:::LaPush:::
Angela moved away from Abby's prone form. Everyone gathered in Sam's home stood back and held their breath, not sure what to expect. Once Abby's breathing evened out, sighs of relief could be heard throughout the room. That relief was short lived, as they witnessed her body rising slowly from the couch. When a blue bubble like sheen surrounded her, Paul freaked out. He tried to grab her to him, but couldn't get through the shield. In horrored awe, they watched as she was lifted almost to the ceiling, where she hovered for a few minutes before dropping back to the sofa. When she landed, a loud booming sound echoed through the house, the reverberation sending everyone flying in different directions, as pictures flew from the walls and dishes fell from the cabinets, shattering on impact.
As the fallen got to their feet, they watched as the sofa began to spin around, slowly at first, yet gaining momentum with each rotation. Everyone looked to Angela, hoping she could shed some light on the situation. They should have looked elsewhere. She had no answers and let them know with a shrug of her petite shoulders.
"I think I saw this on a movie once." Quil stated. "The Exorcist. It was badass and a little scary in a fucked up kind of way."
"Shut the hell up Quil!" Paul snarled at his brother, as he attempted to stop the spinning couch.
"What? I'm just saying. That little girl turned out to be like the anti-Christ."
Charlie was worried about his small cousin, who at this time was being spun rapidly around the living room. When he heard Quil's quip, he didn't think. He picked up the nearest object, which happened to be an umbrella that Emily previously kept beside the front door. He wondered fleetingly as to how it came to be on the floor next to him, but quickly lost the thought as he began whaling on Quil. The shifter dodged each blow of the parasol, laughing the whole time. He wasn't expecting his grandfather to join in on the assault, however, and found himself dodging an umbrella from the front, and a walking cane from the back.
"Jesus Christ! Would you three cut it the fuck out and help us!" Sam shouted from his position on the opposite end of the couch from Paul. The two beaters and the beatee stopped immediately, looking around the room. They spotted Sam, Paul and Jared attempting to immobilize the couch while Embry had the women and Billy backed into a corner of the room, keeping them from harm. Charlie scanned the room again, looking for Seth, before he remembered the young shifter stayed at the treaty line with the vampires, to let them know what was going on.
Rushing into the fray, the three men joined the others, following the broken orders of Sam and Paul, to no avail. Every once in a while, one of the corner dwellers would shout out an idea. No matter what they tried, they could not gain control of the twirling piece of furniture. The few times they thought they had the upper hand, they soon found themselves tossed aside and on their asses. The shifters could feel the house shifting on its foundation with each fall they took. They knew if Abby didn't stop soon, Sam would be moving.
As they lifted themselves from the floor for the fifth time, the back door slammed open, allowing Seth and six vampires to enter. Without thought, the vamps and Seth jumped in to relieve the spent wolves and humans. They had no better luck than their predecessors. Emmett, being the strongest of all the immortals, grabbed the sofa, planting his feet and holding on for all he was worth. He was a little shocked to feel his feet lifting from the floor, even more so when he felt his body being spun around in circles with the couch.
Stepping back from the chaos, Peter looked around, scratching his head. When he approached the little house set back in the forest, he noticed how it was slightly off center of the foundation. Looking at the damage on the inside, he knew they had to get the humans out, before the roof came crashing down. Jumping back to help the others, he grabbed one side of the couch and yelled for someone to get Abby and get the others out of there.
Paul reached forward and was relieved when he was able to wrap his arms around his imprint. He snatched her up and ran out of the house, watching as Quil, Embry and Jake herded the other humans to safety. Once everyone, human and immortal were safely out of the house, they watched in fascination as the columns on the front porch, split, bringing the overhanging porch to the ground. Pulling Abby closer to him, Paul flinched when he heard Emily's muffled sobs.
"What the hell do we do now?" Leah asked as she stepped over to Emily, rubbing her back gently.
"Whatever it is, it needs to be decided on in the next five minutes. There's going to be a storm blowing in."
Paul looked to see who had spoken. He was surprised to see Alice Cullen standing next to Bella. Taking a long look around, he noticed four of the Cullen's and two additional people standing with their group. Before his wolf could react, Paul noticed the color of their eyes. Or colors as the case may be. He also noticed he didn't smell the horrid stench that usually accompanies being in the proximity of vampires.
