A Dose of Truth
Carlisle's POV
Today was the first day of the rest of my life. When I'd opened my eyes I felt an infusion of light that seemed to burst out through them. It brought everything I saw into a perfect clarity. I still saw every dust mote, every fiber in the drapes, every nuance in the creams, tans and beiges that colored my room. But there was something more. For the briefest of seconds I focused on the air around me trying to get a sense of it and suddenly the atmosphere seemed to change--no, to sharpen. It felt as though I were suddenly looking through an electron microscope. The air seemed to break into its atomic particles. I could see not just the dust motes, but the tiny molecules that carried them along. And inside of those molecules I could see the building blocks of matter.
"Awaken, son Carlisle," A voice commanded. The bearer of which extended a hand to me that I took to gather my bearings and before the blink of an eye I found myself standing and in the embrace of the man I knew to be the father of my transformation; the father whose essence had affected my change, my Father, Sampsa. His touch was warm, pleasant, comforting. I was overcome with a deep felt love, acceptance and satisfaction that seemed to roll off him and wash over me.
"Father," I said in acknowledgement. In that second, I felt the love a true father would have for his son. It was so different from my vague recollections of my earthly father's cruel demands.
I felt a delicate hand on my shoulder. I recognized the touch at once. I intuitively knew that it was the touch of the one that had brought about the catalyst of my transformation. As I turned towards her, she spoke in a beautiful melodious voice. "Hello son Carlisle. I love you." And from her radiated the same feelings I had felt from Sampsa, but hers were more tender. This feeling was completely new to my experience; although I had experienced it vicariously through Esme's grief and Bella's sacrifice and subsequent devotion to her daughter. I had been a witness to this love as it had played out for me countless times from a child's sickbed.
"Mother," I said with a feeling that stirred inside of me. A feeling of love a child would have for his mother. I could not remember my earthly mother. She had died while I was young. I felt strangely important to be so regarded by such honorable and majestic beings. I felt my own feelings of love and tenderness flowing from my core in response.
"Your sweetheart is here to greet you as well." Aurora said as she gestured to my left. Then I saw her, my beloved Esme and the rush of emotion nearly undid me. She was the same woman who'd owned my heart for all of these years. What was it that had changed? I stared intently at her for a fraction of a second. As I did so, her countenance became even more focused and then as though I'd put on an unusual pair of glasses I was able to see a sudden glow of lights that seemed to surround her face. There were shades of rose, from delicate pink to the deepest red, intermixed with the yellow of buttercups and those of a peachy orange; these bright colors shown all around her head. They enhanced her already beautiful features and left me stunned beyond words. They conveyed the depths of her soul, they were an expression of her love; her love for me, for our family, for those around her. Her parents had rightly named this woman Esme, whose name meant love and whose life was devoted to it. I blinked and pulled back my focus to within its normal parameters and the colors dissipated, leaving my beautiful wife, utterly stunning, and still as desirable as a goddess.
"Carlisle, I love you." She said to me and I was overcome with the intensity of the feelings of love and joy that her words summoned out of my core. I was a new man and yet I had just rediscovered my home.
When I was able to overcome the intensity of the emotions I struggled with, I found my voice. "My darling Esme," I said before the need to kiss her and reaffirm my vow to her as my truest of loves overwhelmed me and I bent my lips to hers and tasted of her sweetness. And when I pulled away from her lips, all was right with the world. "I love you too." I gathered her in my embrace again as I thought of what an understatement those mere words were. There were no utterance that could express the feelings I had for this most amazing woman who graced my life. I whispered in her ear, "I'll have so much more to share with you when we are alone Esme. But for now, I must greet my new siblings." I'd told her as I stepped out of her embrace, but not before patting her back, smiling and giving her a little wink. Doing so sent a jolt of excitement running through me from head to toe. That was unexpected.
