Chapter Twenty-Nine: Swan & Duskling
Dusk Malveya's POV
2nd of January
"Imprinting is...?" I prompted with a gentle smile, ready for the worst.
"Imprinting is a bond between a shape-shifter and...someone else," Jacob sighed.
I still flinched at the word shape-shifter but I kept my anxieties locked inside and continued to listen.
Late this morning, I'd awoken with a mess on my mind and was still troubled by every detail.
I'd overheard Jacob and Sarah having a conversation about her schooling. I'd entered the kitchen before I could catch anything else, but I had a sure feeling that Jacob was now very wary of this Luca Azeri and whatever he had to do with Sarah's biological mother. I already knew that Sarah would want to return to school, whatever the cost...but all of this had still dishevelled her. I was surprised at the heartbroken affect that estranged werewolf had on her.
As well as that, Benjamin Harris was presently staying with Anastasia Orion.
Apparently, he'd carried me back to BlackSwan after I'd collapsed last night and left with her. I had a notion that he wanted to keep his distance for Sarah's sake...and sanity. Though, he did leave a note stating that he'd explain everything when we were comfortable to listen. He also said that we were still his most loving family and he would leave us alone if Jacob saw that as necessary. It broke Kallista, Joanne and Sarah's heart and I was close to falling apart without Ben's brotherly support.
I knew Joanne was panicking about a lot of things to do with this because she was desperately trying to keep herself busy with cooking and cleaning. I'd also noticed that Jo was giving Kally a lot more hugs than usual–if possible–as if she was going to lose her daughter in that instant. I caught her tearing up a lot as well. Sooner than later, I'd have to give her a big hug and talk her out of her troubles. I knew Jo would do the same for me.
I was also worried about the injured guests who attended that New Year's Eve party.
Only a few poor souls had died...but at least they wouldn't have to undergo the trauma of last night's horrific events. I felt like I should've done something for the broken families who'd lost their loved ones at the alleged animal attack. Jacob told us not to worry about the guests; apparently, they were all being taken great care of. Thankfully, none had become vampires, which was a strange phenomenon in a group of three hundred attacked humans.
Besides that, last night was all over the news and there were pictures of everyone on television. I'd received a few calls from my family in Forks, though I couldn't will myself to return them yet. I needed to compose myself and feed them a good lie that could convince them enough. The CIA and FBI confirmed it as a freak animal attack but, it seemed, everyone had their own opinion. Except, of course, the Black family.
"In the words of Ten News–The Blacks refuse to leave to the house while the public are demanding answers from the infamous car businessman, Jacob Black. Every guest from that terrible, terrible massacre gave a different statement...and it seems they range from a crazy, bloodthirsty cult to a pack of massive, mutant wolves. Sixteen people were killed–all strangely drained of blood–and thankfully no children. Colorado is in a state of horror as we grieve the loss of sixteen and 82 injured."
I was brought out of my daunted thoughts when Jacob spoke after a long moment of silence, "It ties two people together, I suppose...eternally," I was startled by the word. "To imprint on somebody feels like...being grounded, being bound to somebody so pure and so perfect for you. It's the most consuming feeling...and i-it's hard to figure out. You want to be that one girl's everything."
"Love?" was my only response with a small frown.
"It's stronger than love, Dusk," Jacob stated, gazing deeply into my eyes "If you can't block it out, it becomes overwhelming and suffocating. Sometimes, when you're around your imprint, it's hard for you to breathe – to comprehend where or who you are because she's so close to you. When I'm near you...I-I can't breathe."
All I could do was stare at Jacob as time became the beat of a heart in the distance. "Have you...imprinted on somebody before?" I murmured.
Jacob broke our gaze and looked to the floor. "Well...it is said that there is only one perfect person for a shape-shifter and that is your imprint. When I was a teenager, I fell for a girl named Isabella Swan."
Swan was a familiar name to me and I nodded. When I was seven, I had a babysitter by the last name of Swan. She nicknamed me Duckling and I called her Swan. She'd look after me when my parents would go for a sonagram when Mum was pregnant with Aria. Swan would occasionally take me to La Push and we'd play with another little girl called Claire-Bear, who was only three at the time.
