Eclipse, Chapter 17

Carys waited as Jacob returned across the field. She hadn't actually ever met the boy, simply seen him with Bella, and she doubted she would have recognised the tall man loping towards the pair as the boy he'd been months before.

It was much the same seeing the unlikely trio reform when he reached them. To watch them, there would be no knowing he or Bella had argued at all.

"What are they saying now?" she asked after half a minute or so, pressing her hand to Carlisle's chest.

He had been listening intently and expected the request. "Two of the wolves are going to protect the Reservation… The youngest. Jacob thinks you and Bella could go there-"

"Remembered me, has he?"

"Oh, I'm paraphrasing," Carlisle told her. "The boys are talking over Bella's head as if she's not present. They're not even using names - a mixture of she's and they's."

"That's so rude of them!" Carys gasped.

Carlisle nodded. "Edward has explained that there's no way either of you could stay on the Reservation."

"Because of the trails."

They'd talked about this before. Though they faded over time, if the newborns were following a specific scent and whipped up into a frenzy by it, they could be able to catch the faint trails and follow.

"Indeed."

"Jacob's suggested hiding you in the mountains, but… Ah, now, that's actually quite a good idea. Jacob's wondering if the scent of the wolves can mask an-"

"Jasper!" Edward called, sparing Carlisle a glance as he did so.

Carlisle smirked. "Edward isn't too happy to hear my summary. He's not used to being eavesdropped on in quite this manner."

"I think you're doing an excellent job," Carys praised, smiling up at him as Jasper and Alice made their way across the clearing. "And Edward can get used to it."

"Yes. Well. As I was saying, Jacob wonders if the wolves' scent can mask human blood. He's going to carry Bella and see."

Carys turned to see that Bella looked none too happy with Jacob, who was holding his arms out to her, the excitement in his expression warring with an unease which stemmed from being so close to so many vampires.

"WHY DON'T I TRY INSTEAD?" she yelled across to them when Bella continued to look as if she'd prefer to be anywhere else.

Edward, on the other hand, seemed not to be thinking past the test. A further indication that he and Jacob weren't exactly treating Bella as a living breathing person in front of them.

Carys didn't mind testing the theory it it meant saving her from the macho teens for a few minutes.

Bella smiled, her shoulders sagging in relief as she nodded furiously. "Carys can try, can't she?" she asked, half-yelling the words so that she could be heard by the other human.

Edward and Jacob shook their heads.

When they spoke, it wasn't quite loud enough for Carys to hear.

"It has to be Bella," Carlisle explained when Jacob snatched Bella into his arms and took off towards the treeline with the young woman looking more uncomfortable than ever. "Her blood is far sweeter; far more potent, not simply to Edward. If Jasper and Alice were to test your scent against the theory, it would only confirm the part. Hers will confirm the whole."

"Well, no one's ever cut me open to smell how good I could taste, have they?" Carys grumbled. Then she realised how it sounded and quickly added, "That didn't come out right."

"I did wonder," Carlisle chuckled as his faintly disturbed grimace eased. "I'd prefer your insides stay just as they are - entirely normal and in the right place."

"I'm just saying… Bella's not the only one with blood." Carys knew how ridiculous she sounded, but she just couldn't help herself.

On the one hand, they were putting Bella in a position she didn't want to be in. On the other, Carys was falling at yet another hurdle. Inadequate for so much as a theory test.

"Mmm," Carlisle placated, pressing his face to her hair. "Wow… You smell so… Entirely delicious. I could-"

"Don't Carlisle," Carys sighed, patting his chest. "It's lovely of you, but we both know you're all but immune to the scent."

"You do smell nice," Esme promised, appearing beside her. "It adds a little burn to the throat. It's…" She lifted her nose and waved her hand, wafting the scent. "More of a… Less of a… Give me a moment - I need to get past wolf."

Carys waited hopefully.

