Again the proper title is 'When Your Differences, Are Less Different'
A/N: Once more playing around and making links between the two worlds that don't exist xx Alexis
Ah, we can hear Emmett and Carlisle approaching, the latter lagging slightly behind. I had a whole speech, well rant actually, prepared but I think I'll leave this for Emmett to sort out. Esme and I have bonded more over these last few days than ever before and I really don't want to spoil it by saying something I'll regret later! We've rearranged rooms and their designation too; the huge over the top dining table is a thing of the past. We never needed it and it was always a vehicle for Edward to get his own way. So instead we knocked the two rooms together and it's a large lounge come recreation area. It was still a lounge, the TV was there, but so was so many of the things we used to do in our own rooms.
Like one corner for reading or listening to music with headphones on and for the first time, Esme's architect table is in another corner. She refused to be relegated to the attic or basement like she usually was. A small four-seat table is under one window, giving the human illusion, we eat as a family. It's relaxed and very informal, much like Esme and Carlisle's suite used to be. So it was apparently Edward's idea to push that grandiose feeling into any visitor's face. The sad thing about this is Bella would have loved this more relaxed atmosphere we have now. I did say that to Esme and she nodded,
"We did so much wrong, not just to her but to every human or vampire who came to our home. We let that fool run our lives and Alice backed his every extravagant and outlandish idea. I want your help Rose; we are going to scale down our shows of wealth in every way.
Houses, cars, clothes, but mostly our attitude. I want people to remember us as that nice family who once lived amongst them, not those pretentious snobs! Oh, I also want attending High school to be done away with" Esme said to me as we ripped away all of Alice's excesses,
"Thank God! I hated it and we looked nothing like the other students! We could juggle lots of things around because some of our homes are in affluent areas and some like the Forks house are not. So depending on where we are, we take on that persona!" I say, sure that would work better,
"Perfect, you really have a much better grasp on that kind of thing than Alice ever did," Esme told me kissing my cheek and I felt valued for the first time in ages.
IOOH
I can't believe what a fool of myself I made last night. I blushed like an immature child, but OMG! That bed was shocking to see out of the blue like that. Some of Kol's artwork was probably worth a fortune, signed by the artist's and never seen by anyone but the owner. That nude of him was definitely not the pose of a reserved vampire; Elijah didn't bat an eyelid so I'm guessing it was anatomically correct! Anyway, today he's going to dismantle and store Kol's things and he asked me to help him pick out more modern furniture for the space. So I'll need to quiz him on his likes and dislikes first, also does any time period of this century count as modern to him. I really don't care for very ultra-modern stuff it doesn't feel relaxing!
I'm so glad it's the weekend and I don't have to rush off to school. I rise early, excited for the day and help out with the morning tasks for Teresa. I had just made breakfast for myself when I decided to take some up to Elijah as well. He called to come in when I knocked and I was met by the view of a shirtless Elijah talking on his phone. Well if I thought Kol looked good he has nothing on his brother and he's not even naked! That thought makes me blush, of course. Another thing about this type of vampire that I like, they need to shave. Elijah has a very nice five o'clock shadow going on and does he realise just how sexy he looks? I hurry to put the food down to distract myself from the blatant ogling I'm doing.
"My apologies Isabella," he says as he slips his shirt back on, "I didn't want to ruin this one, as I don't have a change with me" he continues,
I smile and pretend my eyes aren't glued to where his shirt is still open, but it's to no avail as I don't hear what he says next.
"Sorry, you're too distracting!" I say without thinking and then just cover my face as he laughs,
"Thank you, I'll take that as a compliment. I was saying, I've arranged for some of my personal items and apparel to be delivered here" he explained trying not to smirk at me,
Once he's buttoned it up and I stop blushing we finally eat and I question him on his preferences towards colour and styles of furniture. I like that we are in complete agreement, nothing trendy or ultra-modern. But solid, reliable, not too ornate, but warm feeling antique to me, furniture. So I rush off for my laptop and we start to search. I don't want to go out there and have any witches spoiling our hunt, so online is preferable. It is blatantly obvious Elijah's family have more money than they know what to do with, but at no point does he brag about it or try to force something ridiculous on me as Edward would have done. The differences between them keeps slapping me in the face, how could I have been so blind!
