Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or New Moon and am not Stephenie Meyer.
A/N – These chapters are going to start getting longer and longer, I think, if I keep thinking of things I need to squeeze in under particular songs! Please read the A/N at the bottom! Thank you!
Song To Listen To: 'If Everyone Cared' by Nickelback. I'm going to use a few bits of the song in the story itself – instead of just the lyrics being posted – so you'll see how I mean for it to fit in there. But I can say here that it's meant to mean something to two certain groups of 'people'.
'If Everyone Cared' by Nickelback
From underneath the trees
We watch the sky
Confusing stars with satellites
I never dreamed that you'd be mine
But here we are, we're here tonight
Singing amen, I, I'm alive (I'm alive)
Singing amen I, I'm alive
If everyone cared and nobody cried
If everyone loved and nobody lied
If everyone shared and swallowed their pride
Then we'd see the day that nobody died
I'm singing a, amen I, amen I, I'm alive
I'm singing a, amen I, amen I, I'm alive
And in the air the fireflies
Our only light in paradise
To show the world
They were wrong
And teach them all to sing along
I'm singing amen I, I'm alive
Singing amen, I, I'm alive
If everyone cared and nobody cried
If everyone loved and nobody lied
If everyone shared and swallowed their pride
Then we'd see the day that nobody died
If everyone cared and nobody cried
If everyone loved and nobody lied
If everyone shared and swallowed their pride
Then we'd see the day that nobody died
That nobody died
And as we lie beneath the stars
We realize how small we are
If they could love like you and me
Imagine what the world could be
If everyone cared and nobody cried
If everyone loved and nobody lied
If everyone shared and swallowed their pride
Then we'd see the day that nobody died
If everyone cared and nobody cried
If everyone loved and nobody lied
If everyone shared and swallowed their pride
Then we'd see the day that nobody died
We'd see the day, we'd see the day when nobody died
We'd see the day, we'd see the day when nobody died
We'd see the day, we'd see the day when nobody died
Curse
Discussion
Slowly, as though through molasses – or maybe honey – I pulled myself out of the engulfing darkness of sleep. Maybe it was my imagination, but I could swear that I heard voices talking around me. I was almost positive that something was stroking my head, right between my ears.
It felt wonderful; small ripples of pure joy at the feeling of being petted like a cat trickled down my spine. It was absolute heaven – and then the chattering around me stopped.
It was like someone had flipped a switch in my mind the instant I heard none of the talking I had been getting used to. Even though my eyes remained closed, my frame stiffened tightly like a coiled wire.
Flashes of my memory spun dizzily in my head – running behind Victoria, the bite, the amulet, her wild eyes, flame hair and ruby eyes, my own face in the mirror, Edward from behind my outstretched claws…
With a gasp of pure panic, I bolted upright from where I lay on a soft, old couch. Icy arms wrapped themselves around me and I stopped struggling the second I caught their scent in my nose.
It took very little for me to whip my head around and see Edward's concerned face – devastation hidden in the depths of his dark, dark eyes – from over my shoulder. Less than a second later, my arms were wrapped around him in a tight hug.
"Edward," I breathed softly, my tail swishing to show my relief in seeing him once more. My face was carefully resting on top of his shoulder, lips close to his ear. I melted into his embrace as the hesitance drifted from his arms and they clenched tightly around me, holding me close as he dared.
"Bella." Simple and short. But that one word carried so much relief that I was all right and alive that it was all I could do to hold back the tears threatening to fall. Of course, it was venom – not tears – but the feeling was there.
It seemed like an eternity before I slowly, slowly pulled myself back from his grip and backed up the tiniest bit to look at his face. As I did, my lungs caught the whiff of something that I had missed before. Burnt wood and coals, mixing with wind blowing off of a glacier – my eyes darted around the room, and I recognized it instantly.
We were standing in Billy's house.
Turning my head to the side, I saw what I had begun to suspect the instant the scent hit my nose in passing. The Quileute pack was refusing to sit down, although their usually hostile expressions seemed calmly void of anything at the moment.
The Cullen family had taken seats around where Edward and I stood, holding hands even though our arms were no longer wrapped tightly around each other. They, too, seemed to be completely in control and unnaturally calm.
My heart fell just seeing it, even though they looked happy enough to see me. This wasn't a long-term arrangement that they had set up to work together – this was a one-time only compromise before we pretend this never happened deal.
They teamed up to get me back – and now I was. Whatever deal they had come up with was now null and void, just long enough for the Cullens to head back to their land – or rather, far from Forks – and the pack would resume defending themselves again.
