A/N- I just wanted say thank you to everyone who has either sent me a PM, reviewed, followed, or favorited this story. I must admit that I was not expecting this high of an interest in this story as it not as popular of a pairing in the fandom. You guys are all awesome!
Heavy in your Arms II
I felt the warmth of the rising sun wash over my face and my eyes began to flutter as I stirred, the rays flooding through the adjacent window to my left. I snuggled my face into the comforting and rather heavenly feather down pillows and let out a content yawn and I stretched out across the luxurious bed, feeling the coolness of the satin sheets move around me like a stream. When was the last time I had been able to sleep throughout the night without being plagued by nightmares? I honestly couldn't recall.
It was only then when my leg brushed against a cold and rather solid being that I realized that I was not alone. Startled at the now foreign chill, I moved backwards quickly and found myself sliding ungracefully against the satin until I reached the edge of the bed. I closed my eyes and tensed, waiting for the dull pain of impact of falling out of bed but instead found myself wrapped up in a pair of cold but loving arms. My eyes shot open and I looked up to meet the concerned gaze of Chelsea who had prevented me from falling off of the bed.
"Tell me, are all humans this uncoordinated or are an anomaly in respect to this as well?" She asked with a raised eyebrow causing me to sigh in embarrassment.
"Humans are always going to be less coordinated to a vampire, Chelsea. But I will admit that I tend to have a tougher go at it than most." I admitted, painfully aware of the warm blush that was creeping up my cheeks. I heard her breathe in deeply before emitting another content hum.
"Your gracefulness or lack thereof is a rather small token to pay if in being so causes that beautiful blush to appear across your face, my dear." She smiled playfully as I moved from her grasp and rearranged the pillows so I could sit up against the dark walnut wood headboard.
"Thank you." I found myself replying automatically before casually moving a strand of loose hair behind my ear and away from my face so I could view her clearly even from the side of my eye.
"Are you hungry? I would assume you are as most humans eat in the morning when they first awaken, but as a vampire I admit begrudgingly that I have no way or ability to gauge that." She grumbled out in almost an endearing way, causing a spike of curiosity as her statement caught my interest. Why would this bother her? In fact, why was she so engrossed in ensuring I was being taken care of, a mere human that she had only known for less than twenty four hours?
"Actually, yes. It's been a while since I've had anything to eat." I admitted and I felt my head tilt in confusion as her eyes squinted and her lips pursed, an all too familiar expression that Alice made on more than one occasion when she was displeased with my response on a topic.
"Is there a specific reason as to why one of your most basic of needs have not been met?" she inquired and felt myself nibble on my bottom lip in thought.
"It's somewhat… embarrassing and a rather long story. I'm not sure you would be interested." I felt myself sigh out.
"Oh, I am sure that I can keep up. Please, indulge me." She replied. My eyes met her own again as I attempted to gauge her statement before finally nodding.
"It's stupid, really. I had gone cliff jumping and Alice saw me do so, you know, because of her visions but never saw me get to shore. Thinking the worse, she left the family and came for me on her own accord and quite frankly against their wishes, or perhaps Edward's specifically. Our reunion was cut short though once she received a vision of Edward coming here to request death by the Volturi. I had agreed to come with her, not because I cared about him but I didn't want the rest of his family, mostly Alice, to suffer for the rest of eternity due to his immature and thoughtless action. Then, his request was denied and he chose even a more foolish course of action, and was going to expose himself to the humans to force the hand of the Volturi. You know the rest mostly. My nerves were shot in anticipation for his and my reunion and my stomach was rather uneasy because of it. So even though I had not eaten like a normal human should, I couldn't bring myself to. Humans tend to feel that way when they are pushed into that type of state, at least, this human does." I explained rather poorly as my nerves finally got the best of me.
She remained silent for a moment or two before blinking and pulling out a cell phone. My eyes barely could register her movements as her fingertips danced across the keys of the phone silently before she closed it shut with a slight snap. She moved gracefully off of the bed and opened the door without a word, leaving me alone with my thoughts in silence.
