Chapter Five:
I still couldn't quite believe it. Renee was a shapeshifter. She was a Quileute. Billy was also a shapeshifter, or at least had been one.
My mind was whirling with the implications. She hadn't told me the truth. She had known all along what Edward was, and she had known who he was. My mother: Renee, part-time werewolf.
Renee ate a little from the Cullen's store of human food, and played Emmett and Jasper at chess. She checkmated Emmett, but was ultimately defeated by Jasper. Jasper and Renee's game lasted much, much longer. Nearly three hours. It was very clearly nighttime by the time that Jasper finally smiled and moved his knight forward. Renee sighed in good-humored defeat, flicking over her king.
"Still practicing those strange knight/rook checkmates, huh?" Renee said, smiling over the table at Jasper. "How did you figure out how to do it?"
He shrugged. "You learn a thing or two about strategies in war."
Renee reached over, grabbing a carrot from the table and snapping off an end, chewing thoughtfully. She turned to me, seeing that I was still studying her and thinking over what I had learned today.
"Gramma!" Renesmee said, running up. She leapt, nimbly landing in Renee's lap, giggling. Renee giggled with her, shielding her from sight as Jacob bounded into the room, scanning the surroundings.
"Renee?" Jacob said, sauntering forward silently. "Have you seen Renesmee anywhere?"
"Nope. Don't know who you're talking about," Renee said, shaking her head, her eyes twinkling as she turned her back towards Jacob, who was still sauntering forward. "Nobody here but us 'Grammas'."
Jacob crept forward still silently. Suddenly he leapt forward, jumping to Renee's side.
"Aha!" he said, but his expression immediately turned to confusion. There was nothing in Renee's lap.
The vampires burst out laughing, including Renesmee, who had hidden under the table nearby. Jacob loped over to her and scooped her up, bringing her back to wherever they had come from.
Conversation took the normal course for this household. Renee asked us if we were well and had seen the Denali clan recently, asked us how residents of La Push were faring, that sort of thing. But then the conversation took a personal note, as Renee studied me, as Renesmee crawled onto my lap, tuckered out from playing for so long with Jacob.
"So, have her abilities appeared yet?" she asked, looking at Edward or Carlisle.
"They have," Edward said, his voice nearly dripping with pride. I ducked my head lower as I stroked Renesmee's hair softly, as she fell asleep against me. "Bella's is the most powerful mental shield I've ever seen."
"Mental shield?" Renee asked, leaning forward. "Can she project?"
It was like they were talking cars, and I was the engine they were gushing over.
"She can," Edward said proudly, wrapping his arm around my shoulders. "About fifty yards."
Renee looked very impressed. Then a thought occurred to her, and she blanched a little. "Wait, how do you know this? Did you have a chance to… to test it?"
Edward's face darkened a little. "We did, unfortunately. When the Volturi learned about Renesmee—"
Renee gasped suddenly, glancing as if to check that Renesmee was still in my lap, as Edward continued, getting to his favorite part of this story.
"—but when the Volturi were met with Bella's shield, all of their abilities were nulled while we kept our entire arsenal. You should've seen Jane's face!"
Renee laughed out loud as though she knew from personal experience who Jane was. And maybe she had. Maybe she was a vigilante, for all I knew now.
"What about her second gift?" she asked, wiping her eyes.
Everyone blanked. Not even Carlisle, who had up until this point known Renee better than I had, was unfazed.
"Second gift?" I croaked out. "What do you mean, second gift?"
Renee smiled at me like she was about to pull a surprise present out of her pocket and give it to me.
"Your mental shield probably comes from your father. He can be hard to read, when he wants to be. Up until just now, I didn't know that it wasn't just me, and I obviously had no idea he was just as hard to read mentally. But I have a feeling that you have another gift from my side of the family, if what I know about vampires' gifts is true."
Edward was piecing together the puzzle in his mind, reading Renee's thought processes as a guideline. "Her blood…"
Renee nodded. "When you still had blood, half of it was Quileute. It's a good chance that you, Bella, also have the shapeshifter gene that I have. That all Quileutes secretly have."
My jaw dropped. What?
"You're saying…" I said slowly, to make sure that I was receiving the right message from her words. "…that I might be a-a—"
"Honey, there is a very good chance that you are a shapeshifter as well." Renee said, smiling.
"But—Jacob and Seth said that vampire venom is poisonous to shapeshifters!" I said, my brain becoming so majorly confused and snarled up in its own trains of thought that I could hardly process anything else at the moment.
"Oh, it is. If Edward were to bite me right now, I would die," Renee agreed. "But sweetie, you were only half-shapeshifter. The other half was human, and it was more than susceptible to vampire venom. Though it may have been more painful for you than normal vampire-transformations, you would still survive, probably. And since you're still sitting here, quite conscious, this seems to be the case."
"But what about the transformations?" I asked. "I've been around Edward and Carlisle and everyone else for over a year! Like you said, vampires are the catalyst. So why haven't I already shown signs of being a shapeshifter?"
