If you're still with this story, I just want to reassure you: There are lots of revelations to come, lots of action, and of course we're gearing up to the family being told soon. Plus, we're one step closer to Carys' power reveal!
Breaking Dawn, Chapter 3
It was agreed that the best course of action would be for Carys and Carlisle to pick Leah up and bring her back to the island, where she would have the chance to meet Matt. As the dhampir said, there was a slight chance she'd take badly to a new species; if she phased, it would be easier to contain without witnesses. Quicker, anyhow.
Matt could remove or block any memories but he didn't want to risk missing anyone in the ensuing pandemonium.
As it was, Leah was more than happy to spend the journey to the island in relative silence. She was quiet, contemplative after hugging Carys and remarking on the scent clinging to her. "Strange," she called it. "Not horrible, just strange..."
When they reached their destination, they forewent the tour in favour of relaxing on the patio, choosing a space with two large outdoor sofas, three large and equally comfortable armchairs, with a glass coffee table set in the middle. True to form of the house's interior design, the seats were all upholstered in white.
Carys sank gratefully onto one of the sofas, kicking off her shoes and briefly closing her eyes. When she opened them, she found Leah had taken the sofa set at a right angle to hers, Carlisle sitting on Carys' left side.
Which left Matt absent.
Carlisle had just offered Leah a drink - which she accepted - when the dhampir strode out of the house, a tray balanced on the palm of one hand with glasses and a pitcher of what looked to be lemonade.
"He's safe," Carys said quickly.
Needlessly, it seemed. Leah stared at him for a split second before her gaze flickered to Carys, beyond her to Carlisle, and then she sniffed the air as Matt placed the tray on the table and took one of the armchairs beyond Carlisle. It was dark enough that neither one of men was effected by the sun.
Wrinkling her nose, Leah turned away. "I knew I smelt something rotten."
"Wouldn't be me." Matt sounded coolly disinterested as he adjusted his t-shirt and poured himself a glass. "I smell delightful."
"To who? A rat?"
Matt scoffed, settling back in his seat. Lifting his glass, he made a display of sipping. "Delicious. If I say so myself."
To Carys, Leah said, "There's no need for the dramatics - that thing doesn't look or smell like a vamp. What's it called? Its"–she cast Matt another dismissive glance–"kind."
Carys shifted uncomfortably. "Matt's a dhampir." She wasn't sure she should add to the description until she'd explained her current predicament. She was worried now - worried that Leah had jumped straight to insult Matt and that she, Carys, hadn't defended her new guest against her friend. Now she wasn't sure how to diffuse the situation.
Leah looked Matt up and down, cataloguing him as if he was something she'd trod in. Raising an eyebrow, she sneered, "Where did you find it?"
"We stumbled across each other in London, but it was Matt who came to us. He knew Carlisle as a human. He's actually the reason we called you before everyone else: if you agree, we'd like to include you in a conclave-"
"A conclave," Leah echoed, returning her gaze to Carys.
"A conclave is a-"
Leah cut off Matt's faintly condescending attempt at an explanation. "I know what a conclave is, thank you."
"You're welcome," he said.
Her head snapped round. "Excuse me?"
"I will if you ask nicely."
Leah took an impossibly deep breath, her nostrils flaring. "What?"
He shrugged. "I'm inclined to excuse your behaviour if you ask nicely. I must say I'm impressed that you've discovered something akin to manners in the past minute or so."
Leah sucked in another breath. "I'm going to murder you."
Matt's crinkled his nose, tipping his head as he mulled over the pronouncement. "Mmm... No, you're not." His expression cleared with a dismissive wave of his hand. "That is: you won't be able to. But feel free to try. I promise I'll appreciate the effort."
Carlisle was staring at the ground when Carys glanced at him for help, his lips pressed together, eyes wide and unblinking. If she didn't know him so well, she might think he was trying not to laugh. Carys elbowed him in the gut, stopping just short of connecting. He made no move, no fake grunting sound. He wasn't breathing.
Carys tried to catch Carlisle's eye, bobbing and weaving. He shook his head and she gave up.
"Anyway," Carys said ever so slowly, cutting through the thick tension that had fallen as Leah and Matt continued to glare at each other. If looks could kill, they'd both be dead.
"Anyway," Carys repeated. "I SAID ANYWAY!"
Leah and Matt jumped to attention.
"We're having a conclave. Matt here is the representative of the dhampirs. Carlisle will serve for the vampires." She sank against him, tipping her face to offer him a soft smile. "He's a King, pretty much."
Carlisle winked and Carys blushed.
Leah cleared her throat impatiently.