I played with the quilt, my thoughts moving back to everything that had taken place within just twenty four hours. I brought my hands up to my face and rubbed rather aggressively as I let out an aggravated groan. A series of unfortunate events is the only way I could describe how my recent life events had played out. Alice, seeing what she thought was an apparent suicide attempt. Jake, not allowing me to speak to Edward and causing him to follow my assumed action. Reunited with my best friend and soon having to face the rest of the family I cared about to the point where I was willing to throw away my life, or what was left of it to spare them the pain and shame of losing their son only for him to try and kill me out of a fit of possessive rage. All of this was nothing shy of a nightmare.
I sighed again as I brought Chelsea's pillow to my face and inhaled deeply, finding oddly comforted in the scent that should be foreign to me but was not. Why had she chosen to save my life? How had she been able to stay so close to me throughout the night and not drained me dry? She was a vampire after all, and one who clearly drank from humans unlike the Cullens. Shouldn't that have been an impossible task in itself, for her to be that close to me when I was told by every vampire how alluring my blood smelt? Yet the biggest question is why. Why had she even wanted to? What was I to her?
My anxious thoughts were disrupted as the door reopened and Chelsea emerged, carrying a silver tray. She gently walked over and watched me closely, almost as if she was fearful of my reaction. She leaned down and placed the tray on my lap and placed a glass of juice on the table to my left. On the tray was a ceramic plate with a feta and tomato omelet, a couple pieces of buttered marbled rye toast and a few pieces of bacon. My curious eyes wanted to know where this had come from and how but I found my need to eat overcome my curiosity and I dug into my breakfast with gusto, not able to stop the moan of satisfaction that came up from my throat as the delicious flavors of the food danced across my taste buds and exploded with delight. No food at this point had ever tasted as delicious, not even from Esme.
Chelsea watched as she sat on the corner of bed clearly in a state of fascination, something that I was used to as the Cullens did the same, especially Alice who had no memory of her human life. In record time, even for me, the food was gone and I moved the platter to the bedside table and drained the glass of orange juice in a matter of moments. Letting out a satisfied sigh, I leaned back against the headboard and ran a hand through my messy and sleep ridden hair, giving Chelsea a small smile of gratitude who for the first time blessed me with her breathtaking grin.
"Thank you, that was truly amazing." I found myself say and she nodded and then sighed lightly before seemingly to take a large nervous gulp. Since when did vampires get nervous? It then dawned on me as my brain began to function again, it must be time. Time for the talk. Time for my heart's questions to be answered.
"Isabella…" she began but I cut her off with a shake of my head.
"Please, just Bella. I never cared for my full name." I corrected out of habit, now realizing just how impolite I likely came across. My eyes locked onto hers, searching for some sense or look of dislike or annoyance like I had always found in Edward's when I corrected him, but there was none to be found, just a sparkle of curiosity and perhaps happiness?
"My apologies. Bella, I know that this will be a rather large… shock for you to know but I promised we would have this talk and I refuse to keep you hidden in the dark, not when all of this has the potential to greatly influence your life." She began slowly, as if she was carefully gauging my reaction, afraid almost that I would bolt at any second, not that I would get very far.
"Well, that's a first. All the other vampires I know always tried to keep me in the dark as you say. They say it's to protect me but… It's so aggravating. It's like they don't believe that my weak human mind was able to comprehend anything." I mumbled out, causing her to growl slightly.
"Bella, there is nothing about you that is weak. Do not ever speak so lowly of yourself again in my presence. You are resilient. A positively and utterly breathtaking beautiful force of nature in your own right and I will repeat this to you every second of every day until the sun and moons collide if I must until you believe me without question." She snapped out, causing my eyes to widen.
There was a moment of awkward silence between us as I tried to register her words.
"You- you think I am beautiful?" I finally found myself asking, slightly embarrassed as that was the one part of the whole rant that had stuck out the most in my mind. I had never been the vein type but to hear this type of statement from someone who looked as she did was slightly incomprehensible.
"I do not think so, I know so." She paused before she let out another sigh as she clearly was working on reeling in her emotions, " I'm sorry if I startled you. I just cannot bear to hear anything negative about you, even if it is from your own lips. This is just so new to me and I had long ago abandoned any hope of something like this happening to me." she almost rambled and I tilted my head in confusion.
"What do you mean?" I finally asked.