That didn't mean I had to like it, but I decided that now might not be the best time to deal with it. Instead, I looked between Sam and Carlisle, uncertain about how to proceed in this situation. Should I ask about what had happened, or hold off until later?
The two leaders took charge before I opened my mouth. Sam stepped forward and spoke crisply. "Your attack was on our land – but she got through the Cullens land before getting into the water. From there, we think she swam up to the beach and got you there."
Gesturing to the group in general, he continued, "We decided that it was in our common interests for the time being to deal with the red-haired one together in getting you back. If there was a small chance you were still human, we were responsible for bringing you back."
Carlisle picked up gently, "And if you had been changed as we thought it was more probable that you had been – due to the descriptions of the pack – then it was our task to deal with Victoria."
"Regardless," Sam nodded slightly to Carlisle, "we still would have gone after you. You were a small part of the family for a short time." He looked over me critically and I shifted uncomfortably; Edward placed a hand gently on my back. "It seems she did do something to you, just…not what we expected."
Dryly, I muttered, "Well, I didn't expect it either. Funny how that happens." Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Jake smile slightly before his faced lapsed again into rigid self-control.
Carlisle gently told me, "The pack has been kind enough to decide we can discuss the technicalities of your change once you woke up; we were all reluctant to leave you alone, especially so shortly after this event – it seems we were right that someone should be with you."
I smiled sheepishly and tried my best to keep a smug smile from my face when no blush appeared. But then I realized that the positions of my family and pack were no longer relaxed – rather, the Cullens had tensed moments before the pack responded.
I tried to figure out what was going on before Edward's hands clasped firmly around my arms, stiffly holding me back – from what? Sam took two steps to the right – and then I saw Emily framed by the kitchen doorway.
Relief swept through me as I saw that they thought I would be thirsty; the only problem was, they didn't seem to notice that I wasn't going to attack Emily. "Edward…why are you holding my arms like that?" I questioned when he wouldn't let go after a gentle tug away from him.
Couldn't Jasper sense that I wasn't going to attack her? But, no – he caught emotions, not hunger pangs that a vampire suffered from around blood. Rolling my eyes in his face, I grumpily attempted crossing my arms. "I'm not going to jump her, you know."
"Why not?" Sam asked, eying me carefully. But even he could see that I wasn't being overcome with my thirst for blood, even though I was a newborn vampire. "Shouldn't you be intensely thirsty right now?"
"I repeat; do I look like a normal vampire to you?" For emphasis, I swished my tail angrily behind my back, higher up in the air – he could see it over my shoulder. "Besides, Victoria already tested me with the blood thing."
"Tested you?" I caught the extremely light undertone in Edward's voice that suggested anger starting to blossom.
"Yes – she waved an open vial of human blood at me," I wrinkled my nose in distaste before my expressions softened a bit. "But the container of animal blood…I pretty much decimated the plastic, but I inhaled that one faster than she could defend herself."
As an afterthought, I added, "I think it was from a deer – it tasted light, springy somehow. Like the deer was running happily before she murdered it."
If I had still been able to, my cheeks would have been bright red as every single person in the room stared at me for a long minute. Ducking my head, I mumbled, "Um, I mean…I don't think I'm going to attack Emily…"
Edward's lips brushed against my hair lightly before he said, "I think it might be best if you headed outside now to get some clear air, Bella. No doubt all the scents in this room are making your senses overload."
Nodding without even thinking about it, I moved toward the kitchen door where Sam was letting Emily stretch out one hand to me. My small, pale hand with sharp, dagger-like nails delicately floated into hers as I purposefully moved much slower than I thought I could.
It was harder than I thought it would be to slow my movements so much; I knew that I was going slow even by human standards, but I was taking no chances. Especially not here and now: I might be immune to the 'appealing' scent, but the Cullens – least of all Jasper – were not.
Emily carefully led me out the door and through the kitchen before I paused – and my mind caught up with it all. I had just left the pack and my family alone in a room together – to discuss what the treaty would say about me being what I was now.
Having half a mind to turn back, I snapped out of the middle of my turn to go back to the softly murmuring voices when Emily's cut through it all. "Bella," she said in a no-nonsense voice. "You are not getting into that argument."
It was surprising how a wave of anger rose up in me. "Say what?" I squawked as I tugged her back to the other side of the kitchen; on the other side of the living room door, the room had gone oddly quiet.
