Into the Woods
By: Everleigh Allen
Chapter 8
~O~
"Oh, Bella, when I saw your call I was so excited! I just knew we'd be great friends, and here we are… bonding."
"Yep. Bonding."
Alice hummed an agreement.
Bella was in awe of the little yellow Porsche that Alice picked her up in. Even Charlie stepped outside to give it praise before they quickly left.
"So, I looked and saw that the roads to Port Angeles weren't good and so I thought maybe I'd take you to the house and we can have a mini spa day."
"Okay,"
"And let's get you fed, first, because we don't really keep much food in the house."
"Yeah, your parents don't cook, I remember."
"Yeah, and the fast food doesn't keep, you know? Best eat and go- less mess."
"Excellent."
"So, we kind of talked about it the other night- that you had a house full a couple of weeks ago."
Bella hummed, "Yeah, Charlie said he likes to host the games but I think they had alternative notions."
"Meaning what?" Alice frowned, side-eyeing Bella.
"Meaning I think they were there to annoy me. At least Jake was. He wouldn't leave me alone," Bella laughed, shaking her head.
Alice didn't laugh.
"Yeah, they can be a temperamental bunch." Her mouth pinched tightly as her eyes narrowed. "Last year, we had a few nomadic friends come over for some baseball and they chased them away. Our friends literally had to cliff dive into the ocean just to get away from them! Victoria was not pleased. Her hair is a lot to deal with on the best of days."
"What? Why would your friends jump into the ocean to get away from them? And why would they be chasing your friends in the first place? They're practically children."
Alice's eyes met Bella's but gave nothing away.
"It's a long story. The short of it is that our friends were accidently camping out in their supposed territory and the Quileute kiddos ran them out. Those wolves are real temperamental about their land."
Bella didn't know what to think about that.
She turned to look out the window and saw the trees blur as they raced by. But then there was a impression of something green and brown and- "Wait!"
"What?" Alice screeched but didn't hit the bricks. If anything, she went faster.
"I- Oh, thought I saw something in the woods." Bella tried looking through the darkly tinted windows but whatever it was that she saw- it was long gone.
"You probably did, it's full of… stuff," she said simply, curling her lip.
They soon pulled up to the Cullen's house and when Bella got out she instantly looked around, but saw nothing that wasn't normal.
"Weird."
"Alice, how do you know the Quileute were wolves?" Bella asked as both of them sat in Alice's car in the driveway. Everyone was either out or very quiet.
"What?"
"Those wolves are real temperamental about their land." Bella mimicked Alice's comment.
"Caught that, huh?" Alice scoffed. "Now you're receptive?"
"Tell me."
"I think a better question would be how you know they're wolves?"
"You shouldn't answer a question with a question." Bella admonished.
Alice turned her head and gave Bella a withering stare. "They aren't really wolves but people who can shapeshift into them. So, again, how do you know?"
"I found out just yesterday when Jake got pissed off that I was at your house for dinner and threw a hissy fit. He sprouted hair, a snout, and claws before he turned into this wolf-like thing. Very dramatic stuff. Hollywood animatronics at its best."
"They are such show offs," Alice scoffed, "Bray Road beastie wannabe's."
"What?"
"Nothing." Alice sighed but with Bella's hard stare, she continued, "Edward's from Chicago and they have a werewolf they refer to as a Bray Road Beast. Just a family joke."
Bella watched her for a moment.
"And you know about them because?"
"Ugh. We were off hunting one day a long time ago and suddenly there were these wolves snarling and biting at the air. One minute they were human then they were all wolf-like men and then several of them changed into full bodied wolves! Then one big black one growled back at us."
Bella laughed.
"We were shocked to say the least! I mean, I have heard of werewolves and shape shifters but to see it with my own eyes."
"I know." Bella added, shaking her head at the memory.
"Anyway, we all don't agree but Carlisle- ever the peacemaker- gave up the buck and apologized to them and backed away not to offend the beasts delicate sensibilities. Boundary lines were soon drawn up and they said they would let us co-exist if we didn't go on their land and kept their creepy secret."
"Huh," was Bella's brilliant answer but the story seemed a bit familiar. Bella shook it off though, pointing to the house in front of them. "We forgot to get me food."