"I know it is likely that you will not believe me when I say this but the reason why I saved you from Edward, the reason why you laid safely next to me all night and I had no desire to feed from you, the reason why your wellbeing and happiness is my top concern, and the reason why I cannot stand to hear one negative thing about you, even from your own lips is because you are my mate. While I cannot manipulate your bonds, I have loosened and tightened mate bonds before and felt and recognized that same level of bond with you almost instantaneously." She breathed out after a few moments of contemplation.
I felt as if a bucket of ice water had been dumped over my head and my heart, I swear skipped a few beats at her words. How could this be possible? I had come to terms with the fact I was not Edward's mate, that much had made itself painfully clear when he had attempted to end my life a few mere hours ago but there was no way that I, plain jane Bella Swan was the mate of this insanely gorgeous and breathtaking vampire. I felt my anger spike as the only conclusion I could come to was this had to be some sort of sick game, one that I had no interest in participating in.
"Bella, I know that this is a lot to take in but I can sense you breaking apart this bond before we have even had a chance to explore and develop it. Please, stop." she practically pleaded, the raw pain in her tone causing me to automatically reach out as she pulled me close to her, sighing in relief and relishing in our closeness. I felt a strange pull sensation in my chest as I focused on her, the feeling of her skin, the softness of her hair, the intoxicating smell.
"How long have you been waiting to find your mate?" I asked with curiosity.
" I have waited over three thousand years to find you. To find the pair of arms that I could fall into. A person who would balance me out. A person who was well, the missing puzzle piece of my fate's design. Now that I have found you, I have no desire to ever let you go. However…" she paused as she pulled back slightly and cupped my right check with her hand, " I want you to have a say in this. Your happiness and wellbeing are of my upmost concern. I will not force your hand in this, as it is likely possible that you do not feel the mate pull as I do and likely will not until some time has passed after your transformation. Even so, if you do not want to pursue this, if you chose to leave and return with the Cullens, I would convince Aro to allow you to do so. I do not want you to be with me for the sake of it. I perish the thought of ever forcing your hand at anything" she finished in such a soft voice, I could almost feel the words breaking apart and dissolving in the air.
I pulled away from her just long enough to lock eyes. I raised my hand to cup her cheek lightly as she had done with me, watching the way she affectionately nuzzled into my touch, almost as if she was starving for some sort of physical contact. I felt an odd and light tingling sensation against my palm and suddenly the curiosity got the best of me. I moved forward, repositioning myself slightly, causing her to open her eyes.
"Bella, what is it?" She asked in a concerned tone as she likely heard my heartbeat begin to race in my chest.
"I just- I need to try something. Is that okay?" I asked, my eyes moving from her eyes, to her lips and back up. Thankfully, she seemed to understand my unspoken request and simply nodded, sparing me the embarrassment of explaining fully what I intended to do.
I snuck the tip of my tongue out to moisten my lips out of habit and moved my arms around her neck. I felt my heartbeat pound almost to the point of pain in my chest but I was determined. If I was not able to feel this bond as a human, then I would have to rely on other methods. Angling my face slightly, I moved my lips forward until they ghosted against her own, gently brushing, shivering as I felt her cool breath dance across my face. Then, slowly but surely, I fully connected our lips. I heard her audible groan of pleasure as our lips began to move together in perfect synchronization. I found myself becoming lost in the kiss, as she pulled me closer until my legs were straddled against her waist and her hands were tangled in my hair. I felt her cold tongue sweep across my bottom lip and I shuddered, quickly opening my mouth and granting her access. The feeling of our tongues dancing merrily against each other was nothing short of sublime. After what felt like an eternity, she slowly pulled away, sucking in my bottom lip between her own gently, ending the kiss. Our foreheads rested against each other as I panted for breath. I finally opened my eyes to meet her own, anxiousness clearly dancing across her slightly darkened orbs.
My mind was practically reeling as I tried to make sense of my own body's reaction to the kiss. I had kissed Edward a few times but never to this extent, always cut short as he claimed his venom would hurt me. Surely, I had tasted Chelsea's venom as our tongues had danced together, and yet, I did not feel hurt. If anything, I simply needed more. The degree to which I needed this type of contact however was shocking and I almost was ashamed of myself. I was moving far too fast and the thought I was setting myself up to be hurt once more still loomed in the back of my mind.
