Ivan's POV
The memory of her love and touch still haunt me. Her ghost follows me everywhere I go. She speaks to me, wanting revenge. Vengeance against those who slaughtered her without mercy. She would never hurt a human. She had accepted our way of life. My sweet Lauren only wanted to change. Wanted a chance to live in peace and to find a home. The image of my beloved so close, yet so far. Her olive skin so enticing and smooth, her glossy black hair splayed out on my bed, her crimson eyes replaced by the gold of the sun.
How I longed for my mate...the despair and pain engulfed my being. My pathetic eternal existence meant nothing without her. The hallucinations walked with me everywhere. "Ivan my dear...we could have lived forever together. But they betrayed you. They deceived you my love. Those you call family. Your cousins are responsible, allying themselves with wolves to protect their human pet. Take action my sweet, avenge my death, only then will I Rest In Peace...the cullens must die!"
And so it would be. I knew what I had to do. The cullens betrayed me and my trust. For decades I was there for them. Welcomed them to our humble home. Offered protection when needed, aided them when they requested our assistance. Never had I used my favor against them. But that meant nothing to them. They were selfish and careless of our kind, they exposed themselves to that human scum. He was now a newborn but that doesn't change the crime committed. They betrayed me without thinking twice. They left my innocent defenseless Lauren at the mercy of these disgusting, vile, monstrous creatures.
I know what I have to do. I will avenge you my beloved...I swear to you the cullens will pay. But how? I can't face them alone. My brothers would never face them out of loyalty, but I am loyal to no one. The only ones who can help are those who judge our world. Those who only seek to protect our kind from the dangers of werewolves and humans. It will be done. To Volterra I will go and accuse the cullens of murder. They deceived me with disingenuous beliefs, I shall return the favor. The Volturi will be interested in hearing how the cullens, with help from the werewolves, plan on creating their own dynasty in our world. I hope my dear cousin Edythe understands, its only fair that her mate loses his life as my mate lost hers.
... [Volterra]
"Well it seems we have a surprise visitor, Ivan of the Denali clan. What is your business here?" The voice of our fearless leader softly acknowledging my presence.
"I have a crime to report. It is of the utmost importance..." I shook where I stood. Not of fear, but of marvel. Sulpicia's wisdom and understanding exceeded all who have ever walked this earth. I do not forget she is the murderer of my father. The one who has taken him away from us. But she is the only one of our kind with the power to defeat the cullens. The cullens must die! Lauren's words reverberated in my mind. I will avenge you Lauren. Your death will not be in vain my love. I swear to you, we will have revenge...
Sulpicia slowly walked my way, her bright ruby eyes filled with curiosity. Her relaxed smile eased my perturbed thoughts as she held her hands out to hold my own. "May I my dear?" I wordlessly nodded feeling her gentle touch around my hands. Her eyes calm at first, then widened in a slight look of shock and anger. As quickly as it came the shock faded, replaced with a calm but disappointed expression.
"Well my son your accusation is of the utmost gravity. It seems we have a problem my children. The cullens appear to have betrayed our kindness and generosity. My my Carine...involved with wolves..."
...[Forks] Beau POV
"They're coming!"
Archie was facing us, staring off into the future, eyed widened in horror. I turned to edythe who also had the same look of terror and despair, her mouth open in shock.
"What do you see Archie?!" Jessamine pleadingly growled, quickly by Archie's side grabbing her husband's shoulders, desperation evident in her tone. "Please Archie what do you see?! Who is coming?!" Eleanor cursed under her breath, quickly darting to every window in the house, awaiting for something or someone who could attack our family. The silence of my family overwhelmed my curiosity even further.
"What is going on? Who is coming?!" I loudly spoke to gain their attention.
In perfect chorus Archie and Edythe answered my question. Archie stumbled back on the couch in disbelief and shock. "They're coming for us. All of the Volturi are coming here. I don't know why but they are coming. When the forest is covered in snow, in less than a month, they will be here."
"Why?" Carine asked calmly. Earnest grabbed her hands tightly, putting his head on her shoulder, his forehead creasing with worry.
"They must have a serious reason to be coming all this way and for the entire Volturi to leave Volterra..." his eyes met Carine's in fear of what that could mean for their family. Fear petrified my limbs and mind. I couldn't find the words to express the feeling of trepidation. My mind ran at 100 mph. Every nightmare igniting the fear and horror I felt when I used to dream of the Volturi.
