Chapter 2:
Hugging her uncle she was careful with her body to not crush him. She let him carry her suitcases in, and she went straight for Bella's bedroom. There seemed to be, no time to waste. Charlie called up, apologizing that he could not stay because of work, and she waved him off with a loud "See you later uncle!"
Opening the door to Bella's room Ariella gasped when she saw her cousin. Keeping her speeding thoughts to herself she breathed before speaking, "What happened to my updates through email?" She had a mild, but strict tone and underlying humor. No effect. She walked over to her cousin and crouched down in front of the chair. She knew she went to school and did her homework, though she barely ate according to her uncle. That was visible. "You cannot go on like this, Bells," she said and met her dark brown eyes.
Bella blinked. Her cousin was clearly changed and the resemblance to the Cullens made her gasp out in pain as it felt like her heart tore open. The word vampire was only meant in her head, but she understood quickly when Ariella froze that she was hitting the mark, even with her cousin's sky-blue eyes.
Ariella tried to let the gasping comment slide, but how in the world had her cousin ended messed up in vampire business? She had to focus on her cousin first. "Bella, listen to me. Take a deep breath… Yes, that's it!... I won't hurt you; I promise."
Bella stretched out a hand, almost afraid to, and touched her cousin's cheek. It was warm, well, it was not ice cold, just as her cousin was not deathly pale, just pale. Yet she carried the eternal beauty of a vampire. When her father had said that her cousin had undergone plastic surgery, she surely did not expect this, or that her cousin would still be in her life. She looked young, even with all the years that was supposed to be between them. "I…" She swallowed; her throat dry. "I know."
Ariella pulled her brows together in thought. "We can talk about your knowledge later. Right now we need to get you moving." I need to buy my own car, it seems I will stay here for a while, she added in her mind.
Two months flew by as Ariella coaxed Bella to live again. A few frequent conversations with her supposed brothers. She did not want to expose the Cullen family to them as of yet, but she did rely the situation that a vampire had left her cousin. It puzzled the Volturi how a human had gotten caught up with vampires and still lived. Although, if she truly was the mate of the vampire that had left, her response made more sense. However, what did not make any sense was that the male vampire was still able to stay away from his mate. She knew the rules, but she also knew that she was able to keep her cousin human for a few more years so she could mature a bit more before eventually changing her.
Bella was still in pain and struggled with the absence of Edward, however, Ariella being there helped immensely. That she was a vampire still surprised her, and she had only gotten bits out of her story, as her cousin was more willing to get her back on track in life. She succeeded if a bit. She got back in contact with Angela, but stayed clear off Jessica. Ariella took over the chores in the house and tried to introduce her to her books. To say she was a bit embarrassed over what her cousin had written all those years, kept her from them, but her curiosity was spiked. After all, her cousin had done a lot of supernatural research as that had been where her interests had been, and then used what she preferred in her books.
"I want to deal with them myself," Ariella bit out.
Bella stopped outside her door. She could not hear what was said on the other side, but she had walked in more often than not with her cousin on the phone, and snippets of strange conversation. She knew it was partly because of her cousin's gift. Her gift to be more "human", that was accompanied with a mendable shield. It was part mentally, and part physically, and therefore had allowed her to change her way. It also clarified her own gift as a human, she had to be a mental shield, or so Ariella was quite sure of.
"I told you with the knowledge that you all would leave the matter to me, don't seek them out."
Bella bit her lip. She had learned so much about her cousin within the time of her being there, especially in the start when talking about herself had seemed the only way to drag her out of the shell she had hid herself in. The Volturi. The most powerful coven within the vampire world, upholding the law. Their secret.
"Please, do not go after the Cullen family!" Bella said as she opened the door and strode into her cousin's room. The pain of even mentioning them blaring through her chest. She did not want to see any of them hurt.
"Moment…" Ariella muttered. She really should release a bit of the hold of her abilities while not alone, she briefly pondered and then shrugged towards her own thoughts. It kept her on her toes. "They won't, Bells," she assured. "Right, Marcus?" she asked into her phone and put it on speaker so her cousin could hear.
