Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight

Chapter 26 The Ball Game

Saturday morning, sheets of rain turn the view outside my window to a streaky void. Lynn leaves early, while I'm taking care of human needs in the washroom, and runs home to get a vehicle before driving back to my place for the official part of her visit. Dad doesn't have plans and putters restlessly around the house. He doesn't know she has spent every night with me for a couple of weeks already. He also doesn't know that her pheromones, which have permeated every nook and cranny of my bedroom, are driving me up the wall; she's not the only one with smell-related problems.

After dad welcomes her inside, we go upstairs and conscientiously do our homework. In the afternoon, the rain slows to a barely noticeable drizzle while the wind grows in intensity. The thunderstorm Alice predicted is on its way. Dad goes out to meet friends while Lynn and I just play music or make out in my bedroom. At five we walk outside; it's time to head to the ball game. I'm surprised she's driving a jeep today and she explains that the old logging road we'll use is pretty rough. We drive off and she tells me how excited she is about the game and the prospect of having human spectators. It will be a first.

"Will Rosalie be there?"

She's still the only Cullen who refuses to interact with me. Emmet is always with her when she dodges my visits, but when she's busy with her car he often sneaks in to have a chat and ask me questions about soccer. He loves sports and games and he has plenty of time to watch and practice a new one. He also keeps making me blush with allusive jokes about my sex life or lack thereof. He thinks it's hilarious. I don't mind. It's his way of welcoming me to the family. I also know he can get really competitive and I look forward to watching tonight's game.

"Yes, she'll play. She'll just ignore you, though."

I sigh.

"Oh well, it doesn't matter, I guess. It would have probably been really hard for Rosalie and I to get along. She seems so vain."

"Hmmm, she has good qualities too." Lynn frowns, deep in thought.

"Isn't this the time, normally, to give examples?"

"Admittedly, it's not easy to think of many. She really loves Emmet and would die for him. She's also very protective of the family. And, like you," she concludes with a laugh, "she's very stubborn."

"Well, at least we have one thing in common." My smile is bittersweet.

When we get out of the jeep, Lynn says we should run the rest of the way. They picked a really isolated spot for their private arena and that means I have to become a living backpack again.

The others are already waiting for us in a place they simply call 'the clearing'. It's a wide, grassy field surrounded by dense forests. They play sports here, well away from unwanted human audiences.

I still wonder why they need a thunderstorm to play. Do they really hit the ball so hard, and noisily, that they would attract attention otherwise? I can't think of another explanation.

At the moment, Jasper and Emmet are busy marking the bases. I notice the distances appear to be greater than they would be for a standard diamond. I laugh when I notice the Cullens are all wearing baseball jerseys and caps. Lynn takes her New York Yankees hat off and plonks it on my head with an impish look on her face.

"Hold on to this one for me, baby." She croons. I laugh.

Esme and Carlisle greet me warmly. Valerian, Alice and Rosalie are sorting out the equipment. Rosalie calls Lynn over and they argue about something. Esme explains that they are making the teams, but they won't include her. She will be the ref and play catcher for both teams. She hints that they all like to cheat if she doesn't keep an eye on them at all times.

Rosalie chooses Emmet, Ayami and Jasper for her side, while Alice, Valerian and Carlisle will play with Lynn. Ayami and Valerian come over to say hi and chat a little. They are so friendly that I end up asking them, cheeks flaring, how they met. They look amused.

"We'll be happy to tell you… But it's not a short story and this is not the best time." Valerian says, smiling. Before they go get ready, Ayami adds that in Japan baseball is a religion and she's going to teach the others a lesson. Alice, walking by, tells her to keep dreaming. I guess vampires are just as willing as humans to engage in the ancient tradition of pre-game trash talk.

Emmet makes some casual comments about how hard scoring can be, in any kind of game, and looks at me suggestively; I pretend not to notice but my cheeks betray me.

A few boulders roll loose in the sky and Alice, her team's pitcher, goes to the mound. She trills it's time to play ball. Despite the cloud cover, we are practically dry now; the storm is busy drenching Forks. I stop worrying about the lack of an umbrella and focus on the contest.

