CHAPTER TWO:
ALICE CULLEN
AFTER MADALENA TOOK A MOMENT to sit and contemplatewhat she had seen in her vision, she decided to grab a random pair of Bella's shoes and take a walk in the forest. With great assumption from the fae, the men she had seen sitting on the throne were the three kings. When she had first had her vision of Bella's future, she had merely seen the outside of the castle. But now that she had seen the three kings, she knew Bella was in great danger. She just didn't know how much time she had before that vision came true.
She had sat in the middle of nature for a couple of hours, running her hands through the damp grass as her thoughts ran through her head. She listened to the whispers of the wind as it blew leaves past her ears, telling her tales of the past. Of the vampires and the shapeshifters that came after. During these tales, Madalena's nose was filled with an incomparable sweetness.
After a few minutes, Madalena could sense Bella arrive home with a man who smelled of dogs and Madalena waited patiently, listening for any signs that indicated she should return to the house. Unfortunately, all she heard was arguing and the shapeshifter leaving in a rage, not smelling the vampire already in the house.
She waited for the sun to go down and for the sky to change to midnight before making her way back to the house. Her footsteps were quiet as she walked toward the house, only to stop and remain outside, her ears catching the conversation from within the living room.
"—Jacobs kind of…a werewolf." The sound of Bella's voice caused a smile to appear on Madalena's face. It had been so long since she heard that soft-spoken, unsure voice. She was about to enter the house when she smelled the shapeshifter on the other side of the building.
"Bella, werewolves are not good company to keep," the other woman said, concerned.
Footsteps could be heard as the shapeshifter walked into the house, "speak for yourself." There was a moment of silence before he spoke again. "I had to see you were safe."
"I thought you couldn't protect me here."
"Guess I don't care," his voice was soft, but Madalena had no problem hearing it.
"Well I'm not gonna hurt her."
"No, you're just a harmless Cullen. I'm talking about the other bloodsucker who tried to kill Bella because of you."
"Victoria?"
"Yeah, Victoria's been around," Bella confirmed.
"I-I didn't see her…I didn't see you get pulled out of the water either." Madalena imagined the woman looked at the shapeshifter next as she said this with venom between her teeth, "I can't see past you and your pack of mutts."
Oof, Madalena thought, cringing.
"Don't get me upset. Things are going to get very ugly," Jacob growled.
Bella's voice rose, "stop, stop."
"I'll give you a minute." Alice said and her footsteps began to descend toward the front door.
"Hey, you're not going anywhere, you're gonna come back, right?"
"As soon as you put the dog out."
Madalena watched the pixie-like girl from her vision walk out the front door, closing it behind her as she let out a sigh. "Hello."
Alice flinched and turned around quickly. Her deep gold eyes met beautiful brown ones that belonged to Madalena. Alice was about an inch shorter than her, but what was strange was that she couldn't smell this woman or her blood. "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't see you there."
Madalena smiled at her slightly. While she was part of the cause that had caused Bella to go into depression, it wasn't Madalena's situation to judge. She had no quarrel with the girl or her family. She was simply here to protect Bella and make her happy again. "It's alright, I've been known to surprise many people."
"I'm Alice," she held her hand out for Madalena to shake. "Are you a friend of Bella's? I've never seen you around here."
Madalena looked down at the hand but made no movement to shake it. "My name is Madalena, I'm Bella's friend from Phoenix."
Alice tilted her head in confusion, taking back her hand, "she's never spoken about you before."
"Ouch," Madalena smiled, showing teeth, "I'm sure with everything going on around here, she was probably preoccupied."
At this Alice began to wonder what she knew. This woman looked human, but she had no scent. Was it an ability like Bella's shield? "What do you—" A vision blocked Alice's mind.
"Alice?" Madalena questioned, waving a hand in front of her blank eyes. She knew that look. It was a look she herself often had placed on her own face when her mind disappeared to see the future. When Alice blinked, Madalena knew it was over. "What did you see?"