Esme licked her lips. Her nostrils flared a few times. She continued to waft. Her eyes widened and flickered to the side for help.

"Normal," Rosalie announced from beyond Carlisle's shoulder. "Sorry, Carys. It is nice, and I don't know what you've been doing in the past month because it's a little sweeter. But we're used to it. With Bella's scent everywhere, it's really not half so bad."

Carlisle rubbed Carys' back as she slumped against his chest.

Not even Garrett had wanted her - and he'd been hunting. Then again, he had smelt Carlisle on her. But only one newborn had thought to trail after her when she ran through the darkened streets.

Why couldn't she remove herself from her feelings at that moment? It was a good thing that she wasn't burdened with unbelievably rare irresistible blood, but her body didn't seem to agree with her brain.

"One day…," she murmured wistfully. "One day someone might be interested."

Carlisle stiffened, his arms tightening around her. "I certainly hope not!"

"I don't mean I want them to," she clarified just as wistfully, "just… It would be nice, you know?"

"No," Emmett called, his laughter booming through the clearing.

"I just mean. Bella's blood is so intense, and everyone talks about how incredible it is. It might be nice to be wanted."

"Excuse me," Carlisle protested against her hair. "You are incredibly wanted, my love."

"I'd drink you dry in an instant," Jasper announced as he and Alice returned to the group.

Carys raised her head. The love triangle had reconvened a good fifty feet away. "You mean that?"

"I do," he promised with a nod. "I've thought about it in the past. More'un once before I got used to you."

Pleasant warmth spread through Carys. "Ah, thanks, Jasper," she said. "That's really nice."

"No," Carlisle bemoaned, his voice pained. "No, it is not." He lifted his head. "In hopes of swiftly changing the subject. What's the verdict? Can the scent be masked?"

"So long as Bella doesn't touch anything, you'd be hard pressed to tell," Alice trilled. "The wolves smell so bad no one would want to go near their trail anyway. We'll have Bella and Mom lay a false trail to the clearing. It'll work, I think, but I'll have to wait until I see them coming to be sure."

"Edward wasn't too happy with the suggestion of putting Bella in the clearing," Jasper added. "It was only an errant thought, but… Tactically…"

"It would put her in harm's way and defeat the purpose of protecting her at all," Rosalie cut in. "One cut and they'd be frenzied. If there were ten, maybe. Twenty-four?"

"You're right," Jasper conceded. "As I said, an errant thought."

Carys could see how he came to it, but Rose was right. It wouldn't work on an active battlefield. They would be distracted by trying to protect Bella, and the newborns would be overwhelming.

Her body finally remembered why not having highly coveted blood was a very good thing.

"So the mountains?" she asked.

It would be impossible to go to California or anywhere like it. It would risk too much to spare someone to go with them in case Victoria followed. With even one of them missing, it could put the rest in danger. As it was, they were hoping the newborn army's numbers would continue to deplete.

"The mountains," Carlisle confirmed. "Once we know when they'll arrive, we can make plans to set the false trails and make camp."

With the plan in place, Jasper, Alice and Esme stayed behind to practice a little longer, while Rosalie and Emmett headed straight home. They disappeared, choosing to run rather than wait for the other two, saving themselves a trip in an enclosed space with the lingering scent of their natural enemy.

Carys walked beside Carlisle, back across the field. After so long spent standing around, she wouldn't have minded if he'd picked her up and carried her the entire distance.

"What was going on with you back there?" Carlisle asked, not unkindly, as he swung their joined hands between them. "I didn't expect it from you."

Carys frowned. "I don't know. I've just been feeling a bit strange this morning, I think."

He turned his head sharply to look down at her. "Strange?"

"Well, I've been wanting to jump you half the time."

Carlisle's concern disappeared. "That's not entirely uncommon," he teased.

Carys lightly smacked his arm and scoffed. "When was the last time I growled about how sexy you were?"

