"I don't understand" Was the only thing that Edward was able to say.
Bella leaned away and finally turned towards the others around them.
"I believe everyone should be here for this" Carlisle told her and Bella agreed. As soon as he said those words, the rest of the family appeared one by one while Bella stood up from the ground and sat on the empty chair behind her.
They were all standing, spread out all over the living room, all looking at her expectantly. She was put on the hotspot now while Edward remained on the ground, staring at her, with a dumbfounded look on his face.
"Carlisle, it seems your family has a lot of interesting things going on." Tanya commented while her sisters agreed.
"Well, a lot has happened indeed" Carlisle had to agree.
"Explain" Rosalie demanded from Bella in a clipped tone.
"What's going on?" Esme asked as confused as everyone.
"Is this what you were trying to tell me?" Alice eyed her and Bella was only able to nod.
"Who…are you?" Jasper spoke.
"I'm Isabella Swan" She replied.
"Wait... now, you just got us confused. I thought you just said that you weren't Bella?" Emmett scratched his head.
"Well..." Bella started to explain. "The body that you are looking at right now..." She gestured towards herself. "... is the Bella that you have known and left." The last part she added pointedly.
"But inside..." She pointed at her heart. "Is another person. I'm not the Bella Swan that you know... I am still Isabella Swan but I'm an Isabella Swan thirty-five years from now."
They all looked at her like she had grown two heads.
"So, you're from the future?" Jasper clarified like being told that someone was from the future was something that they normally hear all the time.
"Yes"
"Carlisle?" Esme turned to her husband for confirmation and Carlisle nodded.
"It's true" Bella was actually glad that she had told Carlisle first. Having the patriarch of the family to back her claim up would be an easier way of convincing all of them.
"Are you sure you're not just hallucinating?" Rosalie asked, still skeptical and not believing her at all.
"I wish I was" she replied dryly.
"Okay... that's just... unreal. You can't blame us for not believing that you're from the future. And that's coming from a vampire" Kate commented.
"How is that even possible?" It was Eleazar who spoke this time and it was clear that he was more curious about the idea of the time travelling aspect than her being there herself.
"Remember when I asked if you've encountered a vampire that can manipulate time? Well, I kind 'a met one and he accidentally transported me back here. Not my physical body at least but my essence, my soul... or whatever you want to call it got transferred to my younger and very much human self"
"That's impossible! There's no such thing as a vampire who can send you back in time!" Irina exclaimed in disbelief.
"It's unheard of yes, but it's definitely not impossible and the fact that I've met one in the future means that he exists."
"Wait... hold on... you said, your "human self". Does that mean that you're one of us in the future?!" Emmett asked excitedly.
"If you're asking if I'm a vampire in the future then yes I am... or I was?" She added, unsure. Out of the corner of her eye, Bella noticed Rosalie's expression changing and knowing Rosalie and her desires, she had an idea what could be going on in her mind.
"It's still hard to believe. Since you claim to be from the future, did that mean you already knew who we were when you arrived?"
Bella looked at the Denali's guiltily and nodded.
"I did. I stayed here during my newborn year and… Kate was my mentor and taught me how to project my shield" at that, Kate stood up straighter and was beaming with pride.
"Hah! That's why you were so sure my gift would not work on you!" she wiggled her fingers towards her.
"I always knew that you would be a part of this family. It's good to know that Edward will finally agree to your changing." Alice confirmed but Bella only winced and took a quick glance towards Edward who had stayed silent and unmoving throughout the whole conversation.
"Ahmm… Edward was not the one who actually changed me… "
"Oh, was it Carlisle?" She shook her head
Upon hearing Bella's confirmation, Edward finally looked up at her and turned towards the direction where Jasper was standing, disbelief showing in his features. Carlisle and Bella had turned towards Jasper at the same time, Carlisle with a resigned look and Bella having that longing expression in her face. Jasper looked at the three of them in confusion.
"Why are you staring at me like that?" he held up his hand defensively.
"I knew it! It was Jasper, is it? What, did you just finally realize in the future that you fell in love with the wrong vampire?" Rosalie asked.
Bella did not do anything to deny it and there was a look of hurt in Alice's face that she was trying to mask with a neutral expression.
