Approved
Bella's POV
"Well, I think we can allow Edward and Bella to have a little privacy for their first evening together." Chandra announced. Well that was a relief. Still I would have enjoyed reliving the meadow scene without the benefit of the Three Stooges. I'd expected that kind of behavior from Emmett and Jacob---but Jasper too. Not to mention my poor baby girl who was looking at Jacob in a strange way. He was still reacting to the stress of my 'first kiss' scene with Edward and didn't even realize the hole he had just dug for himself. Well fine, after all the crude remarks he had made in the last hour it served him right! I did remember his questions to me about my relationship with Edward, back in Charlie's kitchen three years, four months and six days ago, which thanks to my wonderful gift from Chandra of having my memories restored, were crystal clear. First he'd asked me what it was like having a vampire for a boyfriend. I'd told him it was the best. He'd wanted to know if the idea creeped me out, to which I responded, 'Never'. Then he'd asked—while wrinkling his nose, 'Well, I was wondering, do you…y'know, kiss him?' I had laughed, rolled my eyes and answered simply, 'Yes.' Then he'd wanted to know if I was worried about his fangs, and I'd told him to shut up because he knew Edward didn't have fangs. His last words echoed in my head, 'Close enough.' I had looked at Jacob's face as he was still deep in thought over the last scene that had played out in vivid high-definition color for everyone to see--thank you very much Chandra! I wondered if he was wondering about fangs being 'close enough' on a vampire kiss. I hoped so. Maybe it would give him reason to pause if he ever tries to get the upper hand with my baby girl--my half-vampire baby girl.
Chandra sighed and looked at me with a little smile. I noticed my husband motion for me and I gave Elizabeth a small hug and then found my way into Edward's lap and made myself comfortable. He was still tucked under his Mother's other arm. Edward's arms encircled me and I heard his musical soft voice whisper, "I love you Bella." I turned my face up at him and was once again caught off guard by the beauty of his smile, his eyes, and his lips that found mine. Somehow, after viewing our first kiss, this one seemed to take on the same intensity I felt during the first one. Only this time it was without Edward having to be restrained by four half-gods from the effects of my 'super-hormone' charged human reaction. It was an instant torrent of pure pleasure…and what were we talking about? Once again I'd gotten caught up in the moment. Kissing Edward was still one of my most favorite pastimes. Yes, Emmett did get around to clearing his throat. It was a little annoying. What was with him anyway? Did he feel he was like our own personal chaperone or something? No…he just didn't like being upstaged.
I pulled back and looked deep into Edward's liquid topaz eyes and answered, "I love you too." Then I grinned and looked around at everyone, then back to him and added, "That's why we're here."
He chuckled too at the memory remarks from our wedding day. My Mother-In-Law, Past Guardian Angel, Edward's Mother, Elizabeth sighed in contentment. Wow, now that I knew her, I wondered what she would want me to call her. Not that I'd have many opportunities to address her anyways.
As if reading my mind she leaned closer and answered me, "I would love for you to think of me as 'Mother', if you're comfortable with that. I've been a part of your life since you were born and with Nessie here, I always will be, just not visible."
Wow, she'd read my mind. I did feel like she was a second mother to me too. Well a third mother, Esme was already my second mother. I nodded my head and she patted my cheek. Her face, so like Edward's and Renesmee's looked at me with so much tenderness and love I felt as though I had known her my whole life also. I had an epiphany just then--I loved Edward's mother. That realization almost startled me. I felt as though somehow I had always loved her. Because I knew Edward and his strength of character— I knew hers as well. I felt my silent heart had grown in that instant; enlarged to include this beautiful woman who had been by my side in my happiest moments and in my darkest hours.
Chandra also took that as her cue to proceed. I started to get up but Edward held me tightly, refusing to let me go. That suited me just fine! I leaned in closer for a quick follow-up kiss just for a hold over until later.
"Well, as you now know," Chandra started. "We had worked very hard to get Edward selected and approved to become the father of 'The Hope of the World' and we also worked very hard to get Bella selected and to get Edward and Bella to the point in their relationship we all just witnessed. Of course, there were many things we left out but something still had to happen before things could proceed much further. And that something was, we still had to get Bella approved."
That surprised me. Did I miss something? "You mean I wasn't approved yet and you allowed me to fall in love with Edward--who was approved already?" Chandra just nodded her head-, her eyes sparkling. She was getting more into her story than Jacob did with his 'scary stories'. "How exactly did I get approved then?" I asked before I'd even realized I had spoken. I didn't remember getting a letter or being given a 'test' or anything of that nature.
"Well, we had to do everything in exactly the correct order," Chandra explained. "We needed Edward to be your protector and already in love with you for your test to work. And you needed to already be in love with him and loyal to him; which you were. So my brothers and I set up your test, playing to your strengths."
"My strengths?" I asked dubiously.
"Yes," Chandra clarified. "Your strengths; It would take someone with an incredible ability to be self-sacrificing to become the mother of 'The Hope of the World'. Just the pregnancy alone demanded it. A lesser woman would have gotten rid of it." She added as though this deduction were obvious. "Also the more self-sacrificing you were before your conversion, the stronger your shield would be after you became a vampire. This would be important to keep our Renesmee safe after her birth. So, as I was saying, we set out to 'devise' your test. We knew James, Victoria and Laurent were scheduled to be in Forks the following week. We also knew they were fated to meet up with you in the woods behind your home. You would have had Edward with you and that was good, but three against one wasn't such good odds. We knew we could make sure Alice saw the vision in time to help, but none of the resulting scenarios was conducive for our test, so we switched the playing field. We had Llasa create a massive storm system to provide our backdrop with thunder crashing all over the place. He really loved that storm." She added smiling to herself before continuing, "And he worked the acoustics associated with the storm so the sounds of the ball game would reach the ears of the three nomadic vampires--thus alerting them to 'the game'. We thought it would be better that way--away from town and with all the Cullens on hand to assist."
"You set Bella up for James, Victoria and Laurent?" Edward asked in shock. His arm tightened around me. It's was good thing I had rock-hard abs now. Otherwise that last move would've about cut me in half.