Carys made no move to respond. She couldn't have even if she wanted to; Carlisle was gazing down at her with molten gold eyes and a mesmerising expression which set her heart racing and–
"Oh fuck off. I'm not going to be stuck on this island with you two and this jerk for the next however long," Leah snapped.
Carlisle looked up, then down when Carys made an impatient sound at the back of her throat. He smiled again, then took hold of her chin and the top of her head and straightened her out.
Carys blinked, shook herself, apologised, and added, "I'm for the humans and you're for the shifters."
"In this... Conclave," Leah repeated dubiously.
Carys nodded.
Leah narrowed her eyes and slowly turned her head as if to ask what is that?
"A conclave is a private meeting," Carlisle supplied.
Both women cast him identically suffering glances. "We know that."
Carlisle held his hands up.
Leah asked, "So why is this conclave happening, exactly?"
"Counter question," Carys said, "why haven't you gone for Matt?"
"Oh I think she has," said Matt.
"I haven't," said Leah. "If I'd gone for you, you'd know it."
Matt rolled his eyes. "Look, Thea–"
"Leah."
"What?"
"My name is Leah."
Matt chuckled. "Alright Thea, whatever you say."
"My. Name. Is." Leah bent forward, her eyes narrowed to glittering slits of anger. "Leah."
Unperturbed, Matt shrugged. "Thea."
"Leah."
"Thea."
"LEAH!" Leah roared.
Carys and Carlisle shared a look.
Matt merely shrugged again. "It's all Greek to me."
"Well it's fucking English to me, and my name is Leah. Leah Clearwater."
"It's not my fault your parents named you wrong."
"Matt, Leah," Carys interjected worriedly. "Please."
Leah slowly turned to stare, wide eyed and indignant at Carys. "For the love of everything... Carys, tell me there's a very good reason why this conclave includes this... This... This..."
"Bastard?" Matt offered. "Horse's arse? Fucker–"
"Fucker," Leah repeated through gritted teeth.
Carys nodded as Carlisle squeezed her side. She wondered if they were both thinking the same thing. "There is."
"Let's hear it. It'll be useful before"–Leah glared at Matt, her fingers twitching–"I rip this one a new–"
"Let's not finish that sentence," Matt replied. "Carys? If you wouldn't mind?"
Carlisle broke with all polite protocol to hold his phone screen up in front of Carys. It read: $10000 says they jump each others' bones. Carys accepted the bet with a nod - they were more likely to kill each other, but anything was possible - and he removed the screen.
"Do you remember that time I was nearly killed by vampires?" she asked Leah.
"Which one?" Leah asked dryly, raising an eyebrow. "There are the two I know about... And however many more that I don't."
"Either?" Carys said. "Both? Anyway. The point is, did I die?"
"I don't like where this is going."
"Right, well... It's important you remember that I didn't..." Carys sent Carlisle a look of appeal. "And remember how I've been living with vampires? And I've been sleeping with a vampire? Because no matter how amusing you find it, I actually have..." Again, she flashed Carlisle a look; he kept his gaze squarely on Leah. "We've been having sex. Lots and lots of-"
Carlisle shot her a speaking glance and Carys looked at Leah, who was now glaring between them as if she couldn't quite work out if she was serious or not.
Carys slid to the edge of her seat. "Leah, I'm just going to rip the plaster off: I'm pregnant."
Leah's eyes turned to stone, her lips pressed into a thin line, and her jaw clacked shut, twitching in time with the clenching of her teeth. It was through those clenched teeth that Leah, eyes sparking, voice eerily soft, demanded: "Are you telling me you've cheated on your mate with this thing!?"
"No!" Carys' shocked cry was echoed by Carlisle's. "No, it's Carlisle's."
Leah nodded and relaxed. Realisation dawned abruptly and from the tips of her fingers to the top of her head her muscles seized, locked; she began to shake and tremor. Carys jumped forward, grabbing her friend's hands before Carlisle could think to pull her away or Leah could lose control of herself.
"Leah," she said gently, pressing her forehead to Leah's when her eyes slid closed and her tremors subsided on a deep, shuddering breath. "I said don't freak out."
Leah let out a humourless chuckle. It was then that Carys registered that she hadn't been the only one to move. Carlisle's arms were wrapped protectively around her waist and chest, holding her from behind, ready to rip her away if needed; Matt stood beside Leah, staring down at her with his hand outstretched, just as ready to lock her into her past.
"Leah," Carys repeated, blinking back tears of gratitude. "Are you alright?"
Leah's breathing evened out. Slowly but surely, her eyes opened and locked onto Carys'. "What do you need from me?"
