AN: So I have the added benefit for me and you a Beta! :) Thanks to the wonderful Bell 1! If there are errors or problems now, it's still my fault. I don't always agree with all of her recommendations. But hopefully she'll make it easier to read reducing some grammar stuff especially my wonderful run on sentences like this one *giggles* Ok I did that on purpose. Now enjoy!

Chapter 17

I sat and listened to Bella tell Charlie about Alice's ability. Then she moved on to my own, which I demonstrated by sending out a little anger and happiness to him. He was shocked.

"So, Jasper and Alice have powers. Is there more? It seems like there's more. Do you have a power?" he asked Bella, looking curiously at her. Well, that was a loaded question.

She sidestepped the question by explaining that Edward could read minds and that Peter knows things, but his works differently than Alice's gift; and sometimes it's on the fritz.

"What about you?" He wasn't going to let his question drop. She started again, this time with Carlisle, Esme, Emmett, Rose, and Char, who don't have powers. However, she emphasized what made each of them special.

"Isabella," Charlie scolded.

She sighed. "Yes Dad, I have a power. It's not easily controlled and can be dangerous. I have a bubble-like thing, a shield that protects my mind from people like Edward. I can make it real, physical. I can enclose people in it. I don't know a lot about it. It's ruled by emotions and I don't have great control over it." She looked away with shame in her eyes and leaking from her emotions.

Apparently, she was more ashamed than I realized about being unable to control her bubbles.

"I see." Charlie looked around at all of us intently. "Powers aren't the only thing though. What makes you all white and beautiful? Why don't you eat?"

Bella looked back at her dad. I think she was hoping her explanation would be enough. It wasn't.

"They're vampires, Dad," she said, as though it was the most obvious answer in the world.

"Vampires?" Charlie asked, looking at each of us. We all nodded in turn.

"So you don't eat. You drink blood?" He was looking at all of us, but mostly at Bella. His emotions were spinning from disbelief to horror.

"Oh God!" he yelled, jumping to his feet.

We all looked at him quizzically, but sat still.

"Dad?" Bella looked at me in question.

I shrugged. I didn't know what to say. It seemed like he was putting something together.

"Are they drinking from you!?" he spat out, glaring at me.

As I looked at him, my eyes narrowed. I should have figured that was where he would go with this. She was after all, a tasty human.

"Dad! No! Oh God," she mumbled at the end and flushed red. Her face dropped into her hands attempting to cover her embarrassment. She had gotten better at lying, but she couldn't seem to lie about this.

"They are! That's it! We're leaving!" Charlie tried to grab Bella's hand.

She pulled away from him, sinking further into my lap. I wound my arms around her to comfort her, resting my chin on the top of her head. If she wanted to go I would have let her but she would not be pulled away against her will.

"Sit. Down. Charlie," I ordered.

"No! You're hurting my baby and I trusted you! You're nothing but a monster!"

Bella's emotions flashed with anger as she sat up, facing Charlie. Her shield - a silver, shimmering bubble - went around us, blocking Charlie's ability to reach us. Well, this was new. The only other time she had us in a shield was the day we made love, the day our souls connected. The day I helped bring her out of her black haze stupor, but she wasn't aware of it. And I never spoke of it. Previously the bubbles had always been around someone else.

Charlie stepped back in surprise and looked over at Peter and Char, who were also looking shocked.

"Bella?" Charlie looked at her pleadingly.

I knew she was angry, but she wasn't so angry that her shield should have wrapped around us. I was surprised. I turned her towards me to look her in the eyes. They were chocolate and tearful, but didn't show any of the blackness, nor the anger that consumed her a few days ago. I was relieved.

"Bella, he's not gonna to take you. An' he's not going to hurt us. Can ya lower the shield, Darlin'?"

She took a deep breath and looked over at Charlie. The shield disappeared.

"Now. Sit down," I commanded again and sent him some agreeable feelings.