"Of course we did Edward." She said with a sigh. "There are no accidents! Remember that. Now we were gauging how much self-sacrificing Bella would be required to endure for her selection to be approved. Just to show visually for everyone how we were measuring her performance, I will show a little meter here." Chandra gestured to the wall where my first kiss had just been displayed for everyone and thankfully, this time there was nothing but a tiny measuring device in the upper left hand corner of the wall. It almost looked like a rather large thermometer. There was a blue line at the bottom and three-fourths the way up the tube was a line that said 'Approval' with a big yellow line going across the glass tube. Chandra looked at her meter in satisfaction and then continued, "We had our parents on a constant--oh I guess 'feed' or 'up-link' might be some good analogies. Let's just say they were actively watching the entire sequence of events in real-time. This way they could gauge Bella's self-sacrificing and send it through immediately when there had been enough for her approval to be assured. We knew the sooner we got that approval and the sooner it came back to us, the better."
I felt my eyebrows knit themselves together as I contemplated what she was saying. "You set up James attacking me in the ballet studio all to get me approved?" I had asked in disbelief. Edward nodded his head in agreement.
Chandra shook her head. "No, we set up the conditions for the scenario to get you approved. We never intended for you to actually go to the ballet studio." She said in a shocked tone.
"But you said there are no accidents." Edward said in a hoarse whisper.
"No, but there is choice and free will," Chandra answered him back. "Let me tell the story and I think it will become clearer."
Edward and I both nodded our heads and she continued. "We planned the storm and knew Emmett would insist on playing after Alice saw the dynamics of Llasa's weather patterns. Of course, we also let her see the three nomads so you, Edward, would feel the need to keep Bella with you protected whenever they showed up. Then the nomads came to the clearing and the test began."
It was a little unnerving to have relived this stress filled chapter of my life with this new knowledge it was somehow all a set up to see if I would—unbeknownst to me—pass a test to become the mother of 'The Hope of the World'. Then again, I don't think knowing would have made it any easier. No, it probably would have just made me so self-conscious I would have really messed it up.
"We were testing your reactions to the stimuli against your self-sacrificing nature and your ability to keep those you loved out of harm's way. First there was the scene right in the jeep. There you were with Edward, Alice and Emmett, and while they were trying to take you safely away from Forks, you wanted to go back because you were worried about how bad it would look for their family if you disappeared and they were gone too."
"That was a nice start, but nowhere near the level of self-sacrifice required for our test." I was surprised to look over at the meter and see the glass chamber had filled in with a tiny amount of blue liquid. "Then you found out your scent would lead the Nomads right to Charlie. Well here was something we could work with. In fact, we needed to because Charlie wasn't destined to die yet and there are no accidents. So we watched as you came up with your own plan for keeping Charlie safe. It was a workable plan and would require you going against your nature of kindness to reach the larger objective of keeping him protected from harm. Plus your motivation for your actions was your love for your father. We were basically putting you into a 'no win' situation to test your responses. You did beautifully and we knew Rosalie and Esme would be successful in keeping him safe as the test continued. You hurt yourself and him to keep him alive and that went over big with my parents."
I noticed the chamber on the meter was now filled a little more than the half-way mark. "Unfortunately, we knew by itself, it would not be enough to earn your approval. So it wasn't sent through yet. We knew the Cullen's could have successfully taken care of the vampires in the clearing the day of the baseball game but the costs would have been high and Bella, you would not have been able to have completed your test. This plan you came up with yourself was much better for our purposes."
"Now you also told Edward, Alice and Emmett you should go alone; again because you didn't want them to get hurt." She turned to me and had an amused smirk on her face. The meter mark raised a fraction more.
"Silly Bella!" She gently chided me, to a smattering of chuckles in the room. "So finally it was decided you would go south to Phoenix some 1600 miles away with Jasper and Alice as protection--two vampires whom I might add, you had pretty much just met, (the meter raised another fraction of an inch) and the whole while you were worried about your father. You were also worried about Edward, Carlisle and Emmett while they hunted James. You were worried about Esme and Rosalie; Rosalie who wouldn't even change clothes with you." She gave Rosalie a stern look. Poor Rose. "Worried about whether they were safe with Victoria stalking them. You were worried about putting Alice and Jasper out. You didn't worry about your own safety at all. You wanted to have everyone protected but yourself. All of these things added up but it still wasn't enough." I noticed the meter had filled up to almost two-thirds of the way with the blue liquid.
"You sent James to Phoenix?" Edward asked again. I knew his tone and recognized the subtle hint of anger in it. He needed to calm down a bit. I didn't want him getting upset with Chandra again. "No, James was a traditional vampire--definitely in the 'creatures of darkness' category. He wouldn't have listened to us if we had tried to influence him. Going to Phoenix was all his own idea. We watched as the scene played out though and we made sure Alice had the clues she needed as soon as he and Victoria made their plans so you could all be ready. James went to Phoenix and straight to Bella's home there; where he was watching family videos when Bella left a message on the home phone's answering machine and his plan was formed. We knew Alice and Jasper were strong enough to restrain Bella in the end, and she would only need to try to get away from them in an attempt to sacrifice herself to save her mother's life. She only had to attempt to go through with her escape. This, coupled with the other acts of self-sacrifice, would have been enough for her approval."
Chandra shook her head with an incredulous look on her face. "Bella, you are too determined and inventive for your own good. Do you know that?" Everyone in the room laughed quietly. Well, everyone but me of course. She turned to everyone in the room and continued her narrative. "After getting the phone call Bella followed through with showing her intentions to comply by writing Edward a farewell letter. Little did she know or understand that while her mother was not in any real danger at all, Edward was already making his 'contingency plans' in case he was too late to save her." Gee, I guessed she had a point there. It had never occurred to me at the time Edward would try to get himself killed if I were dead. Of course, now I knew better. I looked up at my meter and the tube was now filled with blue liquid to just under the approval line. "As we watched at the airport and started to realize what her plans were, Llasa decided to send some strong head winds to push the plane along faster still. Unfortunately, the airport was quick to post the fact the flight was coming in early and Bella made her move prematurely. She was so close to the approval line we were sure if she were to attempt to get away, the report would be enough to send through. So we were actually excited when she took off down the corridor with Jasper in tow looking for a specific 'Women's' restroom she knew had two exits."