The day that Archie and I saved Edythe, still engraved in my memory, came flooding back. I immediately moved toward Edythe holding her tight in my arms, my eyes met hers, the same horror filled expression written in her obsidian orbs. The moment where she threw her self in front of me to protect me from Jonathan's ability still haunted me to this day, her screams of pain always echoed in mind when I thought of Volterra. I had promised myself that I would never let them harm her. But the question remains; what is the purpose of this?
Carine said "but why?! We've done nothing...even if we had broken the law they would summon us to Volterra, Sulpicia never leaves Volterra. She would just send didymus, Felicia, Alexa, and Jonathan to do her bidding." Jessamine held Archie's hand, looking into his eyes silently pleading for him to not spare any details, no matter how severe.
"Our cousin, Ivan, has gone to them. Anger and hatred for our family has brought him to this decision. He blames us for the death of his mate Lauren at the hands of the wolves"
"How dare he?! His mate started this. The moment she wanted to kill Beau was a declaration of war. Besides we had nothing to do with her death. Julie black and the pack made the decision on their own." Edythe angrily spoke, all other emotions in her eyes were replaced with frustration and disbelief. In this moment I actually feared Edythe for what she might do. Her petite figure slightly trembled in my arms, yes she was extremely upset but fear was the core emotion she was feeling.
"He has been following beau for sometime now. Everywhere he went he stalked him like a shadow. But something else is missin-no! NO, Ivan you traitor!" Archie gasped for air as he fell to his knees clutching jessamine's hand. Choking back emotion, face panicked stricken.
"What's wrong son?" Earnest begged for Archie to explain. Archie lifted his eyes, gazing at everyone. His face even paler than usual. His hands rested on his head as if he had a headache.
"Ivan has accused us to sulpicia, he has stated that we have allied ourselves with the wolves and plan on destroying the Volturi themselves. His reason; vengeance against us. Sulpicia is deciding but she will make up her mind soon, we will be on trial for treason. But that's not all." My head snapped in his direction. "If we are found guilty, sulpicia will have our family killed, sparing only Edythe and I, so we can join her ranks."
All gasps of disbelief let out in unison. Royal banged his fist on his hand muttering all sorts of curse words under his breath at Ivan. "Traitor...son of a bitch...ungrateful bastard..."
Jessamine was in disbelief still, confusion in her eyes, "not even when they hunted immortal children would they ALL leave Volterra." Anger then filled her eyes. "She will not take Archie or my sister...I will rip her head off her shoulders..."
I finally mustered up the courage to ask, "So what are we going to do? what can we do?" My questions coming out in a demanding tone.
Eleanor answered calmly "We fight them Beau".
"We can't win Eleanor, fighting isn't our best option" Jessamine growled. Her body instinctively shielding Archie as if we were on the battlefield.
"Well I hate to break it to you Jess, but running isn't an option either especially when they have their own tracker running around doing their dirty work." Eleanor calmly stated again. Her face eager for a fight. She was easily the most competitive and confident of the whole family. Her unrelenting confidence provided me a small sense of hope that we may survive. Her hand was under her chin as she was considering a crazy idea, "maybe...we don't have to fight alone... what if? The dogs might be..."
"No eleanor! We can't consider that! I will not bring Jules and the pack into this." I gasped turning my glare to her. "They are teenagers, I cannot allow that to happen".
"Relax little brother, chill out. Remember we need all the help we can get if the ENTIRE Volturi will be coming. They already believe we have allied ourselves with the wolves. You all heard Archie, regardless of how they do it, they have made their choice. And once they're done with us Archie and Edythe will be forced to wear new shiny black cloaks and pledge their allegiance to those fucking weasels, is that what you want?"
I bowed my head in shame, still holding Edythe in my arms. Unable to hear more. Deep down I knew she was right. It was rare for Eleanor to be so serious but in this moment she was as serious as Jessamine was about the Volturi's dangerous presence. Yes they were young girls, but they were courageous warriors descended from fearless leaders who gave it their all to protect their tribe.
One of the things I learned about them when I spent my time in La Push was that they prided themselves in protecting the defenseless. They never backed down from a fight no matter how risky it was. Their never ending hatred for vampires was one of the driving forces that pushed them everyday to protect humans. They were vampire killers. And they were damn good at it.
I knew that if Carine talked to Sam about the impending danger that was coming they wouldn't refuse. They knew the threat that many vampires in one area would bring to the humans. We all knew that the pack would never ignore an invasion of that magnitude.
