Hi hi, party people! Can I get some reviews please? Over 200 people saw my last update and not a single one reviewed. I don't want to sound like a nagging harpy or anything, but it irritates me to no end when not a SINGLE person reviews my story. Okay. Stepping down off my soap box now. *Steps down and takes a deep breath* On the other hand, thank you to the over 200 people who did read my update; it meant a lot to me. Guess what? This update didn't take over three months! Woohoo! So…
Previously on Un-Civil War:
"Okay! So, we're done focusing. How the hell do you two know each other?" I asked, turning to face Carlisle and crossing my arms. He smirked down at me.
"All right. Let's all settle down in the living room and I'll tell you."
BellaPOV:
Flashback 149 years, April 1, 1861:
"Hello? Is there anyone here?" I timidly opened the hardwood door and stuck my head inside. The office was magnificent, what with its oak floors and massive leather seats. It had a lovely fireplace with a low fire roaring steadily within. "Mr. Cullen? My name is Isabella Marie Swan. I am your new nurse." I gingerly took a step inside and pushed the door shut gently. "Mr. Cullen, are you here?" I looked around and saw no one.
"Yes, Ms. Swan. I am here." He hurriedly stepped through a door I had not seen before and seated himself behind his massive desk. "Please, take a seat."
"Thank you, Mr. Cullen." I daintily sat on the edge of the chair and straightened my back as was proper.
"Please, Ms. Swan, call me Carlisle." He smiled kindly and it shone in his honey amber eyes.
"If you wish…Carlisle." I smiled back and he laughed.
"That is better. May I call you Isabella, or would you prefer Nurse Swan?" This time it was I who chuckled.
"Nurse Swan, if you please, sir." I shifted uncomfortably on the seat.
"Of course. I wish to make my employees as comfortable as possible. You start immediately. There is a small tent on site here, just past the large oak tree. Your services are required there on the double, ma'am. Shall I escort you?" He stood and offered me his arm.
"Yes, please, sir." I stood, smiled, and took his arm. We walked in silence for a while before the inevitable interview began.
"Why did you wish to become a military nurse, Nurse Swan?" Carlisle asked me.
"Well, sir, I have always enjoyed taking care of people. Whenever Mother and Father were away at market, they would leave me to take care of my sickly younger brother, Jimmy. He had Tuberculosis, you see, and needed constant attention. Father would check out medical books from the library for me and I would use them to try and cure Jimmy. Unfortunately, he did not make it." I stopped to blink tears out of my eyes. "We refused to have an open coffin last month, due to fear of infecting the guests. I suppose you could say my brother's recent passing has spurred me into wanting to do something more for people."
"That is a very pure and honest reason, ma'am. It is much better than ones I have gotten from recent applicants, believe me."
"Really? If you don't mind my asking, what were some of the other reasons?" I asked, my large curiosity burning.
"Well, I shall say none other than this. Most of the applicants I have received before were less than ladylike in their desires." His answer made me flush. "That's another thing I must ask. Have you ever seen another man?"
"Of course. When my brother was too ill to move, which was often, it was I who had to dress him and bathe him. Male nudity does not bother me any longer. Is there anything else you need to know, Doctor?" We had reached the tent by this time and he dropped my arm.
"Just one more, Nurse Swan." From his pocket he pulled a white nurse's hat. "Do you think that this will fit?" Carlisle handed it to me and I placed it on my hair, easing it over my bun. "Why, it is a perfect fit!"
"Does this mean I am hired, Carlisle?" I asked, hopeful.
"Yes ma'am." There was a gunshot not twenty feet away from the tent. "It looks like we are needed inside. Ladies first." He held the tent flap open for me and I walked inside, bracing myself for what I was about to see. I don't think any amount of self-preparation could have gotten me ready for what I saw. Everyone in that tent was between hay and grass, the oldest looking twenty at the most. I almost cried right then and there but had to pull myself together as the recent gunshot was coming in. "Let's go, Nurse Swan. You get the gauze, it's in the chest." Carlisle pointed to a chest against the back wall of the tent. "Meet me at his gurney."