Chandra shook her head with another look of exaggerated disbelief. "Of course, as we all know she was successful and got clear down to the concourse before Jasper even became suspicious. Alice was busy searching for visions of James to see if she could get a clearer picture of what he was doing that would lead Bella to the Ballet Studio, but she only saw him there waiting." I noticed my meter was now at the 'Approval' line.
"We fully expected Jasper to catch up with Miss Bella there on the concourse, but he was slowed by his need to remain inconspicuous, and here is where Bella made a choice. That choice was to jump on the shuttle to the hotel. She was more than determined to sacrifice herself to save her Mother no matter what it took. Just that feat—of alluding a set of determined vampire –took you over the top." I looked at my meter and it was now well past the 'Approval' line.
"Bella, you were already at the hotel in the back seat of the cab by the time Jasper had lost your scent and called Alice with the bad news. She immediately texted Edward to apprise him of the situation; his cell phone was of course turned off for the flight." She sighed and shook her head again. "Then you gave the cab driver all of your money to take you to your doom." She then glanced at the meter and it was now even higher past the 'Approval' line. We tried to get through to you to tell you to stop. Elizabeth about went hoarse trying to reason with you, but you were to determined and busy trying to calm yourself with thoughts of Edward and how wonderful it would have been to have actually seen him there at the airport, to listen!"
"We got another little surprise then, when your approval came back down the 'chain of command'. You were approved--and you were going to get yourself killed." Chandra's voice took on a pained quality as she relived the nightmare in the making from her own perspective. "Samon and Dagda searched all of the cars driving around the airport looking for the fastest car that could fit everyone in it. The finally settled on a Ford Mustang Giugiaro with a Supercharged 4.3 liter V8 engine inside—knowing Jasper would have to follow in the Mercedes. Then they 'suggested' to the driver he needed to go to the airport. The owner, Daryl Altman, simply drove right up to the front and left the keys in the ignition with the motor running and walked right into the airport while the Cullens all piled out and into his waiting car. Poor Mr. Altman walked around the airport in a daze for two and a half hours before he even realized he had no reason to be there. Then my brothers made sure every cop along the way between the airport and the ballet studio was 'otherwise occupied'. Oh, by the way, Daryl Altman did get his car back safe and sound. If the stakes had not been so high, they would have never condoned such action, let alone instigate them."
"Meanwhile, Miss Swan had already stopped by her house and was running as fast as her legs would carry her to the ballet studio. Llasa made the sun pound down on her in a futile effort to slow her down but on she went. I tripped her three times, but on she went." She nodded towards the meter that was now twice as high as it needed to be to be for 'Approval'. "By the time Bella arrived at the ballet studio, the Cullens were still a good seven minutes away, even going over one hundred and twenty miles an hour weaving in and out of the Phoenix highway traffic."
"Of course, we knew of James' love for theatrics and we were counting on it to drag out his diabolical plan and give the Cullens the time they needed to arrive. Of course, he didn't disappoint. What we had not anticipated was the presence of more 'dark beings' and also the arrival of 'observers' that had come to check on our newly approved mother of the 'Hope of the World'."
Chandra actually shivered as she set the stage for the next scene. By the time Bella discovered she had been deceived and her mother was not even there, James had started his gloat. Showing the video camera he had taken from her home to leave his own little visual letter for Edward. The Cullens were still five minutes away. Dagda had fixed all the traffic signals giving them green all the way to the ballet studio. We'll start our visual here at the point where James had just explained to Bella about Alice and how he knew her. Of course we will include all thoughts as well as spoken words. If you look closely, you can probably see more than just the outlines of the dark beings because, unlike when some were around Edward that first day in Biology—where Edward was fighting his nature, James was listening to them exclusively. You might also make out some of the features of our 'observers' in the background if you look very hard."
Well, this should be creepy for me. To see the day I came face to face with James—Again. It didn't go so good for me that day. Then again, it went a lot better for me than it did for James. I felt Edward's face bury in my hair before he rested his chin on my shoulder from behind me. He had not relaxed his grip on me yet. Poor Edward, I knew as hard as this would be for me to relive this moment, it would be pure torture for him. I turned my face to his and kissed his cheek. He turned his face to mine and his eyes were tight; his lips were pressed into a thin line. He kissed me anyway--one quick hard kiss.
"It's okay Edward. Just look at all the people who were there helping us that we didn't even know about!" I said to reassure him. He nodded once and a small smile found its reluctant way to his face. Then he turned his head to the front, leaving it resting on my shoulder.
The room darkened slightly and the 'movie wall' began playing my last 'dance recital'. Immediately the Ballet studio filled the wall. I was surprised the 'approval' meter was still up in the left corner and it was now filled beyond the 'approval' line one and a half times. It had actually grown to contain the extra liquid. I saw James first of course, right next to me holding the wretched camcorder; already filming his idea of a sick joke. He was surrounded by three 'dark beings'. They were the creepiest things I had ever seen. They had a humanoid appearance but it was as though no light existed to give their features shape. As though all light was absorbed and lost in their being. The only thing I could make out was their eyes which shown yellow with a moldy green iris. Their deep scarlet-red tongues only appeared when they spoke. I felt a shudder go through my body as I contemplated how close to them I was on the screen.
"Oh my…" Emmett said. He actually sounded scared too. "That is the freaking scariest things I've ever seen." Apparently no one else had the ability to speak but their disbelieving nods said it all.
I also noticed the three 'observers' Chandra had mentioned standing in the back of the ballet studio, by one of the mirrored walls. The observers, mostly invisible, seemed much as they had that first day in biology. I did notice they also had a humanoid shape and there appeared to be a thin ray of light surrounding their outlines; kind of like an aura. When they moved I could just make out facial features, which appeared to be very fair to look at but also disappeared as soon as I caught a glimpse of them. Chandra was also there as well as Edward's Mother, Dagda and Llasa. I guessed Samon had chosen to stay with Edward and the rest of his family to help speed them along.
James spoke as one from the dead to me once again. It was eerie to relive. I'd always been good at blocking painful memories and this one was one of the most painful ones I'd successfully locked behind a steel vault in my mind. Well, the vault was open now.