"How did you—"
"I'll explain later. What did you see?"
"Edward, he's going to kill himself. I need to tell Bella." Alice ran into the house, Madalena following closely behind but at a more leisurely pace.
Bella was standing in the kitchen with Jacob, looking at him accusingly.
"Bella," Alice spoke up, walking into the room. "Bella, it's Edward. He thinks you're dead. Rosalie told him why I came here."
Bella stared at Alice in shock before turning toward the shapeshifter in anger. "Why didn't you let me speak to him?"
"He didn't ask for you," he responded in equal anger.
"I don't care!"
"Bella!" Alice grabbed her by the shoulders, "he's going to the Volturi. He wants to die too."
"What?" Bella panicked, "we have to stop him." Alice nodded, leaving the house to start the car. She makes to follow in a hurry, ignoring Jacob's cries of disagreement. She ignored him to the best of her ability when she felt someone grab her hand. Thinking it was Jacob, Bella turned, getting ready to tell him off, only to come face to face with her best friend of three years. "Maddi?" She asked shocked. "What are you doing here?"
She gave the girl a sad smile, "stopping you." She didn't know the vision would come true so soon. She didn't know how dangerous the vampire kings were. Madalena didn't want to let her go; she couldn't. If she did, Bella would either be bound into turning into one of them or they would kill her. Madalena knew she could protect her if she stayed here, but she couldn't protect her in a castle full of the dead. It would be a massacre.
"What? No, let go." Bella tried to pull her hand from her grasp, only for Madalena to tighten her grip slightly, but not enough to cause her harm. "Maddi, let go!" She used her body to try and pull herself away, but the older woman stayed in place.
"Bella, stop. He's not good for you."
"What would you know!?"
"Your father!" Madalena raised her voice, "the man who looked out for you while you were depressed for months! He called me, saying you weren't yourself! Edward Cullen is a boy, Bella. And he always will be. You're better off without him. Without them."
Bella cried out and threw her hand back, slapping Madalena across the cheek. Her face turned to the right slightly in disbelief. She looked toward the girl with a face full of anger.
"Stop being a child! If you go, you're only going to get hurt!"
Jacob stood to the side, watching as this unknown woman handled Bella better than he could.
"No! I love him!" Madalena didn't respond and only stared at the girl as she continued to struggle. "Alice!" Bella screamed angrily. She pulled herself toward Madalena and began hitting her chest.
Alice ran into the building and watched as Bella struggled against the other female. Without thinking, she ran toward the two and grabbed Madalena's bare shoulders. A burning, searing pain ran through her hands, causing Alice to scream loudly, letting go quickly. Bella stared at Alice in shock and horror. Madalena took that chance and press her free hand against the pixie's chest. She put some strength into her hand and pushed the pixie away from them, causing her to fly across the room and hit a wall.
Bella and Jacob stared at the older woman in horror and confusion. Jacob wasn't sure if he wanted to save Bella from this girl. She seemed to want to protect Bella, but she held a power he didn't expect. Was she dangerous?
"What are you?" Bella questioned. Was this her best friend of three years or a total stranger?
The look on Bella's face caused Madalena's face to soften. "Bella," she whispered. "Please think about this for a second."
"I don't need to," Bella whispered back.
Madalena bit her lip, her heart softening. As much as she hated that Bella wanted to run back to the boy that broke her heart; she knew that this love was strong. Maybe she didn't need to change the future. She slowly let go of Bella's hand and the girl ran toward Alice, who was now standing, hands healed.
Alice looked at Madalena in scared confusion, "what are you?"
Instead of answering her, she turned toward Bella, "Go. I will follow for your safety. But Bella, make sure this is what you really want. The consequences that follow will not be one that you'll enjoy." With that, she walked out of the house. She rolled her shoulders backwards, feeling the bones on her shoulder blades pull and move as her wings emerged from her back, large and free. She flapped them twice and soared into the sky, remaining in the shadows of the night until she saw the car drive away, then she followed it.