He took a seat at the table, far away from everyone.

"Dad, it's not like you think. Yes, Jasper, and only Jasper, has drank from me." She pulled the collar of her shirt to the side showing him her newest mark. Then, she turned further and showed him the one on the back of her neck.

"You're arm, the scar on your arm matches those, matches the ones on these three," he barely whispered, so Bella could hear his words.

She held up her wrist, showing us all that scar too. "Yes, that wasn't Jasper. That was a nomad vampire, who attacked me in Phoenix when I got hurt. I didn't fall down the stairs. I was hunted and attacked. He bit me and injected me with venom. Venom is what turns people into vampires. Edward sucked the venom out."

I had taken her wrist, tracing the scar with my thumb. I hate that it happened. I'm glad I killed the son of bitch.

"The bite marks that you all have? You feed from each other?" He looked around curiously.

Char smiled softly, but Peter laughed, "No way! We were in a war, a vampire war that raged back in the 1800s. We have battle scars."

Bella stayed silent but blushed. I knew she was thinking of something very different and intimate. No one knew she drank from me the day we became one; and no one needed to.

"Wait, the 1800s? How old are you?"

"177," I answered flatly.

"154," Peter smiled.

"143," Char smiled also.

"I'm 19," Bella smiled and waved at her stunned father.

Charlie got up and started pacing. Not looking at anyone, he mumbled to himself, "Vampire wars, vampires,177-year-old vampires, vampire powers, my little girl…" His head snapped up and looked at us. Pointing an accusatory finger at me. "You're going to make her a vampire!"

"That's the idea, Dad." Bella got up and went him, embracing him. "Remember, I told you… once you know, you can't unknow this stuff." She pulled away to look him in the eyes. "Now that you know, you have two choices, die or change. That's why I didn't want you to know, but it's the law." Her voice cracked. She hugged tighter.

"Die or change? Who's law? Who makes the law?"

"Jasper does," Peter piped up smiling.

I hissed at him. "I do not. We have a governing body, just like everyone else, Charlie. They're very, very old vampires who live in Italy, known as the Volturi. There're three kings…"

"Ya. And they asked him to become one!" Peter interrupted happily.

I glared at him and sent him my anger. He finally settled down.

"The job? In Europe? They want you to be a king? A fourth king?" He looked at me with awe.

"No, they're planning on killing one of them and Jasper will take his place," Char responded with her own enthusiasm.

Thanks, Char. I looked at her and she quit smiling, looking down sullenly.

"Who are you? Why would you be a king? Why are they killing one of their own? What if they kill you? What does this mean for Bella?" He looked down at her in his arms. "Bella?"

"It's getting cool out here. I think we should go inside," Bella responded. She released him and headed for the door. Everyone filed in behind her.

She went into the kitchen and began preparing dinner, taking out some meat and an onion. She got some cans out of the cupboard and set them on the counter. Taking a bottle of water from the fridge, she chugged half of it before handing it to her dad with the top off. He finished it off and handed it back.

"What are you makin', Sweet Pea?" Peter sat down at the bar while Char took her place next to him.

"Just some chili. Is that okay, Dad?" She looked to him for an answer as I leaned against the counter watching her work.

"Sure. Want some help?" He frowned and looked at the ingredients on the counter as if they were going to bite him.

"No, I'm good. I like cooking. We can talk while I cook."

"Okay, kiddo. So what do you eat?" He looked between Peter, Char, and me.

"Animals, well, we drink their blood." I looked over at Char, who looked away. I wasn't going to out her if she didn't want me to.

"What kind of animals?"

"Wildlife, game. It's not as appetizing as people, but it does the trick." I smiled at my Bella. Since finding her, I didn't have to worry about bloodlust anymore.

"So, some vampires eat people, or drink from people?" He was curious and a little worried.

"Yes, they kill people. The bloodlust is unlike anything. It makes us crazy with hunger in our first year or so. It's difficult to control, but you learn control."

