AN: Hello Loves!
Thank you dearly to, catgrl, and jsmith84, for reviewing Chapter Two!
I'm thrilled and grateful people are reading, following, favouriting, and reviewing this!
Here comes Chapter Three!
Chapter Three: Lonely Hearts Rejoicing
Once Peter and I are out in the forest away from anyone else who might hear us, my lips are on his as if they never left. Kissing Peter feels as natural as breathing. It always has. If someone told me I had to choose between drinking blood, which sustains my physical life or kissing Peter, which nourishes my soul? I would most definitely be going without the blood.
Maybe it's partly that we only get to do this once a week. Or maybe it's just that I am so dang crazy for him that I can't even think straight. Either way, I know that if we hadn't already promised to check in on the girls, we wouldn't be coming up for 'air' for several hours.
As it stands, when I finally muster up enough willpower to break the kiss, I send him my emotions, so he knows that pulling away is the last thing I want to do.
"We told them we'd go see how the girls are doing, didn't we?" Pete remembers, clearly just as disappointed as I am that we have to wait to get physical.
"Unfortunately, yes." I sigh, kissing him chastely. "I Love You, Peter Whitlock. I know I don't say it enough," I profess, taking his hand in mine as we begin to walk through the woods under a canopy of lush green foliage.
He squeezes my hand affectionately. "You're saying it now, Babe. And that's what counts. I Love You, Jasper Whitlock, forever and ever."
I choose not to correct him on the pet name thing. It's something we've always argued about because he loves them and I loathe them. I think it's partly because when I don't let him call me Babe or Sexy or Handsome or whatever else, then he has to call me by my name, and the sound of my name on his lips always makes me go weak in the knees, every time.
We walk in silence until we come to the cozy little house at the edge of the treeline, where Bella and her father live. "It's awfully quiet. I half expected to hear sex sounds." I laugh.
"A little too quiet? I wonder if they're even here?" Pete questions as we walk toward the house. Thankfully the police cruiser that belongs to Bella's father is absent. Charlie Swan is the Chief of Police in the little town of Forks, Washington. He's a nice enough man, but it still makes it a whole lot easier for us that he is at work.
"We're up here, Boys. In Bella's room. But I think something's wrong, Jasper, I could use your expertise." Charlotte calls down to us.
My expertise? Geez, I hope they're not having sex, because I don't have any expertise in regards to girl sex.
We hop up into the room through the open window and what I see surprises me. "What's wrong with her? She looks like she's asleep, but she's in a terrible amount of pain. If I didn't know any better, I'd think she was…"
"Changing?" Char finishes for me. "She is, Jasper. That's why I need your help! I don't know what to make of it. She isn't screaming. She isn't thrashing. She hasn't made a peep! Did I do it wrong? Did I break her?" Charlotte worries.
"No, I think you did alright. Other than the agony, she doesn't seem to be in distress. Her heart rate is steady and strong. Her emotions are a mixture. In addition to the pain, there is also love for you, excitement, and anticipation. I think she's gonna be fine, Charlotte.
"What I can't figure out though, is why you'd initiate her change without letting anyone know. I know you don't think we owe the Cullens any loyalty because of Edward, but even still, you could have at least told Pete and me first. I know she's your mate, and as such, her change was inevitable.
"But you could have considered letting her graduate high school or even just saying goodbye to her father, who happens to be the police chief if you didn't notice. And I can tell you, that is going to make it a little more challenging to fake her death. Not to mention this breaks the treaty the Cullens have with the local tribe, who turn into giant, vampire-hunting wolves, Char." I frown, reminding her.
"Actually, you don't have to worry about her father, Jasper. I promised her I'd turn him too. She was worried about saying goodbye to him and she said she wished she didn't have to, so I offered, and when she heard I could change him, her eyes lit up like a Christmas tree." Char beams, her newfound love for Bella evident in her words and emotions.
"Alright, well, that definitely breaks the treaty. A lot. So we'll have to leave the area and be discreet about it. We'll have to tell Charlie everything before he is turned and he'll have to quit his job and tie up any loose ends. I think he is friends with the tribal chief too, so we will definitely need a decent excuse for him to tell people, as to why he would leave.
"Maybe if we let everyone think that Charlie and Bella moved back to Phoenix to be closer to her mother? That's about the only believable thing I can think of. I don't think the Cullens ought to leave though since it would look suspicious if they left at the same time as the Swans. Especially because Bella's friends know that she has been hanging out with Edward and Alice. So I guess they all need to stay here, and we lose out on that added protection." I sigh.
"Maybe we won't need it." Charlotte reasons. "It's been decades since your last run-in with any violent vampire bigots, right? Maybe most of them are dead?"
"Doubtful. But perhaps we could secure some better protection for ourselves. Especially if either Charlie or Bella turns out to be gifted." I ponder.
"What would that have to do with...oh! Jasper, really? Do you honestly think we'd be any safer in Volterra? Most of those vampires are really, really old." Charlotte worries.
"Exactly. Too old to care about such things because they've lived through all kinds of eras throughout history and experienced a wide variety of cultures. Besides, my gift alone is desirable enough to them that Aro would probably grant protection for my whole coven. And if Bella or Charlie ends up gifted, all the better.
"Plus we would have Carlisle's endorsement and the brothers consider him a good friend. And they already know our reputation from the Southern Wars, so that oughta help. But if we go, it also gets us away from Edward. And that would mean he and Alice could get married, which they'd be thrilled about. And we wouldn't have to hide anymore. Just think, it could be wonderful for all of us," I reason.
