Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight.
Author's note I: Soundtracks for this chapter: "The Aviators", "Expression", and "Wishes" by Helen Jane Long...as well as "A Song of Simplicity" by Elijah Bossenbroek.
Author's note II: Did someone say "ass whooping?"
Bella exploded.
As soon as she heard the 'yes' her power erupted outwards sending trees bending backwards and cracking in pieces under the strain. She was so angry there was no time for fire to make its mark. Everything just melted right there and turned to ash. Except for Edward. Edward stood alone with her in the midst of the debris, frozen not from bravery but from immobility. Bella kept him staying put. She breathed hard and turned back to face him, growling before she-and Edward-flew violently twenty feet across to a tree that Bella had spared. She came to a halt but Edward continued on. Her eyes burned with rage as she slammed him over and over and over again into that tree. Then she held him still again. Spider cracks appeared on his cheeks and neck as she violently pressured his body to comply to her vengeance.
"An innocent man is dead!" She screamed and slammed him harder. "Hundreds more could have died! My father-," she created pockets of dense air that weighed a ton and sent them slugging at his body. "My father nearly died. Explain yourself!"
He opened his mouth.
"The truth," she hissed.
"You blew up the foot of the mountain," he whispered. "You were angry with me and blew up the foot of the mountain. They were nearby and witnessed it. I never sensed them but I heard their thoughts the closer they crept."
"What did you hear?" Bella spat.
Bella had inadvertently loosened her grip on him and she realized this when he moved his body slightly. She snarled and immediately held him down once again.
"They were astonished," Edward struggled in her hold. "Victoria wanted nothing to do with you but James wouldn't take no for an answer. He edged closer until he sensed me and backed off."
Bella slowly circled the floating, still figure before her. She extended her hearing far out from her. No one approached.
"You let me go back to the cabin on my own," she recalled. "What were their intentions?"
He swallowed. "They intended to kill you."
Point: Bella.
"You said you needed to hunt before I left. Where did you really go?"
"I hunted. Aaahhh-stop!"
Bella's nostrils flared as she sent her anger blasting at Edward's fingers. One by one she bent and twisted each finger back until it hung by a thread. He screamed and Bella's heart vibrated with the subjugation, the knowledge that she was in control of his pain. Edward's venom would kick in as soon as she let up and would heal him. But knowing that only made it easier to kick up the pain a notch. Pages of information flipped through her mind. Without even thinking, she fashioned razor-thin cylinders of air and shot them under Edward's fingernails. His screams reached a whole new level.
"The truth!" She screeched. "Or I'll snap off your fingers and burn them before your feet touch the ground."
He shook like a rag doll for another minute until Bella's treatment finally abated. Bella stood rigid in front of him. He's responsible for everything, she chanted in her mind. He's responsible for what would've become a massacre.
"I followed them," he gasped after he healed. "I stayed...just far enough so I could listen. James wanted to kill you right there...but he didn't count on finding Rosalie waiting for you in the cabin. They observed. You demonstrated more of your power that night. Your...relationship with Rosalie made you even more interesting. He decided to follow you and learn more."
Bella shook her head in disgust. "And you followed him."
They had all wondered what took him so long to get back to Forks. She remembered hearing Alice complain of his indecision that week and indeed, ever since he came back. So he didn't go to the Volturi like Rosalie suspected. But was the truth easier or more difficult to swallow?
"Yes," he whispered warily. "I followed and learned everything I could about them. James kept going back and forth. He was fixated on you but was having too much fun to end his game. Some days he was intent on finishing what he started. Other days he just watched."
Something didn't add up here. If James was the world-class tracker he thought he was, how could Edward have fooled him for so long?
"When did you blow your cover?" Bella asked.
He looked down.
"When?" she asked again, narrowing her eyes.
"Very early on," he sighed. "James made up his mind to kill you. He started to notice when I wouldn't let you out of my sight."
"Excuse me?" She looked at him with wonder. "Don't tell me...you wanted to play the villain and the hero at the same time?"
Edward was clearly very frustrated. Even motionless in the air, his body showed its discomfort at the question. "I...I didn't know what I wanted, ok? I don't really want you dead but...I wanted you out of our lives. Out of my life."
The mood swings. The quiet friendship followed inexplicably by cold shoulders. How he seemed to appear haphazardly around her, especially when she was bereft of other vampires.