"Bella?" she asked and Bella could hear the undertone of hurt and confusion.
"Oh Alice… I could never do that to you… and besides..." She smiled at Jasper fondly. "Jasper would never do anything to hurt you. He is your mate and it will always stay that way" She knew that from the bottom of her heart.
"If Rosalie didn't jump to conclusions…" she started to explain. Although she couldn't fault the blonde vampire, Rosalie had always been perceptive. She'd know if something was up and the way she was behaving when Jasper was near, it was her own fault as well. For someone who had been intentionally ignoring her, Rosalie noticed a lot.
"I would have been able to explain that it's more complicated than that." Her eyes wandered to the faces of the others that were staring at her expectantly. Bella took a breath and prepared herself for another bout of questions from her spectators with her next revelation.
"I'm not just from the future, I'm from a different timeline altogether." When nobody was able to comment, Bella went on to explain.
"I am not this Bella's future and this is not my past. I have a totally different story from the Isabella that you know… you can say that I'm from a different reality because where I come from, Jasper and Alice came in to your family as best friends and not as a couple and Alice already had a vision of who they were going to end up with, and it wasn't each other" The two vampires that she mentioned looked at each other, unsure of what to feel about what she just said.
"Bella and I have discussed the similarities and the difference between our world and hers and it seems everything else is exactly how we know it until Bella arrived in our lives and the circumstances with the mates" Carlisle added.
"That's… I'm not sure how I feel about that." Alice almost whispered and Bella understood where her sister was coming from because she felt the same way.
"Alice, remember when I asked you to tell me everything that had happened ever since your family met me?" Bella reminded her and she nodded.
"Oh! I thought there was something wrong when you asked me that question. Was that why?" She nodded.
"One day, I just woke up and I was human again and a much younger version of myself… I thought that I was just stuck back in my past but when Jacob started talking about all of you leaving and then Alice started talking about my life that I have never heard of and experienced at all, I realized that this isn't my world.
I don't know why my story is different… I don't know what made my reality different that somehow, I have a different mate here. I don't have any control about what's going on with the universe any more than you do… All I know is that… Jasper is my mate. It always has been that way, the first time I laid eyes on him on my first day on Forks High, I knew.
I was never with Edward, it's not like he left me and I was suddenly Jasper's mate, no. I am Jasper's mate in my reality as much as Alice is his mate in this reality and as much as I don't want to believe it, I have to accept that fact while I'm stuck in this world" she finished.
While Bella was saying this, she could see Edward's face contorted in pain, probably not wanting to accept everything that Bella was saying.
Everyone else was silent after Bella's revelation. No one still seems to grasp the idea of what she just shared with them.
Even Carlisle who already knew about it was suddenly deep in thought now that he has seen the reaction of the others. If it was them on her shoes, they'd have a hard time accepting the truth as well but Bella was stuck in this situation unless she can find a way back in her own time.
"I… don't know what to say…" Jasper was looking between the two women and there was a guilty expression in his face like he was somehow guilty of cheating on Alice.
She felt sorry for Jasper. There was nothing to be guilty about.
"Jasper… please don't..." she started. She wanted to reach out to him but kept herself from doing so. The situation was already complicated enough as it is.
"This is beyond anyone of our control. I'm just glad to know that in this reality, I may not be the one you call your mate… but at least I know that you found yours in Alice and I can see that you love each other very much and that's all I really could ask for." She smiled at them fondly and a wave of gratitude was directed towards her from the empath.
"What I can't find to be thrilled about is waking up in the body of my counterpart and learning that her own mate left her because he was too afraid of damning her soul to this existence." Bella kneeled in front of Edward and looked him straight in the eye.
Edward stared back, eyes searching as if trying to look for someone missing.
"It's really true is it… you… you're not -?" he couldn't say her name and his tone was resigned. With everything that had been explained and probably hearing Carlisle's thoughts about his conversation with Bella, there was no more room for disbelief.
"I'm afraid not…"
"It's all my fault…" he muttered. He had his arms around his torso as if he was trying to keep himself together.
Bella huffed. Leave it to Edward to blame himself for everything that's happening in her life.