Carys squeezed her friend's hands. Carlisle gently, ever so slowly, released her, remaining in place, his chest to her back, just in case. Matt took a step back, then another, and another, until he'd reached his seat, where he perched on the edge to watch the scene unfold.
"You're not going to ask what it is?" Carys asked, half-surprised.
Leah tipped her head and scoffed out a dark laugh. "Unless you've been holding out on me and something else is going to walk out, I'd think it's fucking obvious what it is. And what a dhampir is as well."
"True..."
"So? What do you need?"
"To talk. That's all. Just to talk about how we're going to handle the... repercussions..."
Leah glanced at Carys' rounded belly. "Repercussions... Not to go sex ed on you..." Leah drew back, took a deep breath, fixed Carys with an interested look as she caught her chin in the vee of her forefinger and thumb. "But isn't Carlisle... infertile due to the whole stone thing...?"
"Yes and no." Carys flashed her brows. "We thought he was but it turns out it's incredibly rare but possible. As for the stone part, it takes some getting used to, but it's really-"
Carlisle drew quickly to his feet. "I think that looks like my cue to get dinner on. Matt? Care to help?"
"Sure," he said. "Carys? Thea? What're we-fuck!" He recoiled at Leah's bared teeth. "Keep your shifter in line, Carys. Or I will."
"Oh, you'd love that, wouldn't you?" Leah sneered.
Matt's eyes shifted. "I think you'd be at more risk of enjoying it than you think."
Leah's mouth dropped open; she touched her tongue to her back teeth. "Keep talking, dhampir. You're sealing your own fate."
He scoffed. "Already sealed, thank you." Pushing smoothly to his feet, he grabbed the tray from the center of the table. "You're about four thousand five hundred years too late to change it."
Leah's jaw snapped shut.
"Nothing to say?" Matt queried.
"Exactly how old are you?"
"Around five thousand."
"Don't you have better things to do than annoy nineteen year old girls-"
"Women."
"What?"
"You're a woman," Matt said with a roll of his eyes. "I don't tend to argue with girls."
Leah sank back in her seat, crossing her arms. "Well? Don't you have better things to do with your time? Or was your fate to spend eternity annoying nineteen year old women?"
Matt stalked off towards the house without responding.
Carlisle shifted forward in his seat while Carys accepted that the odds were pretty much half and half. "Leah, this is a lot to take in and we apologise for springing it on you the moment you arrived, but there was nothing for it. Please make yourself at home - we can speak more about it and you can have time to mull it over once we've had dinner?" He caught Carys' eye.
She nodded. "Will you give us the chance to explain over dinner?" She caught Leah's eye. "You can run for the hills with a full belly."
Leah nodded, then shook her head. "Don't need dinner for an answer."
"Matt isn't usually–"
"I'm in. Not sure how I feel about"–raising her hands, she made quotations around the words–"'representing my people', or spending time with the resident fuck-face but..."
Matt poked his head out of the patio doors. "I fe–"
Leah cut him off. "No one asked."
A muscle twitched in his jaw and he disappeared.
"I'm sure the first question I'm asked when I tell them about this will be: why didn't you ask Sam? So. Why didn't you ask Sam to be part of this conclave?" Leah barely finished the question before she burst out in a fit of uncontrollable laughter, taking Carys with her. "I'm sorry," she wheezed. "I heard myself as I said it!"
"Why didn't you ask Sam," Carys repeated, then laughed again.
Leah swiped at the corners of her eyes. "Oh fuck, he'd be like 'kill first, ask questions later'!"
"He'd-he'd-" Carys cackled. "Imagine! He'd-"
Leah drew herself up, affecting a low, deep rumble of a voice. "How do we know it won't kill us off? We'd better kill it before it has a chance."
Carlisle grinned down at them both. "I'm glad you both find this so amusing."
"So do you," Carys told him. "Don't think I don't see that smile, Carlisle Cullen."
He bent to kiss her forehead.
"I'd like to see him swim over here," Leah announced, her voice high. She shook her fist in the air. "Come back here so I can go Alpha on you!"
Carlisle left them to themselves when this set them off again. It took a while for them to recover. By the time they were sipping their lemonade, the smell of lobster and steak was emanating from the kitchen and Carys couldn't help but ask her own question.
"How are you so alright with everything?"
Leah cocked her head.
"Dhampirs. Pregnancy. Matt. Letting Carlisle cook you dinner." She spread her arms wide. "Being here."
