off. I stayed behind him, watching him hunt, before we caught up with the family closer to Forks. I knew that watching him hunt turned me on as it turned him on watching me hunt, but we didn't have time for that. Even if we could spare a moment for some sort of gratification, my family was at risk. That was more important than an orgasm right now. I would protect everyone I loved. Then I would indulge.
The clearing we entered was easily a few acres with piles of old tree stumps and roots at one side, a large dirt roadway headed in the direction of Forks from the other side of the clearing and I realized this was an old logging trail of sorts. There was even new growth, trees that someone had planted to give back what had been taken. I made a mental note to replant what may get destroyed here after the coming crusade.
I would not let the possibility of failure enter my mind.
Jasper immediately started patrolling, making sure no humans would be in the area. Carlisle stood point of our large arrowhead formation with Esme behind his right shoulder and Emmett behind his left. Edward and I stood behind their shoulders and Alice stood behind me. Jasper sped into the clearing and stood behind Edward.
The wolves walked confidently into the clearing in a similar formation with Jacob's large red wolf at the point. Sam held his position at Jake's right hind leg with Jared on the left. Paul's silver wolf started snarling when he caught sight of me. I sneered at the man whore. The only reason he hated me so much wasn't because I was a leech lover, but because I wouldn't spread my legs for him. I was considered to be his only failure, but I wasn't about to fuck a man whose dick had been in more women than the population of Forks, itself.
Okay, that might be a slight exaggeration.
Jake's wolf snapped a warning at the hothead and there was almost complete silence in the field.
Edward took a breath and started. "They will stay in wolf form because they know this will piss them off and there's no point in dressing only to burst apart again."
I smiled at Jake and he let his tongue loll out of his mouth with his wolfy grin.
"Understandable. This is a stressful time. Jasper here is going to teach you some basic combat moves against vampires to help you." Carlisle paused at a few disgruntled snorts. "Please, do not be offended. We merely want to ensure the best possible chances for survival. While Jasper works with you, I will be working with Bella on her apparent gift. She may be the key to everyone's existence here."
The silence seemed deafening. The wolves stared at me and I shrugged.
Thanks Carlisle. No pressure or anything.
The wolves stayed in formation as Jasper walked up to them exuding a confidence I had never witnessed before. His back was straight, his hands clasped behind his back as he paced slowly in front of the wolves. He was every bit a military man and I wondered at his human life.
The rest of the vampires gathered around me and I wasn't sure what to do so I looked to the ground, toeing the dirt with the tip of my combat boot. Edward lifted my face with two fingers under my chin.
"Find your dome, Angel." He murmured to me.
With everyone staring at me, I wasn't able to concentrate. It had been so easy before to want the door shut in privacy, to want the weeds out of the garden, and to want Emmett the fuck out of my face. Now, though, my mind was a blank. What did I want? I looked at each vampire's black eyes and even though I read the fear of what was to come easily, I read encouragement and hope as well. I held each of my family member's eyes for several seconds before looking beyond them to the spirit warriors that had started paying attention to Jasper's instructions.
I caught Paul's eyes first. He was angry and frustrated. Quil was trembling in eagerness to fight. I smelled the fear of each wolf though they tried like hell to fight it. Sam and Jake stood tall in their wolf form, watching Jasper intently, paying close attention. They were wonderful leaders. I couldn't let them die. I wouldn't. Jake caught my eye and held contact with me even as Jasper continued to pace between us, breaking the stare every few moments.
I would protect them.
I mouthed the words to my best friend. I will protect you.
The moment I made the clear decision to keep everyone safe, the golden dome from just earlier today formed over everyone. It was clear enough to see through it but almost sparkled a golden sheen. The wolves gasped and stared. Edward lifted his hand and traced the crown of my head in a circle.
"There's my angel." He whispered. In the reflection of his eyes, I could see a thin golden band shining around my head.
"Wow!" I breathed.
"It is pretty amazing." Esme said as she draped her arm over my shoulders.
"Retract that Bella. I want to be outside of it so I can see how impenetrable it is." Jasper called to me.
I searched for how to retract the dome but it wasn't any trouble at all. I simply willed it away. It was as easy as willing Emmett to fly through the trees. Jasper flew to the edge of the clearing and faced us.
"Now, try to put the shield up, but without me inside of it." He directed.
Willing the dome to work again, it appeared with Jasper unprotected. Alice laughed and Edward kissed my cheek. Esme and Emmett patted my shoulders and Carlisle smiled fondly. I was proud of myself.
"I can't feel any of you. Your shield is protecting you from my manipulation." He blurred out of sight before racing back and pummeling into the dome. He stopped fast, colliding with the shield like a car colliding with a brick wall. He was running and then he was flat against the dome.
The wolves chuckled, rumbling drums of laughter shaking from their chests as they watched Jasper fall flat on his ass. We all laughed in delight. I willed the dome away and Jasper picked himself up as Edward this time blurred away. We practiced for hours. Edward couldn't read anyone's mind inside my protection. This made everyone cheer happily. It meant we were safe from mental attacks. The Witch Twins would be rendered useless. Aro was sure to get his panties in a twist over that. Emmett had taken it a step further and burrowed underground like a vole and tried to penetrate the golden shield from underneath to no avail.
It gave us a boost of confidence that everything would work in our favor but we weren't taking any chances.
