Chapter 31
I DO NOT OWN TWILIGHT OR CHARACTERS
As it turned out, all those red eyes were friendly eyes.
But they were going to have a hell of a time trying to convince Leah of that.
"What the fuck?" Leah hissed, her voice low and rugged.
"Down, girl," Alice warned, stepping past an alarmed Bella and drifting down into the yard. "These are friends. They're here to help."
"Then why the fuck are their eyes red?" Leah snarled. Loudly.
All the vampires standing in the yard glanced at her and Bella knew she needed to intervene when Leah's skin rippled and she inhaled a huge breath, as if she were about to explode.
"Leah, calm down," Bella murmured, turning to face Leah and sliding in front of her friend to block her sight of the yard.
She knew now who these people were. It seemed Carlisle's cries for help had finally been heard. Bella was actually excited to see that the cavalry had arrived, though all those red eyes were making her decidedly uncomfortable as well. And it seemed as much as Leah had come to support the Cullens, she was still a born and bred werewolf who had sworn to protect mankind from vampires that would kill and feed from them.
"Don't tell me to calm down. You told me only vampires that feed from humans have red eyes!" Leah ground out with her jaw clenched tightly, her eyes flashing yellow. Her shoulders were bowed up and she was breathing hard through her nose.
Okay. Let's not scare off the only help we're going to get by turning into a werewolf, please, Leah, Bella thought worriedly, glancing over her shoulder as the people in the yard stirred, clearly still able to hear Leah's voice.
"They do," Bella admitted. Leah growled from low in her stomach and took a step forward. Bella pushed her back gently with two hands on her shoulders and tried desperately to calm her down.
"Then what are they doing here?" Leah demanded, her voice rising. She shoved Bella's arms away, chest rising and falling rapidly.
Don't shift, dear God, please do not shift, Bella internally panicked.
"Shh, Leah! I don't get it either but you have got to keep your voice down! You can't go scaring off the people who are here to help us!" Bella hissed.
"You don't want their help! They're murderers!" Leah yelled. Bella heard the muttering in the yard grow in volume and she was seconds away from forcibly dragging Leah away and be damned if she shifted in the process.
If these people decided not to fight alongside them, they would have no hope of defeating the
Volturi. It would mean certain death.
Esme came to the rescue.
"Leah, sweetie," Esme broke in, sliding between her and Bella. Bella had to take a step back and she blinked, surprised.
"Honey, listen to me. These people aren't evil. They're not the vampires you've sworn to fight," Esme murmured soothingly and Leah sent her a scathing look of disbelief.
"They eat people. They suck them dry like leeches! How can you defend them? That makes you no better than the damned Volturi!"
That was where Leah made her mistake.
Esme's eyes flashed and she bristled in a way Bella had never seen her do before.
"Is that what you think of me, of my family?" she demanded Leah, who glared back defiantly. "After we took you in, fed you, clothed you, and gave you a place to stay? Do you really think that low of me, Leah?"
Leah's lips parted and she hesitated. Out of all the Cullens, Esme was the only one Bella could say for sure that Leah genuinely liked -and liked a lot— though she tried to hide it to save face. She could tell by the way Esme always heaped seconds onto Leah's plate before she'd even finish eating, by the quiet grin on Esme's face when Leah would come downstairs in the morning, yawning, and jolt when she saw Esme already had breakfast waiting for her. She saw it in the way Esme made it a priority to hug Leah at least once a day to make her feel comfortable in the house, and the way that even though Leah grimaced every time, when Esme turned away, Leah would always smile to herself and shake her head.
"No-I didn't mean that-" Leah backpedaled, though her eyes were still fiery yellow, her body still shaking as if she wanted nothing more than to shift and go to town on every red eyed vampire in the yard. She glanced from Esme to Bella, as if requesting back up.
Pfft.
Yeah right.
No way was Bella getting in Esme's way.
"Because that's what it sounded like. Do you really think I would let evil people into my home? Have I not yet proved to you that not all vampires are the same?" Esme went on forcefully.
"You're not like them!" Leah swung her hand out towards the yard, gesturing wildly.