"No," He'd said as he held my frightened face in his one hand and the camera in the other. "I don't understand." '…what the attraction is here. What is it about you that makes your Edward want to risk himself, his family and exposing the rest of us. Well, it's a mystery--tantalizing but…' He picked up speaking now, "Well, I suppose we should get on with it. And then I can call your friends and tell them where to find you, and my little message." He dropped his hand from my face. 'This is going to be my best work yet. Maybe I'll make a copy of this little action flick for Charlie to enjoy over and over again. Hahaha'
The three dark beings danced around us. The sounds emanating from them were as unnerving as their appearance. It sounded like a strange mixture of a swarm of bees, a shaking maraca, and the crackle of static from an unused radio frequency. The sounds were eerie as they whispered out their black mouths, showing the flicker of their deep red tongues. It made the room sound as though it were home to rattlesnakes.
'Ohhh, this is bad. No, this is worse than bad. This is the end—and not the quick end I was expecting.' My mental thoughts were in a panic. 'He isn't going to just feed and leave. No, he's going to play with his food. I feel sick. I might pass out now. I can see it in his eyes. There is going to be pain coming…coming sooner not later--coming NOW. Oh, my knees are shaking so badly and I can't stop them. I might even fall. I'll bet he'd just likes that.'
"What can we do?" Elizabeth Masen wailed in fear?
"Broken bones can mend." Dagda replied in a stress-filled voice. "Death cannot. We've got to prolong this for another four minutes before the Cullens arrive." Edward's mother nodded back grimly. She looked as white as a ghost, which I guess she was.
James stepped back. He then began circling me in a casual manner. His face was friendly and open as he decided exactly where he wanted to start. All the while the 'dark being' kept up their maniacal chattering, dancing around—reviling in the vile thoughts and actions James invoked for my imminent destruction.
'Look at her shake. It's endearing in a way. How she holds herself straight in an effort to maintain a calm façade, but she is so giving herself away with the way her entire body trembled from head to toe. Oh, this is going to be a masterpiece. Maybe I should zoom in on her eyes. Oh, they tell the whole of her sheet terror.'
'Three minutes and fifty seconds." Dagda said in that same stress filled voice.
'Great, now he's playing like I'm some museum piece to be observed.' My thoughts whimpered.
I watched as he once again slumped forward into a hunting crouch and his pleasant smile grew into a contortion of exposed teeth.
"Run Bella! Run!" Edward's Mother wailed at her in terror.
"It won't do her any good!" Chandra said in quiet pain."
"But she's already been approved. Can't we do something?" Elizabeth wailed back. Chandra and Dagda both shook their head in grim unison.
'Just run! Run! It won't do any good but I can't die without trying. Run!' I thought from the visual and then I watched as I did just that; I ran though I knew it was a useless gesture. I ran towards the 'emergency exit'. Of course, I had barely started my third stride when he was there in front of me. Elizabeth positioned herself between us. James used his foot to kick me with a jolt that threw me with crazy force backwards and into a mirrored wall. I could see he hadn't used his full strength in that kick, or if he had perhaps somehow my wonderful guardian angel's block had been able to lesson it a fraction. It was clear by the look on James face he was definitely planning on drawing my torture out. I heard once again the sounds of breaking glass as my head was bashed into the mirror on impact. I watched as several pieces of glass broke and fell to the floor around me. Of course, in the visual, I hadn't known anyone was there to help me that March morning in Phoenix, but at that very moment, Llasa had his arm around the top of my head as three rather large shards of broken mirror spikes that would have embedded deeply into my skull, fell and glanced off my shoulders, breaking on the floor by my feet. My expression in the visual was one of shocked horror. I was stunned. I wasn't breathing as I tried to change my facial expression.
"Three minutes, twenty seconds and counting," Dagda said pacing the floor.
'Ohhh, that was bad.' My thoughts were almost too fast and high with panic. 'At least I can't feel it yet. If I don't breathe maybe the pain will hold off again. Nooo, he's got that blasted camera right on my face. I can't let Edward see me like this. I can't give James this satisfaction too. Somehow, I have to be strong for Edward. There isn't anything I can do to prevent him from seeing this. My composure is the only gift I can give to him now.' My thoughts turned from stunned to grim. That crazy meter was still rising in the upper left corner of the screen.
James moved slowly towards me. "That's a very nice effect," He said as he examined the sounds of crushing glass under his step. His voice was friendly again. 'This ought to really get Edward worked up! It's my best cat and mouse game ever!'
The 'dark beings' gloated with him. They were as yet, unaware of the presence of their counterparts; the 'perfected beings', Chandra, Llasa and Dagda or their superiors, the three—no, now there are four 'observers'. I wondered about that.
James voice cut off my reverie. "I thought this room would be visually dramatic for my little film. That's why I picked this place to meet you. It's perfect, isn't it?" 'Of course it's perfect. You never performed a dance recital quite like this one did you now Bella? The dance of death recital!'
Emmett cleared his throat. It was a growl. "That man is a vile creature of death. I want to tear him to shreds." His voice was low and menacing.
Jasper reminded him grimly, "We did that already."
"Yes," Emmett sighed, "But if I'd seen that this first, I would have torn him into even smaller pieces before burning him into oblivion."
'Perfect for you, but I still have to try to escape. It's not likely to work. Oh, I'm so sorry Edward. He's just doing this to get to you. I've messed up so bad. I'm so very, very sorry…' I'd trailed off in mental anguish. The meter kept crawling higher. It was now more twice as high as it needed to be.
"Keep trying dear," Mother said. I could call her that. She was a mother to me—Edward's mother.
"Three minutes and two seconds." Dagda called out, his voice tense.
I watched as I began crawling on my hands and knees towards the other door. The 'dark beings' snaked about the floor around me; their hissing, chittering hum, a menacing backdrop for the replay. James was over me at once. The wretched camcorder getting every painful move I made.
James mental voice was high on a diabolical pitch, 'We need more screaming here…more terror. This movie is getting painfully monotonous.' I watched as he lifted his foot and smashed it down hard on my leg. There was an audible 'snap' heard throughout the room. In response I let out a blood curdling scream of pure agony. It was echoed by my Mother's scream of terror in response. I twisted up to reach for my leg. The 'dark beings' seemed somehow to grow in reaction to my tortured cry. There James stood over me, camcorder flashing green for record, with his ever-friendly smile on his face. 'Yes, this is more like it! Oh Edward is going to hunt me, and I am so going to enjoy ripping him into tiny little pieces.'