"You don't have fangs though. I've never seen them. And you all have regular bite marks, not puncture wounds." He was observant.

"No, our teeth are just very sharp." Peter gave a toothy smile to Charlie.

Charlie visibly flinched at the sight.

"Our skin is hard and smooth like stone, and just as cold," Char said, holding her hand out to Charlie, who looked, but didn't touch.

Bella continued to brown the meat and was chopping onion while we talked. She occasionally looked to see how her dad handled the new information.

"We have many lures for humans. Our scent is pleasing, our looks obviously, and some eye contact allows us to dazzle a person before they know what's happening. We can coerce them into following us or thinking they are in love with us, wanting us…" Char trailed off looking into Charlie's eyes; giving him a demonstration.

He moved right in front of her before she cut it off. His eyes widened as he looked at his new spot and fear spiked within him.

"It's okay, Charlie. We wouldn't hurt you or Bella." I smiled over at her as she began opening cans of beans.

"Ouch." She stuck a finger in her mouth, but we all got whiff of the fresh blood.

"Bella," I scolded and went to her. She had cut her finger on the edge of the can. "Let me see." I pulled her finger from her mouth, while checking Char and Peter. Their eyes were dark, and they stopped breathing, so they were okay. I gave them a small smile.

I looked down at the finger gushing blood. She cut it deeply. "Jasper…" she started, but I shushed her. She gave a worried look to her dad, who watched intently. I sucked her finger into my mouth and tasted her wonderful flavor as it burst on my tongue. I kept my eyes staring at her face while I licked it with my tongue, sealing the wound. It took a couple swipes because it was so deep. She gasped and looked back me, feeling the love and need pouring from me. She flushed, and her arousal hit the air.

"Jerk!" She pulled her finger from my mouth and slapped me gently on the shoulder so as not to hurt herself but was smiling.

I gave a wicked smile back. I wanted her, but I knew now was not the time.

"Her finger!" Charlie exclaimed, rushing to look at the finger still lightly coated with my venom and sporting a new silver scar.

"You healed her?" He looked completely confused as he held her finger close to his face. Bella just gawked at him and let him manipulate her hand every which way for inspection.

"Yes, a little bit of venom stings for a second, but it heals small wounds. If too much gets into the blood stream, it causes the change, which is very painful."

"How painful?" he asked, letting go of her hand and moving back across the kitchen.

Bella returned to work on the food.

"Very… being burned alive is an apt description." Peter was suddenly very serious. "Not everyone survives, sometimes the pain is too great, and their heart gives out."

"I need to sit down." Charlie moved to the dining room table a little bit away from everyone and looked very pale.

I pulled a soda from the fridge and brought it to him.

"Thank you." He opened it and took a big gulp. "So, you're saying, if I chose this and that Bella has chosen this, we could die? We may not even become vampires?"

As everyone nodded solemnly, there was a grave silence in the house that echoed around the world.

"What else? The myths, garlic, sunlight, silver bullets?" Charlie was still pasty, but on topic. His heart was not thumping out of control, just pumping a tad fast.

"Myths, garlic does nothin'. Sunlight, well, we sparkle in sunlight. It shows us as something different but doesn't harm us." When Charlie didn't comment on the sparkling issue, Char continued. "And silver bullets are a werewolf myth, I believe, but they don't actually hurt them."

"Wait. Are you saying werewolves are real?" Charlie's heart took off at that information. He stood from his seat.

"Yes, there are very few left in existence though. The Volturi killed off most of them." As I answered, I escorted Charlie back to his chair and put the soda back in front of him.

He took a sip. "Wow. Do I know any werewolves?" He looked around.

"No," I answered. There was nothing more to that conversation. Bella didn't even know about the La Push wolves. And they weren't technically werewolves.

"Oh, okay, umm… What else? All the Cullen's? Even Dr. Cullen?" He was calming and seemed to be taking things well.