IOOH
"Ah, Demetri! How was your flight? No trouble from our guest I hope?" Master Aro asks me and I can see the other two brother's bristle at the word guest,
I do as all three bid me, but my loyalty lies with Master Marcus. If he stood up now and ordered me to kill that fool Edward Masen I would, no questions asked. Felix feels the same about Master Caius and Jane is Master Aro's vassal. It's unknown by most where Alec's loyalties lie, but he like me is in Master Marcus' camp. The whole of the Elite Guard has split three ways; Master Caius has the warriors, Master Marcus the strategists and Master Aro the ruthless. But if it ever came down to it, two would work hand in glove the other would not! Master Aro doesn't like sharing; he wants all the power for himself and always has. I stand silently awaiting some instruction.
"Bring in the prisoner, please Demetri" Master Marcus finally says and Master Aro huffs,
"That's a bit harsh Marcus!" Master Aro says and is snapped at by Master Caius,
"He's no guest of ours, therefore he's a prisoner!"
"Yes, yes Caius, semantics!" Master Aro mumbled most unlike his usual outspoken self,
Jane and Alec none to gently usher the fool into the room and he just can't help himself. The minute he sees Master Aro he starts remonstrating with him about our callous treatment of him. That lasts about thirty seconds before Master Caius has him pinned face down on the floor bellowing in his ear to shut up!
"Stai zitto, imbecille irrilevante!" (Shut the fuck up, you irrelevant imbecile!)
Edward of course, can't keep quiet and suddenly find himself without a tongue and one arm.
"Thank you, Caius, that was a little grating on the nerves! Carlisle appears to have failed in his duty concerning Edward's training! Respect for his betters for instance" Master Marcus said,
I could see Master Aro freaking out that he had lost control of the situation. But I don't think he has realised the other two were never going to let him control it. They, hell nobody wanted Edward here in Volterra, in fact; they would love the Original, Elijah to just have killed him.
"Yes, you seem to think you're a little more important than you actually are Edward" Master Aro said motioning to me to pass him the arm Master Caius had removed,
Edward was concentrating hard as if he actually thought he could control his thoughts, what a fool.
"Did you know I can read you from your severed limb? No, I don't suppose you did! It's still part of you because your brain is still working. So I can use it, normally that's why they always burn the body but keep the head. As long as the brain functions I can get all your memories, even the human ones. It works differently for me; you only read what the person is thinking at that moment. But I deal with what you have already thought, be it yesterday or one hundred years ago!" Master Aro was back in his stride and doing a little show-boating,
Edward was now beginning to look a little terrified, what nefarious things has he thought and said about us in the past?
"Bloodthirsty killers? Uncontrolled hooligans, my you don't think much of us do you, Edward? Ah, yes he was aware using his thrall on Isabella Swan, was illegal! But Edward appears to see himself above our tawdry laws. His words, not mine!" Master Aro informed the throne room,
"Didn't you read all that the last time Aro?" Master Caius asked impatiently,
"No, out of respect for his coven leader I only read what pertained to his request for death! I only skimmed him then, now I intend to delve as deep as I can, so this should only take a few minutes the boy is pretty shallow!" Master Aro explained and a couple of guards sniggered,
Felix glared at them and silence fell as the reading continued. The upshot was he had been given the proper training which he cherry-picked to suit his own warped sense of what should be. Carlisle was not at fault in that regard, but he had failed to correct Edward over the years as he spouted his own made-up rhetoric. He had pandered to the childish whims of a sexually and morally repressed boy! Edward didn't like that assessment of himself and opened his mouth to complain, before remembering he had no tongue. Meanwhile, Master Marcus was staring at him deeply, before revealing,
"The child has ties to no one, not even his sire! It's like he severs them when they are no longer of use to him! He just let's go with no remorse or care for the other party, they are cleanly sheared on his side!"
Edward actually smirked at that evaluation of his actions, but it fell from his face as Master Caius yelled,
"He's obviously mentally unstable! The vampire equivalent of a sociopath in humans! Too dangerous to be allowed to live!"
IOOH
"Thierry! Is it true? Has Elijah been seen in the Bywater area?" I demand,
"Several sightings Marcel, in this last week he stayed at Rebekah's apartment and now at Elizabeth's. But he hasn't made any contact so far and he's alone. The witches are in a bit of a lather for some reason, but I'm guessing it's about him" he replies,
"Elizabeth's, that's Kol's old hideaway. What's got him moving in there? Have one of the men keep a close eye on him for now. I want to be the first to know what he's up to!" I insist,
I haven't seen any of the Mikaelson's since they lit out of here like hell was on their heels and let the city burn down around me! But I survived and rebuilt their old empire with my bare hands and it's mine now! I took over the Quarter and then New Orleans; I live in their compound and have no intention of giving it up! Why would Elijah come back alone? Are any of the others still alive? Will Klaus follow behind him? He must know about Rebekah and me if he stayed at her apartment, well, I don't care she abandoned me too!