Bella winced. Several of the people in the yard bared their fangs back at Leah, but Esme ignored them.
"Then trust me and let me explain!" Esme huffed.
For a moment, Leah and Esme just stared each other down. Bella watched anxiously, silently willing Leah to back down. The wolf seemed as if she wasn't going to relent. Her chest kept heaving and she clenched and unclenched her fists repeatedly. She growled right into Esme's face, nostrils flaring.
But Esme didn't move, and didn't look away. She held her ground and stared pointedly into Leah's face. After a long moment in which Bella began to mentally prepare to attempt to use her powers to submit Leah who looked a split second away from shifting, the Quileute threw up her hands.
"Fucking fine! Fine," she barked.
"Thank you," Esme beamed, that scary intense look dropping away immediately.
Bella's respect for Esme grew exponentially. The Cullen matron may have been the sweetest woman on the planet, but she was no pushover.
"But I'm not fighting alongside them," Leah snapped.
"Of course not, dear. Now why don't you come inside with me and I'll make you that sandwich you and Bella like so much…"
Bella could only watch, bemused, as Esme took Leah gently by the shoulder and led her back inside, though Leah was still drawn tight like a bowstring. Bella suspected all those hugs had been training Leah to accept physical contact from a vampire. Esme was also incredibly intelligent-and apparently sly about it.
Thank you, Esme, Bella thought gratefully.
That crisis averted, Bella turned around to see the entire yard was staring at her. She blushed immediately, embarrassed by all the attention. She rubbed the back of her neck and glanced at Alice.
The little minx was watching her with an amused twinkle in her eye and she winked when their eyes met.
Well, at least one of them was enjoying her discomfort.
"Is that her, Carlisle?" a man with a deep voice and scruffy beard inquired, breaking the silence.
"Indeed it is," Carlisle replied from beside him. "Everyone, this is the Isabella Swan I told you all about."
Damn it Carlisle.
Bella's cheeks burned as curious eyes raked over her from all around. There must have been at least twenty people milling about, all gazing at her like a specimen under a microscope.
"My god, I can smell her from here," another man with an British accent said from across the yard. "She smells absolutely wonderful." He inhaled deeply as if to prove that point and Bella tensed.
Usually vampires inhaling one's scent wasn't a good thing. It meant they wanted to, as Leah put it, suck you dry.
"And yet…" the man trailed away pensively.
"You don't feel the urge to rip out her throat?" a woman with platinum blonde hair finished for him, her head cocked.
"Exactly," the man replied. There were nods of agreement all around.
Bella shifted awkwardly.
Okay, well, I guess that's good?
She glared down at Alice when she saw the pixie cover her mouth to stifle a giggle.
"Are you sure she's actually part vampire?" the man with the deep voice spoke again. "There is something off about her surely, but she looks human enough…"
"Humans don't look that beautiful," the British man chuckled, and Bella's blush burned brighter.
"Some may," Deep Voice argued. "Carlisle, how do we know this is not some elaborate ruse to acquire allies in taking on the Volturi? Everyone knows of your past with Aro. How do we know you're not just trying to use us to take back a place on the throne?"
Bella frowned at that, offended considering all she'd gone through to be where they were now, and also annoyed that he would question Carlisle's character.
"Always so suspicious, Marshall," Carlisle chuckled, though several others were nodding in agreement with his suspicions. "I assure you, Bella is much more than human."
"Prove it," the blonde woman said suddenly.
Bella furrowed her brow, put off. Prove it? What did they want her to do, turn into a fucking bat or something?
"We're not lying to you. I can promise you, I'm definitely not human anymore," she spoke up, starting to get nervous.
"Then you should have no issue proving it," Blondie answered with a sneer.
Bella narrowed her eyes and Alice immediately approached the porch, headed for her.
"Kate," Tanya hissed at the woman from nearby, wrapped in Edward's arms.
'Kate' rolled her eyes and huffed.
"I'm here only out of love and respect for you, sister," Kate snapped. "And it makes much more sense that this pretty boy has duped you with his charm and good looks for the second time, than that this girl is some hybrid no one's ever seen or heard of before."