Alice gasped, pulled the car into reverse, kicking up the gravel, and off they went again.
"So you never told me what you thought you saw out there." Alice asked, seemingly disinterested as she shoved food in her mouth.
Bella frowned, trying to put it together in her own mind.
"I can't be sure, but it was like… a blur but of light. Whatever it was moving fast."
"Well," Alice said with pierced lips, "The woods are full of odd things. You can watch the travel channel long enough to know that. I mean… they will never find Bigfoot so why do they keep funding the search." She rolled her eyes. "Anyway, I'm sure it won't be the first or the last of what you see. I can see that you have a bit of perception about you, Bella. You see things others people otherwise ignore, or just don't see."
"What are you talking about?" Bella bit at her lip as she waited.
Alice was silent for several moments.
After moments became minutes, Bella questioned, "Alice?"
Alice's eyes were hazy, as if she was lost in a memory. How much do you remember of your time with Renee?"
"My mother? I remember a lot of time with my mother. What are you talking about?"
"I don't know…exactly... but I think I just saw all Hell breaking loose... and you… and your mother."
…
Bella and Alice pulled into the fast food restaurant drive through.
After getting a lot of food, more than either would eat, they drove to a spot just off the highway.
Pulling off to the road, Alice suddenly turned to Bella with the creepy grin on her face.
"What?"
"Nothing." She grinned. "Something. Everything."
Bella raised her eyebrows as she turned toward the window, totally weirded out.
She took a bite of her supreme burrito before Alice began to speak. "So how well do you know your American History?"
"Uh, okay I guess."
"Have you ever heard of the Salem Witch Trials?"
Bella scoffed, "I think everyone has by now."
"Right, I forget. So, you know that there were these people who were wrongly convicted and killed after being accused of being witches. Well, that's the most infamous part of the story, but what most people don't know is that it wasn't just normal people they suspected of being witches. They went after anyone that they deemed different or a burden."
"Okay?"
Alice played with her short hair, "It even happened in places like small town, Biloxi Mississippi. To a girl who used to see things others could not." She gave Bella a beseeching look, imploring her to understand. "She saw people dying, how and when, even by who or what. But what they did- since stoning or burning or smashing, or hanging was no longer allowable in polite society is to put them away into asylums. I don't know if you've ever been in one but they are some of the most... insane things in there. Crazy, dark energy, anger, sadness, despair ... people go crazy in there- crazier than they went they went in. All of that negative attracts negative things, Bella. They see things, or think they do- because they're perceptive or paranoid." She looked at the look of horror on Bella's face. "I am not explaining this well."
"Just spit it out."
So, say... seventeen years ago people try and try to understand some of those intense energies floating around and ultimately they can't. They misread the situation and overreact."
"Wait- you're saying my mom's psychic?"
"Mm, no? I was more talking about myself, there." Alice sighed, "I don't know about your mother, but she's probably a bit perceptive with obvious misdirection."
"Okay," Bella scoffed, "Whatever that means." She took another bite of her burrito, before washing it down with her Coke. She was hopeful that the beans wouldn't affect her when they were finally around Edward.
"You really have no sense of self-preservation, do you, Bella?"
"Why would you say that?"
"You're in the middle of nowhere, almost alone, no sense of danger. You should have at least a little unease, one would think."
"Well, you've given me no reason to fear you. Should I fear you?"
Bella was instantly worried; her face was slightly troubled awaiting the answer.
Alice's eyes widened before she gave a small laugh. "Me? No, we're friends."
The answer didn't appease Bella.
It actually gave her goose bumps.
"Since I'm not great at explaining things we should go. There's something I want to see." Alice started the car, put her foot on the gas, and spun it in the opposite direction. Bella scrambled to make sure her food and drink didn't mess up the car.
"Where are we going?"
"Port Angeles."
"I thought the roads were bad."
"I said not good," Alice laughed but didn't give any other explanation. Bella's burrito was sitting like a rock in her stomach and Alice's erratic driving wasn't helping.
"What are we doing here?" Bella said under her breath.
They were sitting at one of the counters at a diner in Port Angeles.