Of course, meeting my siblings had been everything I had expected it to be. Of course, I had already been introduced to them our last two days in the Amazon. Two in person and two by way of the visuals Chandra provided. And of course, there was the newest sister to the family as well. Elizabeth. I had known her briefly decades ago. She was dying then and not at her best. I had gotten a better feel for her personality, her spark for life, during our visit to Chan Chan.
Then my Father had used his gift to allow me to gather the information I needed right from Edward's mind. Information of what had transpired during my short two day 'rest'; information that required my immediate attention. My new family then took their leave after giving me more instructions. They were gone but I felt a strange tingling at the base of my neck when I thought of them. It felt as though there was a tenuous connection there that over time would strengthen. Hadn't they told me in Chan Chan, they were practically on 'internet chat' all of the time when using the computer analogy? Another curiosity to explore later.
So, for a brief few seconds, I had stepped into my office to don my tie and white medical jacket. I had a patient to see; a patient who was scared and rightly so. I knew it was important to maintain a professional appearance for this first meeting. She was human after all, and I needed her to feel confident in her chances if she were to trust me. What about Demetri? From Edward's assessment, he seemed to really care for this girl. Was it possible that she could have broken through his ties to the Volturi--ties over a century old? Was it possible his loyalty had shifted to give her precedence over his 'masters'? It was clear from Edward's thoughts and perceptions and the thoughts he had gleamed right from Demetri himself, that he believed Demetri capable of this change. I would have to consider this for myself. On the one hand, Demetri had knowingly and purposefully endangered this girls life—her future. On the other hand, he had also put his own life on the line for her in begging Aro for the chance to save her—by bringing her to me. That would have taken a mighty change of heart. Would it be enough to make him see reason? We would have to see about that.
I stepped across the hall and rapped lightly on the door to the guest suite. I entered to find Demetri sitting on the left side of the room and Leah Clearwater on the right. Between them on the bed was the sleeping form of Mia Giordano. I entered quietly and nodded at Leah. "Leah," I said in quiet acknowledgement. I was amazed at how calmly she sat in the room with a 'traditional' vampire. She had matured quite a bit to be so composed, given the circumstances. "Demetri," I said just as quietly. I stepped closer to him and he rose. We shook hands before he sat back down, casting Mia a worried look.
"Thank you so much for agreeing to see Mia." He said, and though his voice was as quiet as my own, the relief at seeing me was audible in it. Then his face became a bit confused. "Pardon me Carlisle, but I can't seem to catch the tenor of your thoughts that I use for tracking. I don't mean to sound rude. But I have been anxious to meet with you so I have been searching for it. I haven't sensed your thought tenor at all--even now, with you standing right here in front of me. Is everything alright?"
"Everything is fine," I said. I added thoughtfully, "Of course, Edward just told me that he too was having difficulty hearing my thoughts, so maybe there is something to it." I wanted to alleviate his fears and suspicions but I wasn't about to explain my new shield to him under any circumstances. "So perhaps my plane went over one too many power lines, or perhaps it was a micro burst of some kind, or, well, who knows. But that's not the important thing right now." I said to close that line of questioning and focus our conversation into more pertinent directions. He took my suggestion without question. He wanted to talk about Mia.
"Mia is sleeping but if you're ready, I can wake her up." Demetri said. I could sense he was eager not just to have Mia's condition assessed but to not keep me waiting. He viewed my time as valuable. I was abruptly aware he viewed me as the head of my 'coven', much the way Aro was the head of his and somehow equated me to his understanding of Aro and his demands to be 'catered too'. How I knew this, I couldn't tell you. But it was almost instinctual.
"Let's let her sleep a little longer," I told him and he visibly relaxed. It was clear he hadn't wanted to wake her just yet. She must have just fallen asleep. "In the mean time," I began my voice still quiet. "Why don't you tell me about how you met and fell in love with Mia?" I felt a need to gauge his true feelings for this woman whose life he has put in such jeopardy.
"Didn't you read Aro's note?" He said with alarm.