It starts with Emmet at bat. He whiffs on Alice's first pitch and Esme tells me that if it's not a hit, it's always a strike. On the second pitch, Emmet swings and makes clean contact; it is as loud as the earlier thunder. I was right; they need a storm for camouflage. I assume that hit will be a home run but Lynn darts through the trees and manages to catch it before it lands. She's really fast. I loudly cheer her feat, drawing glowers from Rosalie and amused laughter from Emmet.

As the game progresses I soon lose track of the score, but it doesn't matter. Every time one of them hits the ball another thunder shakes the ether and they often move so fast I can barely understand what is happening. At times they throw so hard and fast the ball is not even a streak anymore; to my eyes it just disappears from one hand and reappears in another. None of them wears gloves to catch those rockets and they keep making impossible plays, one after the other, without any apparent effort. It's a great show. Too bad the game won't be televised; my dad would have a blast. Any two or three of them could beat entire human teams all by themselves and it wouldn't even be close.

I take notice when Ayami pitches for the other team. Lynn strikes out and looks daggers at her. She says the Japanese girl throws a mean curve ball, whatever that means. Next up, Valerian, familiar with his woman's moves, hits a spectacular home run. Rosalie mostly picked brawn and skill over speed, Esme tells me, so they're pretty evenly matched. I'm mostly a soccer player and I'm not really familiar with baseball so I'm thankful for her commentary.

After about an hour it's Alice's turn to pitch again. Jasper is at bat, taunting her. She's hesitating, working on a strategy. They have Rosalie on third base. It looks grim. Suddenly she just lifts her arms and shouts, a little shrill, that everybody should stop.

We all converge on her. Lynn looks worried.

"… There are three of them." Alice is saying.

"Are those the three you saw in your visions? I thought they wouldn't bump into us until next week…" Lynn asks quickly.

"Yes," Alice looks tense. When she looks at me she frowns. "It's my fault. I'm tuned to vampires, even ones I never met, but they heard us play. I didn't realize it could change my previous visions. I think they just want to join the game."

They must be the ones Jacob ran into, which means they are very different from the Cullens.

"Brandon, I'm so sorry." Lynn holds my hand and looks distraught. "I should have never brought you here. Forgive me."

"Can she take him away right now?" Carlisle asks Alice.

"No, it's too late. They'll be here soon. I don't see any good futures coming out of that option." Alice's reply confuses me.

"Why? What's the problem? It's only three of them…." I'm confused. They seem worried about me.

"Your presence will be an issue, Brandon. Pull your hood up, stay close to me and don't say a word. Maybe they won't notice you." Lynn looks tense, preoccupied.

"Okay." This is obviously not the time to argue. I will save my questions for later. At least I'm naturally pale enough to pass myself off as a vampire.

"Yeah, good luck with that." Rosalie shouts at Lynn. "I can smell him from across the field." Or maybe not.

We all stand together. Carlisle, Emmet, Rosalie, Valerian and Lynn form the front line. Esme, Alice, Jasper and Ayami are next to me, in the back row. I try to lurk behind Valerian. I'm not really scared; I know the Cullens will protect me, but they all look tense. I hope it's just because some unknown vampires are approaching and they don't know what to expect.

Three individuals step out of the trees at the edge of the clearing. Two men and a woman. The man walking in the center is slightly ahead of the other two. They advance slowly, arms loose at their side, with peaceful intent for the time being. Carlisle steps forward, indicating he'll speak for our group. The man in the center, presumably their leader, stops a few feet from him. They all seem in awe of our number, but the woman looks particularly fidgety.

"My name is Laurent, and these are my partners, James and Victoria." He's colored, with something in his accent that makes me think of the Deep South, maybe Louisiana. His friends are Caucasian. The man on his right, James, wears his blond hair long and tied in a messy ponytail. The woman, Victoria, looks pretty wild; her hair is an unkempt, curly mane, her clothes a medley of gypsy-like layers of multi-colored fabrics. Antsier than the others, she takes a couple of steps backwards.

"We were heading east when we heard the game. Are you also passing through?"

"My name is Carlisle. I'm the head of this family and speak for all of us. We have a permanent residence here, but of course some of us like to travel often."

"You have a permanent residence? Doesn't your feeding attract any attention? The local community must be pretty small." He seems genuinely puzzled.