"To cut a very long story short, when I was fifteen, I thought Bella & I were destined to be together. Then, I phased when I was sixteen and I still believed Bella and I were meant to be. Even after she engaged her vampire boyfriend, Edward Cullen, and I-"
"Humans and vampires can be together?" I interrupted in disgust, repulsed by the thought.
"No, I've never heard of such a couple...except for Bella & Edward. The Cullens are good vampires, though, my people have a treaty with them. They only drink the blood of animals and have topaz eyes, not burgundy." That sounded unusually moral of demons, though I was still appalled by the thought of a human and vampire relationship. I'd only known evil vampires and I guessed my perspective on those monsters would never change.
"Anyway, when I was sixteen, I had a best friend and that was actually Bella's little sister. We'd been besties all our lives: Embry, Quil, me...and her. But when Edward left Bella for a period of time, I became Bella's best friend and left her sister. After I'd phased, I...I imprinted on Bella's little sister."
My eyes widened in shock. Then it's no me! I realised with a pang. I'm not this alleged imprint. It is Bella's little sister, Jacob's best friend. Somehow, that realisation stung me. "How did she react?"
"We both didn't take it well. I was in love with Bella. So in love that I couldn't even contemplate that the girl I'd been best friends with all my life might've been my better match. Anyway...Sienna and I-"
"Wait, Sienna? Who's Sienna?" I demanded in aghast.
"Sienna is the girl I imprinted on when I was sixteen. She was Bella's sister."
Sienna. Rose. Swan.
I knew the name perfectly. The image of her through my seven-year-old eyes was a little blurry, though the memory of her friendly and caring nature was clear. I remembered those green eyes, bright and cheery. Her smiles were always genuine and her words were never condescending. She was my favourite babysitter and I was disappointed when she suddenly disappeared in 2007. Sienna was Swan...and Dusk was Duckling, I even remembered the nicknames we gave each other!
Jacob had imprinted on my childhood babysitter?
"Dusk, you're not saying anything."
Jacob Black's POV
2nd of January
"Imprinting is..."
I was at a loss for words and, suddenly, I was that sixteen-year-old kid who thought he was in love. Except, she didn't look at me expectantly or curiously or desperately...like Bella had. To my surprise, Dusk seemed calm and composed, those dark brown eyes showing an acceptance I hadn't seen when I explained the ties of an imprint.
Dusk's face was emotionless, I couldn't read anything from her body-language and I hated that. I used to be able to read Bella like a book, but Dusk was skilled at hiding everything her heart was consuming. Maybe it was natural talent or the fact that she was still on-guard about everything we'd shared over the hours.
I was constantly scrutinising her, putting pressure onto my gaze, trying to crack the surface of her expression. Though, she'd simply interpret my stares as something impolite and give me a cold glare before shifting. This time, Dusk didn't do any of that and she simply faced me for what I was.
Doveblood, was the word that haunted me minute by minute. A witch with powers...keeping more secrets under her beautiful skin than I'd hoped. Why couldn't she just be a normal imprint? Wait, is any imprint ever normal? I contemplated this notion and decided against delving into the thoughts my Pack-brothers would share about their precious soulmates.
"Imprinting is...?" Dusk prompted and a gentle, encouraging smile laced into her lips.
Flashback: Eclipse – 22nd of May, 2006
"Imprinting?" Bella repeated, baffled by the unfamiliar word. "What's that mean?"
I hesitated for a split second, Bella's doe eyes seeming totally bewildered by those three syllables. She was so...so fragile and I wondered if she'd be able to consume anymore of this damned inexplicable, supernatural information. "It's one of those bizarre, rare things we have to deal with. It's not a rule of shape-shifting, in fact."
"What is it?" Bella prodded determinedly.
"Same did love Leah, of course. But, when he saw Emily at a barbeque the Clearwaters were throwing, that didn't matter anymore. Sometimes...we don't exactly know why...we find our mates that way," I sighed, shooting Bella a cautious glance.
"You mean...soulmates?" Bella snicked cynically.
"It's a little more powerful than that, Bells," I snapped, shifting me gaze from her to the garage's exit.
My eyes followed the pull that tugged from under my ribcage and rested on someone else.
Across from Bella and me, I saw her standing brightly in the rare sunlight. Her features glowed with joy and playfulness as Claire Young and another brown-skinned girl circled her, eruptions of laughter bursting from all of their lips. Her wavy hair bounced around her lower back as the two little girls giggled and ran from her in haste. "I'm gonna get you, girls!" She exclaimed excitedly as the two squealing kids leapt away from her outstretched arms.