"In front of others?" he queried lightly, tipping his head from side to side. Carys smacked him again and he grinned. Sobering, he asked, "Would you mind if I popped my doctor's coat on for a moment?"

Carys licked her bottom lip into her mouth, then shook herself free of yet another haze and said, "Go ahead?"

"Could it be a symptom of your pill?" he asked, explaining, "Abdominal pain, spotting, mood changes, fluid retention, changes in sex drive, raised blood pressure… All of these things are common side effects of the one you take."

"That's exactly what Sarah said. But I've not had them before," Carys murmured thoughtfully, "and I've been on it for years. The irregular periods are new as well though..." Save the spotting, she hadn't had one since he'd returned. If it weren't for him being nigh on four hundred years old and a vampire, and therefore sterile, she might have wondered if she were pregnant.

"Indeed. Perhaps you should think about getting some tests done? Sometimes these things can come up where they haven't before. It would give both of us some peace of mind to check."

"You're practically quoting Sarah now," Carys joked. "She said I should look into switching."

Carlisle was entirely unimpressed. They walked in silence for a few moments.

"Why haven't you?" he finally asked.

"Well…" Her lips twisted uncomfortably. "To tell you the truth, I guess I didn't think of all of them together. You think that's why my heart's beating faster?"

"Perhaps. Unless you have it checked out, you won't know."

"Could you do it?"

"Not really. I mean, I could, of course, but it might be better if I didn't."

"Why not?"

Carlisle eyed her. "I think you may prefer an impartial source."

Carys hung her head and pressed closer to his side, squeezing his hand. "I'm sorry."

"Whatever for?"

"Not listening to you or Sarah? I guess I was mostly thinking about the weight gain when I talked to her… I'll get myself checked out after all this is over," she promised. "It feels a bit silly to be talking about it when there's a battle on the way."

"There is never a bad time to talk about your health," Carlisle told her as he stopped walking and turned to face her. Leaning down, he released her hand and gripped the backs of her thighs, lifting her against him. "You're my number one priority. Speaking of which. Let's get you back before you catch your death of cold, shall we?"

Carys wrapped her legs around his waist, her arms around his neck, and grinned over his shoulder.

She was only at risk because he'd removed her coat.

Dawn had broken in its entirety by the time they reached the house, and Carys headed straight upstairs to shower while Carlisle parked the car.

He hadn't said anything more about how strongly Carys must smell of wolf, but then again he didn't exactly have to. She reckoned if she could smell Leah and Seth for the entire trip back, it must be overpowering for him. And not nearly as comforting.

After dragging the laundry hamper from the walk-in, she stripped quickly, wrapped herself in a towel, then threw her clothes in and slammed the top shut. She hoped it would do the trick for now.

She didn't want Carlisle thinking she was going to wash most of his scent off to go to La Push, but wouldn't make the same gesture to make him more comfortable in their own home.

There was a knock at the door to the hall just as she was about to close the bathroom door, so she opened it a smidge and called out, "If that's Carlisle, come in. Anyone else, I'm not decent! Though, if it is Carlisle - why're you knocking, lovely?"

Carlisle chuckled as he slid past the bedroom door and closed it swiftly behind him.

"Rose knocked," he explained, "but it wasn't important." Taking in what little of her he could see, he smiled hopefully. "I heard you're half-naked. Any chance you might be in need of some help divesting yourself of the rest?"

Carys giggled, covering her lower face with one forearm as she held onto the door with the other. "I'm showering the scent of wolf off me so you don't have to keep up the polite pretence."

"Polite pretence?" Carlisle's face fell. "I was doing nothing of the sort!" he protested, leaning back against the main door. Carys raised her eyebrows, and so he thrust his hands into his pockets and asked, "Was it obvious? I was trying to be discreet."

He was far too sweet. She widened the door, tightening her hold on her towel.

"You ran out of air about ten minutes after we left, lovely. Don't think I didn't notice how strange it was that you went from gushing over the wolves to nothing."