Jessamine suddenly spoke in a calculating manner. "Hmmm...perhaps we can speak to Sam and form an alliance. It would give us a slight edge and the Volturi wouldn't see it coming. They would never expect wolves at a trial. They would believe us to go alone to prove our innocence."
"They will babe, I've just seen it. The Volturi will think they're just there as witnesses. They don't think that wolves would get involved in any physical disputes between vampires." Archie added. Jessamine's eyes pondered on all points made, her eyes flickered to me. "Sorry Beau but this is the only choice we have. It's worth a shot."
I knew arguing would get me no where so I nodded my head. "Ok I'll call Jules and set up a meeting."
Edythe disentangled herself from my embrace and ran to her room. Slamming the door so hard that cracks appeared on the wall. I could see Archie and Earnest flinch in disapproval, they had just renovated that wall. I heard how she angrily punched the furniture in our room. But I didn't blame her. I understood her frustration. It seemed that anytime we tried to live in peace a new obstacle would present itself. The idea that the Volturi were coming for our heads was enough to frighten our family. Even though I have never fought them I know their powers and strength, the most dreadful evil of all evils lurked in their whole being.
I ran upstairs and softly knocked on the door waiting for edythe to allow me inside. She opened the door, a melancholic feeling swept me as I walked inside. I gazed the room noticing all the damage to our furniture.
"Guess we need a new couch babe." I joked trying to lift the mood. A small smile appeared on my wife's lips. "I guess we do..." her smile faded as quickly as it came. Her eyes never met mine, she stared outside the window, looking up at the sky...her thoughts lost in the twilight.
Even in anger and gloom, Edythe looked as beautiful as ever. Her bronze flowery hair was in a messy bun, the sadness in her eyes could not hide the black that shimmered in the night, her face with not a hint of imperfections. She held her hand out for me beckoning me to come closer. I softly grabbed her hand allowing her to bring her body next to me. Her eyes looked into mine, "Beau I love you. I will do everything I can to protect you. No matter what happens to me or Archie or my family, promise me you will do everything you can to survive." I hated where she was going with this. The last time she spoke this way was when I was a defenseless human who would be safe without her.
"Please promise me my love. I need to hear you, please." She cradled my face in her hands desperately pleading to me to make a promise that I knew I could not keep. I could not and will not leave her in this time of need. Her wedding ring glittered in the moonlight. The ring that I gave her with all my love on our wedding day. The day I promised myself to her forever, I would rather die than live without her. What kind of husband, son and brother would I be if I ran away when my family needed me the most? I will stand by their side and prove our innocence, no matter what happens. I was tired of people fighting for me. I need to fight for myself.
Besides it was indirectly my fault, Ivan betrayed us to avenge Lauren's death-she tried killing me- so now he's out for revenge. Thats how karma works. Payback is a bitch. But looking into Edythe's eyes gave me all the courage I needed. My fear turned into determination, I will not for the life of me leave my Edythe. I will stand by her side and either survive or die with her.
"No edythe, I cannot promise you that. We are in this together, wherever you go I'll be there standing by your side."
"Beau please you don't understand the trial is real but sulpicia has an ulterior motive."
"I know Edythe but I don't care if she brings the entire vampire world against us, I'm not leaving. We are in this together, the day I married you I vowed to protect you and love you during the good times and the bad times. I will be by your side, ok?" I hooked my finger under her jaw making her look up at me "please don't make me go away, trust in me. I'm no longer a human I can defend myself now. It'll be alright." She reluctantly sighed, averting her eyes to the trees, processing my words.
She brought my hand to her lips and kissed it softly. Her soft lips made their way to my throat and jaw. Then finally up to my lips. Our kiss was sweet and pure. It felt like what every first kiss should be. She finally gave in and spoke, but her eyes were downcast. A gloomy emotion floating in the room.
"I understand Beau. But I want you to promise me that you won't try anything if I get taken away. Archie saw the possibility that Sulpicia was coming for us but now it's confirmed. Like Eleanor said. If our family is killed, Archie and I will be forced to join them. There's only two routes, either we win or you die, leaving Archie and I to join them."
The weight of her words hit me like a truck. I felt steamrolled, beaten by every hurtful thing in this world. I felt all sanity leave my mind, I let go of Edythe and paced the room in disbelief. Of course it makes sense, Sulpicia has always wanted Edythe and Archie for their gifts. She's never had the chance to act on her true intentions because of the strength of our family and her fear of Carine. But it seemed that Ivan has now presented her with a golden opportunity to wipe out the Cullen clan, leaving Edythe and Archie vulnerable.