Leah shifted until she was comfortably slumped. "Not surprised there are dhampirs. When you put together everything I've learned about the world, there's one thing that rings true every time - people don't know everything. As for Matt, like I said: he's not a vampire, just a jerk."
"He almost killed them all off," Carys interjected to add to the defence of Matt and his kind. "Dhampirs tend to hate vampires."
"There you go."
Carys hummed.
"And it's kind of a good time for me."
"Huh?"
"It gets me out of the house."
Carys laughed.
Chuckling half-heartedly until Carys abruptly sobered, Leah then said, "If Matt is safe-"
"He is."
"Right, you said. If he is, then a few days on a sunny island isn't too bad. I mean, I tried the haircut. I was forced to try close proximity. Time away is just what the doctor ordered to get over everything."
"You think?"
It was Leah's turn to hum, and Carys was struck by how tired her friend looked. More tired than usual. She doubted Leah was still in love with Sam, but she was still suffering from a broken heart, broken dreams, the end of the life she was expecting; her father's loss; the expectations; the confusion; her new body and presumed infertility; a bloody maelstrom of shit... Everything that could have been thrown at her had been, and she was supposed to bear it all.
"How about," Carys swung her legs up, curling them under her, "you stay for longer than a few days? I mean, who knows how long this conclave is going to take?"
Leah thought about it and shook her head, closing her eyes. "There's only so long I can be away before I get summoned back."
"Really?"
"Mmm... I'm just a foot soldier remember?" Her words began to slur a little, drawing out the syllables. "Got to... Got to get back and..."
Sleep claimed Leah quickly that evening. It carried her until dinner and then, after eating her fill and securing her bedroom, took her through to morning.
Morning on the island dawned bright and early. The new day was heralded by the heat of the shimmering sunshine through the open windows, the scent of breakfast being cooked, and the sound of yelling from the kitchen.
Hold on. Yelling?
Carys sat up in bed, finding it empty. Carlisle hadn't been gone for long from the looks of his pillow and the hastily discarded sheet.
The shouts cut off as Carys shoved off her covers, toeing on her slippers at the corner of the bed. Hauling one of Carlisle's shirts overhead, she paused for a moment to search the chest of drawers for a pair of knickers before she donned them and padded in search of the disagreement.
She arrived just in time to witness Matt, large knife in hand, miming embedding it into Leah's back.
Leah stood a good few feet away, talking to Carlisle in hushed tones. That in itself - their proximity - was strange. What was more so was that the way Leah was gesticulating; she looked to be halfway through a rant about whatever Matt had done.
All three turned at once, plastering smiles on their faces. The knife disappeared. "Good morning," they said cheerily.
Carlisle broke away to greet Carys. "We didn't disturb you, did we?"
A pan sizzled, heralding the scent of crisping bacon. "Was the TV too loud?" Matt asked, casting Leah a sidelong glance.
"Erm..." Carys looked at each in turn, her brow furrowed. "I'm confused..."
"About what?"
"To begin with: Why are you all acting so weirdly?"
"Weirdly!?" Leah's denial was accompanied by an exaggerated setting of the table. "Saying good morning is weird now, is it?" Her laugh was strained.
"What's going on?"
"Breakfast," Carlisle said brightly.
"I heard shouting..."
The three supernatural beings froze for half a second, sharing a look before their smiles grew wider and more forced.
"We weren't sure if you'd want bacon," Leah said, returning to the island counter to accept the glasses Matt handed her.
Carys voiced her disbelief. "Bacon... You were shouting about bacon...?"
"We weren't shouting," Matt chuckled. "Just a minor disagreement."
Carlisle swept out an arm, ushering Carys to the table. "Matt said you'd want some but Leah remembered you preferred sausage in the morning-"
Leah hid her lower face with a hand.
"-so I reminded them both that you liked a full English." He drew out her seat and pushed it in a little when she sat. "Nothing to worry yourself about."
Leah placed a slotted tray of toast in front of Carys, in the middle of the four places she'd set. "Nothing at all."
Carys examined them each in turn. Leah and Matt squirmed under her scrutiny. "What is this?"
"What is what?" Matt asked from his position by the oven. Opening it, he withdrew a hot tray of sausages and one of croissants with his bare hands.
"Did you-" She shook herself. "You were definitely arguing about something. What was it?"
They paused again.
"Nothing." Carlisle slid into the seat beside Carys.
She pointed at his place. "Then why was Leah so distracted that she gave you a plate as well?"
Leah said quickly and defensively, "I was trying to be polite."
Carlisle nodded. "Polite."
"Polite," Matt repeated, filling platters from the hot trays.