"I was trying to be…"

"Polite?" she repeated with an indulgent smile.

"I suppose…"

His lips pouted, twisted, then firmed. His entire face firmed and hardened as he slowly prowled across the room toward her.

Carys squeaked.

Almost every part of her was screaming to run from the supposed threat. The other part of her was screaming to run directly towards it and stay there for hours.

Carlisle stopped dead in his tracks, cocked his head, and took a deep breath through his nose. A moment later, he took up the prowl again, a determined look on his face as he maintained eye contact and kept his distance, tracking her position in a wide arc.

Carys stayed perfectly still, her heart thudding against her ribs. She swallowed past the thickness in her throat.

"Wha-What-erm. What are you doing?" she whispered.

Carlisle took a step back and to the side, lowering his head.

His golden eyes turned black.

Carys squealed and threw the door wide the instant before he pounced.

The cold of Carlisle's hands against her sides, his now naked chest pressed against her front, and the bathroom tiles against her back made her screech just as the bathroom door slammed shut, shaking the walls. Her legs instinctively wrapped around him, but his jeans and the towel together proved enough of a barrier not to make that quite so shocking to her body as the rest.

Carlisle chuckled against her neck as she bucked against the chill.

"Hold still," he commanded softly, making her squeal and arch away as he peppered her neck with freezing cold kisses, "I'm trying to find a vein."

"You can't do this to me!" she protested, hitting the back of her hand to her forehead. She held it there as she closed her eyes, tipped her face away, and cried, "Oh! Oh no, Doctor Cullen! Not the change! Not like this! Not like this!"

Carlisle growled. "You think to deny me now, when-wait." He stopped and pulled away slightly, then turned his head to the side and squinted.

Carys dropped her hand to rest with the other against his shoulders and watched him.

"Did I lock the door? I didn't, did I?" He shook his head slightly and lowered her to standing, pressing a kiss to her lips. "Hold on."

Carys waited patiently, throwing her towel across to the countertop beside one of the sinks as he paced to the door and flicked the lock home.

"Do you think they heard us?" Carys asked, not bothering to conceal her once over of his jean-clad form. The taut muscles of his back flexed under her scrutiny. So. Damn. Sexy. "No, right?"

It was highly doubtful with the soundproofing.

"Ah, I doubt it; you weren't screaming," Carlisle confirmed as he faced her. Her body burned where his darkened gaze touched. "Yet."

Carys giggled.

Carlisle clapped his hands and rubbed his palms together as he grinned lazily. "Now. Where were we? I do believe you were about to make a brief heroic escape from my nefarious vampiric clutches, whereby I could entrance you."

Carys bit her lip. "Oh, I don't think I was," she told him as she reached into the shower behind her to start the hot water. "I think I was just about to let you have your sinful, sinful way with me."

"Right," Carlisle said appreciatively, his eyebrows twitching upwards while his hands fell to his belt. "I don't believe I'm going to complain about that, now, am I, Miss Vale?"


Carys yawned and stretched her arms high above her head. Her spine and shoulders cracked. Her arms dropped to her lap, feeling as heavy as her head as she fought the spots of darkness encroaching on her vision.

"Is that regret I sense?" Carlisle asked as he made a one handed turn onto the road towards La Push.

He squeezed her thigh and she shook her head against the headrest.

"No. But my body's protesting the lack of sleep."

He laughed. "You? Lack of sleep? Woman, you slept for nigh on ten hours. You've only been up for…"

"Yes?"

"Eleven hours," he conceded, giving her thigh another squeeze. "I'll give you that."

"Thank you," Carys simpered. Then groaned and covered her mouth through another yawn. "Hmm… Did I definitely say one? Or was it more of a 'maybe one, maybe three if I need to stop off en route for a nap because I was too busy having sex to sleep'?"

"Definitely one," Carlisle observed. He nodded towards the road ahead. "As good as a nap may sound - and believe you me, I'd be happy to indulge you one, I'm afraid Leah's waiting for you at the boundary line."