"Yes, I did." Actually I'd read it through Edward's memories but I wouldn't be mentioning that detail to Demetri. "You were ordered by Aro to impregnate a human woman so he would have his specimen to study." It was a cold and calculating assessment but it was the truth too and I needed to see Demetri's reaction to it. His grimace was swift and his face seemed to take on a darker expression to it. I focused even closer on his face and was astonished to see once again colors shooting out around his face as well. His were more of a palette of blues and purples with shades of turquoise and indigo interspersed. As I studied this almost 'colored halo' surrounding his head, the colors seemed to react to his mood swing. They darkened until the purples and blue looked blacker in hue than the brilliant colors of before. I wondered if this was a reflection of his apparent self-loathing brought on by the guilt my comment produced. It oddly reminded me of Edward; though my son didn't deliberately set out to impregnate his wife.
"Perhaps that came out to harsh. I meant to hear the story of what it was about Mia that drew you to her. I am sorry if I am being presumptuous. It's just that I am a romantic and I love to hear of the workings of the heart." Of course, I also wanted to have a better sense of the workings of his heart in particular.
"Mia is the best woman I have ever gotten to know." He told me. His voice, though still quiet, had taken on a tone of bleakness. "She doesn't deserve this--me. She deserves to live and be happy. I wish I could go back and undo my intrusion into her life—even though it would leave me in a continuance of my existence without understanding what life should be; not that this knowledge will leave me in a better position should Mia die at my hand." Demetri buried his head in his hands. He was burning in his own personal hell. Perhaps while he was there, he would find a way to burn away his attachment to the ancient Volturi leaders.
He spoke through his fingers. "Not that it matters what becomes of me, if Mia dies. I am disgusted with myself. I blindly thought I was so smart to find a different way to follow Aro's instructions. I was cocky. I thought I could develop feelings for a human and then pull back, detach from them when necessary. I didn't figure on meeting someone like Mia. I was such an arrogant fool and I don't want to follow blindly anymore. I want Mia to live. No, I need Mia to live. Please help her Carlisle. She is too good to be destroyed for Aro's amusement." He finished with his head still in his hands. He was clearly to ashamed to even look me in the eye after his admission. His mannerism again strangely reminded me of Edward.
Perhaps I could leave him with a little acceptance; some hope and a sense of what could be. "Demetri, everything is not lost. Remember that. Mia will need you to be strong for her. Try to focus on what might well happen here. You and Mia are creating a new little life. You are about to become parents and start your own family. Your future does not have to be one of despair. Edward thought Bella was doomed to die when she was pregnant. But now he has everything he ever wanted in life. He went through the burning fire of regret much the same way you are doing now. He never imagined his life would have become so rich. Because of Bella's experience, we know now what to expect with this kind of pregnancy. We know what the baby needs to survive. We know about how long the gestation period is until birth and we know what to expect the baby to be. I don't mean to oversimplify things and say there is no danger because there is great peril in this situation. But Mia and the baby have a better chance because of our increased knowledge. So use that as a lifeline so you can find within yourself the strength to be brave for Mia's sake."
My words must have helped Demetri. He looked up from his hands and nodded once. "I can appreciate your optimism. But I don't think Mia understands yet that Aro intends to be deeply involved in the life of this child. I don't know if I want her to understand. I wish I didn't."
"Well, you may want to wait a day or two before you take that up with her." I cautioned him. "She is going to be hearing enough stressful things about her pregnancy, about her chances during delivery and about what to expect if she does make it. Too much stress at one time will be very hard for her system." I decided to take a chance with Demetri. He did bring up the 'Aro Factor' himself. "You should discuss Aro's agenda with Mia before too long though. This is her child as well as yours. It is NOT Aro's. He is not responsible for the choices in rearing. Those belong to the two of you alone. Make sure that you take her desires in this matter to heart. Mothers instinctively know what is best for their children."
"Yes," Demetri said blandly. "I rather doubt any choices we make will matter much to Aro. He thinks of this baby as his."
"Well, it's a good thing Aro is half way around the world then." Leah said with a little venom of her own. She had been so silent through our discussion I had thought she was lost in thought.
"Aro has resources." Demetri said turning to her.