"We only feed on animals." Carlisle explains. "We do that by choice; it's our lifestyle. As a result, we don't have to constantly be on the move. In fact, we'd appreciate it if you were to restrain yourselves from hunting in Forks."

Laurent looks more confused than ever, but James looks plain disgusted.

"You'll have to tell me more about such an unusual way of life, Carlisle. But in the meantime, do you mind if we join the game? That's all we were hoping to do. You have my word that we will move on as soon as it's over and we won't hunt around here."

"I don't know…" Carlisle hesitates. "We've never played with strangers…"

"So? It will be fun. It'll make the game more unpredictable." He politely insists. I'm guessing Carlisle will accept. It would look suspicious otherwise.

"Alright, I'll tell you what…. Some of us have to leave. You can take their place if you want." He turns to Lynn. "If you don't go now you'll be late for the concert, right?"

"Yeah, right." She tries to sound casual, but I know her voice is strained; it has a thin, hard edge. I suddenly realize both Lynn and Valerian must be reading the strangers' minds. Lynn addresses Alice and me tersely. She reminds us we have to leave. Before we can walk away, a gust of wind blows back my hood and tousles the hair peeking from under my cap; unfortunately it then finds its way to James. He takes a deep breath, closes his eyes and then reopens them to look at me for the first time today, a crafty stare rearranging his features.

"You brought a snack…" He says immediately, licking his lips in anticipation and taking a step forward. To their credit, before I can even flinch Lynn, Valerian, and Emmet leap in front of him in a hunting crouch, hissing and snarling. He reacts by taking a similar pose and growling. Laurent backs up with his hands in the air. Victoria is already farther away.

"You brought a human here?" Laurent, still puzzled.

"Human or not the boy is with us." Carlisle explains patiently. "If you want his blood you'll have to kill us all first. Do you really think you can manage that?"

"No, no, I understand. Okay, forget the game, this isn't going to happen. Let us walk away…."

James looks like he has different ideas. He briefly scowls at Laurent.

"You don't speak for me, Laurent. And you shouldn't back down so easily." He takes a step forward, eliciting a chorus of growls from my protectors.

"You'd really like to risk your life to defend a human? What kind of a vampires are you?" He glares at Carlisle as he speaks.

Carlisle looks at him with barely suppressed spite.

"Vampires with a conscience, I suppose, as strange as that may seem."

They stare at each other for a moment, but then James glares at Lynn. He must have noticed she is particularly upset.

"You have chosen a human as your mate, haven't you?" He smirks, obviously piqued.

"That's none of your business." She says after a feral roar. I don't think he can read minds; Valerian and Lynn would know. But he seems to be sensing her intentions nonetheless. Maybe a different kind of gift…

He laughs at Lynn and turns to Carlisle again.

"You don't hunt humans, but you mate with them. And you call yourself vampires? You're pathetic."

Carlisle doesn't flinch, but his eyes harden.

"James," Laurent interjects, "do you really think it's a good idea to antagonize them? They are a rather large coven…" His eyes rove our group, resting on Emmet and Valerian. I'm surprised he doesn't seem to notice Jasper.

James looks at his companion with withering contempt.

"Maybe allowing you to join us was a mistake, Laurent. We don't need a gutless wonder in our midst."

Laurent winces and backs up a couple of steps.

"As for you, human lovers, you make me sick. For today we will walk away, but maybe someday our paths will cross again…"

"I'm sorry about this, Carlisle. I just wanted to play ball." Laurent adds. "We'll just take off…." He looks disappointed.

Carlisle seems ready to agree but Lynn roars and Valerian speaks up.

"Father. We have a problem." Carlisle's eyes open wide. I assume Valerian is using the telepathy they told me about.

"Do what you have to do to protect our family and our community, son. Laurent, do not interfere." He's unhappy, but determined.

James has figured something is afoot. He hisses and feigns swiping at Lynn, so fast his movements are a blur, but starts running instead. She is faster and she was ready; she could read his intentions in his thoughts. She's on him in a heartbeat and within seconds they're rolling around on the ground. My first instinct is to go help her but I hold back; there's nothing I can do against a vampire except get myself killed. Luckily, the rest of the family is not as helpless; when James manages to shake her off, Valerian, Emmet and Jasper are on him, grabbing his arms and ripping them from their sockets. I turn away and fight off sudden nausea. I bend over; the grass seems to ripple. Lynn appears next to me.