Ah. So she was Tanya's sister. That explained the attitude. She must have been from the coven up in Denali.
However, Kate's words were having an effect. The vampires in the clearing were all looking at Carlisle with distrust clear in their eyes. Bella suddenly realized how unbelievable her condition was. It was no wonder they were questioning the validity of the situation. And being asked to go up against the Volturi was no small thing; these people must have come here on pure faith and loyalty.
And now Bella had to convince them that they hadn't made a mistake.
"Are you calling me a liar? I've seen her exhibit incredible powers with my own eyes!" Tanya snapped back at her sister.
"So what's the issue with her giving us a demonstration of these so called powers?" Kate spread her hands out defiantly.
"She's got a point, Carlisle," the British man threw in again. "Would it really be too much to ask for a small token to go on more than pure faith in your truthfulness?"
"I won't believe it till I see it," Marshall added gruffly, and Bella was alarmed to see everyone else in the yard murmuring their agreement.
This wasn't going well at all.
Alice reached her and immediately slid a protective arm around Bella's waist, hand coming to rest on her hip. Bella blushed and tensed, wondering how strange vampires felt about lesbian couples, but not a single person even blinked at the show of affection. That was one small relief. Homophobia would have been extremely annoying to deal with right then.
Carlisle looked at Bella from across the yard, hesitating.
Shit, Bella thought. I have no idea how to activate that magical voodoo crap!
"Um…" Bella stammered, on the spot under all those watching, waiting eyes. "I uh-I um… I don't know how-?"
"Bella can show you her powers," Alice cut her off.
Bella shot her a look, which Alice ignored.
"But the thing is, since they're so new, she's not completely in control of them yet. She needs some kind of… Incentive, to get them going," Alice went on.
"Alice, what the hell are you doing?" Bella hissed as quietly as possible to her girlfriend.
No, really, what is she doing?
"Trust me," Alice whispered back out of the corner of her mouth.
"And what kind of incentive would that be?" Kate cocked an eyebrow and a hip, all attitude.
"Alice is correct," Carlisle jumped in and approached the porch quickly, eyes alight, latching onto whatever it is Alice was trying to do. "The only time Bella has been able to use her powers so far has been in times of great distress."
Bella didn't like where this was going. Alice's hand tightened on her hip.
"And you want to put her under great distress… How?" a different woman spoke. She had big, dark eyes, skin the color of rich chocolate and must have stood almost as tall as Emmett. She also wore very little clothing, just enough to cover the essentials. She looked like some rainforest queen and beside her stood a woman who could have been her sister.
Under different circumstances, Bella would have been able to appreciate the variety of cultures in the people around her.
As it was…
"Actually, Zafrina, I was hoping you could help with that," Alice replied loftily, and then gently began pulling Bella down the steps.
Zafrina cast her dark red eyes on Bella pensively.
Bella tensed.
"Alice, seriously, what-" Bella mumbled anxiously to her girlfriend.
"It's going to be fine, Bella, I promise," Alice murmured soothingly to her, dragging the brunette across the yard to stand before Zafrina. It was only extreme trust in Alice that kept Bella from digging her feet in and bolting the other way.
Zafrina and her friend both towered over them like Amazonian queens, watching them the way a tiger might contemplate whether or not it was going to bite a person.
"Don't be scared, little one," Zafrina said after a long pause. "I won't hurt you. Not really."
Oh. Well, wasn't that completely and totally not reassuring?
"Zafrina can make people see things," Alice explained to a nervous Bella. "My thinking is that if she can make you see something frightening enough, your powers will kick in."
"She just told me not to be scared," Bella frowned, crossing her arms.
"Bella," Carlisle said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "These people need to be convinced. Zafrina won't physically harm you. Anything you see will only be an illusion. We just need you to show us that you can disable that power."
Bella shifted on her feet, swallowing. He had a point. Looking around, Bella saw judgmental eyes watching her. All these people had come from all around the world to fight for her and the Cullens… She suddenly felt the undeniable urge to prove that she was the real deal and worth fighting for.
If she couldn't…
She'd get them all killed. All the Cullens. Her second family.
Her Alice.