Leah smiled then. It was a bright, scary sort of smile. "Yes, Aro has resources. I hear he has the best tracker in the world; the best tracker in the world, who may have just found an assignment more important than Aro's machinations."
Leah surprised me. She very cleverly said what I had only thought. Already I could see Demetri turning her words over in his head. It was like she had planted in Demetri's head one of those 'thought seeds' the Agents of Light used on Aro in the past. Mia started to stir. I knew we needed to focus on her for now and give Demetri some space for contemplation.
"Time for me to see how my patient is doing," I said gesturing Mia's way. Demetri immediately placed his cool hand to her cheek.
"Mia, Doctor Cullen is here." He said gently to her. Her eyes opened abruptly and she looked at me with a start. She tried to sit up. Leah adjusted pillows behind her head so she could do so with minimal discomfort.
"Thank you," She said to Leah as she smiled tentatively. Then she turned in my direction. "Hello Doctor Cullen." She said nervously but trying to appear calmer than she actually was. Her accelerating heart rate bore out my assessment. Then I remembered that I could appear more human. This would be helpful to her now. So I concentrated on doing just that and I was surprised to feel a heat settle over me. Leah, watching me from the side, had her eyes get wide for about a half a second and then a small smile crept across her face. It must be working. Already Mia's heart rate was returning to normal. Demetri was so focused on Mia that he hadn't notice any change at all.
"Please call me Carlisle," I said warmly as I took her hand and shook it lightly once. Hopefully it was warm too. She didn't register it being anything other than what she was expecting.
"Okay," Mia said brighter. Somehow meeting me had alleviated some fear she had already developed. Perhaps my new ability to appear more human would be very valuable indeed. "Carlisle," She said as though trying it on. She smiled at me and then at Demetri. He looked even more relieved as her stress level abated.
"We're going to need to conduct a physical exam before we really have an informed discussion about what you can expect here. So I will meet you across the hall in my office as soon as you are ready." I nodded to the three and I took the clipboard with me as I left, closing the door behind me.
I ended up having a little gathering in the exam room with me. Of course there was Mia and Demetri. Leah was there along with Bella and Rosalie who, acting as nurses, prepared Mia for the exam. As expected, I was unable to hear the baby's heartbeat through the vampiric amniotic sac, and that same barrier prevented any kind of x-ray or sonogram from giving us any additional information. The internal exam was normal too. We ended up going on the date of Mia's last cycle and the size of her abdominal circumference to conclude that, using Nessie's gestation as our model that she was about as far along as Bella was when she returned 'expecting' from her honeymoon. That gave her another two and a half weeks before delivery. The baby's due date was September 28th. Today's date was September 9th.
After we were done with the exam, I left so our 'team' could get Mia situated back in her bed across the hall before I returned to discuss with Mia what she could expect and what she needed to know. Most of which would not be pleasant and most of which, I was fairly certain she didn't know already. This was a role, as a doctor, I had played far too often for my liking; and yet it was important I tell her as gently as I could. It was imperative that she understand the daunting task that lay ahead of her.
After waiting ten minutes, I once again entered the guest bedroom to give Mia a dose of truth--one that hopefully she would be able to swallow. It would be a massive amount to administer all at once. I only prayed it wouldn't send her into shock. When I entered, Mia was sitting comfortably with her pillows fluffed behind her. Leah was taking her responsibility very seriously. I sat down in the free chair next to her. It would be an involved conversation and she would be more at ease if I was on eye level with her and not looking down.
"Mia, everything is going along well for the time being." I began cautiously. She beamed over at Demetri. He returned her smile and took her hand in his again. "I have a lot of information to go over with the two of you and it is not pleasant. Please feel free to stop me at anytime to ask any question you may have." She nodded cautiously as though bracing herself for the upcoming 'unpleasantness'.
"First, let's talk about what you can expect for the next eighteen days until the baby is born. Your baby is not only growing at a greatly accelerated rate, he or she is also going to be much stronger than you. This will be difficult for your body to accommodate. Bella frequently was kicked so hard that before she was a week further along than you are now, her entire abdominal area was a mass of hematomas.