It dawned on me at that moment though, that Chelsea was awaiting some type of response from me. My eyes locked onto her own and for the first time, I saw just how wide and vulnerable they were. If I allowed the fear of being hurt to prevent me from exploring this bond, then that would mean I was allowing Edward to still have that control over me and what is worse, I would be hurting someone who simply did not deserve to be, especially after all she had already done. It was then that I made my decision.
"Chelsea… I'm going to be honest. I have no idea what these feelings are. They are so new, so foreign. All I can say is that I- need to explore them. Desperately. I have never felt this way before, from anyone." I paused to take another breath before continuing, " I already know what lies at the end of the path with the Cullens but this path, this path with you…I have no idea where it will lead but it's a journey that I am willing to at least explore. I can't say for sure that I am sold on your idea that we are mates but I am willing to explore it, or at least see if you are correct and I feel this bond once I am changed. I know that we have only just met but I have a feeling that I can trust you. You saved my life after all, the least that I can do is at least give you a chance." I breathed against her lips causing her to smile loving at me in return.
"Thank you, Bella. You are being a lot more understanding and gracious than I had even hoped. I promise that I will not betray your trust on this." She paused as she shifted a bit, "Unfortunately, we do need to move towards the unpleasant conversation of your change. I only have so much leverage with Aro, and Alice has already been in contact with the family who are getting their airfare tickets now. They will be here in time for the trial and you will need to have completed your change by then, mostly for your own safety. It is also not safe for you to be in Volterra. The other members of the guard are in pain, fighting their instincts and I cannot hurt them. The question then becomes, who would you like to change you?" she murmured as I pulled back slightly and looked out the window in thought, perplexed to say the least that she was allowing me to choose.
I had always thought that it would appropriate for Edward to perform my change. There was almost something sensual about the act, at least in my mind and I was sure that there would be some sort of connection forged between myself and whoever's venom entered my bloodstream. Now though, I was torn. Should I allow her to perform the act? We had only just met and even though I already felt a bond connecting us, one I had just admitted I was willing to explore, I wasn't exactly sold on the idea. I didn't want an eternity of regrets coming from this decision. She had said she was my mate and that she couldn't hurt me but I couldn't convince myself not to worry about the potential concern of her losing control and draining me dry. She was a human drinker after all.
I felt my eyes drift back to Chelsea who was waiting patiently for my response. Her eyes sparkled with what appeared to be a sense of hope.
"Bella, under no circumstances should you feel obligated to allow me that honor. Feel free to ask any questions that you may have regarding the process. This is a rather significant decision." She smiled and I nodded after a few moments.
"Is it possible for me to be turned by one than more vampire? And does it always have to involve a bite? Let's say if two were to inject their venom at the same time. Is that possible?" I finally asked and Chelsea seemed to think about it for a few moments before nodding.
"Yes. You see, there is a rather sacred bond that is created between a sire and a newborn vampire. There will always be a connection the two. That being said, there are other ways to go about the change. We do not have to necessarily bite you if you are worried about one of us losing control. We can store our venom into a syringe of sorts and inject it in that manner if you would prefer." She patiently explained and I shook my head rather quickly.
"No, no needles. I'd rather have the bite. I'm not even sure why I asked for an alternative" I said swiftly, cringing at the very thought of a needle being anywhere near me. She must have realized the cause of my reaction and laughed airily. I suppose it was rather ridiculous that I would be more scared of a needle than of being bitten.
" And who would you like to perform the task?" she asked one more time as she locked her fingers with my own, causing me to suddenly feel like I was home, a place I always was supposed to be.
"I was wondering, could you along with Alice do it? I know you say you're my mate and I desperately want to trust you but Alice has always been something rather important to me. I don't know if she would be willing but I want to ask. I think it would mean a lot to her." I finally responded and she nodded after a few moments.
"I will ask that Alice come here so you can discuss it with her privately. In the meantime, I will go to discuss the details with Aro and get the preparations finalized. Please, feel free to shower and get ready. I took the liberty of purchasing some clean clothes for you to help make you feel more at ease here and to fit in better. If you should want to wear them, they are on the leather ottoman in the bathroom, along with any human essentials you may require. I will ask that Alice be here within the hour." She smiled and leaned forward to kiss my lips sweetly before slowly pulling back and making her exit.