Glancing over her shoulder, she saw a challenging glint in Kate's eye. Clearly the blonde didn't think she had the guts to follow through.
"Is this who we're meant to fight for?" Kate rolled her eyes slowly. "Some cowardly little girl who's afraid of what's not even real? She wouldn't last a second against the Volturi."
Bella turned back around, locked her jaw, and snapped, "Do it."
Alice rubbed her lower back soothingly, which helped to steel her as Zafrina gave her a small smile. Her fangs were especially white against the contrast of her dark skin.
"Remember, it's not real. I would never deliberately let anyone hurt you," Alice murmured to her ear. "Just try and feel that power inside you, and then use it."
Easy for her to say. Alice's visions were both willful and involuntary. Bella had never deliberately been able to activate her power. It had all just… Happened.
Now she was going to have to make it happen.
Or else these people would think they were fakers, liars…
And they would stand alone against the Volturi.
And die.
Bella took a deep breath and looked Zafrina directly in the eye. Zafrina glanced at Carlisle, who nodded, before looking back to Bella.
"Prepare yourself," the Amazonian stated.
Bella got a split second to brace, before the world grew dark. Shadows rolled across the sky and Bella looked up, alarmed, as the pale Forks sun was suddenly eclipsed by thick, boiling clouds, racing across the heavens. Thunder rumbled threateningly. Lightning flashed.
Whoa, she thought. Is that Zafrina, making me see this?
When she looked back down to confirm, Zafrina was gone.
As was everyone else in the yard.
"Alice…? Carlisle?" Bella called, spinning around in a circle. Her breathing began to pick up. Ancient instincts stirred warningly.
Can she do that? Can she really make them disappear like that? Is her power that strong?
A moment later, it began to rain.
But it was not water that began to pour from the sky. Bella felt something thump across the top of her head lightly, and then more thumps began to hit her body. When she looked down to see what was hitting her, she screamed.
"Fucking-Oh my god!" she squealed.
They were spiders. Big, thick black spiders, covered in hair with glittering eyes. She felt one crawling through her hair, felt another slip down her shirt as thousands of others slammed into the ground.
And they all began to crawl towards her.
She forgot entirely that this wasn't real, and forgot all about Zafrina's powers.
She screamed and flailed, slapping at them, her voice a pitch so high that it should have been impossible. They were all over her, raining down, a black wave scuttling across the ground, converging on her, crawling all over her. Instinct kicked in, a girlish instinct that made her whole body vibrate in terror.
"Stop it, stop!" she cried, remembering Zafrina once more as lightning flashed across the sky.
But there was no power coiling in her gut to make it stop. There was not even a rubber band at the back of her skull, ready to snap. This was raw fear; this couldn't be an illusion. Bella could feel thousands of legs tickling her skin, she collapsed to her knees and heard little bodies crunch sickeningly as hundreds more scrambled to take their place.
Spiders. Spiders everywhere. Her heart slammed against her ribcage desperately.
"Zafrina! Stop, please!" she screamed, tears streaming down her face. The world was a sea of spiders, rising around her, covering her. "Alice! Alice! Help me, please, make it stop!"
There was no escape, no getting away. She curled into a tight little ball, begging and pleading, and then shut her mouth when she one of the hundreds of thousands of spiders tried to crawl inside it. She screwed her eyes shut and shook, whimpering, with the sound of thunder and skittering spiders in her ears.
Literally. They were trying to crawl into her ears. And succeeding. The weight of them was beginning to crush her.
Bella felt as if she were going to die, and wondered desperately in her last moments, why that damned power wasn't coming to her. Why she couldn't feel it in her bones, ready to blast the nightmare away as she swore she felt spiders inside her very skull, scrabbling at her brain.
It had to be real; how could Zafrina's power be so great? It was real, it was.
But… It wasn't.
It's not real, her subconscious said fervently. It's not real. It can't be. This is not happening. You are fine. It's a lie. It's an illusion. Those spiders you feel inside you are not there. There is no danger.
It's. Not. Real!
"Enough! Enough, Zafrina! Stop it! It's obviously not working!"