Mia's hand went up just as I realized my error. I had used a medical term and she was fighting a language barrier in addition to pulling medical terminology out of a hat, so to speak. "Bruises," I added for clarification. Her hand went down and she nodded once.
"The baby will kick me that hard?" She asked with the beginnings of apprehension. I studied her reaction as I explained some more. Again, as my focus became more intent, her persona took on an array of colors. Mia's were much like Demetri's, though they were paler than his. There were shades of lavender and baby blue with hints of soft pink subtly playing around the edges. I pulled back my gaze to stay focused on my delicate task of educating my new charge.
"Mia," I said sympathetically. "This baby will kick so hard that the bruises will be only the beginning." She took in a sharp breath as she imagined what else her unborn child might do. She started to turn green. The stress was going to get to her. And yet I had to explain all of the facts to her now so she could come to terms with them in time. "Bella had two of her ribs broken on two different occasions as well. So it will be very important I be informed immediately when the baby kicks you hard because we will need to x-ray the bones and tape the rib to prevent any break from puncturing your spleen or other organs." Her face became steadily greener with my continued description of her upcoming prognosis. Leah brought a lined wastebasket out from her other side and held it under her mouth as she lost the remains of an egg of sorts from an hour and a half earlier. Afterwards, Leah handed her a stick of gum and helped her lay back into her bed as Mia shook and tried to get her bearings. Demetri fit his cool hand to her cheek again. The coolness seemed to soothe her. This reminded me.
"Sometimes you will go from having hot flashes to cold spells. Let the girls and Demetri know so they can keep you bundled up or cooled off as the need demands. We'll need you to stay off your feet as much as possible, especially after the next few days, so let everyone carry you around. It is no trouble for them and they are more than willing to help you out. Right now, you are our main priority." She smiled a little embarrassed at my last pronouncement. Demetri leaned in and kissed her forehead.
"There is one more thing that we need to discuss about the 'pregnancy part' of your stay. We almost lost Bella and Renesmee both because we were unable to keep Bella from throwing up everything she tried to eat for over four days. By providence, and the inner workings of both Jacob Black and Edward's minds, we discovered the unborn baby needed to have blood before Bella could eat human food."
Mia shifted uncomfortably. "When you say blood, do you mean like a transfusion?"
"No, not in a transfusion, you'll have to ingest this blood. You will need to drink it." I said as I tried to not notice her blanch.
"I have to drink blood?" She said in quiet revulsion. Demetri turned away from her and although he did so casually I could tell it was to keep her from seeing the pain on his face.
"Bella, can you bring it up now?" I asked without raising my voice. I heard her affirmative reply from the kitchen. "You don't have to take any now, but we want to conduct a little experiment first." She nodded cautiously once. That was when she noticed Demetri had turned away from her and she tugged on his hand lightly until he turned towards her. He gave her a weak little smile as Bella appeared in the doorway carrying a white Styrofoam cup with a lid and a white bendy straw inserted. Mia's eyes seemed to zero in on the offensive cup and she cowered into Demetri as if he could protect her from it. Demetri had an unreadable expression.
Bella looked at Mia with a sympathetic look of understanding. She sat right on the bed close to where she sat leaning towards Demetri. "You know when I was human I used to pass right out at the smell of blood." She said ruefully.
"You did?" Mia asked in astonishment. "But now you're a vampire?"
"Yep! Edward used to think it was pretty funny, or as he put it 'ironic'."
It was just then that two things happened in the same instant. First, the expression on Demetri's face that had been unreadable moments ago became clear as he stared intently at the smell coming from the cup of human blood. And Edward was suddenly in the room and had placed himself between Demetri, holding him by the shoulders, and the bed where Mia and Bella were situated with the little white cup. The thirst the open container engendered was growing. It would not be sated with a mere cupful. He would attack Mia before he could stop himself.