"They have made their decision, they're coming for us Beau." Before I could respond Archie knocked on the door, "Beau, Carine and Jess would like to speak to you". We had agreed meeting Sam and the wolves to let them know of our proposal in a neutral area in the forest where we wouldn't be interrupted.
... [No man's Land]
Carine, Jessamine, Archie, Edythe and I were at the woods waiting for Jules and Sam to arrive. "Are you sure they'll accept." Jessamine asked her husband.
"Yes, its a bit blurry but all we have to do is present the situation. They won't be thrilled to work with us but they'll agree given the circumstances. They know it's in everyone's best interest to work together." Archie responded, lacing his hand in Jessamine's.
"I can hear them now they're here. But it's just five of them." Edythe said. Our eyes darted to the trees. She was right, I could hear their footsteps and heart beats. A few seconds later Sam, Lee, Quil, Paula and Jules emerged from the woods. The only one who was in human form was Jules. I took a few steps forward to Jules who quickly wrapped her hands around me in a tight hug.
"Hey Jules, how you been?" Her scent was strong but not desirable whatsoever. The wet dog smell was disgustingly potent.
"Hey beau! Ugh, wow dude you stink." She jeered as we pulled apart from our embrace.
"I could say the same about you...you know wolves can bathe right?" Jules feigned a hurt expression, then flashed a toothy grin.
"Yeah that's why I smell so great all the time. Good looks and untouchable hygiene, I've got the whole package." We laughed loudly like if it was just the two of us around. Her hand now on my shoulder, her brown eyes gazing into mine, their pleading expression trying to communicate all unspoken feelings she has for me.
It was always easy to by myself around Jules. A few months ago we had decided to remain friends and nothing more but I knew she still had feelings for me. It took awhile to mend our friendship after my transformation. We didn't talk for weeks afterwards and it drove me crazy, I was missing my best friend. Unanswered phone calls and letters forced me to visualize a world where we wouldn't be friends, we'd be enemies. It was tough but eventually Jules came around and slowly reconnected with me. She somewhat accepted my decision. She even bugged me about how weird it must've been to not sleep or eat anymore. "I don't understand beau how you could live in a world where you hate pizza, it's tragic. Definitely not inviting you to any birthday parties." We were once again best friends, which didn't sit well with my Edythe.
But the only thing that hadn't changed was the hate Jules has for the Cullens, especially my wife. Despite her accepting my choice she never forgave Edythe for coming into my life and "destroying it". Even now the animosity between them is as strong as ever.
"Ahemm...if you are done can you please get your hand off my husband." I heard Edythe clear her throat behind us bringing me back to the purpose of this meeting. Edythe's eyes were narrowed and her lips were pursed in a thin line. Her gaze was as cold as our skin, her head slightly tilted to the side cocking an eyebrow at Jules. Her facial expression had the words disapproval, unacceptable, intolerable written all over.
"Relax blood sucker, I'm letting him go" Jules eyes tauntingly flashed at Edythe, anger and mock radiating off her stare.
I flinched at the insult. "Hey! I'm a blood sucker too ya know."
Jules's indifferent facade slipped a little, her toothy grin making a comeback, "Yeah Beau but you're you, you don't count."
"Can we just get on with this so we can all go?" Edythe impatiently groaned. She hated being around Jules for obvious reasons. Anytime I mentioned Jules or the wolves she would roll her eyes in annoyance. "Honestly beau what do you see in them? They're nothing but immature, uncontrollable, and explosive creatures."
"Oh sorry your blood sucking highness" Jules sarcastically said mock bowing her head as if Edythe was royalty. "I didn't know that we were wasting your precious time. I'll do you a solid you can go and hunt like the leech you are while beau and I stay behind and talk." Edythe remained silent, her mouth twisted with frustration. Knowing Edythe she would retaliate mentally. And of course I was right. Jules gritted her teeth and cursed under her breath. Her distant cold tone turned to an angry snarl. Her hands clenched firmly to her sides.
"That's it! I've had enough you parasitic bitch! If you wanna go we can go now! I have no problem biting your pretty little head off!" Immediately Carine got in the way and Sam jumped in front of Jules, both wolves and vampires ready to fight. Jessamine and Archie in full battle mode stance, teeth snarling back lethally. The wolves ferocious growls echoing through the forest. I slowly walked to the middle, my hands in the air waving an invisible white flag.
"Jules please...calm down ok, we're not here to fight, as we mentioned on the phone, we want a truce and to discuss plans for the coming of the Volturi." Before I could take a step further Edythe pulled me behind her.