Carys sat up straight. If she squinted, she could just about make out… nothing in particular. "Does she look like she's been waiting for long?"

"I can't see her. She sent you a text," he informed her. "You yawned through it."

Carys grabbed her phone from the dashboard. He was right. Of course he was.

I'm here. Tell me you brought coffee.

Grinning, she stroked Carlisle's hand as she typed out a quick reply and sent it. Glancing at the two paper bags from the diner on the backseat, she worried she may have gone a little overboard on doughnuts.

One thing she'd limited herself on were drinks. A coffee for her, one for Leah, and a hot chocolate for Seth.

Carlisle pulled his hand from her grip and changed gears a lot more safely than he had done before. "I'm sorry I kept you up," he said, returning his hand to her body - running his knuckles up and down the side of her neck this time. "Next time you should beat me away with a stick."

Carys laughed, just as she was sure he meant her to. She watched as his lips twitched in the rearview mirror.

"That should be my line."

"From your lips to God's ears," he chuckled. "Do you remember your rules?"

Carys nodded firmly.

"Are you sure you've got them all?" Carlisle asked, lifting an eyebrow.

Carys took a deep breath and nodded with each point she made. "No matter how nice Emily is, I'm going to be polite but nothing more. If Leah gets upset, then as the full human, I'm well within my rights to make up some imagined illness so we can leave. I am not going to laugh at any of Sam's jokes. And… and…"

"Seth and Leah get three doughnuts each," Carlisle finished for her.

"Right."

"I'm not sure that constitutes a rule," he said again, as he had when she'd made up the list an hour before and asked him to remind her in case she forgot.

"Oh, it does," Carys insisted. "I've seen the way Seth eats. I'm taking no chances on him missing out - they're his favourites."

"I thought burgers were his favourites?"

"And doughnuts."

"Huh. Alright… Am I allowed to add to the list?"

Carys turned in her seat, dislodging his hand, which immediately returned to her lap, curling about her inner thigh as her dress was hitched higher by the move.

"Depends what it is," she told him.

"If you accidentally fall into against one of their abdominal muscles and call them hot-"

Carys whined and covered her face.

"-don't wait so long to tell me?" he finished with a grin lifting his voice.

"I forgot," she said, her words muffled by her hands. "It's not like-"

"I believe you also said he was… what was it? Ah yes. Huge."

"You know I didn't mean anything by that," she complained as she buried her face in his shoulder. "You're making me blush. It's not fair."

"Oh, but you're so pretty when you blush. I suppose I should be flattered that you find me attractive - now that I know your type."

Carys twisted her hand in the front of his shirt and ducked her head as she whined, "Oh, shush!"

"Perhaps I should be the bigger man - sacrifice my happiness for-" he broke off as Carys whipped her head up and glared playfully, then pressed her cheek to his middle, hiding her face again.

He was joking now, but he'd hissed just as loudly when he'd found out that she'd called Paul hot as he had when he overheard her talking to Sarah about her first trip to the bar in Forks over two and a half years before. That one had been over her thinking Richard was handsome.

He kept his eyes on the road, but dropped an affectionate kiss to her head as he drew the car to a stop at the side of the road and cut the engine.

"Alright. I'll let it go. But please, if you can help it, save yourself for me," he finished dramatically.

Carys sat up and glared again. "You're incorrigible." Glancing out of the windshield, her face clearing, she caught sight of Leah and Seth.

Standing by their mum's car, Leah's mouth was hanging open, her eyes wide. Seth sat frozen in the passenger's seat, his russet skin darkened by the full weight of his blush.

"What's wrong with… oh… God…"

Carys unbuckled her seatbelt and grabbed the bags from the back. Sharing a horrified glance with Carlisle, she stole a quick kiss goodbye before she opened the door and climbed out.

"I'll see you tonight," she promised.

He nodded. "See you then, love. Love?"