My glazed eyes followed her every move – every shift of her piercing gaze that was accentuated by thick, batting eyelashes. Recently, I'd hardly seen that cheery smile, which those two little girls forced into her features. Claire ran out of my sight, into the distance and following Quil's familiar call. The little, brown-skinned girl stood in front of her alone. She crouched down, placing her hands on the girl's shoulders and asking, "What do you wanna do next, Duckling?"
"I don't know, Swan," Duckling giggled, panting from the mad sprinting she'd been doing all around the place.
"So," Bella raised her eyebrows expectantly. "What is imprinting?"
I startled at the sound of Bella's eager voice but I didn't turn away from the scene outside of my garage. Swan continued to crouch down in front of Duckling, conversing about some sonagram the little one's mother was attending. Swan's smile was soft and radiant as Duckling vigorously chirped about how excited she was for her upcoming baby sister.
Swan nodded, listening to every word, though I sensed a change in her heartbeat's pace as I began speaking. I didn't know if our bond was leaking out any strange feelings or if she sensed my words, her presence forcing every syllable...but she definitely knew I was referring to her. "Imprinting on someone is like..." My eyes flickered from Bella to Swan as I leaned against my bike. "Like, when you see her...everything changes." I met Bella's shadowed gaze and I saw an uncertain emotion in her eyes. "All of a sudden, it's not gravity holding you to the planet...it's her. Nothing else matters. You would do anything...be anything for her."
I watched Bella's expression very closely and all I saw was discomforted shock. "Have you...imprinted on someone?"
I felt a sharp twinge, harsh and consuming, and I had to look away. My eyes moved back to the garage's exit, only to find the path clear. Swan & Duckling had left and the pull under my ribcage began to ache again, more agonizing than ever. I felt her walking away, each step creating a tug-of-war between us.
"You'd know if I had."
End of Flashback
"Dusk, you're not saying anything," I peered into the blank, brown eyes and hoped for a miracle.
Her expression hadn't changed the whole time I'd been explaining. She didn't blink an eye, nor twiddle a thumb. She seemed totally engrossed, yet so unattached to the conversation. Her pleasant expression remained, though I saw an internal battle in her eyes. Dusk looked at the coffee table we were sitting opposite to and sighed, her emotional mask shattering. "What would you like me to say?" She finally murmured.
"Something other than this!" I pleaded, feeling desperation overpowering my level-headed tone.
"What else could I say to you?" She frowned, giving me an open-minded look. "You've cleared everything up and now I understand."
I blinked rapidly, totally thrown by her composed demeanour. "Is...Is that it? Don't you have anymore questions for me? Anything you want cleared up?"
"No, Jacob," Dusk's voice pierced my insides and I cringed at her sharp, icy words. Her eyes remained guarded and I couldn't penetrate them, no matter how much I tried. "I don't have anything to say to you."
"So...am I gathering that you are settled on everything?"
"Define settled," Dusk mused with pursed lips.
"Do you accept all I've explained to you? Imprints, vegetarian vampires, our treaty with the Cullens? Are you just taking it all on without the blink of an eye, literally?" I demanded. "Because none of that seems normal, Dusk! You should at least be...I don't know, shouting at me. Telling me I've done something wrong."
"Why...because I'm good at that?" Dusk hissed and she shot up to her feet, her expression seeming to ruin with dismay. Dusk snapped her head away from me, diverting my distressed and puzzled gaze. "Then, you don't know anything about me! And I was a fool to think I'd figured you out, Jacob Black," Dusk's stern voice seemed to waver as she swiftly approached the door to the hallway.
"Dusk, wait!" I shot up to my feet and instinctively reached out to her. "You need to listen to me."
"I have listened," Dusk met my anxious eyes, hers glistening of diamond tears. "I've listened to it all."
"So...what do you want?" I asked. "What do you choose?"
Dusk let out a lifeless chuckle, gesturing to herself helplessly. "Those are two completely different things, Jacob!" She exclaimed with raised eyebrows. "What do I want? I don't want any of this. Every single detail of supernatural...I-I don't want anything more! But what do I choose? I choose Sarah and her protection, whether Luca Azeri is involved in this mess or not. I choose my family, my life...and my magic. I choose this side of the battlefield."