"Hey, this isn't just about you! Me getting stuck in this past, taking over your version of Bella Swan… that's the universe messing around. I don't think that's anybody's fault. You, leaving her because of your twisted way of trying to protect her from yourself… yes… that one I agree is your fault" she pointed out.
"No… you don't understand…"
"What don't I understand? … Edward, what are you fighting for here…?"
It took a while before he could respond.
"Her… your humanity…"
Bella sighed.
"But isn't your love worth fighting for more than anything else?"
"Not in the expense of her humanity."
"I already told you what I will become in the future and I can tell you now… I don't have any regrets."
"But Bella... she may not want the same thing as you." Bella got triggered at his words. She did not just experience Bella's pain to be told that she didn't know how her counterpart feels.
Bella stood up. "Do you think she doesn't want this?" She gestured to everyone around the room who fell silent and did not dare interrupt the two. "A family?" she gestured to him. "You?"
Bella pointed to her chest. "I am inside her body." She reminded him. "Edward, all that pain that I experienced earlier? That was your Bella sharing all of her memories to me…"
His eyes almost grew in disbelief. "All that suffering, I've never experienced that kind of pain before and I don't ever want to feel that way... again. That was all her… she was sharing all her memories… everything that she felt for you so don't tell me that she may not want the same thing as I do.
I may not be the Isabella Swan that you know and love but I am still Isabella Swan. I am a version of her and in any reality, I know what I want and what I need. I may have a different mate but my love for him is as strong as her love for you" the last part, her voice turned softer, wanting him to understand that she only wanted what's best for this Bella.
"I can't let her want this… I can't be this selfish and just allow her soul to be damned just so I can get my happy ending…"
"You're not being selfish if that's what she wants as well and if it's the only way for her to be with you..."
"She doesn't know what she's asking for…"
"Will you stop that?!" Bella glared at him and her irritation started to grow because of his stubbornness.
"Stop dismissing what she wants because of her humanity, our humanity! Stop trying to decide what's best for her because you're only making it worse!
Isn't she your mate?" Bella paused and allowed him to answer but he merely nodded.
"Then treat her as one! She is meant to be your equal regardless if she is human or not so stop deciding for her and respect her decision because at the end of day, you also want to be with her!"
"Not like this!" Edward started to protest.
"Oh, for God's sake Edward!" Bella finally had it and raised her voice, waiving her hand in annoyance.
"Don't give me the crap about you damning her soul again! I've already been there. I'm already a vampire in the future and I don't see myself blaming Jasper for making me one of you. And no offense to Jasper but between you and him, he has a much darker past as a vampire. If there was someone here who would be afraid of tainting my humanity, it would be him but Jasper trusted me enough to know what I'm getting myself into and accepted our mating bond.
And besides, do you really think Bella cares about that? She... We...don't share your ideals and beliefs about your soul... All she ever really wanted was to be with you, with whatever life you can give her, she'll accept it. It's not a sacrifice when it's both your happiness at stake"
She took a deep breath to calm herself down. She can't believe that she was so invested in this Bella's life but how could she not? If it was her, she was not going to give up easily as well. If Jasper had this dilemma when they were together, she was sure that she would do anything to be with him. Their love was worth fighting for. And the Bella that Edward loves was not here to make her case so she had to fight for it on her behalf.
Bella sneaked a glance at the other's reactions afraid that she might have gone too far with her outburst but she was surprised to see the family looking at her in approval. Even Rosalie who kept dismissing her earlier seems to be agreeing with her.
Edward was now looking at her in awe.
"Do you know why in so adamant in trying to change your mind?" Bella sighed heavily and added.
"Because before I got here, I destroyed a vampire who wanted to be destroyed. He had asked for it. He was worse than you because he was a human drinker yet he was exactly just like you. He fell in love with a human and just like you, he was afraid of damning her soul, of tainting her humanity. He wanted a normal life for her so he ran away.
Sound familiar?
He wanted to protect her just like you but there was one vital information that both of you forgot… You forgot that you're not the only one who can feel the mating bond. You think that because we're human, that we won't feel the same intensity as you. A mating bond is a mating bond, whether your mate is human or not. We can feel it just as strongly as you and when you leave, we can feel it as strongly as you too but our human body doesn't have that capacity to bear that kind of pain."
