Note: I do not own or have rights to twilight or its characters

Sorry about the delay guys, but we hit the ground running the first two weeks of school. I've had four math assingment to turn in since the 11th and a history papper due on friday comming. And of course, now my blood presure decides to act up. I've been put on a water pill and I have to see doc again next week. if it isn't one thing, its another! Oh well, 'And this too shall pass.'

Enjoy!!

**

Chapter 21

Written in Stone

For he (Solomon) cast two pillars of brass, of eighteen cubits high apiece: and a line of twelve cubits did compass either of them about. . . . And he set up the pillars in the porch of the temple: and he set up the right pillar, and called the name thereof Jachin: and he set up the left pillar, and called the name thereof Boaz. And upon the top of the pillars was lily work: so was the work of the pillars finished.

1Kings:15, 21-22

To anyone else, the pale grey chunk of stone sitting on my lab table would have appeared to be an indistinct piece of concrete. I, however, knew different. The fist sized rock was the last remnant of the being that had, at one time, been Sarah's earthly brother. Out of love and respect for my daughter, I handled the remains with a measure of dignity that I usually only afforded to humans or those among our kind whom I held affection for and respected. This was a courtesy that William did not earn by way of merit from his tortured existence, but one which I extended to him never the less.

In spite of having saved us all through her heroic efforts, Sarah still felt somewhat guilty for having slain her own brother. We spoke on the matter, at length and on several occasions; I did my best to give her the soundest council that I could. I also made it clear to her that I would always be open and available to listen to her concerns. Coming to terms with this would likely take her some years. Deep down, I suspected that her gnawing guilt had less to do with the man she killed and more to do with the infant brother she'd had snatched from her.

Her initial grief, all those years ago, had been ill-handled. Unfortunately this was often the case with children, as adults assumed that they would simply forget the painful events of their small years. Though I was by no means an expert on the subject of grief counseling, I did have a few ideas in mind to help Sarah along. That is, once I was finished with the remnants William; for now, he along with Aro's mystery gift, were the focus of my research.

It had always been my suspicion that Sarah's incomplete expression of the vampire genome had something to do with a defect in Cane's venom. Her continued blindness, her heretofore unheard of 'sterile' venom, and especially her unique ability as a shape-shifting immortal could all be explained away by the faulty genetics of her creator; it was a tidy explanation . . . unfortunately, it was also one that was steadily unraveling before my eyes.

According to Aro, there were no such defects among the Romanians. In fact, our earliest ancestors were also the hardest. Constantine was the known creator of countless scores, all of whom lacked any known deficiency. While I couldn't examine those masses, nor could I examine Cane; I did have a specimen of William. The results of my tests on his remains left me astounded.

As expected, the familial similarities between Sarah and her brother were very pronounced. Rarely, if ever, does one encounter blood siblings that are turned. Jane and Alec were the most well known pair I'd come across in nearly four centuries, both were created by Aro. While the scientist in me would jump at the chance to do extensive study on the two Volturi, Jane and her brother likely wouldn't consent to it. Aro tolerated and even encouraged me in my eccentric pursuit of science, the rest of the Volturi however, viewed me as utterly mad . . . the Vampire Nation's very own Dr. Frankenstein.

I dismissed the distracting notion and returned my focus to the chunk of grey stone before me. Not only did my test give me some insight into Constantine and, ultimately Cane, but it also gave me a deeper understanding of the Babineaux family line. Sarah's human genetic tree was almost as interesting, and frustrating as the question of vampire origins. The fact that she existed with one foot in our world, one foot in the human world, and one paw in the world of shifters created the most delicious conundrum imaginable.

William's profile matched Sarah's almost completely; like his sister, he didn't completely express the vampire genome. That fact had startled me as it was unexpected; though why I hadn't hypothesized this myself escaped me. It would stand to reason, after all, considering they shared the same Choctaw heritage.

While he possessed many of the familial traits, the most notable one was that of shape-shifting. The level of ignorance he demonstrated regarding the Pack and his assumption that his shifted sister was in fact, a real lion, forced me to assume that he had never phased himself. The reason for this would be a thing forever lost, thought Sarah had recently given me a small clue. She confided to me that the catalyst for her own phasing, the connection that bound her to her 'inner lion', was the upwelling of abiding love and loyalty that she felt for us all. William likely never found the core of power that his 'inner lion' represented, nor the force of emotions required to awaken it.