"I would not dream of defying you," he answered and chuckled.
"We wish to meet her, and set a date," Aro's voice came through.
"Or give her a choice," Caius said, his tone a bit more sinister.
Bella didn't know who belonged to which voice, but out from what her cousin had said about them she could make a guess.
"I haven't told her that yet," Ariella hissed.
"May we speak with her?" Aro asked.
"She's right here," Ariella said and rolled her eyes towards the phone.
"I have a feeling we'll be seeing you soon, Bella dearest, I am Marcus" Marcus said.
"Hello," Bella replied and lifted a brow towards her cousin.
"I am Aro. And this brute that refuse to open his mouth again is Caius," Aro said and chuckled.
Hissing.
"Behave you three," Ariella scolded.
Bella was surprised to see the effect her cousin had on the three leaders, even through the phone. Who would have thought that she held three kings in her palm?
"What do you wish to know?" Bella asked, reserved.
"How does it truly feel? With Edward and his family gone?"
Bella gasped with the pain that accompanied the name and felt tears threaten to press on.
"As insensitive as always," Aro commented. "Can you please describe it; we only wish to piece together this information for any future knowledge."
"What Ariella has told us we assume is only the surface of it all," Marcus explained.
"I-I ca-can't," Bella stuttered. "It hu-hurts too much!" she gasped out. The hole in her heart threatened to rip her open from within.
"Fascinating," Aro muttered.
"Aro," Marcus hissed. "I recognize this, Bella. Believe me I do. There is no need to proceed, and I apologize on the behalf of my brothers for the extra pain we have caused you."
"I'll hang up now guys, it seems all my progress just went out the window," Ariella said and hung up. Quickly she gathered her cousin in her arms and rocked her back and forth as she cried. "Get it all out. You're so strong, Bells. Release the tears and the agony," she soothed.
Later that evening Bella had barely eaten, but her curiosity about Marcus gave Ariella leverage to convince her to eat a proper meal. As Bella finished up her last bite, she gave her cousin a pointed look.
"Marcus' mate Didyme was killed a long time ago. When a mate dies, the other half will first go after revenge from the one that killed their mate, and then they will wish to follow in death. Not able to live on with the pain. Marcus had his revenge, but only one of the Volturi guards' gift kept him linked to the brothers all this time. To be honest, we're not sure why my being there and meeting him changed his path, but something in our bond connected him to this earth again, and even if he still has the pain from the loss of his mate, he manages to live on now, without the gift tying him to the brothers and the guard – coven."
Bella thought over the information. "If he and I are mates, how can he even stay away?" she wondered aloud, still not able to say his name.
"That's where we all are a bit puzzled; he shouldn't be able to. He will feel the exact pain that you are, just a lot stronger because he's a vampire. The only option can be that he is driven by the belief that it protects you, as his mate. Still, it won't let him stay away forever. Mates can never be apart from too long; it simply isn't possible. Not that I would know, considering I haven't found mine," she added at the end.
"It is rare then?" Bella wondered and thought to the Cullen pairs, except of course at the time him and Carlisle. The doctor whom had been alone for a long time, until he at least had his family, but never a mate.
"Not really. A lot of vampires are mated, of course there will be the loners. But it can take a few hundred years before you find your mate, or it can be a few years. It's not set when your soulmate is born." Ariella shrugged. "And it doesn't stop one from dating." She grinned.
Bella paled, her thoughts passing towards her cousin's books.
"Mind out of the gutter," Ariella said and laughed. "Most of us don't date, but it doesn't mean I haven't explored the possibility." She grinned.
"I guess it can be a lonely existence without any form of companionship," Bella then said, trying to not think too much about the family that had left.
"It helps a lot to have a coven with the sense of family. It fills up a lot of gaps, and the feeling of being incomplete without a mate is not so visible. The larger the coven, the easier. Though many struggle when on the human diet because they wander so much and do not have regular hunting grounds or other means. It becomes a territorial thing over food instead of companionship. Therefore, it helps to be in larger cities, be rich so the blood bank is an easy access, or even a mixed diet. Of course, it has been proven that a mostly full animal diet makes it easier to blend in."