All for what? So he could fool himself into thinking he's a good guy?
"Keep talking."
"The three of them confronted me and asked for more information about you."
"Which you were only too happy to provide, right?" Bella shook her head. "And let me guess...you told them all about your family too. About their gifts. I was wondering how James knew so much."
"I had to protect the family!" Edward insisted. "If they went to the Volturi I had to make sure Aro knew we never revealed our secret to you. And-"
"And that at least one member of the Cullen coven had given a nomad permission to kill the dangerous human," Bella laughed snidely. "What, did you make me out holding your family hostage? That the Cullens had a time bomb on their hands they didn't know how to dispose of? Do you really think that will fool Aro and his guard?"
"It was something," Edward relented quietly. "The only thing that might save us when they show up. I was protecting the family."
Bella shook her head. This was too much even for her mind to process. There were too many variables that were out of her control. Edward. Victoria and Laurent. What else Edward was hiding and what else the nomads might be planning.
She set him down and released her hold.
"You're not a protector," she whispered. "You...you are a coward."
He narrowed his eyes and shifted in his spot.
"Did you feel any responsibility when Harry Clearwater died? Any remorse?" She continued.
Unless her eyes were deceiving her, Edward's face did indeed show a hint of guilt.
"I was not responsible for his death. James was. Remorse, however, I do feel," he looked down. "I truly regret that. I never meant for anyone to get hurt."
"Except for me."
He looked her in the eye. "Harry Clearwater did not deserve to die. You do."
She chuckled humorlessly. "That is true," she said. "But you're wrong about one thing. You are responsible for Harry's death. And you know it. Take it from an expert. His death will haunt you for all your existence. Because you allowed it to happen."
Bella stared at his golden eyes and knew she was right. The guilt, the regrets...they seeped from every pore on his perfect face just as they seeped from Bella whenever she caught her reflection in a mirror when no one was around. She knew that look very, very well. It didn't matter if the face was human or vampire, if the deed was one life or 500. Sooner or later, the weight of a life stolen drags the conscience down like a heavy stone in the sea. There's nowhere to go with that baggage but down, down, down.
Edward looked away. "Are you going to tell them?" He asked.
"I don't know," she answered honestly.
He nodded and stepped away. He stopped before venturing too far and called back to her, "I have a favor to ask of you."
Bella raised an eyebrow. "Really?" She laughed. "And what might that be?"
"Alice. I learned her story from James. He hunted her," he said sadly. "Before she was turned in 1920. Her real name is Mary Alice Brandon. She's from Biloxi, Mississippi. Her family put her in an asylum when she was a child because her visions scared them. She knew James was coming after her and no one believed her. There was another vampire who worked in that asylum, and he turned her to save her from James."
Looking at his pain now, she was reminded that Edward and Alice were once dear friends. That may not be the case anymore, but Edward still clearly cared a great deal for his sister.
"I couldn't tell her...for obvious reasons. Will you please find a way? I know it would mean the world to her to finally know who she is."
Bella nodded reluctantly. Doing this for Alice superseded her disgust at doing Edward any favors. "I will."
"Thank you," he said, then paused, concentrating in the direction of the country club. "One more thing. Billy Black just drove up. He wants to talk to you."
Scene 2 soundtrack: "The Aviators" by Helen Jane Long
By the time Bella reached the edge of the forest her anger had fizzled away. Edward trotted back inside the building, leaving her to compose herself and to watch Billy for a few minutes before stepping out herself.
She got there in time to watch him skillfully maneuver out of his handicap-accessible van and wheel himself slowly to a nearby bench. When he finally pulled on his brakes he was wheezing and out of breath. Bella remembered that he too had suffered injuries that night.
"Hi Billy," she called out gently so as not to startle him and sat down on the bench across from him.
"Bella," Billy greeted her. "I'm sorry to crash your prom like this. I've wanted to speak with you since the incident and...this was an opportunity I could not pass up."
She nodded. He refrained from adding that since she was holed up in Cullen territory, he had absolutely no way of meeting with her until now. But Bella understood.
"How's Jacob?" She blurted out.
Billy sighed. "He's fine," he said quickly before adding, "understandably he is struggling...but he's a strong boy. I'm grateful for my position as an elder of my tribe. It means Jacob is free to talk with me if he chooses. It's not a luxury all of them have."