Only stopping regularly so the wolves could return to their beds to sleep or eat the enormous amounts of food that Esme cooked for them from our house in Forks, we worked straight through the next two days. The night before the Kings would join us, the vampires went hunting. We needed to be completely up to par in case there was a physical skirmish.
o.o
Dressed in denim jeans and black tees, we all looked ready for combat. Every Cullen member's eyes were black with anger and fear. Every yellow eyed wolf was growling in their formation behind us. We stood in our arrowhead formation, the same positions as when we arrived three days previous. Every thought was on edge.
What if Bella's shield gives out.
What if the Volturi have someone who can counteract her ability or worse, take it away?
Strengthen us in the power of Your might, O God. Dress us in Your armor so that we can stand firm against the schemes of the devil.
They can't take my family from me.
Bella will protect us all.
Come on, bitches.
On edge and angry for the threat on our friend's lives, we stood united. We would at least be able to get Aro to listen, but would he hear? I knew for sure he would be angry that his strongest allies were standing against him, we just needed to get him to see the difference between ignorance and truth. Caius has held onto his anger too long and has forgotten that the world was not black and white. The supernatural was not strictly Vampire versus Werewolf. There were witches and warlocks, fae and spirit warriors. He knew this, he just preferred to live in his own little world.
The clearing erupted in a deafening chorus of growls and snarls as the black mist of Alec's power drifted over the golden dome, tainting the color. Sparks of electricity shot over the top of the dome then died away. Santiago and Felix charged forward and slammed into the shield with a brute force that sent cracks up their throats and faces. They roared in indignation and Felix slammed his fist in anger against my angel's protection.
Aro came gliding into the clearing last with Caius and Marcus on either side of him. The Witch Twins, Jane and Alec were stood behind Felix and Santiago who were feeling the perimeter of the dome, looking for a way in. Every one of the Volturi wore long billowing black cloaks with bright red pins on their chests in the letter 'V'. There was no sign of Bianca and I wondered where the little spy was.
"Cullens!" Aro seemed genuinely surprised to see us here. His long inky hair fell limply to his shoulders, the milky white of his skin made the brightly red of his eyes seem as if they glowed. His mind showed that he thought this would be a quick and easy extermination and he was not pleased to have to converse. "What's brings you here tonight?"
"Aro, my brother. We are here to protect innocents within our territory. We mean you no harm, I assure you." Carlisle assumed his authoritative coven leader voice to address the elder vampire. The King's thoughts showed his surprise though his face stayed cheerful and open, easy to do when he's had a millennia of practice.
"Ah, yes. I apologize for not contacting you sooner, my friend. This was not planned." At least he wasn't lying there. Bianca had only contacted Aro three days before, when Alice received her vision. The moment the call went through, Caius had demanded action.
"You dare side with werewolves, Stregoni benefici? How common of you." Caius sneered and spat venom at his feet.
Carlisle's face remained smooth but his eyes hardened. He and Caius had never formed the bond that he had with the other two Kings. While Aro and Marcus both enjoyed my coven leader's company, Caius had no tolerance for the animal feeding vampire. He thought Carlisle to be a fool and beneath him.
"If I were consorting with werewolves, my King, I would in fact be burned in a pyre. True Children of the Moon hate vampires and while my spirit warrior friends do not like our kind, they hold a respect for us." His voice never wavered though eyes widened all over the field as Carlisle practically spat the words 'my King'.
Aro stepped forward until he was between Felix and Santiago. Smoothing his hand gently over the golden dome, he spoke with interest.
"Spirit warriors, my friend? Please explain."
I heard the relief in everyone's thoughts under the dome who saw Aro's change in demeanor. He seemed more relaxed and I could tell that he was not the loose cannon of the visit.
Sam Uley phased to human, uncaring of his nudity and slipped his cargo shorts up his large thighs, leaving the button undone.
"My name is Samuel Uley, beta of the La Push wolf pack. The legend of our tribe is sacred and secret but I will tell you this; Quileutes descend from wolves. Long ago, our tribe was in grave danger and the Gods took pity on us, sharing our souls with the spirits of the wolves. We are not bitten, as true werewolves are created. We are born. It runs in our blood." His deep bass voice echoed in the clearing.
Marcus even perked up, which I thought was odd as he lost his mate, Didyme over two hundred years ago and has been itching to walk into the flames ever since.
His raspy from disuse voice was soft. "Do you seek to destroy our kind, young warrior?" His bright ruby eyes shined and I read that he would willingly walk into the jaws of death.
Aro snatched his brother's hand then gasped as he read Marcus' thoughts through touch.
"No, brother!" Didyme's true death had been a devastating blow to the Kingdom of Volterra. Being Aro's blood sister and Caius' wife's best friend, her death stole a piece of each of them, but she was not Marcus' true mate. She was out there somewhere and Aro refused to lose his brother simply because she was being evasive or hadn't been born yet.
Sam's hard expression softened as he witnessed the scene in front of him though he knew nothing of the situation. He was witnessing with his own eyes that even the red eyed demons he had been raised to fear and hate had as strong feelings of love just as much as he did.
Dipping his head in respect, he spoke softly. "We do not hunt vampires. We protect our lands. We are a peaceful being and do not wish for war."
Marcus sighed. "Pity."
Caius looked on, disgusted as Marcus stepped to the dome next to Aro. My family was relaxing, though still ready for anything, as the third King looked ready to burst with his hatred.