"Demetri, we need to step into the hall for a moment. Perhaps even go hunting." Edward said quickly under his breath in a tone full of implications. Demetri suddenly looked at him and the realization of what he had almost done finally sunk in and cleared his head.
"Yes," He said in shock. "I will be right out in the hall, Mia. I'll be right back sweetheart." He said as he kissed the hand he still held awkwardly from around Edward's frame before letting Edward escort him out of the room.
"Hold up on the hunting trip." I told them both. I would like to go as well. We can go when I have finished here." They both gave me a nod in departure. The door clicked shut. That would be a problem if Demetri could not get better control around human blood; it would affect much more than his ability to be around Mia and her 'blood supplements', it would be a problem at the time of delivery as well. Of course, he still hunted humans and that would not help his control either.
As soon as they were gone, Bella began again as though nothing had happened. "Now, you do not have to drink this. What I want you to do, is simply to take a big whiff and tell me how this smells to you." She said as she put the straw end just under her nose. Mia took a deep breath. She puzzled over it and then breathed again.
"Actually, it smells kind of good." She said incredulously. Bella nodded with a knowing look on her face.
"I know, not like you thought it would, right?" Bella said conspiratorially. One thing was for sure Leah was struggling with the concept. Though I wasn't quite sure why. When she ate in wolf form, was it really all that different? "Would you like to try just a tiny sip? You don't have to drink the whole thing; just one taste." Bella said encouragingly.
"I'll try." She said in a voice that really said 'no I don't want to.' With a shaky hand, she reached out and took hold of the cup and put the straw to her lips and took the smallest sip she could manage. Her look registered her disbelief. Then she took a long drag on the straw and then another.
"I know I should be bothered about saying this, but that tasted much better than I expected." She replied before finishing the cupful with a final pull on the straw. She handed the empty cup back to Bella who smiled at her approvingly.
"Well, I'm sure not going to say anything to anybody." Bella said grinning at her. "The really nice thing is that if you are able to keep the blood down, then you can also keep human food down too. So it's kind of a 'win-win' situation." Mia sighed and relaxed for the first time in the last ten minutes.
Bella passed Edward and Demetri in the doorway as she left to dispose of the cup. Demetri took his seat again next to Mia. He looked a little disappointed. He was suffering. I needed to finish this conversation so he could hunt. Not that I expected his first animal hunt to do much to abate his thirst issues.
"Now Mia and Demetri, I need to tell you more about what we know about the deliveries of the Vampire Hybrids. This is the truly terrifying part of what I have to tell you. This is the reason Demetri pushed so hard to have you brought half way around the world to us. You see, Bella is the only mother of a Vampire Hybrid to have survived the birthing experience."
Mia looked startled. "She is the only one who made it?" Demetri grabbed her hand again in both of his. He then dropped his face into all three of the hands in his lap. The shame was too great for him to face with an uplifted head. Well at least he was taking responsibility. Something Aro was surely not doing.
"That we know of, there are only four other Vampire Hybrids in existence besides Nessie. One is Nahuel, whom you met earlier today. He is Leah's fiancé." I gave Leah a warm look before returning to my tale of horror. Nahuel's father Joham, believed himself a scientist of sorts and he believed he was creating a super race. He would have liaisons with human women and when they became pregnant, he would leave them to fend for themselves."
"Joham is a true monster. Someone should impregnate him and leave him to fend for himself." Leah said suddenly and vehemently. She was correct of course, and somehow, I got the feeling that if Leah were to meet this soon-to-be father-in-law, it would not go well for him.
"Why would you say such a thing about your intended's Father?" Mia said bewildered.
"He left Nahuel's mother, along with ALL the other women, alone to face certain death as the babies had to claw its way out of their mothers to survive. He could have saved them but he left them to die a horrible death instead." She spat out in a sudden fury. "He was only after the babies and he picked them up at his leisure." Mia had turned white as a sheet at the picture Leah's words painted for her. Well, I guessed Leah had just taken the most unpleasant part of my assignment right out of my hands; perhaps not delivered as tactfully as I had hoped for, but still effective. Demetri had not lifted his head from his pillow of hands and a low cry of revulsion escaped his mouth. Mia was shocked out of her own terror at the sound and tried unsuccessfully to console him.