She paused. She didn't want him to feel guilty about what he did to Bella but he needed to understand what could have happened or what may happen if Edward will continue to insist that him leaving is the best way to keep Bella alive.
"Edward, her mate died because she couldn't take that pain anymore and he begged me to kill him because he can no longer endure the pain of existing without his mate... He tried... For twenty years he tried to live in an existence that was not worth living for him. He begged for death but no one would give it to him until he met me.
And then I get here and see that a version of me is in that same situation before I took over and might possibly suffer the same fate like they did!
Do you really think I would allow her to die just like that? Because you took her happiness away from her because you think you're not worthy for her? It's not about who's worthy for Bella. It's who she is happy with and it's you… You have to believe that and you have to believe in your love."
"I... I only wanted her to be safe…" Edward almost whispered the words and Bella felt sorry for him. She knew Edward only had good intentions for her but he was looking at their relationship the wrong way. He was looking at it as a curse for her rather than a blessing for both of them.
"She'll only be safe when she's with you…" she touched his arm and she could see the conflict in his eyes and Bella's heart went out for him.
"Is she… is she okay?" It took a minute before he finally dared to ask while looking into her soft brown eyes. Maybe if he looked hard enough, she'll find his Bella there but the future Bella just shook her head sadly.
"No, she's not…" she told him truthfully and he winced.
"I woke up in her body after she nearly drowned after jumping from a cliff because apparently, she sees you and hears your voice whenever she tries to do something reckless." After she got her counterparts memories, she finally got the real reason why she jumped and she could not believe what this Bella had tried just to be able to get a glimpse of an imaginary Edward, to make sure that she was not just imagining him as being part of her life and it was sad that she had to resort to that.
"What – "
Bella didn't give him a chance to continue.
"She spent the last few months cocooned in her own body, living but not really, not allowing herself to feel anything other than emptiness. She was alone even when she was surrounded by family because nobody understood why your leaving made her that way. She would wake up every night screaming because she had to relive that moment that you left her, when you told her that she was not good enough for you, that you didn't love her, in her dreams… every single night.
No Edward, she's not okay. She's angry and she's hurt and not because she hates you but because she loves you so much. She feels sorry for herself for not being strong enough to fight for your love."
Edward fell silent. The rest of the Cullen's just realized how bad Bella's situation had turned out after hearing everything and Jasper was feeling waves of guilt and regret from everyone including himself, knowing that his lack of control had triggered the events that led them to this moment.
Edward finally stood up and they all waited for what he was going to do next.
"I... need a moment to be alone..." He bowed his head, not daring to look at anyone.
"Edward..." Esme called out to him softly.
He didn't respond and instead, he walked at a human pace towards the door leaving everyone in the house. Nobody dared to stop him.
"Alice… I'm worried" Bella spoke a few seconds after the door closed behind him.
"He won't go far. He just needs time to process it all… I think we all do" the rest couldn't agree more.
Bella breathed a sigh of relief and she sat down exhausted but it was as if a huge burden has been taken off her shoulders. She'd told him what she needed to say and she even got the opportunity to tell him what exactly this Bella felt. Now, she just has to wait to how he was going to react to everything that's been said and hope for the best that before she can find her way home, that Edward would find it in him to stay.
She knew that it was a long shot and she did not expect that Edward would change how he feels about Bella's humanity overnight but at least now, she hoped that it would allow him to think twice before making any more drastic actions that might end up destroying both of them in the process.
Esme was at Bellas side, arms outstretched and Bella welcomed her adoptive mother's embrace and hugged her back.
"My poor child... having to go through all that... and our Bella... both of you... you have been through so much... If she can hear us, we are truly sorry if we have caused her so much pain" Esme's voice cracked and Bella knew that if Esme could cry, she would be crying now.
"I know she can and she has already forgiven you... even him. I know it... I can feel it. She just wants to have her second family back; I want that for her as well" Bella looked up at Esme's angelic face and smiled.
Emmett suddenly raised his hand eagerly.
"Now that everything's been said and done… can I ask some questions now?" He was trying to keep himself from showing his excitement but was failing miserably.
"Emmett!" Esme reprimanded him while allowing Bella some room but she stayed in her side. Bella had to admire Emmett's enthusiasm. The big burly vampire always had a way of being able to diffuse any tension in the atmosphere.