"Get away from her!" Mother screamed at James; who acknowledged her in no way whatsoever. The 'dark beings' on the other hand reacted to her direct confrontation to their fun. They hissed at her and she shot them scathing looks of disgust. They were caught a little off-guard by her tenacity. They had apparently not met a guardian angel as determined as Elizabeth Masen to match wits with. Of course, they still didn't know of the growing number of 'perfected beings' in the room. The observers now numbered five. My meter was two and a half times that needed for approval. Why were so many observers there? Were they afraid Chandra and her brother's would cross the line and expose them? I hadn't seen them do anything compromising yet. Not that I understand what that might be, but they seemed to be following their rules of conduct.
"One minute and fifty five seconds 'til they arrive." Dagda groaned.
"Would you like to rethink your last request?" James asked in reference to my order Edward not do as James requested; not try to hunt him down. 'Or can I torture you some more to help you decide? Okay, I'm really all for that plan--happy to oblige.'
Then that sadistic monster nudged my now broken leg with his toe and it was met with my second piercing cry in response. Mother knocked him as hard as she could up side his head. He actually rocked back but recovered instantly. My meter was now at three times more than needed for approval; the 'observers' in the room now numbered six. My scream still echoed throughout the sound chamber the empty studio provided.
My thought voice was in shock. 'What sound was that? Is someone else here? Oh…no…that was me screaming. It hurts so bad I think I am going to pass out now.'
"Take long slow breathes Bella. Oh my poor dear Bella. You'll be okay. It will be okay. Hold on Sweetie, Edward is coming." Mother said trying to smooth my hair out of my face. There was a faint stirring around my hair. Her efforts were met by a counter attack of the 'dark beings', who snapped at her back. She brushed them off as a mere annoyance.
"So," Emmett asked in confusion. "Are these 'dark beings really wimpy after all?"
Chandra shook her head at him. "No, they can actually be quite strong--as strong as us. And they gain power around negative energy; like that present in the ballet studio. But they were up against some very strong moral individuals. Isabella and Elizabeth—both of whom had a tremendous amount of inner strength. Every time Bella worked to try to protect those she cared about—even if it wasn't possible to win, the powers of the 'dark beings' weakened. They were chattering and hissing to scare her into caring more about her own welfare than others. That was also partly why she was also attracting so much attention from the other end of the spectrum." Chandra pointed out the 'observers' where there were now seven present. Emmett nodded thoughtfully and the visual continued.
"Wouldn't you rather have Edward try to find me?" James demanded. 'Say 'yes' and I'll only torture you for five more minutes instead of ten. I'll let you beg me to finish you.'
I could almost make out words through the hissing sounds that issued forth from the 'dark beings'. They seemed to chant 'Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes."
"One minute and fifteen seconds," Dagda breathed in a moan.
"No!" I gasped out. "No, Edward, don't…" In the visual James kicked my face with his foot sending me hurling once again into the broken mirrors. Chandra from the video looked as though she were crying. Llasa, who was still stood there at the mirror's front, snapped the wooden hand rail with his hand and it dropped to the floor a fraction of a second before the small of my back would have hit it in such a way it might have broken my spine. The 'dark beings' missed that little action. They clamored about excitedly as my fear settled in the room like an enticing aroma.
Everyone in Chandra's home room watched as my scalp, slashed by the mess of glass, began to bleed; the blood spreading through my hair, my shirt and even down to the wood floor. The 'dark beings' were in a frenzy; their noises now a constant thrumming throughout the room.
"Thirty seconds until they get here," Dagda said tersely.
"Thirty seconds could be too late!" Chandra wailed. "Come on Samon--sped them up somehow!"
'This is ridiculous! This girl is trying my patience. How much more does she want before she begs for her death?' James' thoughts were livid with rage.
As my blood oozed out of my injured scalp, it was easy to see James had lost his focus.
'Ohhh, no I don't need this. I'm going to be sick for sure now. My stomach is twisting up and I can't see so good. Everything is getting so fuzzy. Is this it? No, he's just getting warmed up. Wait! I see his eyes. His face is changing. Yes, he was very focused before but now, all this blood…he can't draw this out much longer. Yes, his eyes are now burning with an uncontrollable need. My blood is driving him mad with thirst. Please just let it be quick now…' My thoughts faded away with my consciousness.
"They're almost in the parking lot now!" Dagda cried out.
From the presentation, I heard James growl a bone chilling roar of a predator before it strikes. I watched as I raised my hand in an instinctual effort to protect myself—my last conscious thought. I passed out just as he grabbed my wrist and bit down. The 'dark beings' were all over me now--trying to claim me as one of their victims—feeding off my terror as surely as James drank from my arm. It was terrifying to watch. They were so intent on their focus they had no hope of seeing the seven observers come forward. One of them raised a hand and all three of the 'dark beings' were encompassed in brilliant light until they were completely consumed by the light. They screamed in a pain of their own as their cries were cut off and they were banished to who knows where.
'Ouch, what is that terrible pain? Where did it come from? It is getting so hazy…so dark…feels like I'm floating under deep water--deep, dark water.' My thoughts were growing fainter. My form lay still, still in James clutches.
For the first time I was able to see fully what happened as the rest of the drama unfolded. Edward was suddenly there and his ferocious roar of rage shook the windows and the closed blinds that rested therein. He had James off me in seconds and Emmett and Jasper had him in their strong arms before he could even hit the floor.
'I'm suspended here.' My slurred thoughts continued weakly. 'What is that sound? It's so beautiful. The most beautiful sound I have ever heard. It's as uplifting as it is—ghastly. It's a different roar. It sounds like a heavenly angel--my heavenly angel. I'm dead now. I can't open my eyes. I wish I could so I could see my angel. His voice is calling me to the only heaven I'll ever want.'