"I want to see something that I already saw but need to see it in person just in case." Alice said ominously.
"What?"
"Drink your milkshake."
"You drink your milkshake." Bella said under her breath, "I seriously can't eat one more thing."
The burrito went from a lump to churning.
"Shh," Alice glared at Bella.
"Seriously. I feel terrible."
"Dairy would help that, right? I don't know. We need to remain anonymous so be quiet."
"You are really creeping me out." Bella sneered, jabbing the straw into the vanilla milkshake before taking a small pull of frozen goodness.
"You get used to it, I promise." She spat back in a hushed tone.
Suddenly Alice waved down the waitress and asked for the check. Bella pushed the shake aside.
The day was seriously not turning out the way she thought it would. She thought she would go to Alice's house, hopefully see Edward, maybe say, "Hi" and drop a pen or something so he could watch her pick it up.
Not go all over Washington for Alice to test her theories.
Alice's body went rigid as a man entered the diner. His clothes were hanging off of his body and the collar of his shirt was grossly stretched out and falling over his shoulder.
It was weird.
Transfixed, Bella turned her head watching the man as did many other patrons.
He was bald and pale with light blond eyebrows.
The man passed by with no issue.
"Bella look," Alice grabbed her hand and motioned toward the man's back.
When Bella turned her head, thinking she heard something, her eyes betrayed her.
The whole side of the man's head and torso was suddenly gnarled with acidic burns that seemed to be steaming or maybe smoking?
But that wasn't the worst thing.
There was a trembling patch of hellish looking burns around the man's back and shoulder which made the shirt sit wonky. Bella didn't notice the burns just moments before Alice took her hand.
But then there was something more Bella noticed… there was something… someone was screaming.
The small, feminine face seemed to pop out of the burns. She opened her little pothole mouth like and screamed, loud tearful cries. Alice let go of Bella's hand and there was silence as the man made his way into a nearby chair. The burns were gone, too.
Alice smacked Bella's hand and chastised her playfully about staring before telling the waitress they were moving to a table.
Bella grabbed her milkshake and followed Alice to their table. Once she sat down she felt like she could finally breathe again.
"What's wrong?" Alice asked innocently. "You were totally eyeing that man!"
"No I wasn't!"
"You were. Are you… interesting in him?" Alice wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.
"No! Bella gasped in shock, but said, "Edward yes, but that guy… no!" before she caught her tongue.
Then she gasped and cupped her mouth.
Alice started cracking up.
People were starting to look at her.
"I'm sorry. I totally should have seen that coming." Alice giggled.
There was a bit of commotion from the waitress, and the two girl's attention again landed onto the man sitting at the table close to the door.
Bella was surprised what she saw.
He sat there sitting with a short glass in his in hand. He was completely normal looking, smiling at the waitress as she flirted with him.
"Hey Bella," She vaguely heard Alice.
It was like she had tunnel vision.
The man's bright eyes betrayed what was underneath because a moment later he turned slowly, methodically, and looked straight at Bella and grinned a large toothy smile.
"Hey, Bella," Alice cupped her hand, trying to stir her new friend, but Bella engrossed. She watched as his normal eyes darkened instantly, dark circles appeared under his eyes and his mouth opening with a hiss before clamping shut. His lips were curled, baring his teeth.
His disgustingly yellowing, pointy teeth.
"Bella!" Alice huffed and kicked Bella.
But Bella watched as his normal head suddenly grew into bulbous thing. The female face then disappeared, his body shivered and then he was normal.
Then he looked away from her. Smiling at the waitress like none of it ever happened.
"I think I am seeing things," Bella said to Alice, blinking her eyes.
"Nope. I think you are seeing things clearly."
Bella looked at Alice in surprise.
Alice wasn't looking at her; instead she was looking at the man with disgust.
"I am suddenly not hungry."
"Yep, I'm good to go, too."
The two got their things together and started to walk by the man, Bella avidly trying not to look at him but Alice just smiled and gave him a wink.
Bella could have sworn that she heard Alice whisper to him, "Two days."
A/N: Stopping here.
Gosh I love Alice. Also, if you want to see any inspiration pictures to the story there's an album posted on my Facebook. Thanks for reading and your kind reviews.