"It's okay Esme… I know you all have a lot of questions. Ask away…" she urged, glad to talk about something else.
"Just a few" Emmett smirked then rubbed his fingers under his chin in thought.
"But I am dying to know right now… if Jasper is your mate in your reality…" He nodded towards his brother in the corner. "Then who is Edward's mate there?" So much for thinking about talking about something else.
Bella believed that everyone already had an inkling of who it might be but they wanted to hear it from her.
She looked at Alice and that was all the confirmation that they needed. Alice closed her eyes in frustration.
"Come on... It's not that bad..." Bella told her upon seeing Alice's expression but Alice just groaned.
"Really? You just gave him a piece of your mind for leaving his mate!"
"I did but he's not that messed up in my world and that's because of you... Well, the Alice in my reality anyway"
"I'm not sure if that makes me feel better" the small vampire sighed.
"You don't have to do anything about that knowledge anyway. I'm the one who has to live through knowing that Edward is Bella's mate here while also remembering how you two are with each other in my reality"
"Wow... I can't imagine how awkward it is for you to be here while seeing Jasper and Alice together when you're supposed to be... you know..." Rosalie elbowed Emmett in the ribs, wanting him to shut up.
Bella bit her lower lip and ran her hand through her hair.
"Yeah, it is but I can't really complain because in truth, I'm the outsider here and I'm not even supposed to be here so I'll just have to deal with." She shrugged.
Alice was now looking at her guiltily and Bella saw that look. "Hey! Don't stop yourself from showing your affection to each other at my expense. This is your reality, not mine."
Alice and Jasper glanced at each other. "We don't want to make it any more difficult for you" She appreciated the gesture but they really didn't have to adjust because of her.
"Really... I'll be okay... I just miss my mate and at least every time I see Jasper here, some of that longing eases away".
"Now I understand all the emotions that I've felt from you since the airport" Jasper realized.
"Sorry about that"
"So... I got to ask... what's it like... in the future?" Emmett interrupted them which made Rosalie roll her eyes.
"Hmmm... there's really nothing much that changes... move to a different location after a few years... go to high school... go to college, earn a degree or two, get a job, explore the world...same as we usually do... with me now included of course. Well, Jasper and I are away from the family most of the time but it's pretty much the same routine for everyone else. Although, it's only like thirty-five years away from now and just like what we've discussed with Carlisle… whatever happens in my future might not be the same as what might happen in this one." She explained.
"Oh, that doesn't sound exciting" Emmett pouted.
"What were you expecting, the world to end?" Jasper snorted and Emmett only shrugged.
It was Eleazar who asked next this time. "This vampire that brought you here... how does his gift work?"
Bella didn't have a clear answer to that question. "I'm not really sure. He never told me what his gift really is. Only when I was destroying him, as he wished, I saw his eyes turning purple as he was turning into dust. Then my eyes felt heavy and the next thing I knew, I was here."
"Purple eyes… I haven't encountered one before. It's a surprise that the Volturi have not tried recruiting him…" Eleazer commented and Bella agreed.
"I figured that he was trying to be low key and having a gift like that plus a human mate… he had enough reasons to stay under the radar"
Eleazar nodded in thought. "Speaking of the Volturi. Haven't they taken an interest in your talents in the future or in your timeline? Having that gift already that strong while human, they're bound to take interest in you."
Carlisle turned to his friend. "The Volturi hasn't been in this side of the world for a long time so I doubt they'd know about her and the rest of the children, isn't that right Bella?" He looked at her for confirmation but when Bella did not say anything to back him up, worry was etched in his perfect face.
As a father, she knew Carlisle was only worried that his children might be taken away from him for the Volturi's own gain and Bella was not naïve about the Volturi's attempt at collecting gifted individuals just like her. This was a discussion that was never opened up when she confided to him the day before and she believed that Carlisle was trying not to think about the Volturi crossing paths with them anywhere in the future.
"Actually... about that..." She was afraid that what she was about to say, her adoptive father would not take it well.
"I am part of the Volturi." A gasp can be heard from the rest of the family members and Carlisle couldn't believe what he was hearing and several of them spoke almost at the same time.
"What?!"
"But how?! Why?!"