I stepped out of the shower, and let out a breath of relief as I felt instantly relaxed. The shower had done wonders for my nerves and quite frankly had been very much needed after the whole cliff jumping incident. I was sure that I was going to be cleaning sand off of me for weeks.
I reached out and grabbed a luxurious black towel and began to dry my body off before wrapping my long hair in the towel and drying off what I could. Curiously, I walked over to the ottoman and looked at the bag that clearly had come from some sort of boutique. I peered inside and was instantly relieved. Inside was a pair of black flats, slacks, and a long sleeve white satin button down blouse, along with a new bra and underwear. Pleased that none of the items were overly flashy, I pulled out the clothes, finding that they were indeed a perfect fit. I brushed my teeth and quickly blow dried my long hair, allowing the waves to fall wherever they pleased.
I exited the bathroom and not to my surprise, I found Alice sitting on the bed, waiting anxiously. As I made my appearance, her eyes widened at my outfit and she flew towards me, wrapping me up in her loving embrace as if I would fly away at any moment.
"Oh, you look so beautiful but more importantly, I am so happy to see that you are safe. When I was told my presence was requested in Chelsea's chambers and I couldn't make out a vision of anything, I only assumed the worse. I thought I was only coming here to say goodbye to your corpse." She sighed and I only held her closer, desperately trying to calm her down.
" I actually asked to speak with you. You see, I have to be changed before the trial with Edward. We are on a rather tight schedule and I was asked who I would like to change me. I thought about it and Chelsea explained the bond that is created between a sire and a newborn. I know you will have questions but I can't answer all of them, not just yet. I have requested that Chelsea be one of them… and you the other. Will you accept?" I asked quickly as my anxiousness took its toll.
I watched her eyes widen for just a brief moment before they began to fill once more with venom and a smile broke out across her face as she nodded frantically.
"You are right, I do have questions. So many. But that can wait. I am so happy that you thought of me to help bring you into this world. It would be my honor but can I ask why?" she asked while running a hand throughout my hair as we sat down on the bed.
"Because, Alice. You are my best friend. There has always been some pull between us and a connection that I never want to lose again. You've always believed in me, and never doubted or questioned me becoming one of you. I trust you, unconditionally Alice and to me, this will be just one more way that we are connected" I explained and Alice just continued to smile.
"Edward always was worried about our friendship, and did all he could to keep us apart in the beginning but I knew, I knew you were going to be something special to me. A best friend and my first apart from Jazz since I was changed. I accept your offer, Bella." She practically squealed and I sighed in relief.
Moments later, Chelsea walked in wearing a similar outfit to mine except she was wearing heels and a black satin shirt. Her eyes flickered between mine and Alice's and Alice merely smiled at her with a nod, obviously confirming their silent conversation.
"Aro has allowed for the change to take place in my private quarters to grant you some sort of comfort and privacy. We are to begin now, if you are ready." She murmured and watched me closely as I nodded my head and laid back down against the pillows.
Alice looked up at Chelsea and they once more reached a silent agreement. Alice took my left side and Chelsea, my right. I felt my heart began to race, my mind drifting back to my time with James. I knew the type of pain that was coming but that did not help prepare me for it.
"It will be alright, my darling. You have been so brave and endured so much. I know it is a lot to ask, but I please ask that you keep at this for just a little while longer. Alice and I will not leave your side at all during the process. It will hurt and I am so sorry. I would do anything to take the pain from you but I cannot. I wish there was another way to ensure your survival but there simply isn't another way. Forgive me." She murmured, earning a curious look from Alice at the endearment that had slipped past her lips. I only nodded and took their hands into my own and closed my eyes.
" I love you, Bells. Everything will be okay, I promise." Alice sighed and met eyes with Chelsea, before nodding one last time.
It was then that I felt their razor sharp teeth break into my skin. Despite my efforts to remain quiet for both of their sakes, I could not stop the painful gasp that escaped the moment I felt their venom mix into my bloodstream, seemingly replacing my blood with fire.
My eyes remained shut tight and my hands clenched tightly onto their own as my world was suddenly engulfed into a fiery inferno. The change had begun.