"Dusk, you need to tell me now," I began slowly, uncertainty tainting my voice. "Do you choose me?"
"I don't know," She whispered nervously. "I don't know if I choose you. You were so in love with the girl from your teenage years. You...you even imprinted on her, Jacob. That is such a strong bond...from the way you've explained it. Maybe you didn't imprint on me. Can it even happen twice? I don't understand any of this."
Hurt pulsed through my body and I found it hard to breathe. "Of course I loved Sienna. I still do, deep down in my frayed heart. She was so precious to me...and I treated her so badly while I thought I was so madly in love with Bella Swan. When we finally accepted each other, the Volturi had come to destroy Bella & Edward's child.
"Seth–my second-in-command–had imprinted on the little devil spawn, Renesmee Carlie, and that is why I kicked him out of the Pack. I shouldn't have been angry at him for something he couldn't control but, I was so angry after Sienna sacrificed herself for her family, I had to take it out on someone...so Seth endured my wrath and was exiled with his big sister, Leah. Sienna knew that she had to protect her family first, so scarified herself...and that broke our imprint."
Dusk didn't know how the imprint had broken and I wasn't prepared to go into much depth on that subject. "What did it feel like? Having the imprint broken?"
I shivered at the excruciating memory. "I...I don't wish that feeling on anybody, Dusk."
"So it isn't me then," She finally whispered after wistful emotions passed her tearful eyes. "I'm not an imprint. It is Sienna Swan who you belong with. So...I am just-"
"Dusk, I did imprint on you," I stated confidently, doubtless. "I feel it every time I look into your eyes. I wasn't so sure when we met in that blizzard, last December. I hadn't felt something so strongly in fifteen years. I don't know how...or why my ancestors shattered my heart and then placed me with another soulmate. But I know you were always the one. You just came...late, I guess."
"So, if you'd looked into my eyes when I was seven, you would've imprinted on me? I remember looking at you, I looked into your eyes...and nothing happened. You didn't imprint on me because you were made for Sienna then."
I stood there baffled and astonished, staring into her reminiscent eyes.
Seven? I thought. What does a seven-year-old Dusk have anything to do with this?
"I remember it clearly now, Jacob," Dusk stated stubbornly. "I went to your garage with Swan and I played tag with Claire-Bear. Before we all left, I caught Sienna staring at you miserably and you were staring at her, too. Sienna started to usher us away, but I glanced at you one last time and our eyes met. I just turned away from you without a worry, I remember."
Flashback: Eclipse – 22nd of May, 2006
"What's wrong, Swan?" The little, brown-skinned girl murmured as she glimpsed Sienna's eyes meeting mine. Our eyes had been locked for a few heartbeats and I stiffened when she tore hers away. "You look sad."
Sienna smiled down at the little girl, clasping her hand and ushering her away from the dirt pathway to my garage. "Nothing, Duckling, let's go home. I bet your parents are home from the hospital with pictures of your baby sister. Come on, sweetie."
"Do you know him, Swan?" Duckling mumbled as Sienna turned the two of them away from me hastily.
"No, I don't..." Sienna muttered and I heard the dark, angry note in her tone. "I don't know him at all."
As the two of them began walking away, Duckling turned around to meet my saddened gaze. Her eyes were gentle–knowing–and she gave me a sympathetic smile, as if to say Sienna would come around and be my friend again. I wished that kid was right; I hoped that would happen someday. But I shattered too much of Sienna and I to mend wounds now. Duckling's back faced me again and they disappeared around the corner, with Swan leading the way.
End of Flashback
15th of January
"I must admit, Mr. Carter, I am very disappointed in this outcome," The godlike prince drew near the arched window of the parlour, casting his shadowed gaze over his thriving kingdom. He regally stood at 6'5", towering over anyone who dared to defy him. His dark skin glistened under the candlelight, making him seem all the more mysterious.
"You Highnesses, I truly apologise for the wait," Henry stood straight, giving the royals all of the respect he could muster. "It seems, Princess Saphira(pronounced saff-er-a) is...vigilant on the matter of returning to Persia. And...your brother, Prince Alejandro, hasn't made an effort of persuasion to join her family. Princess Anastasia is the same. I'm afraid, your family in the mortal world intend on staying with their mortal niece."
