Back to the Beginning
Disclaimer; all characters and copyright belong to SM.
A/N-thank you for the kind reviews!
Part Twenty
Jacob and Sam stood outside on front porch. Bella was inside the Black's house, resting. Leah was keeping an eye on her to give Jacob a break. It had been a horrendous journey back to La Push. This new seizure had really taken its toll on Bella's health. She kept blacking out, which panicked Jacob. Sam ended up driving Leah's car home alone, while she drove the VW Rabbit. This allowed Jacob to be with Bella. He had tried to keep her awake. Her eyes kept drooping, she fought to remain concious. Like everyone she was sacred that if she slept at all, she would be thrust back into her own reality again, with no chance of returning this time. Victoria's threat was still fresh in all their minds.
"How the hell did the bitch know we would be there?" Jacob asked for the hundredth time. He was feeling so frustrated, and full of guilt that he had placed Bella in danger. None of them had given a thought about her seizures. They had all assumed it had been a one off. But as soon as Bella had set eyes on Victoria, she had succumbed. "I don't understand how this is happening."
Sam put a hand on Jacob's shoulder. "I'm sorry." He said quietly.
"I can't lose her, Sam." Jacob had been hiding the depths of his despair from everyone else, but he didn't with Sam. He raised his head, dark eyes full of anguish, as he looked at his beta. "I love her so much. It's killing me watching her suffer and not being able to protect her from it. Dammit, I just want one moment with that evil red head so I can end this for good." He smashed his fist into the side of the house.
"You need to calm down." Sam warned him. "Bella might hear."
Jacob took a deep shuddering breath. He knew Sam was right. Bella didn't need to see him falling apart. He had to remain strong, focused for both of their sakes. He began to pace. "You're right, Sam. Sorry." He threw Sam a grateful look.
"I understand how scary it is, thinking that the one you love could be wrenched away from you." Sam swallowed thickly. He was thinking of Leah and the whole imprinting mess. Their future was in the balance, just as much as Jacob's was with Bella, but in a different way. Emily Young was still lodged in the Clearwater's house. Sam had avoided going anywhere near where Leah's cousin might be. But the tension of trying to avoid fate was wearing him down as it was Leah.
Now it was Jacob's turn to console Sam. He stopped pacing. "I'm certain it won't happen. I'm in charge of the pack. I've accepted my destiny. Things are different here. I'm certain that the imprint between you and Emily won't happen." He stated firmly.
"What you say makes sense." Sam agreed bitterly. "But we just don't know for sure, and I am not willing to test the theory. I won't risk it."
Jacob couldn't argue with that. He understood Sam's reluctance. He began to pace once more, frustrated again. "Do you know what makes me really angry?"
"What?" Sam asked curiously. Jacob's eyes were blazing. His Alpha had always been so calm and collected ever since his first phase, so it was odd for Sam to see Jacob like this. He often forgot that underneath his muscle mass Jacob was still only sixteen. He was so mature for his age; he always had been since Sam had known him.
"I would love to know what the fuck the Jacob in Bella's reality has been doing the whole time, dammit. He left her unprotected. Why?" Jacob questioned. "Where is he? Why isn't he attacking the red headed bitch? I would never have left Bella alone."
"She was left with the leech, remember." Sam pointed out. "It was supposed to have been a safe spot. That's why Bella was camped out on the mountain. Didn't she say the seer predicted that was the best place?" A guilty expression crossed Sam's face. "And didn't Bella say that I was the one who ordered the Jacob in her timeline away. That I made him join the fight against the newborns." He continued in a low voice. "It seems like just another crappy decision that I made among hundreds."
Jacob heard the underlying guilt in Sam's tone. "That wasn't you. Like you said earlier, the circumstances were different. Not to mention Bella told us that the other Jacob defied the other Sam's orders before. So, why not again?" Jacob's eyes narrowed as he tried to tie everything together and make sense of it. "And if being on top of the mountain was such a safe place how come the little psychic didn't see Victoria coming? The red head had more powers than the stupid Cullen's were aware of that's for sure."
"Yeah, it seems so." Sam agreed. He was sharing Jacob's frustration. The two men fell silent for a while as they tried to make sense of it all. They looked out at the horizon. The sky was black, heavy with rain. Already the first few heavy spots began to fall. A storm was coming.
"Victoria is the key." Jacob finally spoke after a while. He leaned against the wall, arms crossed, brow furrowed in concentration. "She's already put her sick plan in motion here. All we can do now is try and stop her before it escalates. We have to be on full alert. We know she has the power of evasion. Right now she's feeling triumphant. She thinks she holds all the cards. We have to use that overconfidence against her. We've got to find a way to bring her down in this timeline."
"We will." Sam assured him.