There was a jolt, a soft exhale, and the crushing weight disappeared. Bella's brain felt empty, quiet. She no longer felt the world moving with millions of little bodies. She shook violently.
Is it over…?
"Bella, baby, it's okay…"
What a lovely, familiar voice.
Bella chanced to open her eyes and was met with a beautiful sight. It was Alice. Wide golden eyes stared down at her in blatant worry. Bewildered, Bella sat up, gasping, and looked around.
There was not a spider in sight.
Everyone who had been there before was back, and they all stared at her as before, though now with obvious distrust.
"Alice…" she breathed as the pixie grabbed her and hauled her up. Bella trembled in her arms.
"What the hell did you do to her?" she heard a voice snap. It sounded a lot like Rosalie.
"What was asked of me," Zafrina replied calmly. "I take it you don't like spiders?" she said mildly to Bella.
Bella glared at her weakly and shuddered violently.
Fuck no. I fucking hate spiders.
"I'm sorry, that was a stupid idea," Alice groaned to her, looking immeasurably guilty. "I'm so sorry…"
"It's fine. It was worth a shot," Bella croaked.
Still, she wriggled away from Alice and squirmed, resisting the urge to slap at every inch of her body like an idiot, still feeling phantom legs crawling all over her.
What an absolutely loathsome power. God. She was still shivering. Bella would remember that experience for the rest of her life.
"It seems as if you have deceived us Carlisle," Marshall growled. "She exhibited no powers that I could see besides the ability to curl up into the fetal position and whimper like the child she is."
Bella clenched her jaw, her cheeks burning. Fuming, she turned to glare at him, but felt increasingly panicked when she saw the scorn in everyone's eyes.
"He's right. You lied to us!" someone shouted.
"How could you, Carlisle?" another demanded.
"You've been duped again, sister. Why don't you ever listen to me?" Kate sighed.
Oh no. We're losing them. I'm losing them. They think we're lying because I can't damning do it! They're going to leave and all the Cullens are going to die! Because of ME!
Infuriated and becoming hysterical, Bella let loose a violent snarl. She hadn't meant to do it, but it still echoed around the yard and silenced the stirring crowd. She spun to glare at them all, chest heaving, fangs out.
Hey, there was that stupid rubber band. Her instincts were finally jumping up to par, just not in the way Bella wanted them to. Zafrina had turned her into a raw nerve.
"Bella," Alice whispered softly, gripping her arm gently. "No, baby, calm down…"
Loud laughter started up, and Bella whipped her gaze onto its owner. It was the British man.
"Whatever she is, it's certainly not human. I've never seen a human snarl like that. And are those tiny things fangs? They're adorable," he grinned.
Bella was torn between offense and embarrassment. She shut her mouth and shifted on her feet, rubbing her tongue self consciously over her fangs.
They're not that small, her subconscious pouted.
"She still has not exhibited the powers Carlisle told us of, Garrett!" Marshall argued furiously.
Bella was really starting to dislike this Marshall dude. But at least she knew the British man's name now.
"It didn't work, alright?" Bella turned on him angrily. "That doesn't mean we're lying!"
She'd had just about enough of these people questioning her and what she'd been through.
"Clearly Zafrina's powers distressed you greatly," Kate threw in scathingly. "You were curled up on the ground, sniveling like a baby. How much more incentive do you need?"
Bella growled from low in her chest, the rubber band tittering back even further as her ire grew at Kate's scornful tone. Alice cupped the back of her neck, but it didn't help.
"Kate, stop it!" Tanya hissed to her sister.
"I don't know, okay! But I tried, damn it! I just couldn't do it!" Bella yelled at her, ignoring the anxious shifting of the people around her.
"And why is that? Possibly because you don't even have any powers?" Kate rolled her eyes.
"No. It just-It wasn't real. I must have known subconsciously that there wasn't any real danger, so it didn't work. I didn't actually need to use the power to stay alive," Bella snapped, frustrated. "That's-That's what it's always been about. When it happens, I have no control. I'm just-Just trying to survive and I have no other option to make it stop."
