Born Like This
Bodies swaying to loud bass beats, hearts pounding, sweat dripping, blood rushing, hips grinding, voices screaming, lights flashing.
It was the sounds and smells of a club, the busyness that it seemed to scream, the way everybody was constantly moving and not staying still made me feel in place.
I moved back slightly into Jason and he responded by putting his warm hands on my hips. I sighed and put my head back onto his shoulder, looking up at the filthy ceiling that the humans weren't able to see in the dark.
Jason's breath whispered over my skin, the usual warmth of his breath was tainted by the yeasty smell of alcohol. His blood smelled different too with alcohol running through his bloodstream.
He had changed so much. He was no the small boy that was sat on my couch, his body humming with energy. He was now growing into a man, and a handsome one at that. He was tall and muscular, not straggly or thin. His eyes still hadn't decided on a colour, and every now and then they glowed pure white, the only disadvantage being that he now had to wear sunglasses whenever he was out in public, but he said it was worth it if it meant as it brought him to me.
Jason's breath moved to tickle my ear. "Time to go Bella…We've got a busy day tomorrow." I nodded and didn't protest when Jason grabbed my hand and started to tug me out of the throng of hot bodies and towards the exit of the club, leaving the thump of the bass beats behind us as we walked round the corner to the car.
Well, it was my car. A black Noble M600 that Jason had bought me for Christmas. I loved the speeds I could send it too, but hated the fact that I couldn't drive it around the small roads of Forks without getting a lot of stares from the gossiping humans. For the days where Jason and I had to go to get food or other items we drove the red Chevy truck I had bought off Billy a few months ago. It was loud and slow but it had character which made me love driving it, even with its inability to go over 65mph.
"Did you like the club?" I nodded and I could feel the smile on Jason's face as he walked next to me. "I knew you would." I snorted and muttered that he knew everything. Well, almost everything. He couldn't see anything past what we had decided to call the bad puddle. Or it clearer terms, the war that was to come.
I waited for Jason to buckle his seat belt before I sped over to the apartment Jason had bought for himself. The amount of money had sent him on a long rant of what 'amazing stuff' he could now buy with his 'endless supply of dosh'. I had nodded along and smiled to myself as he went on his laptop and started to look for an apartment in Seattle. He hadn't specified a reason to buying it but it was handy when we needed to buy clothes for him, and when we wanted to get out of Forks for a week or two.
That's what we had done this past fortnight. Jason was going to turn seventeen next Wednesday and he wanted to spend some time in Seattle and get new clothes for school, along with a tattoo and various piercings. He was going to start school in September, which was only three weeks away. We hadn't talked about it much and I got the feeling that Jason was keeping something from me, but then it might just be because he didn't want to go to school.
I pulled into an empty space and followed Jason to the elevator doors. He wrapped an arm around my bare shoulders and leaned his weight on me. I shook my head; he had obviously had more than enough to drink tonight.
"Bella, will you carry me up the stairs, I can't be bothered waiting. Plus we will get their quicker." I laughed and scooped him up in my arms, pausing to think of how strange we looked, a small woman carrying a man at least twice the size of her.
A moment later I had dropped Jason on the only bed and walked into the bathroom to change out of the black dress and high heels Jason had made me wear and into some pyjamas. When I got back into the bedroom, Jason was sprawled out on top of the covers only in his boxers.
"Don't go Bella." I stopped and walked over to the side of the bed and plopped down near Jason's head. "No…" He sighed and rolled over, patting the space he had just moved from.
I lay down and Jason moved himself so half of him was on top of me, and the other half was still on the bed. He grabbed a lock of my hair and held it tightly in a fist, just like he used to when he slept in my bed. He rubbed his cheek against my shoulder and then he seemed to still all over, his breathing slowing and becoming heavier.
My hand automatically went to stroke his hair, and I looked at the colour of it. It was so much like mine, it even had the hints of other colours, and I wondered if we did actually look related like Charlie had begun saying we did.
Jason did his usual sniffing and twitching routine and I let my mind go back to the past.
An eight year old Jason looked up at me from his seat at the table, a bowl of half-eaten cereal in front of him. He put down his spoon and pushed the bowl away from him.
"Bella? Can I tell you something?" I nodded and Jason stood up and walked around to where I was sitting, he sat in my lap and wriggled around until he was comfortable. He put his head in the crook of my neck, and griped my hair with one hand, the other clutching at the silver cross that hung on my neck.