"Oh no, Bella, no!" Edward cried out in a panic. 'I can't hear her heartbeat. IS this it? Is my life over now? I can't bare it if she's gone. Oh please no—Please! Not my Bella—No! Not her! My sweet Bella. I won't even go home first. I can't face her father. No, if she's gone—straight to Volterra for me. I can't bear to live without her. Dear Lord, no…please no.'
Emmett and Jasper had James subdued and began the task of tearing him to shreds. The sounds of shredding metal along with high keening sounds were heard interspersed with both Emmett's and Jasper's bass growling.
'Oh no, that sounds bad. I better concentrate on the angels' voice instead.' I'd thought voice was barely coherent.
"The chosen mother of 'The Hope of the World' has been bitten." One of the observers said to the other supernaturals present.
"Then is all lost?" Llasa asked him in pain. "Do we have to start over to find another?"
"There will be no other. Isabella's approval was not just given by us, it was sanctioned from deity. There will be none other chosen for the task. We will lend the Cullens what help we may as long as they follow the rules for moral conduct." The observer said to reassure the four siblings. They did seem to visibly relax a tiny bit.
"Bella, please! Bella, listen to me, please, please, Bella, please!" Edward begged. 'Her heart beat is there. I hear it now. It is the faintest whisper but it is there. I can see the tiny rise of her shallow breathes. She's still here--barely. Don't leave me Bella! I just found her. Don't die Bella. I need her. Please stay…' It was hard to listen to the pain laced through Edward's thoughts. No wonder even to this day he shuttered whenever he remembered the pain he endured from this moment.
'Yes…Anything. Can't he hear me? I can't find my lips. I can't talk.' I thought in alarm.
"Try harder Bella" Mother called to me.
"Carlisle!" Edward called his voice full of agony. "Bella, Bella, no, oh please, no, no!"
'Why is the angel crying? The angel shouldn't weep.' I tried to think coherently through the fog surrounding my consciousness. 'No, this is all wrong. Where is he, my angel? Don't worry everything is fine. He doesn't need to cry. I can't find him and the water is so deep. It's pressing on me. I can't breathe.' I mentally said in confusion.
"He's crying for you. Come back to him Bella, he needs you more than you know." Elizabeth cried to me.
In the visual, Carlisle came over with Alice and started probing me for injuries and assessing my condition. 'Well, she is breathing and her pulse is weak but steady. Looks like she's got at least four fractures in her skull. And that leg is twisted at a very bad angle. Looks like it's broke in at least two different locations.'
'Oh, my head hurts. Oh, more than just my head is hurting…so much pain. I have to breathe, breathe and get out of this water…' My thoughts were interrupted by my own wild gasp of air.
"Bella!" Edward cried.
'It sounds so nice when the angel calls my name like that. He is so worried about me—my angel.' I thought still dazed but now there was pain in my thought voice as well.
Carlisle looked over at Edward and said, "She's lost some blood, but the head wound isn't deep. Watch out for her leg, it's broken."
Edward's fury couldn't be contained. It was a good thing James was already being ripped to shreds. Edward let out another howl of rage. 'How could someone desecrate this beautiful creation of a woman? My Bella should never feel pain of any kind. This must be hell. Somehow, I've brought my poor sweet Bella to hell's gate. I am a monster. But not the worst one—James was a monster of pure evil.'
'Oouuuccchhh! What is that sharp pain in my side?' I puzzled out mentally. 'Oh, this can't be heaven, could it? I'm hurting to bad for this to be heaven.'
"Some ribs, too, I think," Carlisle said probing my side. That explains the sharp pains I'd felt.
Emmett and Jasper were methodically tearing up the last of James in the background. They really took their work seriously. I'll bet they didn't spend this kind of attention on each of the newborns two summers ago.
'Oh, what is this new pain? It's worse than the rest…much…much worse. It's a burning. No, someone is BURNING ME!' My mental tone took on a scream of pain.
"Bella," Mother called to me, "Bella, you are going to need to let Edward know your hand is burning. This is important."
"Ed-ward." I said aloud weakly. 'Can't he make them stop? I would tell him too but I can't speak. I can't even hear myself talking.'
"Yes," He said at my side. "I'm here." His thoughts sang out in relief. 'I'm here and she's awake and talking to me. I will never leave her again. She will never talk me into leaving her for any reason again. I'm here for good.'
"It hurts," I whimpered. 'The burning hurts. Make them stop, please!'
Samon stepped up to Elizabeth's side. "You're doing well. She's responding to you. Keep encouraging her. We don't have much time."
Mother nodded and then started in again. "You're almost here Bella sweetie. Try to talk again and this time mention the burning."
The same observer stated, "I have slowed the venom for a few more minutes. However Edward will have to act to save his mate for this to work." The rest of the immortals cast worried glances at each other as they nodded in understanding.
"I know, Bella, I know" Edward told me comfortingly, 'I will die a thousand deaths for every pain she suffers due of my carelessness. What was I thinking using my real name on the plane? I'll just bet Victoria found a way to track our tickets. I led him right to her. And now here she is broken and bleeding. If I can't protect my sweet Bella then what can I do?' Then he turned to Carlisle and added in a desperate plea, "Can't you do anything?"
"My bag please. Hold your breath, Alice, it will help." Carlisle said calmly and professionally. 'I'll give her some morphine for the pain. I only hope it doesn't start working until I finish assessing her condition. Her ankle is swelling up pretty badly.'
"Alice?" I groaned. 'Alice will you make them stop? James knew you.'
"She's here," Edward told me, "She knew where to find you."
"My hand hurts," I tried to tell him. 'Make them stop Edward! Please, make them stop burning me!!!!"
"I know Bella. Carlisle will give you something. It will stop." Edward said as Carlisle drew up a syringe full of morphine and injected it into my arm. 'Oh please let it stop. Each pain etched across her face shoots pain directly into my core. I would gladly bear it a million times over if it would take it away from her beautiful face. The face of my angel.'
"Hurry Elizabeth, tell her again!" Chandra said urgently.
"Bella," Mother said very sternly now. "You must tell Edward about the burning right now. DO you hear me? Right now!"
"My hand is burning!" I screamed. 'At last, I can think. I can see.' My eyes fluttered open; but there was a mass of blood and matted hair in the way to see clearly. 'Why can't they see the fire and put it out?'
The immortals took the briefest of seconds for a small sigh.