"Yessir." With that, he walked away and I went to hunt up the gauze. Finding it, I hurried over to the young boy and was handed a pair of scissors by the doctor. Noticing the hole in the boy's upper thigh, I began to cut away his pants, at which the person on the stretcher quickly and fiercely protested.
"I will not have a woman cut off my pants. I simply refuse it. I would rather die than have this woman-child see me!" He exclaimed too late, for his pants were long gone and the cotton already placed over the wound to slow the bleeding.
"Ignore his bazoo, Nurse Swan. Some of the men out here are still a little at sea when it comes to the idea of women nurses. Lift the cotton for a moment, will you?" I did as I was told and watched in fascination as the doctor deftly reached in with some instrument and extracted the bullet from the poor soul's leg. "There. Put as much pressure as possible and when it stops bleeding, come and fetch me to wrap it for him." He patted my shoulder and left me with the anti-feminism male on the gurney.
"How are you feeling, soldier?"
"Right bully, thank you. I apologize for lashing out at you earlier. You are a right fine nurse, ma'am."
"Thank you. What's your name, soldier?" I asked, looking under the bandage to check and see if it was done bleeding. It looked close so I got some more cotton and replaced it, wrapping his leg tight.
"My name is Trevor, ma'am. Weren't you supposed to get the doctor to do that?" He raised an eyebrow at me. "Not that I don't think your not capable or nothing."
"I was supposed to, but I know how. I had to do this with my brother often. It's no different." I checked to make sure his bandage was secure and stood. "Well, Trevor, I am going to go find the doctor and have him check my work. I shall be right back. Stay put." He nodded and laid his head against the pillow, closing his eyes. I turned and walked away to find Carlisle, my first job as a nurse completed.
Back to the present:
"So, there you have it! That is how I met Carlisle." I stated, Jasper's arm slinging around my shoulders.
"Wow. Bells, I knew you were a nurse and all, but you had serious balls, sis!" Charlie exclaimed, causing Carlisle and I to laugh.
"She did indeed." Carlisle said, chuckling. "But I thought I was going to be the one to tell the story." He said, looking at me with a fake pout on his face.
"Better luck next time, Doc!" I giggled at his astonished look and Esme kissed him on the cheek.
"I'll listen to you when you tell me tonight, love. Will that make you happy?" She teased and I had to stifle my laughter at Carlisle's expression.
"Whatever." Carlisle mumbled.
"Let's not be childish, Carlisle. Isabella did beat you to it!" Rosalie exclaimed.
"Okay, okay… I think that's quite enough." Carlisle looked towards Jasper gratefully. I put my head on his shoulder.
"Always looking out for other people." I walked my fingers up his arm.
"Well, he had better start learning how to look out for himself." Emmett growled. My fingers stopped at his shoulder and I got up.
"Isabella, sit down." Jasper begged. "Its fine."
"It most certainly is NOT fine, Jazz." I stalked over to Emmett and got in his face. "He knows how to look after himself. You don't know him or what he knows how to do. So, I would appreciate it if you stayed out of his business." I growled.
"Of course. So long as you stay out of my face." He hissed back. I stood ramrod straight.
"Sure thing, boss." I said.
"Uh oh… Emmett, if you had any brain cells left in that thick skull of yours, you would run right now." Jasper warned. He was too late. I reached out and slapped Emmett hard all the way across the face. Emmett growled and slammed me up against the wall, gripping my throat tight. I saw Jasper speed behind him and clamp his hand on his shoulder. "Emmett, if you had any brain cells left in that thick skull of yours, which apparently you don't, you would let go of her right now."
"Why should he? All she's brought us is pain and suffering. I say he should kill her." I saw Jasper's golden locks whip around to face the tiny pixie-girl. Without taking his eyes off her, Jazzy dug his fingers into Em's shoulder, causing him to hiss in pain.
"Ali, I love you, but I think you should shut up while he has his hand on my shoulder." I hissed at him and grabbed his wrist, digging my fingernails into his skin. "Ah, shit!" Emmett let go of me and gripped his wrist as Jasper dislodged his fingers. This caused Emmett to gasp in pain again. I raced to Jasper's side and grabbed his hand, not caring that it had just been inside Emmett.