She ducked her head back in. Carlisle had turned his head towards her, but his eyes were locked on the siblings.

"I'll make sure they know it's not what it looked like."

"Thank you, darling."

Carys shut the door and Carlisle waited until she'd reached Leah before he restarted the car.

"Hey."

"Hey," the Clearwaters replied in the same dull tone.

"It's not what it looked like," Carys insisted, handing Leah the first of the coffees, and Seth his hot chocolate. "I was just hiding my face because he was teasing me."

Leah was doubtful. "Thanks. Teasing you…"

Carys nodded insistently, passing the doughnut box filled bag through to Seth, who thanked her happily for both and set to counting them immediately as he took gulps of his drink. At least one of them believed her.

"About what, exactly?" Leah asked quietly, her eyes narrowed to slits.

Carys lifted her cup to her lips and took a sip. "Accidentally calling Paul hot. I only just told him… This is Carlisle we're talking about. And me, for that matter."

Leah murmured but her expression cleared and she flashed a smile. "I did think it was a weird power play."

"Wei-wur'n't 'ut'id," Seth added, drawing their attention as he spoke around a doughnut.

"What was that?" asked Leah with a long-suffering sigh.

He repeated himself just as unintelligibly, then cottoned on, chewed quickly, and gulped the food down. "Weird wouldn't cut it," he said.

"Ahh!" Carys and Leah announced as one.

"Yeah."

"Exactly," Carys agreed as she rounded the car to get in behind Leah's seat.

Carys highly doubted there would be enough space behind Seth, and she was proven correct the instant she slid in and saw the lack of legroom beside her.

Carlisle honked his horn once, and she jumped out again to frown her confusion at him. He held the binder out of the window.

"Shit. Thanks lovely!" Carys ran, coffee in hand, retrieved it, and returned just as quickly. "I swear I'd forget my head sometimes if Carlisle didn't check the screws for me," she told them as she settled herself.

Carlisle turned his car around as Leah did the same.

"Yugmf'id-"

"Nope." Leah said, cutting Seth off. He whined. She held her hand up and set off down the road. "If there's more than your tongue, teeth and gums in your mouth, you shouldn't speak." Meeting Carys' eye in the mirror, she explained, "I've stopped translating for him. It got bad."

"How bad?" Carys asked with a grin.

"Bad enough," Leah replied, returning her eyes to the road and both hands to the steering wheel.

Seth turned to see Carys. "I've eaten two… Is that alright?"

"Now you ask her." Leah rolled her eyes.

Seth hung his head.

"It's alright," Carys soothed. "You both get three each, so you can just pretend it's your first one later if you want?"

Seth grinned. "Okay! Thanks Carys! Lee? You want one?"

Leah shook her head and tapped the steering wheel as if to say "I'm driving".

Seth was unperturbed. He rolled the top of the bag and picked up his drink from the cup holder. "This morning was fun, wasn't it? Emmett was huge. I didn't mean to gag. You think he knew that?"

"If he didn't, I'll tell him," Carys promised.

"Thanks! Some of the guys thought it was funny when Edward almost got caught by Jasper. Did you? I liked what Carlisle did. He was cool to watch. But why did he look at you? Was it because of the emotions thing?"

Carys grinned through an exhale. "I didn't see as much as you guys, but as for Carlisle, yeah, he used Jasper's ability against him."

"That's clever!"

"It is."

"You should have heard what we were all thinking when you guessed who was who! And you hadn't even seen us yet! You were like: 'that one's Jared' and Jared was all like 'hey! She called me the Beta!' 'cause he was the Beta, but Jacob's the Beta now 'cause he doesn't want to be-"

"Seth," Leah warned. "Breathe."

Seth took a deep breath and hesitated.

"You were saying Jared and-"

"Yes! But that doesn't matter!"

Carys jumped and giggled when Seth flung his arms up.

"Collin and Brady are the ones you didn't know. They're only thirteen, so I've taken them under my paw," he added proudly.