"Did they threaten you? Did they threaten the family?"
"I can't believe you would join them!"
Bella couldn't believe that they were making a big deal out of this compared to the revelation that she was from the distant future and a different reality. Even the mixed-up mates' issue didn't have this kind of reaction from them and Bella had to sigh.
"You sound like being part of them is such a bad thing. Eleazar should be able to attest that other than their knack of collecting gifted individuals to keep their defenses stronger, you can't deny the fact that they have been able to maintain order in our world by upholding our law."
Bella saw the Denali sister's face stoic expressions. The pain of losing their mother and creator in the hands of the Volturi would never disappear and will always be a factor on how they felt about the rulers of their kind but they respected them after they were spared when the Volturi had proven their innocence from their mother's crime of creating an immortal child.
"I can't believe I would get to see the day that Bella Swan would be defending the Volturi but here we are" Emmett looked impressed.
"When you've been on the inside, sometimes your perspective changes and your opinion about them changes as well when you can finally see the bigger picture. Eleazar can understand what I'm talking about and even Carlisle. Besides, there's more to it than just me wanting to join the guard... and Jasper of course. We're not there to seek fame and power."
"Then why?" Rosalie was the one who asked.
"It was a necessary move to ensure the safety of the family." She explained.
"Wait... I thought you said that you were all safe in the future?"
"That would exactly be the reason why" She pointed out. Bella turned to Jasper and the look on his face that he gave her told her that she understood exactly what she meant. This had probably crossed his mind as well.
"It's a strategic move on your part" Jasper stated and she nodded.
"With the addition of another gifted vampire in the coven, word would spread and it was only a matter of time before the Volturi would hear about Carlisle's growing coven and gifted members that apparently, they knew nothing about."
Carlisle and Eleazar were deep in thought. She was sure that they have already talked about this but with Carlisle's peaceful nature, they didn't think that it could cause a problem in the future. Bella has been in the Volturi long enough to understand that their rulers would not think of it the same way no matter how innocent Carlisle's intention would be of not telling them about his coven. Even if Aro would read every memory of Carlisle and see that their coven was no threat to the Volturi, he wasn't the only ruler and the opinion of others can impact the decisions that can be made against them. She'd seen that in human politics, why would vampire politics be any more different?
"Jasper and I realized how crucial our situation was. We can't just rely on Alice constantly looking out in the future to when the Volturi might show up and cause some complications in our life. That would only give them a reason to think that we are deliberately trying to hide from them."
"So, you joined the Volturi to keep you safe" Eleazar concluded.
"To keep the whole family safe." She clarified. "You see, by voluntarily presenting ourselves to the kings, they saw it in good faith that our growing numbers were not meant to challenge their rule"
"But we never meant to challenge their rule" Esme spoke beside her and she agreed.
"We know that but they don't. In my reality, when we presented ourselves, it had caused commotion and alarm in the Volturi court when they saw our numbers and the gifted vampires that we have in the family. How much more if they found out another way? It took Aro having to read every single thought of the family, except mine, to see that we weren't a threat."
"So why join?" Tanya joined in the conversation.
"Because Aro was interested in all the gifted vampires in the coven" Jasper was the one who answered for her.
"Correct. He knew that we were not going to leave Carlisle for them so they offered the next best thing to get us to join them...they asked if the family can be the Volturi's eyes and ears in the Americas. We were free for do whatever we want but we have to keep an eye on our side of the world and we didn't have to do the heavy lifting. As long as we report to them directly if there's anything amiss, they'll bring in the guards to reinforce the law"
"That's... actually a reasonable request" Carlisle couldn't help but agree.
"They did however ask to have at least one member of the family become an honorary member of the guard. All that was required was to be Volturi's representative and render their service if the need arises. They don't even require the member to stay in Volterra." She gestured to her mate's counterpart.
"Jasper volunteered of course, and as his mate, I wasn't going to let him be on his own so Aro actually got two gifted vampires in the deal"
"Huh, Aro must be thrilled to have an empath that was also a highly skilled soldier and a shield in his ranks"
"Oh yes... but we rarely stayed in Volterra, which was what we liked about the deal. We stayed with the family and if there was a need to look into places within our jurisdiction, at least it was the two of us that just needed to check it out and the family's routine would not have to be disrupted. If the Volturi would need us to be there for them for missions outside of the continent, it's only the two of us that needed to go. That was what I meant earlier when I said that nothing really changes with how we move from place to place except for me and Jasper who are away from time to time."