"What the hell?" He asked, looking at the other shifters. "I don't smell stink, and what the fuck's up with your eyes?" Glaring at the additional interlopers, he inquired as to who they were.
"I'm Peter Whitlock and this is my mate and wife, Charlotte." He huffed in irritation, as he stepped forward to address the wolf. "I'm gonna say all this happened about the same time your little girl there dropped all of us on our asses." He added, waving his hand around his eyes.
"Really guys, we need to get moving. That storm is going to be something else." Alice butted in.
"Let's go to my house." Old Quil offered.
Every vehicle available was packed with shifters, vamps and humans. Quickly they made their way to the medicine man's house. Within minutes, they were unloading and gathering in the front room. Reluctantly, Paul placed Abby on the sofa and sat next to her, as the others talked amongst themselves. Peter and Charlotte stood close to Paul and Abby, unwilling to leave their charge's side.
The first rumble of thunder coincided with the subtle movement of the couch Abby was lying on. Only the immortals heard the slight scraping of furniture on hardwood over the thunder's echo. The first indication the humans had of imminent trouble was the sudden turnings of heads of the shifters and vampires, which found the humans stepping closer to the danger.
"What's going on?" Bella whispered as she wrapped herself around Quil's arm. Sensing her fear, he moved his arm from her grasp, wrapping it around her securely and pulling her closer to him.
"I think we're about to get a repeat performance." He whispered in her ear.
Suddenly, the couch lifted and slammed back to the floor, sending Paul to the floor. He jumped up and grabbed his imprint once more and made his way out of the house as pictures, nic nacs and dishes began crashing to the floor. He was soon surrounded by the others as the first drops of rain began falling.
"Quickly! My house!" Sue shouted as she turned to run the few yards to her home.
"No!" Leah and Seth shouted to their retreating parent.
"Guys." Alice warned, unnecessarily, as lightning began striking and thunder boomed continuously around them.
"Fuck it. My house." Paul said as he began the run to his house, which was situated at the far end of the reservation, his imprint firmly in his arms.
Flanked on four sides by vampires and wolves, he made his way to his small cottage style home. As he entered through the back door, the rain began falling in torrents. Lightning strikes were closely followed by rolling thunder. Rushing to his bedroom, he laid Abby on his bed, covering her with blankets to ward off the chill from the rain that had soaked her on their run.
He found himself being forced from the room by Leah as the three vampires began pulling the blankets off his imprint. Growling in anger, he tried to push his way back in the room, when his sister finally got through to him, explaining the necessity of getting Abby dry, which meant changing her clothes, and he was not allowed to be there for that. The door firmly shutting in his face was his clue to join the men in the other room. Bypassing the living room, he made his way to the refrigerator, where he pulled the half case of beer from the shelf, removed one from the box and popped the top. Chugging without stopping, he drained it in no time, reaching for another.
"You plan on sharing?" He heard Sam ask from the next room.
Hefting the box, he made his way to join the others, where he proceeded to hand out cans to the men. When he reached the vamps, he lifted his brow in question.
"Can you guys even drink this?"
"Yesterday, I would have said hell no. Right now? I think it might be possible. It smells pretty damn good." Emmett answered for the vamp men.
Handing off three beers, the shifters sat back and watched as the vampires took tentative sips of their drinks. They laughed hysterically when all three vampires' eyes widened in surprise. And they turned the drinks up, emptying the cans in sync, then crushing them in their hands, like they had seen done on television, before reaching for another.
When they heard approaching cars, all the men stood and made their way to the front door. They could barely make out the vehicles through the sheets of rain that were pouring from the now blackened sky. Rushing out, they helped the humans from the cars and into the house, Billy was flung unceremoniously over Emmett's shoulder as Jake helped Old Quil. Once everyone was inside, Sue and Emily made their way to the bathroom to retrieve towels for everyone. Charlie was only interested in Abby's whereabouts and let that be known as Sue shoved a towel in his hands.
He was directed to Paul's room, and along with Sue, made his way to his cousin's side. Sitting gently beside her, he pushed her still damp hair from her brown before leaning over and placing a kiss to her forehead. Sue checked her vitals and for fever before deciding she was resting somewhat comfortably, Charlie stood and walked back to join the others, Sue by his side. They stopped in their tracks when they saw Emmett drinking a beer.
"I thought vampires only drank blood." Charlie stated as he reached for a can from the fast emptying case.