"But even if we do somehow bring her down, that doesn't stop her in Bella's world." Jacob continued in exasperation. "I feel if we could kill her in the other time line, she could come crashing down here. There is a reason she sent Bella here, Sam."
"I thought it was to torment her or something." Sam countered. "It seems that way to me. "Isn't this what it was all about in the first place, vengeance for her mate being killed?"
"I don't think it is as simple as that." Jacob ran his fingers through his hair. His head was hurting with the enormity of it all. He didn't know what to do. All he could think about was losing Bella. He was scared. Time was running out. Isn't that what the crazed red head was indicating with her incessant reference to a ticking clock? "I need to go with her Sam." He said suddenly.
"Go where?" Sam was confused for a second before he finally comprehended what Jacob was suggesting. "That's crazy."
"Is it?" Jacob stated fiercely, his dark eyes blazed with determination. "You remember how Leah described that when she first came close to phasing in Bella's house, when Bella had her seizure, she saw Victoria. And then the second time when they were attacked by the vampire with the dreads, she said when she was in the midst of phasing that Victoria in the other reality saw her."
"Jake…." Sam interjected warily.
"There has to be a connection. There has to be a way to skip through time. Think of it this way. When we begin to phase, as our bodies morph into the wolf, we're not actually in one place or another." Jacob described.
"No, I suppose not." Sam agreed cautiously.
"I think that's what's happening to Bella in a way. She's caught between two time zones. I think that's why she has these seizures. She's pushed back into her own time briefly, but then comes back here. I don't know if she's willing herself to come back. I know she wants to stay. She loves me. My girl could have some kick ass powers of her own. Jeez, Sam, she's run with vampires and wolves. There's something special about her. If Bella can slip through time, if Leah was able to, even for only a few seconds when she was in the midst of phasing, then I'm damn sure I can too." He paused for a moment as he watched Sam absorb his news. "The next time it happens to Bella I'm going to go with her and kill Victoria."
There was a flash of lightening, followed a moment later by a loud rumble of thunder. Rain began to lash down. It drummed on the roof of the little redwood house. It splashed into the dirt, churning up the mud and creating deep pools of water. It was so dark, without their keen eyesight, Jacob and Sam's visibility would have been reduced to zero. The two shapeshifters remained silent. Sam was still having trouble dealing with Jacob's suggestion. He understood what his Alpha was saying. In a crazy way it made sense, but he thought his leader was being rash. His love and fear of losing Bella was making him clutch at straws.
"So, you're basically saying when or if Bella has another seizure, you're gonna phase, hoping that pulls you along with her." Sam checked.
"That's about it." Jacob could see that Sam was disbelieving. "I am certain it will work. All the signs point that way."
"Right, you get there, you kill Victoria. And then what?" Sam questioned. "How do you get back? She's dead. You're stuck in Bella's timeline without a chance in hell of getting back home. The other Jacob is still there. What affect will this have? Not to mention that Edward fucking Cullen and his coven are there? And the other pack? You're not thinking straight."
There was another flash of lightening. It lit up Jacob's face, highlighting his desperation and fear. He couldn't sit idle, doing nothing but wait. Time was slipping through his fingers. Each seizure was weakening Bella. She was tired, exhausted. How much more could she credibly endure. There was a loud clap of thunder, it hit the ground with force, and the house shook with the intensity of it. "What choice do I have Sam? I can't lose her. I can't. How much longer can this carry on? What if she has another seizure, but this time she doesn't come back to me. You saw her body fade. You saw it. If it was Leah…."
"Stop it, man." Sam reached out and gripped Jacob's shoulders. "Of course I would risk it if it was Leah. But I know you would also talk me out of it. You don't know what could happen, Jake. What if you never make it to the other time? What if you get hurt, or worse, killed. How would that help Bella then? She would be facing Victoria alone." Jacob's face was a mask of pain. He let out a low growl. But Sam still held on, staring his Alpha straight in the eyes. "Time is a fragile thing. Every little thing we do changes things. You've seen it with the impact Bella has had already, here. There are so many things to weigh up. Even if you did make it over to the other time, you don't know what kind of shit storm you could be stirring up."
Sam was right. Of course he was right. But that still didn't mean Jacob had to like it. He wrenched Sam's hands off his shoulders and stormed off into the rain. Sam watched him go, not bothering to stop him. He'd been in the same position himself many times, ever since learning about imprinting. He saw Jacob phase and disappear into the forest. He needed time to sort his head out. Sam sat down on the porch steps and waited. Jacob would soon be back. Bella needed him, he wouldn't be able to stay away long. The front door opened. With silent feet Leah came out to join her lover. She sat down beside Sam and rested her head on his shoulder.
"You heard." It wasn't a question.
"I did." Leah replied sadly.
"Is Bella?"
"Asleep." Leah assured him. "She's so exhausted even this damn storm couldn't wake her."