She wanted to ask him more personal questions. Did Jacob hate her now? Did his exposure to Rosalie and the rest of them do any good or was that just wishful thinking? Did he blame her for what almost happened to his father? She wanted to ask but she refrained. She doubted Billy would have those answers anyway.
Billy continued. "Bella, I'm here first and foremost to thank you. If it weren't for you I would be dead or worse. I know what you did almost cost you your own life. I want you to know that I'm grateful."
"I didn't-" She stopped, sighed, then replied, "You're welcome. I did what anyone in my place would have done."
"But there isn't anyone quite like you, is there?" He chuckled gently.
"I guess not," she answered.
Billy shifted in his seat as he gave her a measuring glance, then sighed in beguiled resignation. "I should be used to dealing with supernaturals by now," he said suddenly. "But I don't know how to classify you."
Bella thought for a minute before she responded. "I'm human, Billy," she said. "Just...amplified, I guess."
He nodded. "Your ability...how long have you had it?"
"For as long as I can remember," she answered. "Carlisle has been helping me control it."
He flinched at the name, just slightly, but it was visible enough for Bella to see it. The man still had his prejudices.
"So...before you worked with Carlisle, you couldn't control it?" He asked, trying to understand.
"No," she replied softly, thinking of Sarah Black and the hundreds others that lost their lives because, through no fault of their own, they crossed paths with her at exactly the wrong time. "It controlled me."
"Does your father know?" He asked.
"Yes," she said, looking down to hide her pain. "He doesn't know I hang out with vampires though. Or with shape-shifters."
Billy nodded slowly. His gaze was so deep and perceptive, Bella felt she was under a microscope.
"Well...thank you for answering my questions," he said then sighed heavily. "Bella, I've come to warn you as well. The pack and the other elders have accepted my word on what happened but they are still suspicious. They don't like our secrets in the hands of outsiders. The Cullens-"
"They didn't break the treaty," she said quickly. "I swear it. I figured it out from the legends Jacob told me. It wasn't his fault either-he thought they were just stories. Billy, the Cullens did not break the treaty."
He nodded. "All right," he said. "I'll convey that to the others but I don't know how much good it'll do. But it's not just the business with the treaty. You're an anomaly. A wild card. Your immense power and the fact that you fraternize with our natural enemies makes all of us nervous. This is not a threat, please don't misunderstand me. But I thought it prudent to make sure you are aware...your future actions, should they impact the tribe in any way, will be watched and judged very closely. You should be careful."
How on earth did she end up in such a convoluted mess?
"Ok," she said, bewildered. "Thanks for the heads up."
"It's the least I can do," he said.
She thought the meeting was over but Billy's demeanor suddenly changed...and not for the better. He picked at his denim jeans and swallowed hard. He stared intently at the empty space on the bench next to Bella for what felt like an eternity before he took a deep breath and looked up at her again.
"Bella," he said softly. "I'm going to ask you something...and I want your word that you will answer me truthfully, no matter what. Can you do that?"
Bella hesitated but then nodded. That he came here himself to warn her meant a lot and the least she could do was honestly answer any other questions he had. She held her breath, waiting.
"Please tell me exactly how my wife died."
She exhaled. And she froze. Despite legs that could carry her to the ends of the earth, there was nowhere to run. Not this time. So he was awake long enough to hear James...He heard him implore Bella to kill the next member of the Black family. Billy had heard just enough to connect the dots.
"Please, Bella," he whispered. "I need to know."
"Sarah was trying to help me," she began shakily. Bella honored her promise and told Billy everything. Her near-death experience due to dehydration. Sarah finding and reviving her by the side of the road. And the tragic events that led to her death. When she finished, Bella felt strangely disconnected from everything around her...like an untethered balloon that could float away any second. In the past she often thought about what she'd say, how she'd explain herself if ever confronted with a victim's family member. 'Sorry' was so pitiful. And what would they care if she stressed that she never meant for it to happen? How was it any consolation to know that a loved one's life was snuffed out due to someone else's mistake? Or because of a billion to one stroke of bad luck?
She finally looked at him and saw that his head was bowed down. She quickly looked away again because then it would be easier to pretend he wasn't crying...but of course he was.
"Thank you for your honestly," he croaked, and Bella looked down at her feet. She hated that he was thanking her for anything. He should be stabbing her through the heart.