"Yeah, what's up with that?" Billy asked from the corner of the sofa, where Emmett deposited him.
"I think little girl had somethin to do with it." Peter let them know between gulps of his beer.
"What do you mean?" Sue asked as she made her way to Paul's kitchen to see about preparing a meal.
"When we got up after that sonic boom shit, our eyes were back to our human color. We ain't sparklin' in the sunlight either."
"I wonder." Bella thought aloud. "If you can drink beer, can you eat? I mean human food?" This brought silence to the room. Everyone wondering if it were possible. She continued her thought pattern. "And, if you can drink and eat, how are you going to get rid of it? Are you going to have to vomit it or are you going to start using the bathroom again?"
Peter began shifting uncomfortably where he stood. "I'll let ya know." He told Bella as he dashed from the room to the bathroom, remembering to shut the door behind him.
"Why is he running the water?" Angela spoke quietly.
"Aw, he ain't runnin water Ang. He's takin a piss." Jasper let her know with a smug grin.
Everyone waited as they heard the flush of the toilet followed by the water in the sink turning on then shutting off. They watched, holding back laughter, as the vampire made his way sheepishly back to the living room.
"Yeah. We ain't gonna be pukin no more." He stated to the laughing group. "On the plus side, our peckers didn't shrink." Receiving a smack to the back of his head from Charlotte.
A chuckling Sue came into the room and informed them that Paul had very little food in his pantry. Looking to Seth and Leah, she asked if they would mind running to their house and collecting some items. She knew the rain wouldn't affect her children, in human nor wolf form. Once she told them what she wanted, she watched as they left through the back door, ran to the tree line and disappeared. She was pleased when Rosalie followed her to the kitchen and asked if she could help.
As Sue and Rose began prepping in the kitchen, conversation in the living room turned to the situation at hand. All joking ended as Old Quil began giving his opinion on what happened. Angela added what she felt was important as the others listened and input when they thought it was needed. Conversation lagged when Alice skipped to the back door, stating that Leah and Seth would be there in one minute.
"You can see the wolves now?" Jasper asked his wife.
"Yep. When we regained some of our human traits, I started to get visions of them."
"What do you mean?" Billy asked the pixie vampire, who was dancing around the back door.
"Before this afternoon, anytime I tried to see the future of the wolves, my vision would go fuzzy or black." Alice let him know as she reached and opened the door when she saw the two shifters making a dash to the porch. Reaching out, she took the bags from the brother and sister as they rushed in.
"It's storming like hell out there." Leah informed as she took the towel Charlotte held out for her.
"Do you think this is Abby's doing?" Charlie asked Old Quil, who nodded in the affirmative.
"Yes. I think her witch is making herself known."
"Well, we know ya here darlin' so ya can slack off a lil now." Charlotte drawled towards the bedroom where Abigail was sleeping. A loud crack of thunder was her answer.
"What do we do now?" Bella asked the group.
"I see you, Angela, Jasper, and me at school tomorrow. We have to show up so people don't get curious about what happened this afternoon." Alice told her, as she was pulled into a vision.
"Charlie will be going to work as usual. Everyone else will be doing what they normally do, with the exception of Paul, Peter and Charlotte. I see them staying here with Abby."
"What about us?" Emmett asked his sister.
"I'm not sure. I see you and Rose going home and not much after that. Just normal things."
"That makes no sense Alice. After what we found out, I'm not so sure I want to go back." Rose said, incensed with the thought of being in the same proximity with Carlisle and Esme.
"What you found out? What do you mean?" Sam asked as he pulled Emily into his arms.
Thus began the re-telling of the trip to Louisiana and the information they gathered from the two members of the Volturi and the vaettir. Including the lineage of each of them, and the role Carlisle and Esme played in the whole thing. They told of the markers they found in the cemetery and the fact that there were others in different states. To say the shifters and humans were irate would be a huge understatement. The shifters were ready to attack and tear Carlisle and Esme to bits and heatedly let everyone know. Charlie, Billy and Old Quil were ready to light the fire on the pyre.
Sensing the need to calm the horde, Sue announced dinner. When everyone had their plate, she asked that they refrain from speaking of any angering topics, they could resume the conversation when dinner was complete. Everyone agreed, then turned their attention to the vampires that were partaking of their first meal since their change to immortality. Seeing the looks on their faces as they took their first bite of food was comical.