He turned his head slightly towards her and he told her, "Aro wants our baby as well." Well, I had thought we were going to wait a few days before we laid that one on her, but perhaps Demetri was of the persuasion that 'confession was good for the soul'. I would have begged to differ at that very moment. It might be good for his soul but it wasn't doing anything for Mia's composure.
I decided I had better continue before Leah picked up the narrative again or Demetri revealed more deep dark secrets that would impact Mia's, at the moment, very fragile state of mind.
"Mia, you can discuss that with Demetri later." I said trying to sound as gentle as I could. She looked at me as though I held a life line out to her while she stood drowning in raging flood waters. "I have every reason to hope that you will not suffer the same fate as those other mothers. Though there is still the chance that should the baby become distressed this could become a problem. That is why we will need you to become more restrictive with your movements during the last weeks of your pregnancy. We ran into trouble with Bella at the end when she made a sudden movement and sent her baby into distress that resulted in a detached placenta. So you will defiantly be on bed rest at the end. If you want the particulars, I'm sure Bella will give them to you later." I said to close that subject just then. She already had a very clear picture of how a bad delivery could go. "Also Edward will be listening for your baby's mind. Right at the end, he may be able to hear the thoughts of your child, as he did his own daughter. If this turns out to be the case, there is limited communication that can be carried on despite the vampiric sac that holds your baby."
"So, Edward can hear the baby before it's born?" Mia asked thoughtfully, having regained her composure.
"Yes he should be able too, if this baby follows Renesmee's development." I clarified.
"But that would be only a one-way communication. How does the baby understand us?" She asked.
"That is a very good question." I said with approval. "Apparently these babies' minds grow as fast as their bodies do; faster even." I amended.
"Now, the last thing we need to discuss is your transformation after your C-Section delivery." I said grateful to be over the hurdles of bad news.
"What do you mean 'transformation'?" Mia asked wearily. She looked from me to Demetri, who looked at her sadly but offered no explanation. She turned expectantly back to me for further enlightenment.
"Mia, even with a C-section safely performed, this baby will not be leaving your body in very good condition. We will need to be ready to transform you into a vampire as soon as the baby is delivered to keep you alive. We can do this as long as your heart is beating. Edward and Jacob had to pump Bella's heart manually to spread the venom throughout her system before it was ready to beat on its own."
"But what if I don't want to be a vampire?" Mia cried out in dismay. Demetri looked at her and his face was a mask of sadness again. She tried to soften her comment for his sake. "I mean, I'm not saying one way or another. But I would never want to kill another human being just so that I could live. That would make me a monster too. I need to know if there is a chance I might get to choose whether or not to remain human after this birth." Her heart rate was increasing again. I needed to calm her down a bit. Find a way to reassure her.
"Mia, I have been a vampire for over three hundred years, and I have never once killed a human to sate my thirst. I even work as a surgeon in a hospital around humans and blood all of the time." Her heart rate was returning to its normal rhythm. That was good. "You always have a choice Mia. You always have a choice of what you will be, and the direction that you chose to take in your life. Bella, as a vampire, and Rosalie have never ingested human blood either."
"As for staying human…" I considered it for a minute from a medical standpoint. Bella had wanted to become a vampire. Her spine had been severed. But had she been able to have the C-section under more favorable conditions… "There may be a very slim possibility that if you are extremely careful and the baby doesn't move around too much, you may be able to make that choice. But I do believe if your life hangs in the balance, Demetri will act to save you. I don't think he wants to be a single parent." Mia gulped at my last word.
Demetri was shaking his head slowly, unhappily. "There is another problem Mia, if you decide to remain human."
"What?" She asked tiredly. This conversation had really taken a lot out of her.
Demetri's expression became even darker. "Aro and Caius." He muttered grimly.