"Bella?" Edward's voice was frightened. 'Burning? No! She didn't say burning? Did she get burned? Is it from the gashes, the broken bones…or the wounds? Does it feel like a burn somehow?'
"Tell him again!" Mother said.
"The fire! Somebody stop the fire!" I screamed. Honestly, the sound of my tortured response clawed at my ear drums from the visual. 'It's burning me up!'
Carlisle! Her hand!" Edward wailed. He picked up my burning arm with the bite mark from the wrist and up across my palm. 'No, I have doomed her, my sweet Bella. I've stolen her life away from her--her sweet beautiful life. I should have stayed away and now I've destroyed her. I'm going to burn in hell...but please, not my Bella too!'
"He bit her." Carlisle's voice sounded appalled now. Edward caught his breath in horror.
Alice's thoughts picked up full of knowledge. 'This is the vision I had. Bella was a vampire. Edward, you knew this was going to happen sometime. But if you leave her like this she will be in pain for a very long time. Edward, you need to complete the venom delivery to keep her suffering to a minimum. It's the only way to help her now. You must understand this.' She didn't skip a beat as she added aloud for Carlisle's benefit. "Edward, you have to do it." Alice's voice was close by my head. Alice cleared the bloody mess gently from my eyes with her fingers.
"No Edward," Dagda said. "You don't want that. You don't want her to change now. It's not time yet."
"No!" Edward bellowed. 'No, I can't have my Bella with red eyes; Bella staring at me with her expressionless immortal face; Bella hating me for dooming her to my half-life. I can't live with her hating me for not keeping her safe after she trusted me. There has to be another way…any other way.'
"Alice," I moaned. 'Please can you stop the burning?'
The observer said to Llasa, "Tell Carlisle it will be possible for Edward to suck the venom out by himself. Then we, my brothers and I, will work to reverse the damage inflicted by the venom so far. We will also make sure there is no residual venom in her system."
"Edward has thirst issues where Bella is concerned," Samon stated solemnly.
"I understand your hesitation. But I am authorized to intercede only if it is Edward that acts to save her." The head observer stated calmly. The room was silent for the briefest of milliseconds.
Then Llasa was at Carlisle's side whispering into his ear.
"There may be a chance," Carlisle said. 'A slim one: I've never heard of such a thing working before in my existence. Why would I think of this now?'
"What?" Edward begged. 'I will take a slim chance. I will take any kind of a chance. I need Bella to live!'
"See if you can suck the venom back out. The wound is fairly clean." Carlisle said a little more calmly. He deftly threaded a surgical needle and started stitching up my scalp while keeping a constant pressure on it.
'Agggh, stop the burning. The poking and pulling on my head doesn't even hurt with the burning. And why does it matter if my head is split open after I'm a pile of ash anyway?'
"Will that work?" Alice asked in a strained voice. 'The thirst is really making it hard for me to focus. But really will it work or will Edward kill her?' She thought worriedly.
"I don't know," Carlisle said. "But we have to hurry."
"Carlisle, I…" Edward hesitated in the visual. "I don't know if I can do that." His voice was full of agony. 'If I don't try, Bella is doomed to my existence--which is arguably worse than dead. If I try to do as Carlisle suggests, I will probably outright kill her before I even realized it. Either way, her life is over. Can I help her? Can I stop? Can I taste her sweet, potent blood and stop when the time comes? Can I live with myself if I can't? Can I live with myself if I don't try?'
"You can do it Edward," Mother said. "And you must!"
"It's your decision, Edward, either way. I can't help you. I have to get this bleeding stopped here if you're going to be taking blood from her hand." Carlisle thought confidently at him, 'You can do this and I believe you will. You need Bella to live and you need to do what you think is right. I know you want her to remain human. It is your need to behave morally and ethically that has caused you to strike this balance. And it is noble, your desire to keep her human and happy. You have the strength Son--if that is your decision. Your love for Bella will stop you in time. I know this. You are stronger than you think.'
From the visual, I writhed in pain and my thoughts matched my form twisting in agony. 'Agggh, the fire. Oh, great! Now I've got my leg's pain shooting through the fire too. I can't take this.'
"Edward!" My eyes opened as I spoke his name desperately searching for his face. 'There, oh, there he is--my angel. Finally I can see his perfect face. But what? Why is his perfect face so twisted up into such a mask of indecision and pain? No, I can see something it changing for him now.'
"I believe in you Son, Bella believes in you, Carlisle believes in you, your family believes in you. There are so many people who believe in you. Please—trust us and believe in yourself." Mother said with conviction.
From the visual, I watched Edward's face as the doubt reflected in his eyes was replaced with a blazing determination. His jaw tightened and he took hold of my arm in his strong hands, locking it in place. Then he bent his head over and fitted his own venom coated teeth over the marks left from James' handiwork.
Edward's mental thoughts were split into four different thought processes at once. In the first part he kept repeating my name over and over again while the second part of his brain was being pulled deeper and deeper in the intoxication and madness my blood drove him too. The third part tasted the blood for the level of venom it was extracting. And the fourth part was going over every beautiful touch we had shared in the meadow just three days earlier; every touch, every smile, every laugh. Over and over again and ending with him singing me my lullaby to sleep.
From the look on my face it was worse at first. My thoughts were just a huge scream. My body thrashed back and forth as both Carlisle and Alice worked to restrain me. Alice actually sat on my good leg and Carlisle had my head in a vise lock with his strong arms.
And then slowly, my struggles became less and finally stopped all together.
"Stay with us now Bella," My beautiful guardian angel mother-in-law said to me. "Everything is going to be fine. Just stay with us, dear."
'Ahh, that's better.' I'd thought, 'The pain is getting less and less. My angel, Edward is taking it all away. The fire is dulling more and more. I can feel it get so small that it feels like a pin point. Nothing. Oh, no, the black water is here again. It's just under me and I feel like I'll fall back in the black waters. If I do, I won't have the strength to pull myself out again. I don't want to lose him in the darkness. No! I can't lose him!'