Carys awwed. Taken them under his paw indeed.

"Collin's the one with the crush on Leah-"

"Hey!" Leah yelled. She sounded horrified, but as if she was already privy to the information.

"-he thinks she's perfect," Seth explained, leaning further across his seat to better guage Carys' reactions. "I said he hasn't seen her at eight on a Sunday morning, but he said he bets she's just as beautiful. I'm closer to Brady now. Brady said he was going to give you a hug today, but he's always saying stuff like that," he said with an affectionate laugh.

"Like," Carys cut in, trying desperately not to laugh, "what, exactly?"

"Stuff he's never going to do," Seth announced as if it were obvious. "He swears he could fight a vampire on his own, but he couldn't. I could. Hey! Did you hear?"

Carys shook her head. She'd learned not to guess. It could be anything. She missed the whirlwind that came from him when he was especially excited.

Leah sighed, concentrating on the twists and turns of the windy road they'd turned on to, but she was struggling with a grin of her own.

"I'm your bodyguard now!"

"What?"

"Well, not exactly. I get to protect you and Bella during the battle."

"Jacob called you a cellphone," Leah reminded him.

Seth snapped his head back to stare at his sister. "Yeah, but you said it was important!"

"It is," Leah assured him, patting his hand. "I'm just reminding you you're staying as far away from danger as possible. You're only there to help."

"Oh. But…" Seth's wide eyes returned to Carys' face. "It is important," he insisted.

"Highly," Carys agreed seriously. "I like to think, and I think Jacob, Edward, and especially Carlisle would agree - it's one of the most important jobs. I mean, I certainly can't protect myself," she said, laughing darkly as she finished.

Leah joined her. "You'd die in a second. Imagine. Zero chance of survival."

"I'd be like 'oh, hey. Can we stop for a second and talk this out?'"

Leah wheezed. "Are you sure you want blood?" she asked in a dodgy attempt at Carys' accent. "How about I pop the kettle on instead?"

Seth smirked as he looked between them. "You're right. You'd go down easy; you're no Mom."

Carys' jaw dropped. "Okay, mister! Comin' in here with the fighting talk!"

Seth beamed with pride.

The car jolted as Leah slammed the brakes, and Carys was flung against her seatbelt. Only, she didn't make it that far. Seth gripped her shoulder, holding her in place.

"Thanks."

He shrugged. "'S'okay!" Releasing her, he gave them both one last grin before he shoved the door open and took off running with the bag and his hot chocolate in hand.

They'd come to a stop to the side of a small road. Carys could see nothing past the trees and bushes, but a path began just a few feet from where Leah parked on the other side of the road. It was along that path that Seth had disappeared.

"Can't even close a fucking door. The state of this child," Leah complained.

"Like he was raised by wolves," Carys quipped, freeing her seatbelt and gathering her binder.

Leah grunted disapprovingly. Throwing her body across the seat, she slammed Seth's door shut.

"Before we go in…" Leah pulled herself up so that she sat cross-legged in the abandoned passenger's seat. She bit her lip and fiddled with the steering wheel diagonally across from her. "I wanted to say thanks for last night, but…" She glanced at Carys and away. "You might find out... Look. You're going to like Emily. Love her, really. Everyone does. I just want you to know I'll be fine when you do. I'm used to it."

Carys discarded her binder and surprised Leah by pushing to the edge of her seat and throwing her arms around her.

"Lovable or not, she's not you, Leah. I'll be nice, but she's not my friend. You are."

"Fuck off," Leah grumbled, smirking as she pushed her roughly away. "You're serious, aren't you?"

"Completely."

"Crazy. You're crazy." Leah sighed and pulled the handle, rolling backwards out of the car, springing to her feet a split second later as if it wasn't an impressive move. "Come on then. Into the wolves' den we go."

Me at first: time to judge C². Then: wait. He's literally a vampire…

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