"Bella," she repeated, planting her feet firmly. Both of us knew that I could throw her through the wall if I wanted to – which I didn't. Her show of authority was merely a show – if I didn't listen to her. "Be reasonable. You know that you can't go throw yourself into an argument right now."
Of course, I understood what she really wanted: for things to stay as they were, in the hopes that they wouldn't get out of hand. She wanted her pack – and her new husband – to stay safe. I wanted that for her, too, but I wanted my family to be alive as well.
And both of them had better chances if I kept myself from barging right back in.
With a groan, I stomped – lightly – over the linoleum flooring and out the door, dragging Emily behind me. She hummed quietly behind me, a tune to a song that sounded familiar; I couldn't quite place its name.
The moon was high in the sky still, but across the horizon of the treetops, there were the faint, glimmering beginnings of dawn. I silently let Emily retake the lead, and she walked along a clearly marked path to a small stand of trees a little ways off from the house.
It was a small little grove, with a large tree turned on its' side and nestled right up next to the still-standing mate that had been planted right alongside it. Emily took a careful seat, still humming to herself – it sounded more like a faint murmur to my ears than a hum.
For some reason, I looked carefully at the tree branch solidly sticking out about shoulder-level to Emily and beside her, though a bit further back. Without a second thought, I quietly leapt up onto it with a small crunch of impacted wood.
Crouching carefully, barefoot and with my tail swishing pleasantly behind me, I grasped the branch with my bare hands in front of my feet and balanced perfectly upon the rough bark. Emily looked up at me without a hint of surprise on her face before smiling gently and turning her head back to the forest outside of our small seating placement.
Through the trees ahead of us, the sun struck through the trunks of trees – when it got to be later, then the sunlight would bounce off the canopy. For the moment, however, it was low enough in the sky to peer through the sides from where the cliff edge hung and offered no block to the light.
We stayed still and sitting for a long time as the faded dark blue of the sky became tinged with yellow and grew brighter by the minute – it would be a sunny day today. After a time, I realized that I could hear Emily's whisper-soft voice singing just under her breath.
"…Our only light in paradise…to show the world…they were wrong…and teach them all to sing along…"
I tried to remember what that song was from – I had heard it somewhere before. And after a moment, I remembered and added my voice to hers, softly singing the line I caught up on after finding the information I sought.
"…If everyone shared and swallowed their pride…then we'd see the day that nobody died…"
She turned her face up to me, the scars thrown into sharp relief by the rising sun's dark red gleam. Line by line, we traded off and let our voices rise louder by each one.
"And as we lie beneath the stars –."
"We realize how small we are –."
"If they could love like you and me –."
"Imagine what the world could be."We halted for a brief moment and looked back out to the sunrise to finish the lines together; the brilliant red and gold glowed through the trees, hitting our faces. My skin began shimmering like diamonds were embedded in it and Emily's reddish Quileute skin seemed to be on fire.
"If everyone cared and nobody cried…if everyone loved and nobody lied…if everyone shared and swallowed their pride…then we'd see the day that nobody died…"
I sang more stanza of it, throwing my voice out loud and clear as Emily took a shadowing trill through notes, singing them crisply to the morning air.
"If everyone cared and nobody cried…if everyone loved and nobody lied…if everyone shared and swallowed their pride…then we'd see the day that nobody died…"
It was all I could do not to start laughing; as it was, I smiled so widely that I think my teeth showed. She didn't mind, however, and instead sighed, "That was wonderful. I wish that we could have sung more before…but I don't know what they're going to decide…"
My ears pricked up a split second before a voice murmured, "Well, it's lucky for you that we have decided on something – and lucky we got your message in that song before we picked something different."
A/N – Like I told you, these chapters are most likely going to begin to increase in length. I hope that you liked how I incorporated the song into this – I just had the vision of the two of them sitting there and singing while the rising sun reflected off of a cat-like Bella perched on a branch beside calm, serene Emily. I hope you saw my vision, too.
Also, a quick note: Today, March 20th, is my birthday! And this was one of your party favors! For you see, I decided to work my but off all week long before this day and post something for each and every one of my stories today!
Yes, that's right, EVERYTHING I have written has been updated. That includes, for all you Twilight fans of mine, 'Sunrise', 'Story of my Life' and 'Darkest Before Dawn' as well as a one-shot for 'Snapshots of Time'. For Maximum Ride, that means 'Savin' Me' and for Harry Potter, that means 'Desecration Smile' and 'Karaoke Countdown'! I hope you check them all out:)