He stayed silent for a few moments and I wondered if he had fallen asleep. Just before I could ask him, he finally spoke.
"I love you Bella…but not like you're my mum or anything, more like you're a sister or something closer…my best friend." I stayed still. I hadn't really thought about feelings. I knew I felt fiercely protective over him and would chew my own arm off if it meant that he would be able to live…did that protectiveness come from another emotion? Did I love him as well? I had never seen myself as maternal, and with Jason I had never felt that way.
I found myself answering yes to my own questions. I did love him as a little brother. I placed my cheek on top of his soft head and breathed in his scent. "I love you too Jason."
*
I found myself willing my legs to go faster than I could ever imagine. The phone call from Charlie had worried me and I hated that I had been so far away when I could have hunted nearer to home.
I climbed through the open window into Charlie's spare room and sped down the stairs to Jason cries.
Charlie was knelt in front of a crying Jason. I could smell no blood, and he looked to be uninjured. I rushed over to his side, ignoring Charlie's exclamation of my sudden appearance.
I moved Jason's hair away from his sweaty forehead and put a restraining arm across his chest. His eyes shot open but they weren't his eyes. There was no swirling iris of colour, no flash of white. They were black, like the pupil had expanded and blotted out all the possible colour of white.
"Bella…" his voice sounded so weak and I wanted to do anything I could to relieve his pain. "Mind…block…my…stop…shield…mind…" His eyes fluttered closed and he dragged in a gulp of air. His lips started to move again, "Block my mind, it will stop…" His voice was stronger this time and I was hesitant to do what he was asking me.
It was the pain filled scream that made my mind up. I put my hands on either side of his head and brought my shield around his mind, tucking it around it not tightly, but enough so that I could feel the energy buzzing around my shield like a fly stuck in a box.
I don't know how long we stayed like that; I didn't take my eyes off his, I didn't know if Charlie was still here or not.. Eventually the black faded to grey and then the grey moved to white. I sighed in relief, and retracted my shield carefully from his mind.
He stayed still for a moment and then blinked. Once. Twice. When his lids lifted for a third time his eyes were shining pure white, it seemed to be brighter than it hand been before. A heard a curse behind me but didn't turn to look at Charlie.
Jason groaned and put a hand to his forehead, squeezing his eyes tight. He started muttering what sounded like a chant, but I couldn't tell as his words were all jumbled.
I glanced over at Charlie who was stood with the phone in his hand, looking extremely pale. I stood and guided him to his usual armchair. He never once looked away from Jason.
"Wh-what is he saying?" Charlie whispered. I looked over at Jason and shrugged my shoulders.
"Something about the becoming a circle of…I uh don't know the word…" I pulled the hair away from my face and growled at the frustration of not knowing what he was muttering about.
Jason eventually quietened down and looked over at me, his eyes filled with a mixture of fear and amazement.
"I've seen everything."
*
"Are you sure about this?" I looked to the aged man that sat in the wheelchair and back to his twin daughters. When I looked back he nodded and my respect for him grew. He was doing what he felt was best and I had no argument with him.
I walked over to the two girls as they chatted with friends at their graduation. I pulled out the two thick envelopes from the inside pocket of my raincoat and carried on walking to Rebecca and Rachel.
As I got closer, their attention was taken from their friends and refocused on me. Their eyes searched my expressionless face and their hearts beat slightly faster as they both looked into my eyes.
"Hello. Are you Rachel and Rebecca Black?" When they both nodded I smiled kindly. "I have wonderful news for you both." I handed them the envelopes and then walked away. I nodded to Billy and then left the small school hall.
The only favour Billy had asked of me was one that seemed strange.
He wanted his daughters to be happy, to have the opportunity to leave the town where memories of their mother lingered.
*
Jason began to snore and I forgot the memories of my past. And from the past I began to think of the future.
In the future Jason will probably get married to a beautiful woman, have beautiful children and die. Die like so many people I had loved.
What would my role be in Jason's future? Would I be able to be there for the rest of his life? Would I have to one day say goodbye and possibly never see him again?
I let my thoughts spiral out of control. My mind already imagining what it would feel like to lose another person that has made a big impact on my life.
All of a sudden I wanted to leave. I wanted to get away from the future pain. I didn't want to have to be there when the time came to say goodbye. I didn't want to have to pretend I was okay when I knew I would be even colder on the inside.