"Like I said, you're only half-Quileute. The gene might have taken much longer to try to take effect," Renee said. She looked excited as her mind connected pathways of thought. "You're welcome not to believe me if you want, but I honestly believe that you have the potential to be the strongest wolf I've ever seen, honey."
My mind reeled with the implications. My whole world, which was already pretty messed up from a normal human's perspective, was once again getting pulled out from under me. Not only was I living as a vampire, with a half-vampire daughter in my lap and a loving husband holding me at my side, but I was also a werewolf at the same time?
Edward had gone frightfully still, I thought for a moment that he had been lost to the world in the same way he had when I had learned I was pregnant. But he stared down at me as I stared up at him, his expression loving and amazed. The same love that it had been for me from the day I revealed that I had figured out what he was.
Jacob now seemed thoroughly engrossed now as well. "That would be sick!" he said enthusiastically. "Dang, what would a vampire werewolf look like?"
My mind was still going nowhere in particular. I needed to clear it for a moment. Carefully, I held Renesmee in my arms as I stood.
"I'll be right back," I said, my silver voice betraying my stressed emotions. Even though I didn't need fresh air, it was soothing to my brain, which had once been mortal and relied heavily on the routine.
Renesmee and I went outside, and I stared up at the moon, which was full tonight. It was lightly reddish as I studied it. I heard the door open and shut again quietly. I didn't turn, assuming it would be Edward who had come out.
I was minorly surprised to hear the sounds of Renee's wet heartbeat growing closer to me, stopping a few feet behind me.
She didn't speak for a long while, which was also strange. She just stood there, waiting for me to react.
"You're upset," she finally guessed, breaking her silence. "I didn't tell you about this, and you're upset with me."
"This—" I agreed, nodding as I tore myself away from studying the blood moon in the sky. "This is sort of monumental information, mother."
I never dreamed of actually being angry with Renee, and I still didn't. But I was upset. Why hadn't she told me? Did she think I couldn't keep a secret?
Renee nodded. Slowly, she stepped forward and embraced me. I could smell that the animal edge to her blood was coming over her scent. It was subdued, surely because she had kept her wolf within for so long. But now that it was let out again, her blood smelled just like Jacob's. It wasn't hard to resist the thirst's demands.
"I know it is, sweetheart," Renee said, hugging me tightly, "and I'm truly sorry I didn't tell you before. I didn't want to scare you."
The door opened again. This time it was Edward, who strolled over to me, the moonlight reflecting off of his flawless skin as he walked over to me and kissed the top of my head.
"Trust me, Renee, if you had been there, you would've been just as shocked as I was by her reactions," Edward said, softly chuckling at the memories. "Backwards and upside-down all around."
I leaned into him, letting him hold me upright as I breathed in his fragrance. I was feeling much calmer now, and not because of Jasper, who was subtly watching us through the window.
"Is there anything else I should know?" I asked, calmly. "I mean, is Charlie human?"
"I mean, if he isn't than he's the best one at hiding it out of all of us combined," Renee said.
"Okay," I said, breathing. At least I had known some real humans in my existence. "Okay."
I took a deep breath to calm myself, though again I realized that I didn't need it anymore. I looked up at Renee again, who gave me another hug before beginning to walk inside.
"Yes, there is something else you might want to know," Renee began as she walked away. "And I'm going to need you to come inside, honey."
I followed her, suspicious. We all sat down again, and I saw Renee motion to Carlisle.
"I'm going to tell you the details of your birth, Bella," Renee said, smiling. "I've had quite a while to theorize the effects of it, and I think you'll find it interesting."
Renee smiled tiredly as her little two-year-old daughter buzzed around the house, her incessant levels of energy causing a mentally draining effect to the sleepy adult.
"Awoooo!" the little girl's mouth cried, making the stuffed wolf toy in her hand prance up and down, mimicking the exhilaration of a run.
"Bella, dear, try to calm down a little," Renee said, her internal voice scoffing at the irony of the wolf-toy once again. Her thoughts had been silently incredulous ever since Bella picked it out from all the other toys and dolls in the store yesterday. "It's almost time to go to sleep."
Little two-year-old Bella looked up at Renee and pouted a little. With her adorable brown eyes staring up at Renee, it was like she was staring into her daughter's eyes moments after her birth, once again. Renee's heart almost melted.
"But mommy," Bella said with only traces of her babyish lisp left in her voice. "I don' WANNA go to s'eep! I wanna s'ay up an' watch dhe moon with my wolf!"
Here, Bella suddenly stopped moving, and stared into the toy wolf's plastic eyes like she was trying to will the creature to life. Renee chuckled.
"Wolf pups have to go to sleep too, honey," Renee said, scooping her daughter up and carrying her towards the bedroom. "And it's already past time for THIS wolf pup to hide in her den until morning."