"But she will not be mortal," The prince snapped impatiently. "Not for long. She must be prepared for the transformation. Hasn't Guardian Azeri taught her anything? She knows of her heritage, doesn't she? Shouldn't she know everything by now?"
Henry hesitated, contemplating his words carefully. He wanted Luca out of the way, for he'd become too protective of the young princess. "Prince Rafael, Luca has persistently tried to convince Princess Saphira, though she refuses to listen to him. He will only go so far into her life, in fear of invading her rightful privacy."
Prince Rafael tsked, looking over his mighty kingdom again and his strong, stern persona wavered as another longing thought overthrew his impatient emotions. He didn't redirect his gaze as he asked quietly, "Has...my brother told Princess Lis about our kind?"
Queen Lira–perched tall and majestic on her throne–gave her adopted brother a sad glance, though his eyes refused to meet hers. Rafael's dark eyes gleamed of memories of that petite, elegant, green-eyed mortal he'd adored for so long. Her porcelain skin contrasted well with his dark, African/Egyptian features and–whenever her fingers would run down his arm–it looked like white, shimmering stars were cascading down a black, mystifying nightfall.
"Kallista knows...yes," Henry replied instantly. "But Prince Alejandro and Miss. Joanne have reframed from telling her that you are her father."
There was a long silence and Rafael recalled all of the times he'd watch over his little daughter in her dreams. Unique Children of the Moon had powers, similar to that of a vampire, and Rafael was a talented dream-walker. He was able to wield dreams and enter other peoples, though it was always a challenging gift that exhausted him.
Yet, visiting Kallista in her dreams always seemed worth it.
He'd talk to her often and she'd respond without haste, merely thinking it a dream that would disappear by morning. He'd take her for walks in the pale moonlight, asking Kally about her mother and the artwork she'd pull from her memory and present to him proudly. He enjoyed the drawings she'd do of Jo while she was cooking. It seemed Kallista inherited the skill of drawing from her father, something he was glad of.
Kallista would illustrate Joanne's soft, doe features in the way Rafael would when they'd escape for the day and visit the beach. He'd sketch her in the sunlight, when beams of gold cast over her flawless skin, and she was concentrating on nothing but the waves on the beach. He'd marvel at every aspect of Joanne Smith: her equality as a woman, her fragile virtue, her faith in the damned and her angelic features.
Rafael tried to enter Joanne's dreams; he tried to communicate with the one woman he could never work out. Though, of course, she was skilled at blocking him out. While they were together, Rafael had taught her how to build a mental shield for mind-readers and dream-walkers. Joanne Smith had kept that shield up for nearly a decade and refused to let it shatter.
"That is probably the best for her," Rafael muttered unconvincingly.
"She is only nine, Your Highness. I don't think Kallista should be exposed to this world so abruptly," Henry stated confidently.
Rafael nodded wordlessly, keeping is back to the queen and Carter.
There was a long period of silence before a soft, angelic voice pierced the still atmosphere. "Saphira...is she happy with her father, Carter?" Queen Lira asked gently, moving her gaze from her brother to servant.
Henry nodded stiffly. "I suppose so, Your Majesty," He replied delicately.
"Is her necklace still on?" Lira asked worriedly, a frown creasing her fine features.
"Of course, Your Highness. Guardian Azeri would never let it fall from her skin."
"Good," Lira nodded with a sigh of relief. "It is imperative that Saphira keeps her necklace on. If she is to transform into her second form, she must be prepared and compliant. That enchanted gemstone is the only thing that keeps her changing on full moons."
"Yes, Your Highness."
Queen Lira hesitated for a moment before inquiring, "And her nanny, Doveblood Dusk Malveya. What of her, Carter?"
"Oh..." Carter tried to keep himself from growling at the thought of Dusk. "Miss Malveya is still latching onto Saphira in a very maternal light. I suppose, the Doveblood can't accept that fact that you are Saphira's mother and you must enter her life now."
Lira felt a pang of jealousy in her heart, something rare in the level-headed queen.
A/N: A lot more unveiling is happening now. I wonder if you've figured out what's going on yet...
I'm not trying to give away too much, I don't want to ruin any stories...that's all I'm saying in this chapter.
Chapter Thirty will be the last of Dwelling in the Dusk. Then the sequel, Chased by the Shadows, will come shortly after.