When the part of Edward's brain focused on venom registered it was clean of the venom and had morphine coming through instead. The first part that had been chanting my name and the fourth part that had been reviewing our wonderful Saturday of love, took over and forced out the second part that was practically delirious from the euphoric state my blood had placed him in. Slowly he released my hand from his lips. It took every ounce of self control he had to lower his arm still holding my hand to his side. His face was tight but relieved. The tension slowly faded from his countenance.
"Edward?" I said in the barest of whispers. 'Did I say it out loud? I don't know, I can't even hear myself.'
"He's right here, Bella." Carlisle said comfortingly.
"Stay, Edward, stay with me…" I trailed off struggling to find more strength.
"I will." Edward said in a voice that held a strange mixture of triumph and strain. 'I can't believe I did it. Bella, is alive and I saved her. My beautiful sweet Bell, is still here with me. Her blood was so much sweeter than I ever dared to dream it would be. Still, somehow, I triumphed. The beast is gone. He can't come out of his cage again. My love for her has triumphed over my natural instincts. Bella, my sweet, sweet Bella, she has saved me from myself.'
I let out a contented sigh 'The fire is all gone now. I can feel throbbing from the other pains but I'm so sleepy it doesn't bother me so much.'
"Is it all out?" Carlisle asked, looking to Edward.
Edward's reply was quiet and subdued. "Her blood tastes clean. I can taste the morphine." '…and that luscious blood. Only now I'll remember how sweet it is in comparison to how much sweeter it is to have her in my life, by my side. Her soul is so much sweeter than even her blood.'
"Bella?" Carlisle called to me.
"Mmmmm?" was my highly communicative response.
"Is the fire gone?"
"Yes," I sighed. "Thank you Edward."
"I love you." He answered. 'More than I ever dreamed possible. I thank her for living. Thank her for being the warm, kind, accepting and loving woman that she is. I can't live without her. She is more important than my own life.'
"I know," I breathed tiredly. Edward laughed quietly. It was weak with relief.
Emmett and Jasper were in the background now busily tearing up the floorboards and making a big pile of wood around James assorted puzzle pieces.
"Bella?" Carlisle pressed.
In the visual I frowned with my eyes half shut. "What?" 'Can I please sleep now?'
"Where is your Mother?"
"In Florida," I sighed. It was kind of funny to listen to my voice so full of outrage, so fail and weak, so slurred from the morphine as I explained. "He tricked me, Edward. He watched our videos." 'Oh yes, that reminds me something James said about…'
"Alice." My eyes worked to free themselves from their shut tight lids. "Alice, the video—he knew you, Alice, he knew where you came from." My mental chatter began as soon as my vocal voice ended. 'Arrgh! This is so frustrating. I need to speak urgently to them but it comes out so feeble and slow.' "I smell gasoline." 'It must be some weird side effect of the drugs Carlisle gave me.'
"It's time to move her," Carlisle said.
"No, I want to sleep," I complained. 'I can't walk anyways…unless I sleepwalk.'
"You sleep all you want. Edward's got you now." Mother said in relief.
"You can sleep, sweetheart, I'll carry you." Edward's voice was soothing. He put his lips close to my ear and kissed my cheek tenderly as he gently lifted me from the floor. "Sleep now, Bella." 'I'll watch over her from now on. Nothing will ever hurt her again. I swear that nothing or no one will ever do anything like this to her again. I love her so much; my sweet, precious Bella.'
'His voice is so soft, just like a lullaby. When he holds me in his arms like this I know I'll be safe no matter what. I'm floating away and all the pain is gone.' My thoughts were just a faint whisper at the end.
The visual showed Carlisle picking up his supplies. Jasper lit a fire to the floorboards and we all started to leave. Chandra stopped the visual right as we were exiting the building. The vampires all sparkled, but no one was in the alley to notice.
"I wanted you to see something here Edward. We thought it was rather interesting. Do you remember Alice's vision of the duel-futures?" She looked at Edward who nodded.
"Yes, in one Bella was a vampire and in one she was dead in my arms with my eyes ruby from drinking her blood." Edward said soberly.
"That's right," Chandra agreed. "Look very closely here at yourself as you exited the back of the studio." We all looked and Edward gasped. The rest of us did as well a second after Edward's. There he was in the visual, carrying my seemingly lifeless body in his arms and his eyes were ruby red from drinking my blood.
"But they weren't red at the hotel or the hospital?" Edward said into the stunned silence.
"No, they weren't" Chandra said with a smile. "Watch"
Then the seven 'observers' came out of the building and each put a hand on top of Edward's head at the same time. So briefly it could have been missed if I wasn't paying vampire attention. Then they vanished and Edward's eyes had become the lightest burning honey butter color.
"How?" Was all my wonderful husband could say.
"They knew you would suffer enough needless guilt over what had happened to Bella that day and they feared seeing her blood like that in your eyes would make you doubt your worthiness to be her companion. So they gave you a special blessing." Chandra smiled.
"And Bella," She said, "Seven came to help save you. Reversing vampire venom is unheard of. It never happens. It changes the tissue it touches immediately. You had it shooting up and down your arm for a good six to seven minutes and even with the slowing put on it to keep it from entering your heart and pumping out to your entire body, it left a high concentration there in your arm. You are dearly loved for the goodness of your heart more than you will ever understand. When your approval came down, we were too busy trying to keep you from getting killed to get a proper look at it until after the crisis was over. Bella, your approval came down from the highest level with an aid and assist call attached to it. That permitted the 'observers' to gather and aid within their guidelines. And your approval came in at 100%. They did not want us to even consider anyone else. You were the only woman that would be able to fill this important and difficult job. Your approval Bella, was truly astounding. By the time you left the ballet studio, you blew the 'approval' meter off the charts. You tested off the charts. Your approval rating came in at five times the needed amount." She said proudly.
Why did this feel kind of like after I used my shield against the Volturi? It was embarrassing looking at my family staring at me with their impressed looks. I looked down and felt a non-existent blush somehow creep up my face. It must be from my newly-improved memories. I felt my daughter crawl up in my lap and give me a big kiss.
"You're special Mommy." She said smiling. Edward, who had opened his arm to let her into my lap, encircled us both in his loving embrace. He kissed me fiercely. I was too embarrassed to get carried away this time. Edward's Mother was next to join in and the next thing I knew all of my Cullen Family were surrounding me in a massive group hug.