"Why mostly?" Bella mused, trying not to think of herself as food.
"Because going on the veggie diet is not easy when the natural food source are humans. It makes the territorial habits a bit milder, and it is easier to bond with the other vampires in the coven, the exception the Volturi coven as far as we're aware. However, it will also keep you on constant edge if you have not have had restraint since first turned. See it as this, if you can drink one blood bag with human blood and feel full for several weeks before your hunger sets in, compare it with the need to often hunt because of the less quality of fulness the animal blood brings to the diet, and even then you will still feel the hunger. The control you hold around humans are better with the years with the more natural diet, while full animal, when previously tasted human blood will make it harder to be part of the more human part of the world. Then again, if you never have tasted the human blood there will only be the many years and your own personal belief that keeps you in control if by example blood spills. Because your instincts will make you at least curious enough to consider tasting it, that's where your personal beliefs kicks in though. If you could care less, you might give it a go. And if you care, but believe in the natural way you were created, you might give it a taste, but not right then. You'll find a different way. Or you are complete against draining straight from the source, and even if the burn in your throat is there, you are such in control that you're not even a little bothered or curious. There are of course many more factors, but most vampires do drink from humans. I'm not saying it is an easy thought, but most were also created when the concept of blood banks did not even exist."
"And you?" Bella wondered, never having seen her cousin's vampire eyes. They were always her unique blue.
"I mix, though with blood bags. The idea of draining a human is too much for me, at least with the bags the human is not dead. As of right now though, I stick to the animals. There is plenty wildlife here."
"And the Volturi?" Bella wasn't sure if she wanted to know, but she needed to know.
"They mostly drink from humans, and would only have blood from animals if the situation was dire and they were the only source available."
"You accept it so easily," Bella observed.
"Not fully," Ariella responded and shrugged. "To be honest, I did not want human blood at all, but when I was a newborn, all it took was one slip-up while out hunting." She shuddered at the memory. "I'm in control now, and have been for many years, but it was awful, the guilt. I balance my diet though most of the time, sort of like a vegetarian human that eats fish and chicken but not red meat. You know where I'm pointing this." She lifted a brow towards her cousin.
Bella nodded. "I see your point." She paused for a second, the nagging question that had been with her for quite some time. "Why do you eat with Charlie and I?"
"My powers let me eat human food, it gets burnt up by the venom and will be pleasant enough. The burning inside, not as much, but at least it does not taste awful. It helps me blend in a bit more. And you might have noticed I don't always eat with the two of you." She winked.
Bella laughed and shook her head, her own sound surprising her enough that she stopped. Her cousin was a force to be reckoned with.
March started the early spring feel and Ariella decided to take Bella with her out on a hike. The strange smell of wet dog had yet to disappear from the forest, and with the constant rumor about wolves in the forest it only proved interesting. She couldn't remember wolves ever coming so close to town. At least it would explain the wet dog smell.
"Come on Bella, it's amazing that after all this time I've been training you, you're still as clumsy as ever. Even the added muscles to your frame – don't scrunch up that face, you know what I mean, it's not like you're sprouting a sixpack there on that skinny stomach of yours…" Ariella laughed. "With the added muscles I really hoped to get you a bit better coordination, though I see now that it was not a correct assumption."
Bella grumbled under her breath. "Stupid vamp stamina."
Ariella's laughter continued though stopped abrupt with the sudden appearance of a dark vampire in front of her. His red eyes shining. She crouched down with a hiss when she saw the hunger in his eyes when he detected Bella just behind her. "Move on or die," she threatened.
The vampire scanned her with interest.
"Laurent," Bella breathed.
Ariella had heard the story already and stood. "Aren't you supposed to be in Denali?" she asked the other vampire.
"The diet is not the easiest to follow, and who might you be?" Laurent asked, meeting her eyes.
"Ariella Volturi Swan," she answered, noticing the flinch by the mention of Volturi.
"My mistake," he said and backed up a step.