Bella mumbled something about 'not a sleepy wolf pup' though her eyes were already beginning to droop from sudden exhaustion. She clutched the wolf tightly. Renee plopped her daughter on the bed, and Bella dived under the covers, before resting her head on her pillow obediently. She shivered slightly, and Renee automatically turned off the fan. Tonight would be a nice cool night, and she raised the window slightly.
"I don' wanna sleep, mommy," Bella whimpered. "I wanna play with my wolf. I don't wanna have any scary dreams tonight."
Renee smiled. She always knew that there was a little more wolf in her daughter than most people. Literally. Renee tucked her daughter in to her bed, laying the wolf at her side.
"Wolves are protective creatures, Bella. Do you know what 'protective' means?" Renee asked softly, sitting at her daughter's side.
Bella perked up, realizing she might be in for a bedtime story of some sort tonight. Attempting to stay up as long as possible, she pressed, "What?"
"Protective means that they will defend you from things that could hurt you. Things that scare you," Renee said, tapping Bella's nose with her forefinger. Bella giggled, as it tickled her nose. "Have you thought of a name yet for your wolf?"
Bella glanced at the canine creature near her left arm. "Chocolate."
Renee smiled. "Well, Chocolate will watch over you and protect you while you sleep. Nothing scary can come if he's by your side."
At this, Bella looked immensely relieved. She closed her eyes and slowly began to breathe more steadily. Renee slowly stood up, flicking on the nightlight near Bella's bed, and went for the light switch next to the door. As she reached it, a question popped into her mind.
"Why 'Chocolate'?" Renee asked, as she paused outside the door. Bella sighed in her sleep and rolled over to face her mother, her eyes drooping with restrained sleepiness. She was asleep, but she had definitely heard the question.
"Because dat's supposed to be dhe color of her fur," Bella sighed, before lulling back into unconsciousness. "The wolf who wa'ches ov'r me is chocolate-colo'ed."
Renee's heart melted. She glanced at the wolf-toy. It was grey.
Bella was talking about her. Her subconscious had catalogued Renee's wolf form even as early as a few moments after her birth.
Renee flicked off the light and closed the door, but something felt wrong. Like there was something out of place. It was in the back of her subconscious, but she recognized the shape of it.
Something was definitely different about tonight. Tonight felt urgent. Important.
Dangerous.
Renee spun around and tore back down the hall, her form quivering and rippling as she fluidly transformed. The hallway was much smaller to maneuver in now, but she didn't wait to stop.
The door to Bella's room exploded as she charged through snarling as she took the scene in instantaneously.
There was a vampire clambering into the room. It wasn't Carlisle, or any of the other Cullens. It didn't have the gold eyes she loved.
It had the red ones she despised.
She leapt at the vampire, who yelped in fright and tried to dive back outside to safety. Bella shot awake and sat up fast, as Renee lunged forward, grabbing the vampire by the leg as it attempted to escape. In reaction to Bella's quick movements, the stuffed toy fell off the covers and bounced under the bed, without Bella noticing. Bella's eyes widened for a minute, before looking at her side. Her wolf had only just fallen off when she looked, but she had not noticed.
Bella looked back at the giant wolf, who was grappling the strange white man's leg, attempting to pull him in further. The strange white man smelled like honey and roses, and she wasn't exactly sure why the wolf was attacking, but she remembered what her mother had said. The white man must be scary, if this wolf was protecting her.
Two-year-old Bella climbed down off the bed, and slowly walked over to the giant wolf, before reaching up and touching the chocolate fur.
"Chocolate?" she asked gently.
The large wolf cast a quick glance at Bella, before suddenly snapping her jaws shut. The strange white man disappeared in seconds, and the big wolf turned to Bella, staring deeply into her eyes. Bella stared back, awe and wonder clear in her wide brown eyes.
Then the wolf suddenly huffed once, and dashed out of the room.
"Wait! Chocolate, wait!" Bella said, rushing out of the room. But all she saw was Renee, rounding the corner fast.
"Bella! Why was there a wolf—"
"You were right, mommy! Chocolate was jus' pruhtecting me!" Bella gurgled happily, forgetting that there was supposed to be a massive wolf in their house at this moment. "Dher was a funny white man who tried to come in an' scare me, and Chocolate bit him!"
The little two-year-old giggled, and hugged her mother. But when she pulled away, her face was sad.
"But den he ran 'way," she sniffed. "An' I only pet him once."
"I bet he was just tired," Renee said, smiling because she knew the truth. "Maybe he went to find his den."
Renee carried Bella back to her room, stepping over the ruined remains of Bella's door. There, almost in plain sight, Bella's stuffed toy was clearly visible from the hallway's light. Bella gasped and ran up, snatching up her toy.
"Chocolate! Where'd you go?" she asked the toy. It did not answer.
"I bet the both of you are just tired," Renee said. "Time to get some sleep, kiddo."
Bella quickly shut her eyes, hoping to catch another glimpse of the brown wolf.
"Good night, darling," Renee whispered softly, as her daughter sighed in her sleep. "Nothing will touch you tonight. I promise."