"Beau she's not in control be careful, the mongrel could phase at any moment."
"Leave him alone, I won't hurt him but I'll definitely hurt you leech!" Something in me snapped, I didn't want a fight. Frustration boiled inside me. How long would this fucking pointless feud go on? I had enough of the hatred and constant bickering between them. I didn't like how Edythe antagonized the wolves but I hated when Jules would insult Edythe. I could not allow that. I'm still Switzerland.
"THAT'S ENOUGH!" I loudly yelled at them, shocking everyone from the anger in my tone. "We are here for discussing strategies and how to defend ourselves from the Volturi. I've had enough of this bullshit feud between you guys! It's been decades already of hatred and pointless fighting. It's time to get rid of old primitive stereotypes and start over! How can we expect to survive this if we're always looking for a fight against each other. I don't expect us to fucking sit around a campfire singing kumbaya but we need to at least be civil. So calm yourselves down and get the fuck over it!"
I took a deep breath after finishing my rant. I stared at Jules, my golden eyes glaring at her. "I understand your dislike for us Jules and you can insult vampires all you want but I will not tolerate another insult to my wife. Do you understand?" Jules eyes widened in shock, she didn't think I would blow up like that. I was surprised I blew up like that. Suddenly her demeanor went from embarrassment to coldness. Her eyes were narrowed, her feet relaxed and her fists weren't as clenched as before. Edythe's face was in shock as well from my outburst but a hint of admiration twinkled in her eyes.
Carine stepped forward putting her hand on my shoulder, nodding her head in gratitude for what I did. I knew that she also shared the same beliefs as I. She would love to form an official alliance with the wolves and not always be at each others throats. "Beau is right we need to put all differences aside and focus on the task at hand. That's the only way we can survive this fight." Jules and the pack hesitated for a moment but then nodded their heads in approval. Jessamine stepped forward, commander vibes oozing from her perfect posture, "we have a problem..."
...
"So how did it go? Are the dogs fighting with us?" Eleanor cheerfully asked.
Edythe rolled her eyes in annoyance, "yes, The mutts-I mean wolves, have accepted and will start training with us. It wasn't easy to convince them but Jessamine presented the plan perfectly."
"Yes but they would have most likely accepted anyways because they get to kill vampires." Jessamine modestly stated. Archie happily stepped forward clasping my shoulder, "and thanks to Beaufort for being Switzerland. We avoided an all out fight between them and us."
Eleanor smiled widely, bringing me in for a hug "I knew I could count on our little peacemaker. But I'm pretty sure that Jules black would've said yes anyway...as long as she spent more time with you huh champ-"
It all happened too fast, one second Eleanor was standing next to me and the next Edythe and her were rolling around in the floor pulling at each other's hair. Earnest pleadingly begged them to stop as Jessamine and Archie tried to pull Edythe off of Eleanor. We spent the rest of the afternoon keeping them away from each other. I inadvertently caused this kerfuffle so I steered away from both of them as much as I could. I went to the garage to spend time with Royal who was fixing his car. He suspiciously eyed me as I walked in, his mouth twisted in curiosity.
"What are you doing here Beau? You never come in on your own will."
"Umm can I stay here? until this whole thing with Edythe and Eleanor blows off. I'd rather not be with either one of them especially Edythe. You won't even know I'm here. I'll be silent as a tomb."
Royal rolled his eyes and chuckled. "I know Edythe can be annoying and scary sometimes but you can't hide from her forever."
"Yeah but you're the last person she would go to, so I'm safe here." I nervously grinned at him.
Royal stayed silent for a moment, then nodded his head in agreement. "You're right. So 'champ' What happened with wolf girl anyway?" Like word vomit the words just poured out quickly as I summarized how I prevented super natural world war 3 from happening. Royal chuckled to himself even more, enjoying my nervousness.
"I heard what Eleanor said and she's right. But you should not be surprised by Edythe's reaction I would've done the same if I were her. Don't worry she'll cool down. Leave it to Edythe to always over exaggerate everything in regards to you.
"Yeah but what if she doesn't-"
"She will Beau. She loves you and only cares for your wellbeing. I may not agree with her tactics but I can't deny the motive behind her reasoning. Now stop thinking like a pussy and come lift the car up, I need to check the front axle gear."
I spent the rest of the evening brother bonding with Royal on how the engine of a car should look like and when to check for oil changes. The distraction was nice but in the back of my mind I couldn't help but worry about our confrontation with the Volturi. But the idea of Jules and Edythe spending more time around each other worried me even more.