I looked down at Jason and was shocked to find he was awake. He rolled off me and walked over to the wardrobe, pulled out new clothes and then went into the bathroom. I didn't move from the bed. I wasn't sure if I would be able to, if I would want to.
As the sound of running water ended and the sounds of Jason doing his morning routine, I found myself fearful of the future. I moved so I was up against the headboard and brought my knees up to my chest, resting my left cheek on my knees. I didn't look up as Jason came back into the room. I didn't look at him when he came back, eating a bowl of cereal and drinking coffee.
When he sat down in front of me, I didn't look at him. "Bella…you will not have to leave me, nor would I need to leave you. Remember what happened when I was ten, eleven? I saw what would happen to me, and you were there for it all. We're going to be able to see each other for while yet."
I looked up at his face, searching him for a lie. "Promise?"
His eyes flashed white before he answered. "I promise Bella." He stood up and stretched, letting out a large breath, "You ready to set out then? I can't wait to get this done…"
*
I closed the shower door and stood under the spray of water which felt warm but I knew it was cold. I put my head under the water and stood there until I heard the sounds of Jason getting up.
He hadn't told me what was going to happen to him in the future and I had not asked, but that didn't stop my mind from making up scenarios. The worst ended in Jason dead and others ended up in Jason becoming a vampire. I struggled to find which one I felt was worse then.
His birthday had passed quietly, Charlie stopped by and stayed for something to eat and had left with containers full of food for him to reheat.
I dried myself with a towel but left my hair to dry on its own. I ran from the bathroom to my room and pulled on some jeans and one of Jason's old shirts that said 'press the button'.
Today felt different. It felt like something had changed somewhere in the world, like I had entered a new phase without truly knowing how to act, or what would be needed of me.
"Bella!" I exited my room and walked over to Jason. He was sat on the kitchen counter, a cup of steaming coffee between his hands. "You're phone is going to ring in thirty seconds and I highly recommend you answer it when it does." I raised an eyebrow, waiting for him to explain why it was important but he smiled and sipped his coffee. The rings that pierced his nipples reflected the light and drew your attention to the tattoos that were scattered on his chest and arms. Charlie had looked at them with confusion when he saw them and seemed even more confused when Jason had translated them for him. I didn't see the reason behind them either, but it was what he had wanted so I let him do as he wished.
As Jason predicted my phone started to chime. I flipped it open without bothering to look at the caller ID.
"Hello?"
"Isabella! You need to get to the reservation as soon as you can." Billy's voice seemed higher, like he felt he was under pressure. "Sam has gone missing, we don't know where he is…I think that it might have finally happened. They are back. So it will happen. With vampires living in Forks there may be more wolves to come…" I growled down the phone before I flipped it shut.
"See ya later Bells!" Jason shouted as I hastily pulled my shoes on and sped out the door. Vampires in Forks? Had Sam really phased?
Why hadn't I encountered a vampire around Forks if there was one in town?
*
The wolf was huddled against the side of large stone, his head resting on his paws, everything about him screamed scared. He hadn't heard my approach and had no way of smelling me as I stood downwind from him.
I approached him as one would approach a frightened animal. His head lifted and he growled at me, but made no move to stand or attack like I thought he would.
"Sam? I know it might seem a little weird but…" How the hell did you explain that all the stories he had heard were true? "All the legends you took for being stories are true…apparently Ephraim made a treaty with a coven of vampires, hence with the arrival of a large coven of vampires there is going to be teenage boys phasing into wolves to protect tribe from said vampires." I couldn't keep the bitterness out of my voice and I rubbed my hand over my face and I watched as Sam slowly stood.
He was big but soon he would be even bigger. He walked over to me and stopped a few feet in front of me. His nostrils flared as they picked up my scent. His hackles rose and he growled and I just shook my head before sitting down, not in the least bit concerned that he would try and attack me.
"I wouldn't try it if I were you…I'm on your side…I doubt the elders carried on telling my story, they tend to focus on the bad vamps rather than the one that helped save their tribe centuries ago." I sighed before looking up at the sky then back down to Sam. "I have no idea what to tell you to make you phase back to a human…from what I know, anger starts the phasing but if your calm you stop…so maybe that is what you need to do. Try and calm yourself and think of becoming a human again."