An analysis of his venom, extracted from the chunk of his remains, reviled that like his sister, William's venom was also sterile. This fact explained his plan to take Sarah back to his creator for changing. Neither Cane nor Constantine was plagued with virility issues. The unexpected revelation indicated to me that the sterility trait was likely a function of the Babineaux genome's reaction to vampire venom. The new information made me wonder if the incomplete expression of vampirism might also be due to some quirky function of Babineaux biology and not the result of a defect in Cane's DNA.

If that theory was indeed the case and the Babineaux clan reacted differently than the average human to the genetic material found in vampire venom. That knowledge defiantly relieved a number of misgivings that I had about Sarah's re-transformation. I hoped a return to immortality might give my daughter back her eye sight this time; that possibility was still up in the air. A more immediate concern for me was the issue of her gifts, in particular, her ability to phase. If some function of her unique biology protected her from complete transformation, as I now suspected to be the case, she should retain her shape-shifting ability as a re-born vampire.

I smiled with satisfaction as my eyes caught a casual glance at the ancient ring on my right hand. The Cullen family crest stared back at me; I was intimately familiar with the meaning of each and every motif in the centuries old design. The central element, a lion rampant, symbolized dauntless courage and I couldn't help but think of my lion hearted daughter when I looked at it. If my theory and subsequent assumptions were correct, regardless of whom her new creator might be the Cullen family's ever vigilant lion would keep her existence as well as her mighty roar.

"You're going to be late to breakfast," Esme's voice drifted gently to my ears. She was upstairs, in the kitchen preparing the morning meal for Sarah, Bart, and Abigail. "You know how our Kitten frowns when you don't come to table." She continued to mutter knowing full well that I would hear her. "You are her Jachin just as surely as Benjamin is her Boaz."

My smile broadened to a grin, only my mate would think to compare Ben and me to the mighty bronze pillars of Solomon's Temple. Yet how true and fitting the comparison was, I mused as I rose from my desk and made my way upstairs to shower and dress for the new day. While Sarah relied on her entire family for love and support, it was on the stalwart shoulders of Benjamin and me that she leaned most heavily upon.

"I'm going to take a shower now, my love." I whispered as I darted towards our bedroom. "If I'm not at table by the time she arrives, please assure our Kitten that I'll be down directly."

******

"Here you go dear," Mama cooed as she set the plate in front of me. I could smell the mouth watering aroma of her banana pancakes wafting off the plate. "Eat them before they get cold."

Cold or hot, Mama's pancakes were heaven on earth. Bart and Abby were already enjoying their stacks along with the bacon and sliced fruit. Abs hadn't been over to our house much while her grandfather was in the hospital. Bart had been with his girlfriend every step of the way, so I missed him at the breakfast table too. Because I loved my son dearly, his absence had concerned me, but I was glad that he was there for Abby when she needed him.

"Sorry about that," Ben apologized as he re-entered the kitchen. An urgent call from his law office had caused him to step out for a few moments. He gave my shoulders a brief squeeze and kissed the top of my head before taking his seat beside me. "I had to take that, the case goes to trial the first of next week and the prosecutor is trying to wrangle my client into lesser plea. The man is innocent, of course, but the DA needs someone to pin things on."

"How do you know that he's innocent?" Abby asked smugly. "He was arrested after all; there must be compelling evidence against him, right?"

"One would think that," Ben replied gently but I could hear the tone of correction in his voice. "And one would be wrong. All too often the innocent, by virtue of their socioeconomic status, are arrested, tried, and convicted of crimes committed by others. If he were truly guilty, I assure you, I wouldn't be representing him . . . and believe me, I would know. I have a certain knack for ferreting out the truth."

"What, you mean you have some sort of supper lie detecting ability?" Abby snickered. She was jabbing at Ben, but I could tell by her voice that she didn't mean any disrespect.

"No, it's not a gift, if that's what you mean." Ben answered with a sigh. "Rather it is a skill born out of five hundred years of carefully studying humans. Take Bart for example; when he wishes to be deceitful, the outside corner of his left eye twitches ever so slightly. You on the other hand, my dear Abby, become highly defensive when you have something to hide." Before either of them could respond Ben leaned over and whispered to me, "You need to eat Little Love, you haven't touched your breakfast and it's growing colder by the second."

His gentle reminder prompted me to take a mouth full of Mama's heavenly creation. I was just swallowing when the sound of Papa's footsteps on the stone floor of the kitchen tinkled in my ears. These days, he and everyone else purposefully walked in such a way so that I could hear them. Ordinarily, a vampire's steps were soundless . . . except to another vampire.