"You sacrificed your freedom for the family. That seems unfair" Kate commented.
"We looked at it as a chance to learn and a means to explore the world and especially for me who was still new to the life."
"Looks like you're actually the one who got to have more action then." Emmett grinned then added. "It would have been awesome if we got to test how much you learned from the guards." He wiggled his eyebrows and Bella had to laugh.
"I'd love to kick your ass but I'm human now so I won't get to have that chance."
"I am not thrilled about the idea of risking your lives out there..." Carlisle suddenly said which made them pay attention. "I know it is not in my position to dictate what you should be doing because technically, it has already been done. You are already a part of them but I still worry knowing that you are part of my family in your world and this Bella will hopefully be part of ours as well."
"It means a lot to me that in whatever timeline, you are still looking out for us, Carlisle. But rest assured, everything actually turned out okay in my future. Hopefully, it would be the same in this timeline but I could not really tell since the dynamic of Edward and Bella is quite different compared to me and Jasper. There are too many things different already from our story."
"I personally do hope that it would not be necessary for any of us to make that sacrifice but if it comes to that, at least we would already have an idea on what to expect. Maybe we could discuss it more thoroughly later on about our involvement with the Volturi." Carlisle suggested.
"I am interested to know as well how they are in your timeline" Eleazar chimed in.
"I'd be happy to share all information I have in detail. I'm not sure how long I'd be stuck here but while I am still trying to find a way to get back to my own world. I'll tell you anything you need to know. It may not happen to you or the future might turn out differently here but at least, if something similar would happen, you would be better prepared."
"Isn't there like an unspoken rule about not sharing anything in the future, else we change the course of history?" Kate thought aloud.
Bella just shrugged. "I guess so but would it really matter now? Aside from me coming from a different timeline altogether, just by being here might have actually screwed up the flow of the story in this world. We don't know if originally this Bella was not meant to be here in the Denali's or maybe she'd be dead by now because no one ever asked Edward to come back. If that was the case, I'm actually glad that I'm disrupting her future."
"Speaking of future... how are you planning to go back anyway?" It was Tanya who asked.
"Oh that... that was what I asked Jasper to look for."
"You mean the woman that you wanted us to find?" Jasper clarified.
"Yes. Initially, the reason why I came here was to ask Eleazar if he would know any vampire that would have the ability to manipulate time."
Eleazar shook his head, feeling sorry that he couldn't give her any information.
"That's okay. I realized that I didn't have to look for any other vampire anymore. I just needed to find the vampire that brought me here in the first place and his name was Caleb."
"Oh! And just like what you told Edward, he was the vampire who fell in love with a human and the woman you were wanting us to find was his mate?!" Alice realized.
"Yep! Since it would be much harder to find a nomadic vampire where there wouldn't be any traces of his existence anywhere..."
"Finding the mate might actually lead you to him!" Alice finished for her.
"It's a long shot but I figured that if he exists in my timeline then he should at least exist here as well. I was hoping against hope that his story is not different here and he is still mated to the same human because this would be around the time that he was still trying to decide if he would stay away or not." She explained.
"Isn't it a coincidence that you were brought to the time that he was about to make the biggest mistake of his existence?" Esme was the one who asked and this actually made Bella think.
"Huh... now that you've mentioned it..." Bella wasn't able to continue because her mind was racing. It was only then that she was able to really consider the timeline that she was transported to and she realized that maybe this wasn't actually about her. It just so happens that the Bella in this timeline had something going on in her life but knowing that it was Caleb who had brought her there...
Was he somehow asking her, in his dying moment, to save his story as well?
AUTHOR's NOTES: Finally! Any thoughts? Was it too much? Too little? I really didn't want to bombard Edward with all of those words but he needed to hear all of that. Nobody was calling him out on his attitude so I'm letting future Bella be the one to lay it all out there... XD. If he was going to be lectured about his actions, why not another Bella be the one to do it hehehe
This one was actually the longest chapter I've ever written. Whew hope you all like it.