"Oh my God." Rose groaned as she chewed then swallowed the first bite of spaghetti.
Emmett placed a noodle in his mouth and slurped it like a small child. Everyone watched as it quickly disappeared, leaving a smattering of sauce on his lips. Grinning like a cheshire cat, he told the group, "I've always wanted to do that."
Conversation flowed smoothly between the once mortal enemies. The shifters teased the vampires when they noticed that the vamps were drawn to the toasted bread. "You do realize you're eating garlic bread, right?" Quil chuckled.
"No shit? For real?" Jasper questioned.
"Yes!" They let him know, laughing when he reached for another slice.
"This is so much better than the jerky I remember eating when I was growing up."
"When was that?" Charlie asked.
"Eighteen hundred and forty-four." Jasper answered causing Charlie to choke on his bread.
"That was before the Civil War." Charlie gasped between coughs.
"Yes sir. I fought in that war."
"When all this is resolved, you and me are going to sit down and you're going to tell me everything about that time." Charlie, pointing his fork for emphasis, informed him.
"Be glad to sir." Jasper smiled.
Soon, dinner was over. The girls all pitched in to help clean the kitchen, so they could get back to the conversation that they had put off. Charlie mentioned to Angela that she should call home and ask her parents if she could stay with Bella and Abby overnight, since it was still storming. Not wanting to risk tipping her mother off to her whereabouts, she decided to call her father. Once Charlie assured Mr. Weber that he would be with the girls all night, the reverend agreed to the sleepover.
Paul excused himself and went to check on Abby. His wolf rumbled his approval when he noticed the tiny girl in one of his old shirts. Leaning down, the man and the wolf drew in a deep breath, catching their mate's scent, leaving a small kiss to her pink lips, drawing a slight smile from them, before rising and leaving the room.
"I got a feelin' some things are gonna change tomorrow." Peter informed.
"Yeah. I think you're right." Alice agreed. "I don't know why, but I only see Paul, Charlotte, Leah, Bella, Angela, and you being allowed in the house after tonight."
"What or Who is going to keep the rest of us out?" Charlie demanded to know.
"I'm sorry Charlie. All I see is you and Mr. Ateara trying to get in, but you can't make it past the porch." She told an angered chief of police.
"You can call me Old Quil. You're going to be spending a lot of time around here, and we don't stand on formality." The medicine man told the group of vampires, getting nods in acceptance.
"It's a defence mechanism." Angela spoke, from her spot on the floor next to Bella and Rosalie. "The witch is still vulnerable and she's protecting herself and Abby. They will both be weak for a couple of weeks. We are all going to have to be careful with what we say and do around her for a little while. Any little thing will set her witch off. It could be good or bad, depending on the situation. I wouldn't recommend telling her anything that will shock her or make her mad."
"So, we make sure she's well protected. I know the shifter's are capable of that, but, what about the vampires? Now that you're not so vampy anymore, can you still do what you used to do?" Jake worried. It was a reasonable worry.
Looking to Alice and Peter, they waited on an answer.
Alice nodded as Peter confirmed. "Yeah, my knower is tellin me we didn't lose any of our powers or strength. We were given these changes to help us fit in. I'm guessin we're gonna be out in the sun quite a bit at some point and we can't be sparklin."
"Yes, I saw all of us in bright sunlight. I'm not sure where, it's a big city with a lot of buildings, but we were fitting in with all of you. From what I could tell, it's going to be within the next six months. I didn't see any snow, so I'm going to say close to the beginning of spring. I say six months because Emmett trades vehicles every two years, like clockwork. In my vision, he still has the current one and I know he only has six months left on the lease." Alice elaborated.
A boom of thunder followed her announcement, making the humans jump.
Peter got a thoughtful look on his face as he turned his head toward the room where Abby was. "Was that you lil darlin?" Another boom sounded outside.
Slapping his hand on his thigh, he harrumphed in satisfaction. "I knew that lil girl was gonna be somethin else! She ain't asleep like we thought. She's communin with her witch side." The boom of thunder from outside followed his announcement.
"She can hear us?" Paul asked, the same time as Charlie.
Boom. Boom.
After inquiring about her welfare, if she was feeling okay, if she was safe, and receiving booms of thunder as answers, Old Quil called a halt to the questions, stating the residents of the town were bound to be getting worried. If the torrential downpour wasn't making them jittery, the constant sound of thunder would. After his proclamation, the thunder ended and the rain slacked up considerably. At the sudden change outside, it was agreed that the witch was agreeing with the medicine man.