"Did I do the right thing?" Sam asked tentatively. "I mean shutting him down like that."
Leah glanced up at his handsome face. She slipped her hand in his and squeezed his fingers. "Of course you did." She assured him. The strain left Sam's face at her words. He rested his cheek against her soft hair as they waited out the storm.
Bella was drifting through her life. She was like a wraith. Her body was so thin you could see right through it. It was an odd sensation. Right now she was hovering around her parents. Charlie and Renee were in the hospital in Forks. Charlie was cradling a little newborn in his arms, her. Bella saw the faint fuzz of baby hair on her head. Her small button nose wrinkled as she breathed. She was wrapped in the small pink baby blanket that her grandmother had knitted. Her father looked so at peace. His head was bent; his cap of shiny brown hair fell forward over his face. His was clean shaven. It was odd to see Charlie without his ever present moustache. Renee leaned forward, a serene smile on her face as she cooed at her daughter.
Then the scene changed. It was no longer peaceful. Bella was forced to witness her parents fight. Charlie and Renee tore each other to shreds as they fought about their marriage. Tears sprang into her eyes as she listened to her father beg her mother to reconsider her decision to leave. It was awful listening to his pleas. But Renee was adamant. There was no going back.
Bella began to drift again. She saw herself at different points in her life, growing up. It was odd, eerie seeing the solemn expression on her face as she first started kindergarten. She watched her mother, so carefree, flighty, always ready for the next adventure, but hopeless with money, and having little common sense. Bella saw herself sitting at the kitchen table doing the bookkeeping. She was ten years old. Renee floated around the kitchen, cooking one of her awful meals. She was hopeless at that too. Two years later and it was Bella at the stove, cooking.
Her expression never changed, all through her early school years. She remained reserved, quiet, never quite fitting in. There were the brief visits to Forks. She hovered behind Charlie like a ghost as she watched her father greet her younger self after months apart. She looked nervous; scared as this strange man she only saw twice a year came to pick her up at the airport. Their conversation was stilted, strained. It was awful.
Then the scene changed again. Charlie was driving to La Push in the cruiser with her strapped in beside him. Her younger self was looking out of the window, gazing at the familiar scenery as it rushed past. Then the Black's house came into view. Bella felt a lump lodge in her throat as she gazed at the familiar redwood house that felt like home. She saw younger Bella climb out of the car. There was a boy in the front yard, his long black hair falling around his face. He raised his head, gazing right at her, and then he smiled making Bella's heart soar.
"Bella, Bella."
"No." Bella moaned. She didn't want to wake up. She was in the front yard with Jacob, messing about on an old bicycle he was fixing up.
"Bella." A warm hand shook her.
Bella sighed, finally opening her eyes. She was confused, disorientated. This was an older Jacob. Not the young boy in her dreams. "Jake." She said thickly.
"Hey you." Jacob smiled, his dark eyes glistening with moisture. He stroked her sweaty hair back from her face with gentle fingers.
"Hey." Bella was coming back to reality. She shook off the remnants of her dream and smiled back at him. "I didn't mean to fall asleep."
Jacob caressed her face lovingly. He was having a hard time containing his emotions. When he had returned and Leah had told him Bella had fallen asleep, he'd panicked. He'd rushed into his room, expecting the worst, but she was still here. "I love you, Bella." He said softly. "I love you so much."
"I love you too." Bella gazed up at him, touching his face reverently. He was so beautiful and she loved him so much. The depth of her feelings couldn't be described. What they shared transcended romance, it was so much more. She could see the fear in his eyes, the pain, and she wanted to make it all go away. But she couldn't.
Jacob caught her hand and kissed her trembling fingers. His lips grazed the palm of her hand until they reached the scar from James' bite adorning her wrist. His dark eyes blazed. Victoria's mate! Victoria's mate had hurt his. James' venom had run through Bella's veins. She had so nearly become a cold one. Jacob traced the scar with his forefinger, frowning. Bella felt the scar begin to burn and itch at his touch. Immediately an image of Victoria rose in her mind and she had to snatch her hand away.
"I'm sorry; it hurts when you do that." She apologised.
"How often does it do that?" Jacob enquired. He kept his voice steady so as not to alarm her. "I thought it was healed."
"It is. It's just occasionally it bothers me." Bella hid her hand underneath her other one. She didn't want to see the ugly scar which reminded her of one of the worst nights of her life. "Is there something wrong?" She asked worriedly.
"No, it's okay." Jacob smiled his special smile to charm her into cheer again. He didn't want her to be more stressed then she already was. A theory was developing in his mind, and before he shared it with her, he wanted to seek his dad and Sam's advice. Instead he crawled onto the bed beside her. "Do you want some company?"
"Do you need to ask?" Bella closed her eyes in bliss as she felt Jacob's strong arms wrap around her.
A/N-thanks for reading!