"I'm so sorry, Billy," she whispered because she had to say something. She closed her eyes but was surprised to feel, a moment later, Billy's hand lightly covering hers. He touched her for only an instant, then immediately pulled back and started to roll away. There was nothing left for him to say.
Bella watched him wince from the effort to maneuver the chair through the grass, and she got up without thinking and helped him get to his van. She stopped when they reached pavement and watched in silence as he got into the driver's seat and started the engine. For a few long seconds, they observed each other through the window...Billy with wet eyes, Bella with uncharacteristically dry ones. The spell was soon broken by Billy. He nodded ever so slightly and drove away, leaving her standing alone in the dark.
But it wasn't over.
When she heard the leaves rustle, she knew. She could've been blind; she still would have known. The dive her stomach took was indication enough and it only sank further after she turned around.
It was Jacob.
Bella stood deathly still. Jacob too was rooted to his spot under the trees...as if both of them were under Bella's hypnotic power, each transfixed on each other. Jacob looked older. His body had grown even more in mass, hard as it was to believe. No one who saw him for the first time would ever guess his real age. Her eyes raked up his massive chest and rested on his face. It was wet with falling tears. Despite the massive build of the young man before her, his face still looked like a child's; a child crying for his mother. Jacob always wore his emotions for all to see. Excitement, mischief, anger...it was always there. It was so unlike Bella who rarely displayed for others more than what she chose to reveal. Looking at Jacob now though, it occurred to her that the devastated, lost look on his face was the personification of her own, often concealed feelings. This is how innocent people look when their world is thrown out from underneath them. This is how Bella might have looked once upon a time.
But the innocent little girl was long gone.
I killed both our mothers, she thought. Bella and Jacob would always have that in common. It would always define them. But Jacob had the advantage of innocence to help him wake up each morning. Bella...she had to walk a dangerous tightrope between victim and criminal; between good intentions and monstrous consequences. Even if she manages to cross that abyss, will she be worthy of forgiveness in the end...or of condemnation? And when the judgement is finally handed down, will she find it in herself to accept it?
Jacob looked down, then quickly turned and disappeared back into the forest. It was minutes after his disappearance that Bella realized her face too was wet with tears.
Bella took a deep breath. Then another. And another. Gradually she felt herself calm down. Gradually she returned to the emotional equilibrium she had perfected over the years.
"He just needs time," as soft voice sounded from the door. It was Jasper.
"He needs to heal," he said, walking closer until he stood right by her. "It felt like you might need a hand."
She felt a rush of gratitude for him and immediately let herself succumb to whatever comfort he could give her.
"No, Bells. You misunderstand," he said softly. "I'm not using my gift. Sometimes...the best thing a person can do for another is not to help them."
Disappointed, she nodded reluctantly and let him hug her gently. But Jasper was right. She'd gone years without any crutches. She can get through this and, there was comfort in that at least. After a minute during which Bella collected herself mentally, Jasper spoke again.
"I've been tasked with escorting you back," he said.
"Afraid I'll trip over my own feet?" She said softly, smiling for the first time since she stepped outside.
He smiled. "No, but we're not going back in there," he said pointing to the country club. "Rosalie has a surprise for you."
Scene 3 soundtrack: "Expression" and "Wishes" by Helen Jane Long
You couldn't tell from ground level, but the roof on top of the school was decorated so brightly Bella had to squint when she opened the door. Every vertical surface was covered with twinkling white christmas lights, and when she turned to her favorite enclave, she saw even more lights strewn across the high walls around it so that if you looked up, literally all you'd see was night and light. Soft music played from a mysterious location Bella couldn't see.
"What do you think of Alice's handiwork?" Jasper asked as he led her around.
"Jasper!" Alice appeared out of nowhere and chastised her husband. "You weren't supposed to tell her I did it! I wanted her to wonder for a bit."
"As if anyone else is crazy enough to go to these lengths," Bella laughed, truly happy and dumbfounded at what her friends had done. "Did you clean out the Home Depot for these?"
"And Lowe's," Alice affirmed smugly. "In two different towns."
Bella shook her head in amazement. "I'm touched," she said. "But why all this trouble?"
Alice rolled her eyes but smiled gently. "Because-"
"Because," Rosalie drifted in suddenly right in front of Bella. "You deserve a real prom. One where you don't have to pretend."