Eventually, the group started breaking up. Embry left to take over patrol from Jared who had left immediately after dinner. Billy was getting tired from sitting in the same position for hours, so Jake left to take him home. Old Quil followed close behind. Sue offered to let Sam and Emily stay with her family until they could make sure their house was safe. Thankful for the offer, Emily left with her aunt and Seth, while Sam ran to their home to pack some clothes. Charlie declared it was time for Bella and Angela to leave with him, and extended an invitation for the vampires to stay with his family, if they didn't want to return home. Rose and Alice accepted gratefully, as Jasper and Emmett let them know they were going to see if they could find Edward. Peter and Charlotte declined, stating they felt the need to stay close to Abigail. That only left Leah.
When she walked out of the bedroom with a pillow and blanket, Paul knew she was staying. Making a move to get up from the sofa, he was surprised when he was hit in the head with the pillow, followed by the blanket.
"I'll be sleeping in the bedroom. Make yourself comfortable on the couch." She told him as she turned and made her way back to his room. Making Charlie smile in relief.
"Hey chief? Remember what we told ya about not bein able to get in the house. I ain't wantin to see anybody get shot cause your danders up." Peter reminded Charlie as he made his way to the door, after checking on Abigail one last time.
"I'll try to keep that in mind." He drawled, making a dash to his car in the slightly less flooding downpour.
Paul sighed in relief. Glad to be alone in his house with his imprint. Well, if you don't count the shifter in his bedroom and the two semi vamps sitting on his couch, he was alone with his imprint.
"I hate to say this, but my knower is tellin me he's gonna be the one that spills the beans to the little one when she wakes up." Peter told Charlotte, looking in Paul's direction.
Paul laughed at the statement. "Nah. Not me man. I just want her to wake up. No bad effects from the shit that happened today, and healthy. I'm not going to say anything to hurt her or set her off." Peter looked at him and shook his head. His knower had never been wrong before, and he wasn't going to bet on it being wrong this time either.
As thought, the next day found Charlie and Old Quil standing just off the porch, unable to gain access to the home. A blue film surrounded the entire house. Try as they might, they could not push through the shield. The only ones allowed entrance were the ones Alice noted in her vision. Charlie had to rely on updates from Bella, Leah, Angela, and Paul, when he deemed it necessary to come out of the house. He would have asked Peter or Charlotte, but those two never left.
By the third day, Charlie was frantic to check on his cousin. He needed to see for himself that his charge was okay. Breathing a sigh of annoyance, his sights fell on Paul as he quickly made his way to Old Quil and him.
"Any changes?" Old Quil asked solemnly.
"She woke up a little bit ago."
"What! How is she? Is she okay? What did she say?" Charlie asked without giving Paul a chance to answer. "When is she going to drop this damn shield so I can get in there?"
"She seems fine. She was talking and making sense and all. I don't know about the bubble though. I thought it would have disappeared when she woke up." Paul let him know.
"Well, go back in there and tell her to drop the damn thing." Charlie ordered.
"I would chief, but she went back to sleep." Paul stated.
All heads turned toward the porch as Leah, Bella fast on her heels made her way down the steps and landed a punch to Paul's jewels. Charlie cringed in sympathy, wondering what the shifter could have possibly done to warrant such violence. When Bella escaped his hold and kicked the man, again, in the jewels, Charlie worried he would never walk upright again. He suggested Paul stay on the ground and got an muffled agreement in return.
"What the hell is going on?" Old Quil demanded to know.
"His dumbass thought it would be a good idea to tell Abby about some of the shit that happened the other day." Leah fumed.
Reaching down to assist Paul to his feet, Charlie shook his head in disappointment. "Didn't Angela tell us to watch what we say?"
"Well, yeah, but I couldn't not answer her and I couldn't lie." Paul explained hoarsely. "My wolf wouldn't let me." He finished.
"The imprint." Leah finally understood, looking apologetically to her brother.
"Paul?" All eyes moved to the front door, where Abby was standing, using the frame for support.
Shaking himself of the pain, he made his way to her as quickly as he could. He was the only one that didn't notice the bubble had vanished with her appearance. Taking the opportunity, Charlie and Old Quil followed right behind Paul, hoping they made it to the door before the shield reappeared.