It took the best part of two days until Sam had managed to phase back to human. When he did he threw up and started to shake before he passed out. I sighed and threw my coat over his midriff before scooping him up and running him back to Billy's. There was no chance in high water that I was taking a young werewolf back to my place with Jason being there.
Billy was waiting when I approached his house. "Jason called me, told me you would be coming back with him. You better come in and put him on the couch. I sent Jake out to get some milk, so he will be gone for the next hour or so." I nodded and shifted Sam in my arms so he would fit through the door without banging his head or legs. Why did they have to be so big?
I dropped Sam on the couch and wasn't surprised when he woke up. He looked over at me and then around his surroundings.
"Shit." He groaned and tried to sit himself up. "Why did they have to be true? Why couldn't they of been stories like they were supposed to?" He groaned again and Billy entered the room, causing Sam to shake his head at the old man. "You knew?" He groaned and his stomach grumbled in hunger.
I started to the door but Sam shouted for me to stop. "I've seen you before…when I was little, you pulled me out of the way of a car…you look exactly the same now as you did then…God its true…all true what you said in the forest…" I looked over my shoulder to see he had put his head in his hands and I could smell the salt from his tears.
"Yes." I didn't elaborate. I just left. I felt so sorry for him. It wasn't fair to them now, it shouldn't have to happen. I hadn't wanted to have this life.
I took the long way home, not wanting to bring my bad mood down on Jason when he was already worrying about school on Monday.
Sam would be alone for a few weeks, maybe days until another one phased and joined him…I climbed up a tree and felt my anger flare.
They had never told me they had made a treaty with a coven of vampires when I returned. They made no mention of why the wolves had changed like they did. I growled and jumped down from the tree, not caring that I left two holes were my feet had landed heavily.
I was always going to end up being alone, it didn't matter what Jason said or how many times he would reassure me that he wasn't leaving. I would end up alone without a soul.
I was so caught up in my inner turmoil I didn't notice the vampire approaching me until she ran into me and threw her arms around my middle. I tensed but that was as far as I got as before I could react, she removed her arms from my waist and danced away from me. Squealing loudly and she seemed to bounce on the spot.
"SoexcitedImetyou!I''refinallyhereandyou'regoingtobepartofmyfamily!!" She spoke so fast and she didn't even pause for a breath.
It took me a while to understand what she had said in her exclamation but when her words sank in I found myself feeling…something.
"Um…Hi…I'm Bella." I stated lamely and stopped myself from slipping into a defensive crouch because a vampire this small had run into me.
I always thought I would be alone. That's why I found it hard to believe the short pixie that stood not far in front of me. Did people without souls get to meet other people? Or did they get to know them long enough to care for them deeply and then they were torn out of their life?
When she had run in to me and squealed, I had become tense and immediately put my guard up and stretched out to sense what this petite vampire was about. But I didn't truly feel threatened by her.
Her aura was shiny, and pure. The purest I have ever seen, but that still didn't help relieve the tension in my marble body.
The pixie smiled at me with a look that was like she knew more than I did and couldn't wait to fill in the gaps, a look that I had seen on Jason's face too many times to keep track of. I just stared and tried to inch away from her so I could put up my shield in case she turned and attacked, like so many have done before her, and would undoubtedly to again.
"Hi Bella, I'm Alice and we are going to be best friends!" she sang and bounced faster on the spot.
I cocked my head to the side and wonder how the hell would she know something like that? Was she like Jason?
That's when I looked into her eyes. Her golden eyes. Not red. Golden. Just like mine. Well… this pixie might be as good as she seems.
Before I could ask her how she knew we would be friends my cell phone rang and groaned when I realised it was Billy calling. Alice looked puzzled as I pulled it out my pocket and answered it.
"Yes Billy?"
"You need to get back here…Sam's not handling it so well anymore…" I sighed and shut the phone. I looked up at Alice and smiled sadly.
"Sorry but I have to go…maybe we can meet up some other time?" I was surprised to find myself feeling eager for that time to come soon. Alice nodded enthusiastically, waved and danced away into the trees.
I turned around and headed the way I had just come from. Not surprisingly I found Sam as a wolf when I got back into La Push. This was going to be tricky.
*
The hallway smelt strongly of bleach and disinfectant along with the scent of over a hundred different humans. I walked up the corridor and stopped outside the small room.