"Good morning all," Papa's bright voice resonated through the room in greeting. I listened as Mama flitted to his side. Their clothing rustled as they embraced, and I could easily make out the telltale sound of Papa giving her an affectionate kiss. "It's good to see you at our table again Abigail, you've been sorely missed."

"Thanks Grandpa Carlisle," Abby replied. "I have to admit, I've missed coming here." Then she added after a brief pause, "Thank you for saving Grandpa Billy, I don't think I'm ready to lose him just yet."

"Your thanks are unnecessary, my dear." Papa soothed as he sat down and picked up his paper. The pages rustled as he began to read. "Billy is an old and dear friend of mine; I would move heaven and earth on his behalf. He was quite fortunate that we were able to stabilize him."

"Just the same," Abby insisted. "Thank you."

There was silence for a time and I managed to finish most of my breakfast. Papa gave me my medication and I took it reluctantly. I always hated the way it made me feel; I would be drowsy in about an hour and the lethargic feeling would last until mid-day. Papa said that this was normal and that my body would adjust over time . . . that was in late April and it was not late August.

"So," Abby sighed, breaking the silence. "Bart told me some mysterious package arrived from Vampire Central yesterday. Is it top secret or can you clue me in?"

My father's warm laugh filled the kitchen. In that moment, I couldn't decide whose laugh I found more addictive, his or Ben's. "You're family Abby; we have no secrets from you. The package contained four papyrus scrolls from Ptolemy's library and an unusual dagger dating from the late Mesolithic era."

"What do the scrolls say Grandpa?" Bart asked. Ever since Benjamin told him about the Water's unpleasant terminal side effect, he'd been every anxious to see me're-vamped', as he put it.

"I don't know Bart," Papa's voice was calm and reassuring. "The scrolls came sealed in special tubs to protect them from light and air. I can't open them just anywhere, as the outside environment could cause them to disintegrate before I can read them."

"So where are you going to open them?" Abby prodded.

"My first choice of locations would be in the climate controlled rare books vault of some university's library." Papa replied.

"You mean a place like the vaults of the Vatican secrete library that they showed in the movie Angels and Demons?" Bart inquired enthusiastically. I smiled broadly; my son shared my love of the cinema. Just because I couldn't see a movie didn't mean I didn't or wouldn't go to the movies . . . I made Ben take me regularly.

"That was purely fictional, of course," Papa sighed. "But you've got the right idea. No such place exists near Forks, however, so I suppose I'll have to settle for OR number two at the hospital."

"Why the operating room?" it was Ben's turn to be inquisitive.

"OR number two is the smaller of the surgical suites, so it's used less frequently" Papa began. "The environment is sterile so I won't have to worry about microbes eating away at the scrolls and I can have the room air mixed with some inert gas like nitrogen to help retard the oxidation of the fragile papyri."

Ever since the package arrived my stomach had been in knots. A strange aura wafted off the ancient dagger, causing the usually harmonious energy in the house to vibrate erratically. In fact, when Papa took the stone knife from its box, I could have sworn I felt my radar spark to life in spite of being incapacitated by medication. I was sure that I was the only one to feel it and it made me nervous.

"Papa," I began hesitantly. "You're not going to, you know . . . stab me with that thing, are you?"

"God in Heaven, Sarah!" He exclaimed in shock. "What on earth gave you that disturbing notion?"

"Well, it's a dagger," I swallowed as frightful images danced like ghouls through my imagination. "Maybe it was used in some ritual . . . you know, like human sacrifice or something. I thought . . ."

"Your imagination is entirely too vivid for your own good." Papa interrupted me. "I don't care what the ancients might have used it for; I'm certainly not going to stab my own daughter with it or anything else."

"But what if that's the way the ancients did . . . stabbed their victims with the dagger to make vampires out of them?" I asked insistently. "What if it's the only way?"

The room was silent for a few brief moments before Papa answered. "Then I'll find another way." He said in the softest of tones and a faint growl resonated in his voice; it was both a dismissal and a warning.

The topic of the package dropped, replaced by discussion of school and graduation. I listened with a distant ear as I couldn't help but continue to ponder the stone dagger. My imagination conjured images of my father standing over me with the awful blade raised high over his head, like Abraham ready to strike down Isaac. In my mind I saw the dagger plunging towards me and I could somehow feel the fierce bite as the jagged stone buried itself in my chest. My imagination continued its unchecked exploration as it projected the sensation of white hot pain spreading through every cell of my body; the transformation burning away every vestige of my humanity. I felt myself shudder involuntarily.

"Milady," Ben whispered in my ear. "Are you alright, you look a bit pale?"

"I think I should go lie down." I whispered in reply.