We explained about our family, and he just nodded along. Bella sat at the table with him when the chili was set to simmer.

"So, how old is the oldest vampire? Where did they start?"

"We don't know where they started. The oldest that we know of are the three kings. And they are several thousand years old, not exactly sure how old." Peter answered.

"And why do they want you to be a king? Why are they willing to kill one of their own to make room for you?"

Ah, back to those questions. I sighed and sat down next to Bella, taking her hand.

"I am very powerful, Charlie. I am not only able to control people's emotions, but I am a good leader and war strategist. I am well known throughout our world. Peter, Char, and I are the only ones to ever make it out of the vampire wars alive. The kings went in and killed everyone else decades ago, but we had already left." I looked to Bella, silently asking her if I should share the rest. She nodded her agreement.

"The Volturi want me, us…" I pulled Bella to my side. And his eyes grew. "I am known as 'The Major', or 'God of War', among our kind. I was a real Major in the Civil War; the youngest Major in the Civil War, actually. I lied about my age to join. I gained the moniker 'God of War' because I've never lost a fight. And it was a rumor that was started.

"Now…" I looked down at my mate, who held nothing but love for me. "I am mated to a very powerful human, who will only be a more powerful vampire after her change."

"Mated?" He gave us a curious look. His emotions were raging with curiosity and awe, but an undercurrent of worry remained.

"Mated. We tend to live our lives with someone who makes us happy. And if we're lucky enough, we find a mate, someone who completes us. Bella, however, is my true mate, my soul mate. Because of her, my powers have enhanced, and so have hers, despite her being human. There has only been one other truly mated couple in our history that I'm aware of. It was Marcus, one of our kings.

"To answer your question, 'why would they kill him?', several hundred years ago, during a battle for the kingdom, his mate was killed. He thinks the other side did it, but in reality, her own biological brother, Aro, and one of the other kings killed her. He was afraid to lose Marcus' gift because she didn't want to be royalty. And he would have followed her anywhere. They were going to leave the kingdom. Since then, Marcus has been a shell of a man. He merely exists."

"And they want to kill him because he lost his mate?" Charlie clarified.

"Yes, he is miserable without her. Last week, when we sent you away, Aro was here. He came to see if we had a human living amongst us." I hugged Bella.

Charlie's eyes got bigger. His heart rate spiked again.

"There are only a few laws, Charlie. The main ones are, not to let humans know about us…" I nodded to him and Bella, indicating we were breaking the law. "Not to change children, because they can never be controlled nor taught, and to feed without detection. No major massacres, that kind of thing."

"I'm so confused. It's hard to believe any of this. I know it's true, but it's still a lot to take in." Charlie got up and went to get a bowl. "Is this done?" he asked, looking back at Bella before scooping some into a bowl.

"Ya." He grabbed another bowl and got her some also.

I moved away a bit to give her space to eat, just resting a hand on her thigh, which she stretched out to lean against my own thigh.

We talked more while they ate. I told Charlie more about the change. Peter told him a little about Maria and the wars. Bella told him a little more about true mates. When we were done, Bella and Charlie were emotionally exhausted.

Char cleaned the kitchen and put the left overs away while Peter took Charlie and Spirit home. I carried Bella to bed.

"What do you think he will choose?" Bella looked at me as I lay down next to her.

We were on our sides facing each other with the lights off. I could see her fine, but I knew she couldn't see me well, especially since she was looking more at my forehead.

"I dunno. Whatever he chooses, I will do my best to keep him safe. I promise."

I reached around her and pulled her close, where I wanted her. She buried her nose in my chest and sighed. I could smell her tears before I felt one hitting my chest after sliding off her nose. I hugged her tighter. There was nothing I could say. We knew it was a possibility he would find out. Now that he knows, we must deal with it

AN: So what will Charlie decide? What will happen next? These poor kids just cant seem to stay away from drama, I'm telling you. Vampires! Sheesh!