"Not so fast, Laurent, is it? What brings you back to Forks, apart from the struggle with the change in diet?" she asked and made sure to protect her cousin with her physical shield, her mental now down.
The vampire in question seemed to weight his options and then sighed as if he was greatly troubled. "I will warn you both, Victoria is close, she wanted me to scout out the area. She wants revenge from the death of her mate, James. That said, you both surprised me while on the hunt, and Bella's blood smells simply mouthwatering." He moved quickly and were upon Bella before Ariella had time to react, thankfully her physical shield kept him away from her cousin and the male staggered backwards when he hit her wall. "What is this?" he wondered.
Ariella leapt and pushed him away and he flew back into the trees. Rustling sounds and growls sounded and she covered herself better as well. The wolves came from behind her and she cursed herself for not removing her limitations completely. She would not have missed them on their hike if she had been fully alert. She found it odd though that the other male had not noticed the wolves while travelling and started to wonder just how fast these odd-looking wolves were. They passed her and Bella and lunged straight for the trees, running after Laurent that had collected himself, and after the first shock of seeing the wolves, had taken his speed to use.
One wolf remained and stared at her. "I'm not a threat," she said. The wolf disappeared but back out from the trees came a familiar face. "Jacob Black!" Ariella exclaimed. "Who would have thought?" Recognizing the boy even if years had flown.
"Ariella, how did…I mean, you are…?"
"She's a vampire, Jacob," Bella said as she stepped up beside her cousin, still in shock from everything. Billy's son was a wolf, and he had grown quite a bit since she last had seen him.
"This complicates things," he muttered and scratched the back of his neck.
"Oh! The treaty the Cullens made with the pack, you did tell me about that Bells, but I must admit it has slipped my mind, it wasn't the most important detail... Sorry, Jake." Ariella laughed again. "And I am a cold one, though I must admit I've been on the res after the change."
"That explains the other scent, apart from the red-headed vamp."
"Victoria has been around already?" Ariella wondered.
"Maybe now is not the time to dull your senses," Bella muttered.
"Ha! True that," Ariella mused. She felt the shift within her and felt Jacob take a step back from the power she emitted. She tuned in on all the sounds and opened her eyes to all detail, and then she took in all the scents around. She opened her eyes and met Jacob's, said wolf gasping as he could clearer see the hidden gold in her eyes now.
"We need to talk about this," he said and then looked over his shoulder with the sound of howls.
"I'll run Bella home and then we can meet by the border, since I'm not supposed to cross." The last part she added sounding a bit bashful.
"That would be for the best."
Ariella managed to work out an agreement in the end, as she was almost human-like it was easier to get along with the wolves. She could cross over by invitation and if she was chasing Victoria so she could work together with the wolves. It was easier said than done. The other female was way more elusive than she ever could have guessed, and every time they had gotten close, said female had run away.
"She must have some sort of power," Ariella said into the phone. Keeping an eye on Bella from the living room.
"You need any help?" Caius asked, his voice amused.
"No, not yet. As long as I am close to Bella, she never comes close enough."
"And these shape-shifters you told us about?" Aro was the ever plotting one.
"Don't even think about it," she threatened into the phone.
Aro sighed. "You are right, I cannot expect dearest brother to get along with them, even if they do differ from the children of the moon."
"They would not leave the res. And they will not work with vampires if they can help it, their sole purpose is to protect their own kind from ours. And you all know that not all magic is gone, there is more in this world, just very well hidden. Which is why they killed Laurent, not giving him a chance. Not that I mind."
"True," Marcus responded. "However, it would ease our concern if we sent someone from the guard-"
"Hold it right there! I am more than capable of taking care of myself, if more problems arise, I will inform you."
Bella finished packing the bag, mostly for her own sake, though the coffee was clearly for her cousin and the wolves. They were going to First Beach by invite of Jacob. Personally she wasn't sure how to feel about it, but her cousin insisted they go. It was important to keep a good relationship with the wolves according to her.