Inside the room was a dead man and a dying woman. The dead man was looking over the dying woman's chart, his brow creased into a frown on his beautifully handsome face.
I doubt he knew the woman would die soon and that his efforts where going to go to waste. Her whole aura screamed death and I had to keep my eyes away from it.
When the dead mad turned around and saw me standing in the doorway he froze. He wouldn't have heard my light footsteps over the noise of the machines and voices. He wouldn't have been able to hear the breath enter and exit my lungs as I had stopped breathing when I neared the room. He wouldn't have been able to smell a vampire was near as smells became tainted with the scents of other objects.
"I'll be in your office." I turned away from his shocked expression and walked away, glancing one last time at the woman who was being killed by her own body. I hated the fragility of humans.
When I was in his office it was easier to not want to leave, knowing that the vampire I had waited centuries to meet was only a few floors below me. I stood by his window and looked out at the cars parked on the ground. Mine wasn't among them as Jason had gone to Port Angeles to buy supplies for school which was starting on Monday. Today was Saturday. He was living up to his reputation by doing things last minute as normal. I shook my head and wrapped my arms around my torso.
When I had gotten Sam to clam down and walked with him to his house I had gone over to Billy's and demanded that he tell me about this treaty. I did not care that Jacob was in the garage and could come back to the house. I wanted to know why I hadn't been told, and more importantly who these vampires were and what made them so special to be allowed to live so close to La Push.
It turned out that I was the one that had saved them from a fight. It was one of the things that had been promised to me when I had agreed to stay. The pack wasn't allowed to kill any golden eyed vampire without cause.
I heard his rushed footsteps, and the slight pause they made as he stopped outside his office. I didn't turn when I heard the door open, or when it clicked shut.
When I did turn round I saw that he was stood still, his eyes looked into mine and seemed to widen when he noted the colour. I knew they would be dark, but the colour of gold would still be there to see.
"So…you're the great Carlisle Cullen?"
"I don't know about great, but yes, I am Carlisle." I smiled at his modesty and walked over to the couch, motioning for him to sit. "What brings you to my office…?"
"Isabella. Well, Bella really I suppose." I supplied. I looked over at Carlisle and felt myself struggling to choose between happy or sad. Happy because I had finally met another vampire that hasn't taken a human life to feed off, sad because I had the chance to meet him and Mitchell hadn't.
"I've heard so much about you…and yet I find myself at a loss of what to say." I sighed and collapsed back into the couch.
"I hope it is all good." I smiled and nodded at Carlisle. "You don't have to answer if you do not wish to…but from whom did you hear of me…I can see that you follow my diet, how did you come of that?" His voice was thick with old English accent and I found myself wondering if he missed his homeland.
"I heard from the Romanian's." At his puzzled look I sighed. Had the Volturi not told anybody that they hadn't always ruled? "They were the vampire royalty before the Volturi…I heard a great deal more about you when me and my…well friend…stayed with them for a few years."
His smile was kind and he seemed to be calm and not at all threatened by my presence. What made him so sure I didn't come here to rip him to pieces? Not that I would, but still… "I stayed with the Volturi and I assumed that they had always enforced the law for our kind…it had never occurred to me that they might have taken over from others." I snorted…he made it seem like they had had an agreement to spend so many years ruling and then it had to be passed over.
"The war was unfair and not at all what you would expect." I froze. I had just given away my age, I looked over at Carlisle but he seemed to of not noticed anything.
He smiled at me. "Perhaps you would like to come to my home and meet my family? I am sure they would like to meet another that shares our diet…" I stood and walked back over to the window. Why was he so polite to me when I was used to vampires treating me so differently?
I would've loved to go and visit other members of his coven…family, but I had Jason to think about now. Any one of them could be feeling a little peckish and try to take a snap at him, which wouldn't end well for them, unless they liked being shredded and tossed on a roaring fire...
"Maybe another time…there is another reason I came to visit you." I opened the window before I turned back to Carlisle. "The chief on the Quileute reservation would like me to remind you that the treaty still stands…and that…that their ally will be watching you…" I nodded my head once and climbed out the window, ignoring Carlisle as he shouted my name.
A/N: :O OMG ITS CARLISLE AND ALICE :) yay…
Thanks for the people who review :) I wish I could send you all a box of scones my roommate keeps making…
I won't be updating for the next few weeks as I'm going to Barcelona with my boyfriend for his birthday :)…
Thanks for reading :)