"Brandon, are you okay?"

I am, but the nightmares won't be.

"I'm all right Lynn." I manage to reply.

I try to keep the food in my stomach where it belongs and look at Carlisle who, flanked by Jasper and Alice, is facing Laurent. Victoria is already disappearing between the trees.

"Laurent, I have no argument with you, but my son told me James is a tracker and he was already planning to stalk our human friend, his family, and other children at the school. That is not acceptable. You have shown no such intentions; would you like to visit our home in peace?"

Laurent is shaken up, but obviously not really saddened by James's fate. Esme has already left for home to get the furnace going. They don't need it up and running because it's a chilly evening; James has to figure somewhere in the equation…..

"I will be honest with you; you're right, he was a tracker, the finest I've ever met. Unfortunately, he was also into some sick games I wanted no part of. I was about to terminate my temporary association with him regardless. I'm actually glad I know for a fact he won't be following me. However, I won't accept your invitation. Victoria is at large, and you just killed her mate. She's a vengeful one and she has other friends… I want to be as far away from here as soon as I possibly can."

Carlisle considers his words and quietens attempts by Rosalie and Jasper to argue with him. Valerian joins them.

"He's speaking the truth. This is not his fight and he just wishes to depart. The woman, though, is an entirely different story."

"Alright," Carlisle finally says to Laurent. "Since you bear us no ill will you are free to go. If you are interested in finding out more about our way of life, you can visit a coven of like-minded vampires up in Denali."

"Thank you. I will. But regarding Victoria, let me give you one last warning. Her mate, James, was extremely dangerous. If you hadn't attacked him right away he would have caused you heaps of trouble and more pain than you can imagine. Still, she's been trained by the best and if I know her well she will now devote her entire life to finding this human and ending his life in the most painful way possible. Your family is next." I swallow. James and Victoria…. what a charming couple.

The situation is still pretty chaotic. Emmet and Rosalie head back to the house to dispose of James's remains. Lynn thanks them and approaches me, clearly agitated.

"Brandon, we have to leave. Let's go back to our vehicle. We'll be on a ferry to Vancouver before she can track us down. The water will help hide our scent and…."

"Wait, hold on, what are you talking about? I can't just leave without talking to my father. Besides, why would I?"

Everybody else gathers around us.

"Brandon, we are wasting time. I'll explain later. I swear I'll protect you but you need to do what I say and…"

"Lynn." I speak as loud as I possibly can. "I don't understand what's going on, and I won't go anywhere until I do. Let's all go to your place, explain it to me and then, assuming I agree with you, I'll do whatever you want me to."

Lynn is about to reply but Valerian cuts her off.

"He's right, Lynn. It's him and his family who are in the gravest danger. We have to explain the situation first and figure out the best course of action together. Besides," he adds, his eyes glazed and looking at images in his mind I can only guess at, "things are more complicated than you might realize." She frowns, maybe scanning his mind.

Valerian comes closer to us; I'm still holding on to Lynn's hand.

"Sister…. I know how important he is to you, trust me. We all do. But we have to do what is right. And don't forget the jeep is too slow for an escape. You have to go home to get a better vehicle first, whatever you choose to do next." He adds, "Bring him back. Just run, it will be quicker. We'll get somebody else to recover the jeep. Ayami and I will run with you. I can see that Victoria will attack you right away if you are alone with Brandon. She has at least another accomplice. A female vampire who never showed herself in the clearing."

Lynn looks visibly upset but grudgingly agrees. Her body shakes imperceptibly as she fights to control her anger. I look at Ayami, wondering whether she'd be useful in a fight against a wild one like Victoria. Valerian can't read my mind but he guesses my thoughts correctly.

"She's a lot more lethal than she looks. She's a vampire who loves martial arts." He grins, gracefully of course, and I laugh despite the tension. Lynn looks a little grumpy but I hold on tight to her as we start running through the forest. She moves so fast I feel dizzy by the time we get to their place.