She knew Ariella had softened her senses again and her physical shield was up and working strong again. She really looked more human than any of them ever had. She could blend so well in, and it had been similar looks she had had when she had last visited, before the accident that killed her cousin's parents. Her aunt and uncle. Her uncle was Charlie's older brother by several years and had had Ariella quite some time before she herself came to the world. She briefly wondered what her cousin would have truly looked like now with her supposed twenty-nine years. She already looked quite mature, even stuck at twenty-two.
"Ready?" Ariella asked with a smile.
Bella nodded with a small one of her own.
All Alice caught was a glimpse of Bella struggling in the water. The current too strong, and then the vision went blank.
Ariella swam over, glaring over at her shoulders at two of the wolves that still stood dry on the beach. "Are you alright?" she asked as she helped her cousin keep her head above water.
Bella sputtered. "Why in the world?!" she gasped. Her teeth chattering against the cold.
"They wanted to prank us both, forgetting a moment that I have quick reflexes, and that the current right now is too strong for a normal human." The last part she had growled out and it shut up the guys standing on the beach. More apologetic expressions shining through. "Boys will be boys, aren't that what they say?" she then mused as she had her cousin safe and sound on the sand.
A bit later they were both dried up thanks to the heat from the wolves, and a few blankets. Coffee and sodas were shared around and the little snacks they had brought.
"How come it you eat with such ease?" Jacob asked.
"It's part of my power to blend in," Ariella answered honestly.
"That sure comes in handy," Jared commented.
Ariella nodded her agreement.
Bella wrinkled her nose as part of her own hair blew forward and she could smell the seawater in it. She would have to shower, but tried to keep the bothersome feeling away as her cousin easily conversed with the wolves. Her cousin answering all their questions as patient as she could.
Children's laughter came from further down the beach and Ariella's pained expression did not go unnoticed. Bella watched her carefully as she turned to face the group that just then noticed her pain, and then that her expression changed as she looked at the youngest and they softened.
To explain the change in her mood Ariella said, "I was born without ovaries, it is rare, but it made me realize early on I would not have children, and for a long time it did not bother me. I accepted the fact. Yes I know, there are ways, but it seemed easier to accept that fact. It didn't keep me from caring about children though, and I played around with the idea of working with them, but that was mostly for my future, as I was still very invented in my artistic journey. After I was turned, the fact that I bonded with the twins in the castle made me realize how much I had lost through the accident. Not to worry, I have accepted the fact and am blessed whenever I get to express my care, Bella here being part of this." She didn't admit the slight longing that had grown over the years. If her human life had continued on, she was sure she would have tried to find other ways, after all, her uterus had been fine. Faith did not seem to want her on that path though and in one way she accepted it, while in another she cursed it.
Bella blushed. Yes, her cousin mothered her more than her mother ever had, but also remembered that they were cousins and never claimed to be anything else. She just cared deeply.
"No offense Ariella, but twins? Are there vampire children?" Sam asked.
Ariella stiffened. "Two were turned a long time ago at their young age, and no one was hundred-percent sure of their age at that time – at a different time than the one we live in now. It is not allowed to turn so young humans anymore, you have to be at least sixteen, the rule only in place a few decades ago. Younger than that again and the turned one would be considered an immortal child and that fate only leads to death."
"And the twins?" Bella asked for them all.
"The twins an exception due to their long existence, and they are in control. No one knows their true age, and I believe they seem a bit more mature than they truly are because of the times they grew up in." Ariella closed the subject. A few of the wolves left, but Jacob and Embry remained with them to share a few stories before they were to leave.
Ariella and Bella returned back home to the Swan residence, just to learn that Charlie's friend Harry had had a heart-attack and that he had died. While Charlie was headed out again, Ariella followed Bella up to her room. Her senses back on track again after leaving the wolves she stared first in shock at the intruder and then she crouched down in front of Bella, all in a matter of seconds.
"Alice!" Bella gasped out.
"Bella?! How are you alive?!" Alice exclaimed, surprised and relieved to see her friend alive.
Ariella stood. "Alice Cullen?" she asked.
"And who are you?" Alice asked, staring at the other vampire. Or she was sure she was a vampire due to her scent, though a flicker of doubt as she was part of the reason her visions were at a blank it seemed.