"I think that we should be taking our leave now. Come along Isabella, Renee, Charlie." Renee and Charlie stood and walked to the door.
"It was a pleasure to see you again Carlisle. Perhaps we can catch up sometime?"
"I'd like that." He nodded and we all walked towards the door.
"You can't stop the wolves without us." Alice's smug voice stopped me with one foot in and one foot out of the doorway.
"Well, I'm sure we can manage without a child to hold us back." I pulled the door shut behind me and we all walked home in silence.
JazzPOV:
Damn. If that wasn't a crap ending to a fairly nice visit, then I don't know what would be. I told Em to run and he just wouldn't listen. Then again, when does he? God, what she wouldn't do for me, huh? Where'd my little kitten go? "Isabella?" I called out. I heard a window shatter from the upstairs bedroom and went to go see what was wrong. Charlie and Renee left the room at almost exactly the same time.
"You don't wanna go in there right now, Jazz man. She's MAD!" Charlie said and Renee back him up with an adamant nod.
"Move." I nudged them away and pushed the door open. The wreckage inside was almost enough to stop me dead in my tracks. "Darlin'? Are you all right?" Her hair was flying around her face in the breeze from the busted window, her hands were clawed and her lips were curled back in a snarl as her eyes darted sightlessly around the room. "Honey?" Those crazed eyes landed on my face and she froze, still as a statue.
"What?" She growled.
"I need you to calm down." I shot her a wave of lethargy and calm and watched in relief as she relaxed some. I held up my hands. "Can I hug you?" She nodded once and I wrapped my arms around her, keeping the lethargy and calm at a steady pace. Isabella went nearly limp in my grip and I cut off the flow immediately. "Are you okay?" I kissed her hair and she took a deep breath through her nose.
"Yeah. Thanks. You can let go now." She said and I did as I was told. "We better go find Renee and Charlie. They could be halfway to Canada by now. Let's go." I chuckled and took her hand before running out of the room.
AlicePOV:
Who the hell does she think she is? No one can attack my man like that and be allowed to walk away unharmed. Where does she get off thinking she can talk to me like that? I will kill her DEAD! DEAD I TELL YOU!
"Okay, Alice. Your screeching is giving me a headache." Edward said, covering his ears. I leveled a glare at him. "Continue…"
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" I bellowed, stalking out of the house into the forest. Isabella Swan, you will pay for what you have done to this family. I will make you, if it's the last thing I do!
EmmettPOV:
Damn, that man is strong! I gingerly touched the four quickly healing holes in my shoulder. "He didn't have to be so violent."
"He did ask you to let her go. It's your fault for not listening, numbskull." I heard Rosalie quip behind me.
"Can it, Rose." I mumbled, embarrassed.
"I think what we need here is a break. Why don't we all go to separate rooms of the house and just not talk for a while. Don't think if possible, for Edward's sake." Esme's statement caused me to smirk.
Hey, Edward, do you want to see what Rose can really do? I looked at him as he fought a smile.
"Do it, or you're dead."
All right. You asked for it. I burst out laughing and he cringed.
"Should I be scared?" His voice was small.
"Any smart person would be scared when he starts to laugh like that." Rose said. I wiped an imaginary tear from my eye.
"I call the game room!" I declared, taking off and shutting the door behind me. Every one else moaned.
"Not fair!" Edward called from the couch. I planned on having fun in solitary confinement.
? ? ?POV:
I wanna go! I wanna go! I wanna go!
Calm down, Paul! You'll get your chance. You'll all get your chance.
Sam, do you know who they are?
Yeah, Jake. I got the names of them all. Two girls, two boys. Renee Burgess, Charlie Montgomery, Isabella Swan, and Jasper Whitlock.
Isn't that the Cullen with all the scars?
Yes, Seth. We're gonna get them all, including those blood sucking Cullens!
But, how? They outnumber us.
I'll tell you how, Quil. Here's the plan…
A/N
There you have it, folks! Please review this chapter. I don't like nagging and begging, but I guess it's necessary. I'm sorry! What did you think? Tell me! See you soon, fans!
~ Brianna