Carys thought she must still be asleep. Or she'd stumbled out of the wrong side of bed and ended up in an alternate dimension. There was definitely something going on - otherwise she'd imagined the shouts, and she didn't think she had.
Leah joined Matt to help plate everything up. Their glares were half hidden by their hair and carefully chosen stances, but Carys caught them. As soon as they turned to carry things to the table, they were all smiles. They sank into chairs beside each other and began piling their plates high.
Carys accepted the food Carlisle placed in front of her, cut into a sausage and took a bite, observing the unnatural display through lightly narrowed eyes. There was something they weren't telling her - something they were trying to cover up.
A light growl emanated from the opposite side of the table when both Leah and Matt reached for the ketchup.
Carys dropped her knife and fork to the plate with a clack, startling them. "What is going on!?"
Carlisle placed his hand on her back. She shrugged it off.
"Nothing's going on," Matt said.
"Yes it is." Carys jabbed a finger in his direction. "Last night you and Leah took an instant dislike to one another. You were yelling about something this morning. Now you're all fake smiles and chummy as you like."
"Chummy?" Leah asked.
"Friendly," Carys, Carlisle, and Matt explained.
Leah threw her head back. "Gotcha."
Carys returned to Matt, then Carlisle, and finally Leah. "Why are you all acting so suspiciously?"
"We're not."
"You are!" Carys shrugged off Carlisle's hand again. "Tell me what you're trying to hide."
Matt shook his head. "Carys, you need to-"
"Don't tell me to calm down," Carys snapped. "Tell me what's going on."
"It's really-"
Blood rushed to Carys' face and neck. She could feel the whoosh of heat, the tingling in her palms, the heavy, fast thump of her heart as she glared at Matt. "Tell. Me."
Matt's mouth opened and closed twice before he said, "It's nothing, Carys. Really. Why don't you eat and-"
She pushed her plate away. "Why don't you stop trying to make me feel like I'm going mad and tell me?"
Carlisle frowned. "That wasn't our intention, darling."
"Don't darling me, Carlisle. We've talked about this. Anything you know, I know. Otherwise, what are we doing here?" Carys just about stopped herself from wincing. "I... I didn't mean it like that, I just meant-"
"I know."
"Well?"
Carlisle sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Matt and Leah don't get on..."
"I noticed," Carys said, glancing at the pair. "What does that have to do with all the subterfuge?"
"Matt has now explained the whole situation to Leah."
Carys was a little put out that she didn't have a chance to tell her friend herself, but she was still missing the point. "And...?"
"And Thea here-"
There was nothing to prepare them for the speed of Leah's hand as she reached up and slapped Matt around the back of the head.
Everything stopped. Carys even stopped breathing, and she was sure the others had as well. Leah had frozen completely.
Ever so slowly, Matt turned his head, his face tense, nostrils flaring. The light around them seemed to dim as he stared at the wolf for a long, drawn out moment. "I'm going to make a recommendation." His voice was soft. Too soft. "Run, Thea."
Not usually one to back down from a fight, this time Leah did. She slowly pushed away from the table and took off, sprinting through the house. A heavy thud and howl accompanied her exit. Matt watched like a predator observing his prey and then dabbed a napkin at the corners of his mouth.
"If you'll excuse me," he said and took after her with the speed of a vampire.
Neither Carys nor Carlisle said a word for a good minute. He was the first to break the shocked silence, while she gave him as much of her attention as she could gather. The rest was fixated on trying not to be scared of losing Leah, especially. A small part was afraid for Matt, but seeing the look on his face, she could believe what he'd said to Leah the night before.
"They argued," Carlisle said, finishing his point dully. "And everyone thought it would be better to keep the extent of their clashing from you."
"Why?"
He shuddered. "The stress isn't good for you...?"
Carys' shoulders rolled back and she straightened to her full sitting height. "Carlisle," she said simply. "You'd better go save those two from themselves while I work on forgetting you said that."
Nodding erratically, he smoothly kicked out his chair and went in search of their guests.
A/N: well that didn't go well, now did it? Next chapter (if they all survive that long) will kickstart the conclave. Do we think the Packmind™ stretches as far as Isle Ivy/Carl Isle?
Thank you to: Momochan77, BMBMDooDoo-Doo-Doo-Doo, GuestMG, chellekathrynnn, Guest (looking forward to what you think about them now! You're not alone in shipping them - Carlisle does as well!), NeonKat (thank you so much! Looking forward to getting stuck into things from next chapter on, now that we have all the players we need to kick things off!), and monyqsll for your reviews!
Anyone I've not PM'd to reply yet, I'll message you when I'm home from Christmas and with my laptop!