"Ariella Swan," she answered, noticing the stiffness of the other female vampire.
"Swan?" Alice wondered aloud.
"My cousin," Bella answered and went forward to hug the smaller vampire.
"How did I not see this?"
Bella and Ariella shared a look, not knowing what to make of it.
"All will be explained in due time, Alice," Ariella then said. "Now, please inform us of why you suddenly showed up here, out of the blue."
"I had a vision, it seemed to be Bella's ultimate demise, but I see I was wrong. Don't take me wrong, I'm relieved you are alive, but I came here to check on Charlie. The thought that you were lost caused me a lot of grief."
Ariella's expression softened, yet she could not forgive the Cullens for leaving her cousin just like that, considering what a state Bella had been in when she had first arrived. It was clear the pixie-like vampire cared, but did she truly care enough? "And you Cullens caused Bella a lot of grief," she then said and saw Bella stiffen a bit beside her.
"I had no idea how we would cause damage!" Alice cried. "Edward made me promise not to look. Our family made an error in judgment, and I don't care if he will stay away, but I won't, not anymore. Not knowing you're actually alive." Her sobs shook her whole body, and her eyes glistened with venom as unshed tears.
Ariella opened her powers and let them engulf her and tears started to fall. The other female not even noticing before a sniffing Bella went in for a hug.
"Alice, don't cry!"
Ariella saw the gold in Alice's eyes change to a dark brown with barely visible golden flecks. Her skin tone darkened, but not by much, and her cheeks seemed almost flustered as if she truly was a human crying. She could see that the girl – though older than herself in vampire years – truly cared for her cousin. It still left her to wonder how one vampire could decide for the whole coven, especially if he wasn't the one leading it.
Astonished Alice pulled away and wiped away her wet eyes, the venom vaporizing into the air as if the tears never had been shed, though her eyes still glistened. Her skin felt different somehow and she lifted a hand in front of herself and a gasp left her mouth as she noticed the more human hue to her skin. The change that the other vampire brought on her also let her see them all of a sudden. She had access. Glimmers of possible futures ran ahead in the moment and she saw it all while she still held onto Bella.
"Alice!" Bella gasped. "You don't feel so cold anymore."
"I don't?" she asked.
Bella shook her head.
All Alice had to do was thinking of posing the question of how and she could see the answer Ariella would give. She let go of Bella's arms and went forward to hug the other vampire, who stiffly returned it. "I know this might be sudden, you're going to be dear to us all. I love you already!"
"That's Alice for you," Bella muttered, humor in her tone, but also the sadness was not truly gone.
Ariella softened in the embrace and hugged her back. She was not aware of what the other female had seen, and she would not ask as the future was ever changing, but she assumed she would not have said anything if it had been fleeting. That could only mean she would be in their life much more. And by that she assumed all the Cullens' lives.
The rest of the evening was spent in a blur and so was the next day, after that, came Saturday and the day of Harry's funeral. Charlie and the girls would go while Alice would stop by the house, as she had been "sleeping" over the other days. It was by invitation only that Ariella was going, she wanted to support her uncle, while the wolves also demanded that Bella came along if so. Both were dressed and ready to get going when the phone rang. "I'll get it," Ariella said. "Swan residence," she said and waited for the person on the other end to speak. "Hello?"
"Who's this?" the voice asked.
"Ariella Swan, may I ask who's calling?" The voice sounded close to a vampire, but with the bad connection to the housephone she couldn't be sure.
"Carlisle Cullen, may I speak to Charlie?"
"I'm sorry, but we're on our way to a funeral and Charlie already went ahead. By the way did you-" The line went dead. "Bella?! Why would Carlisle call here?"
Bella stared at her. "He did? Why didn't he just call Alice?"
"He wanted to talk with Charlie, he didn't say why. I was about to tell him that Alice would be around if he wondered, but the male hung up on me before I even had the chance to say much." The note of irritation did not go unnoticed.
"Bella! Ariella!" Alice called; her tone panicked.
Both women turned towards the vampire.
"It's Edward."