They're both silent for a moment. "Well, you know I'm in, Jasper. I go where you go." Pete beams and I know, he'd follow me to the ends of the earth if I asked him to. I kiss him deeply and send him my gratitude as we wait for Charlotte to make a decision.
"Well, as you've said, we certainly can't stay here. And Denver isn't a wise move either. I'd like to wait and see if Bella is gifted before we decide for sure, but it might be a smart choice, given the circumstances," she shrugs.
"Cool. We'll stay here with you until Charlie gets home and help you explain things to him. After that, we'll head back to the house and let the Cullens know about Bella and that we might be leaving. Though I imagine Alice has seen at least some of that already," I offer.
"Thank you, Jasper. Your support means a lot to me." Charlotte smiles.
I send her my emotions. "You have always supported us, Charlotte, even when it wasn't always easy. Of course, we'll be here for you, now that you've found your mate.
When Charlie gets home, I hit him with a large dose of calm so that he won't freak out about seeing three strangers sitting around casually in his house.
"Umm hi, you must be friends of Bella's? Where is she at?" He questions suspiciously.
"Bella is upstairs, Charlie, but before you see her, there is something she wanted us to talk to you about." Charlotte begins and I hit him with some acceptance.
"Okay, what's up, Kids?" He nods.
"Well, Charlie, there is no easy way to say this, so I'm just going to show you," Char says, taking out her contacts. Once he is looking at her red eyes, she zooms around the room at vampire speed, rearranging furniture, so that even the couch Charlie is sitting on has moved and every piece of furniture is facing a different direction.
"What the heck?!" He asks, his eyes bugging out of his head.
"Bella wrote you a letter that explains all of this better than I could, Charlie. I just needed you to see the proof before you read it." Charlotte hands him a piece of paper which I read easily over his shoulder thanks to vampire eyesight.
Dad,
Hi, it's me, Bella. If you're reading this, it means you just met Charlotte. Charlotte is a vampire, Dad. I know she showed you proof of that. But what she is, isn't as important as who she is...to me. Dad, Charlotte is what the vampire world would refer to as my Mate. Humans would say we're soulmates, but it's a little more complicated than that.
In short, it means that even though she and I just met, there is no one on this earth more suited to me. And as such, our souls have formed an unbreakable bond. That's why I decided to become a vampire. In fact, I'm upstairs right now undergoing that change at this very moment. You can come up and see for yourself that I'm fine, once you finish reading this.
The reason I'm telling you all of this and not just faking my death to go off and live as a vampire is that I know you'd be devastated if I did that. And quite frankly, I just got you back, Dad, I don't want to lose you again. Not ever.
So while I know this is a really big ask, I want you to at least consider becoming a vampire like me and joining us in immortality. Let's face it, Dad, you're not getting any younger. And I do know that if you chose to live out your life as a human, I would eventually see you again, in Heaven, so that isn't what I'm worried about. (Though, as a vampire, it might be thousands of years before I could join you there because vampires are pretty hard to kill.)
No, the reason I want you to consider joining us is that I hope we can still have a lot more time to bond and be a family. But as a vampire, I can't stay in the area. I have to leave soon, Dad. The Cullens have a strict treaty in place with Billy's tribe, because the tribe knows about vampires.
Biting me, to make me into a vampire, even though it was at my request, was a violation of that treaty. So if I stay here, the tribe will have no choice but to expose our secret. And by vampire law, the penalty for a human knowing about vampires is death or transformation.
One human knowing about us would be easy enough to hide, especially since Alice has precognitive visions. But we couldn't protect the whole town if the tribe decides to expose us. According to Charlotte, the vampire government would sweep in, kill everyone, and blame it on a gas leak or something. I guess it's happened before. So that's why I have to leave.
Anyway, I won't hold it against you if you decide to stay human. I know how scary it must be to even consider such a prospect as vampirism. Charlotte and the others can explain to you what all it entails so that you have all the facts to make an informed decision. For me, the choice was easy, because I want to be with Charlotte, regardless of any price I might pay for it. But that price will be a lot higher if it means losing you in the process.
If you do decide to stay human, I promise I won't leave without saying goodbye. Just remember, I will probably be pretty feral when I wake up three days from now, as a new vampire. Because it usually takes about a year to get control of the bloodlust and all that stuff. So my apologies if I try to eat you or anything like that.
And if by some miracle, you do decide to join us, Charlotte and the others will fill you in on what to expect and help you get everything settled.
Whatever happens, please always remember that I love you, Daddy.
Your Daughter Always,
Bella Swan
"I, uh, holy shit. I just...need to see her. Please?" Charlie asks softly and politely when he finishes reading. It's clear that he is processing and is also suddenly aware of being a prey animal among predators.
"I'll take you upstairs." Charlotte nods and they disappear up the stairs into Bella's room.
Pete comes to join me on the couch, curling up in my lap, since they'll likely be a while. "Well, this has all been quite unexpected." He smiles.
"It sure has." I nod. "Though I'm really glad for Char's sake you decided to come to Washington," I admit.
Peter cocks an eyebrow at me. "Just for Char's sake?" He pouts.
"No, you silly vampire. Also for my sake, most definitely. Having you here is a dream come true," I assure him.
"Well, I would pinch you, but if it is a dream, I don't want us to wake up yet." He beams.
"Me neither, Pete." I grin. "Me neither."
AN: Okay, so, next chapter, expect to see newborn Bella through Charlotte's eyes cuz we're switching POV's to give the girls some airtime ;-*