Bella gulped when she saw her. Though it had only been an hour since she left the ballroom, and indeed, Rosalie had changed nothing of her appearance or attire since then, Bella's heart still skipped a beat at the sight. Maybe it was the twinkling lights reflecting off her dress, her eyes, and her very skin...but Rosalie had never looked more angelic than she did now.
Rosalie reached down, and very gently cupped her face and kissed her. Bella sighed and the worries, the sadness, and the guilt had no choice but to leave her body which was now flooded with happiness.
Flash!
"Sexy!" Emmett yelled from behind the camera in his hands. He took a few more while Alice tisked and Jasper shook his head, mockingly embarrassed for his friend.
"What?" Emmett grinned. "It is."
"Give me the camera," Alice narrowed her eyes. Emmett pouted, but Alice stood firm and held out her hand. "I'm the artist here," she stuck out her tongue at her brother. "Rosalie, please escort your date to you-know-where."
"Just go with it," Rosalie said to her. So she took the offered hand and let Rosalie lead her to a section of the roof a little further away. Bella shook her head in amazement when she saw it. It looked like a photographer's studio. There were all kinds of weird lights and decorations and even more christmas lights.
Alice snapped picture after picture. Bella and Rosalie posed like the lovers they truly were. Emmett and Alice kept pressing them into more intimate poses, and though she rolled her eyes at the pair, she nonetheless snapped a mental picture of the feel of Rosalie every time they changed positions. Nothing in the world felt more right than Rosalie wrapping her arms around her from behind. It was as if the blonde was telling her in her own way, I will support you...You'll have to face whatever's coming but I'm right here behind you.
"And now," Emmett took a deep bow and motioned for them to follow him. "...the first dance."
Emmett smiled brightly at the pair and stepped aside to reveal a large open space. It was the dance floor, presumably. When they passed him, Bella made sure to hold eye contact with him long enough to convey her love and appreciation for him. Where would she be if he hadn't welcomed her into what, for the vast majority of people, was an exclusive contract? Emmett understood what few others did: that a love shared did not constitute a division, but a multiplication. Her heart got that much bigger when you entered her life, he told her a long time ago. It was true. Watching Rosalie, Bella could see that this woman would not be the same woman without Emmett. Would it make a difference if Emmett was out of the picture? Yes, it would, Bella thought, but not for the better. Emmett was a part of Rosalie and without him, she would be incomplete. That Emmett saw the same thing with Bella decades after their marriage...there was no better testament to his character, or his love for her, than that.
Rosalie took the lead as usual. She held her close the way they had both wanted earlier. And though Alice and Jasper would later accompany them on the dance floor, and she would personally levitate Emmett and make him join them in a strange tangle of limbs, laughter, and lots of tripping, for now it was just Bella and Rosalie. Dancing with her...it was almost like flying. No, it was better than flying. Despite all the horrible things that led to this moment, Bella was grateful to have this moment. Despite what she'd have to face with Jacob and the wolves, James' words that still haunted her, and the slideshow of death that never stopped playing in her mind, right now, here, fully embraced in Rosalie's arms, nothing else mattered.
Closing soundtrack: "A Song of Simplicity" by Elijah Bossenbroek
Author's note III: Well folks, we're approaching the 1-year anniversary! Can you believe it? I want to thank everyone who's been reading, reviewing, following and favoriting. I especially want to warmly thank those of you who took a chance on this early on when it was just a couple of chapters and I was just starting to get my feet wet with this writing business. Thank you, thank you.
A lot has happened, and a lot more will come. I doubt I'll manage another 170,000 words, but have no fear! Part 3 of this epic will have some, er, epicness. That said, I do need to spend some time brainstorming over the finer points of what will come. Many of the major things I've already spent a ton of time thinking about, but much thinking remains. I'd love to hear what you want to see. What you think. Many of you are writers yourselves so believe me, I'll respect all ideas.
Things to look forward to:
-God damn it, will Bella be turned eventually or what?
-Rosalie has a burning question on her mind. And we know Bella's answer. Uh-oh, do I sense some serious angst coming up?
-The pack: now that the cat's out of the bag for everyone involved, what's going to happen? What role will Bella play?
-Victoria and Laurent?
-Charlie: do we hate that son of a bitch or do we pity him? Will he ever forgive Bella or should she give up on him?
-Edward...oh, Edward.
-Will Bella ever forgive herself?
-Will the Volturi show their pale, sickly faces?