IOOH
As I watch Isabella selecting the furniture for this room I feel content for the first time in a long time. She has a strangely calming effect on me, more pronounced when we touch, but still there nonetheless. Gareth texts her that some of my things had arrived and I tell her I'll collect them while she places the order. I don't expect Teresa and Gareth to run about after me they have a business to run. So I nip quickly down the main stairs and then the back stairs to the rear door. The packages are neatly stacked for me there and I ask for a snack and drink for Isabella. Teresa smiles at me and prepares a tray; I quickly take the packages upstairs and leave them in the room.
Once again returning to the kitchen for her tray and that's when I see him, through the glass of the door. A traditional standing watch outside of Elizabeth's, he's a little too close if he didn't want to be seen, but maybe he did! A, we know you're here and we're watching you type of situation, perhaps! He may also be this close in the hope of overhearing something; well he's out of luck. Kol's place is soundproofed, which is just as well as what he used it for. It's not modern high tech stuff, but effective all the same, he really is a genius when he puts his mind to it. I assume Marcel is now aware I'm back in New Orleans, probably confused as to why I'm here at Elizabeth's!
Isabella was just closing her laptop when I appeared with her snack and she smiled at me.
"Thank you, Elijah. Your stuff will be here on Monday morning they said. Can you manage till then?" she asked me,
"Yes that will be just fine, Isabella, thank you for your help and look I've brought you a snack as payment," I tell her and she joins me on the only settee I left in the room for now,
I take the time to encourage her to talk about her parents and her life. It looks to me like she was always the one in charge so to speak. I can see that the boy's constant reining in, would chafe on one so independent. Her mother and father sound like good people just not very good parents for her. But her love for them both shines through as she talks and I'm equally sure they love her as well. I can't help but find it amusing that this slip of a girl has managed to entrench herself in the supernatural world, so firmly. Forks it appears is a hotspot just like Mystic Falls and New Orleans but on a smaller scale. I would also guess there will be a witch there too, Isabella just never met them or it's her with the ancient witch magic inside her.
Technically the three always gravitate to the same places. But if they have Shifters instead of Werewolves and Cold Ones instead of Traditionals, maybe the tribe's Shaman is the Witch equivalent! The only party not involved in her part of the world is the Vampire Hunter. I think that's because, yet again the tribe have taken on the mantle. It's truly fascinating and I would like to go there with her one day. Would they actually recognise me for what I am? Because unlike a Cold One I have blood in my veins and my heart beats too, albeit slower than a human! I have also noticed Isabella draws people to her without trying, is that a well watered-down form of compelling.
No matter how you look at it, Isabella has had help from three different types of supernatural. First the Shapeshifters, then the Cold Ones and now me! She maybe carries more supernatural in her DNA than most.
"Isabella, would you like to try your shield out on me? If you can use it freely, then we won't be stuck in here permanently! Not that I'm not enjoying your undivided attention, but I don't want you to get cabin fever!" I say and she actually looks excited and pleased,
Yes, thank you for asking my opinion, you have no idea how much that means to me" she replied with tears actually shining in her eyes,
We spend the next few hours talking about how her shield feels and what it looks like and eventually, I managed to get her to visualise it and summon it at will. I refused to let her get upset when it didn't appear right away.
"It's a new skill, nobody master's new things that quickly Isabella. Take your time, feel it, embrace it as part of yourself and not some outside force" I gently encourage and see her relax,
I think in her very short life people have put too much responsibility on her shoulders and now she hates to fail or be seen to fail which is worse in her eyes.
IOOH
Everythin' looks to be goin' well for little bird, well if you discount the witches interference. Eddie's up to his ass in trouble, in Volterra and Alice id gettin' some much-needed therapy. Carlisle will be grovellin' to Emmett for a few years and Rose and Esme are comin' back out from behind Alice's shadow. The Major is actually helpin' himself too, it won't be as hard to bring both sides of himself together, as he thinks it will. Now before Char and I take off for a long-awaited holiday, I've a few texts to send out.
One to everyone tellin' them where Eddie is and how precarious his plight is.
One too little bird to get her to call her dad.
One to the Major to keep him in the loop about everythin'.
One to Emmett to invite him and Rose over when we get back.
Yup, that should do it and now let's hope all hell don't break loose when I take my eye off the ball. But hell, even I need a break now and again. My lovely wife has been more than patient and it's time for me to spoil her. Now I can put all those flashes of intuition together and away in a corner of my mine marked complete! Some of them were year's old and made no sense at the time, but have now been slotted into place. It's a relief to see everythin' has the possibility of goin' right, unless they all cock it up!
IOOH
The pain, it's horrendous! Having an arm that was just healed ripped right back off is excruciating. I don't understand why the Volturi have involved themselves in my private life! What I do has nothing to do with them. Caius is insane, how dare he accuse me of being defective, he should look at himself, he's like a rabid dog! This is all Marcus' fault, pretending I have no bonds with anyone, but I learned I can do something others cannot. I knew I was more special, more important than, well everyone really! I wish I could read their minds, but everyone is blocking me and Aro's shield Renata is protecting his thoughts and her own from me. SHIELD! That's it, that's what Isabella is a shield!
I most definitely need to get out of here and find her. She as a vampire could protect me permanently. It would mean storing her blood for my personal consumption later. If I kept her alive for say five years and withdrew a bag of blood every week! No! That wouldn't last very long! I need to just find her and keep her alive and in hiding. I will use her as my personal blood supply for as long as she lives. Yes, if fed the right nutrition she would replenish the depletion quickly. In fact, if I kept Isabella sedated she wouldn't waste any energy at all. Also, there would be no chance of accidents happening and me losing her blood! Yes, that's what I'll do once I get out of this accursed place.
She will never be a vampire just my personal unconscious and on tap blood bank!
IOOH
I just got Peter's text this mornin', things are lookin' good for Bella, I'm really glad. Given the choice, I'd rather have been a traditional vampire. Yeah, I knew about them, have done for a long time. Even before I met the Cullens, I doubt most as even aware there are other types of vampire out there. I met one a long time ago, he was skirting around Maria's compound late one night and he was blasé. It was the emotions that drew me to him. There was no hurry or fear in him and that gave me pause, he sure didn't smell human either. But he had blood in his veins and a beating heart, I was intrigued. I was being my most stealthy when he said,
"I can hear you, you know! Cold Ones are not as slick as they think they are"
"What's a Cold One? Hell, what are you?" I quizzed and he laughed and bid me sit.
"My name is Damon Salvatore and I'm a traditional vampire, you my friend are a Cold One" he explained,
"Major Jasper Whitlock, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance" I had reciprocated,
"Damn Major, I saw you on the field once and in camp on the day before you disappeared!" he said with surprise in his tone,
"Yeah, long ago and another world Damon!" I replied sadly,
He lit a bonfire and we talked all night, I found out all about them and how they came to be and how Cold Ones also came to be as well. I also found out we could drink straight alcohol but it didn't get me drunk like him, I found out later I needed more much more. He told me about the place he called home in Mystic Falls Virginia, it sounded too much like a hotbed of intrigue and trouble. If I ever got away I thought, it would be somewhere quiet and drama free. I got the quiet eventually, but not the drama-free by a long shot, unfortunately! I never saw him again after that night, but for some reason, I felt like he was a friend and always would be. We connected that night, not as two species, but as two former soldiers!
IOOH
I fear Caius and Marcus may be correct in their assumption of young Edward. He appears to have forgotten I'm reading him at this exact moment in time and has just revealed his future plans for Isabella, most unpleasant and disagreeable. He has only one chance to survive here and he's totally unaware of how dire his situation is. It's almost as if he has created a fantasy world for himself where everyone else does his bidding, it's sad, such a waste of a talent. He has barely worked with his mind-reading since he opened his eyes to this second life we all lead. If Chelsea can't bind him to me then he will have to die, because he would bring chaos down on us with his present mindset.
I signal her to try and work her magic on him, but it's fruitless, by the look on her face. She flits over and with just a touch I know the worst of it. He has no ties to be undone and retied to me, he's a blank slate and this I think will be his doom.
"We need to talk my brothers!" I say before rising,
I nod to Felix and he holds Edward in place, but the boy appears to be lost in his own head. Marcus has a look of pure hatred on his face and Caius looks set to torch the boy at a moment's notice. So this is a mere formality I can tell, Edward will die very soon with a vote of two to one. I feel I might be obliged to write to Carlisle, this is too delicate a matter to be discussed over the phone.