Bella ran a hand through her hair, trying to calm down. Zafrina had done a real number on her. She had to consciously remind herself not to resent Alice for that particular idea, because she knew her girlfriend was only trying to keep them all alive and hadn't meant to put Bella so on edge…
Or humiliate her like that.
"It makes sense," Carlisle came to her defense. "Many newborns can't use their powers unless they're forced to for quite some time. If Bella's subconscious knew there was no real threat, it wouldn't have triggered anything."
There was a pause as everyone digested that, before Kate smiled.
It was not a kind smile.
"Well, if you're in need of a more real incentive, I can help with that," she said, and waggled her fingers in a taunting manner that Bella didn't understand. Alice, however, did.
"Uh uh. No," Alice broke in and slid in front of Bella when Kate approached them, eyes glinting. Bella's hackles rose warningly.
"Kate," Tanya called warningly after her sister.
"Oh, ease off, Alice. This might be just the thing Bella needs to kick her ass into gear, and it won't leave her damaged… Permanently, at least," Rosalie said from her position next to Emmett and Garrett.
"No," Alice snapped, balling her hands up. "You. Back off!"
Kate froze a foot away, sneering.
"Alice…" Carlisle said slowly.
"Wait, Alice, if she can help, why not?" Bella said suddenly to her protective girlfriend, though she didn't really want to experience any new powers after Zafrina. She swore she could still feel the spiders digging through her eardrums.
She shuddered it away though.
Right now, she needed to woman up and get this done. If she couldn't prove herself, they'd lose their allies right here and now.
She was willing to try anything. Even though she really hated the look on Kate's face.
"Yeah, Alice, why not?" Kate said mockingly.
Bella glared at her as Alice growled.
"No… You're not electrocuting her!"
Bella blanched.
Electrocuting me…?
Kate saw the look of bewilderment on her face and sneered. Suddenly the way she'd waggled her fingers made much more sense.
Fuck my life, Bella thought, closing her eyes for a bit longer than a standard blink.
Carlisle sure had a lot of powerful friends.
"Okay," Bella blurted, before she could chicken out.
"No!" Alice spun around and gave her a vicious look that Bella had to fight hard to stand her ground against.
Scary Alice was out. Which also meant sexy Alice. But now was not the time for hormones.
"Alice, it makes a lot more sense. When Alec and Jane were torturing me, that was all physical pain. I would have done anything to make it stop. With Zafrina's powers, I just had to wait it out," Bella cupped her girlfriend's cheek but Alice pushed her hand away.
Ugh. They were fighting again, already.
"And when you used your powers on the wolves, it was to protect me! No one was hurting you then!" Alice retorted.
Then her eyes lit up.
Oh no, Bella thought. Uh uh. Not happening.
"Alice. No," Bella growled.
"Shock me instead," Alice said, turning back to Kate. Kate hitched an eyebrow at her.
"No!" Bella yelped. "No way, Alice! You are not getting electrocuted for me!"
Instincts born purely of love leapt to attention. Pure protectiveness radiated through Bella's chest determinedly. This was a raw emotion that said No one will touch my Alice. No one will hurt her.
It was the same thing she'd felt before she tore Victoria a new one.
"It makes a lot more sense," Alice rolled her eyes and Bella scowled at the way she mocked her words. "Your power was the strongest when you were trying to keep Sam from taking my head off. You put at least eight people down that time. So if-"
"I said no!" Bella grabbed her arm and spun her around. Alice looked surprised at the bold move, and then her eyes narrowed.
Bella realized she was about to be in a whole lot of trouble with her girlfriend. It took a lot of backbone, but Bella found her spine and stood her ground at the intense glare on Alice's face.
"Alice-I'm not doing this if you're the one getting shocked. We can call the whole thing off and everyone might as well go home. I'm not having you electrocuted to prove a stupid point!" Bella stated firmly.
Her instincts roared their approval, as stupid a thing as it was to say. It was a shame, really, that instinct and logic couldn't coincide.
"Looks like that's already happening," Garrett drawled. "I'm pretty sure that was the French who just ran off. Not surprising, really, but still…"
Carlisle frowned and they all looked around at the rustle of people disappearing into the trees.
God, this was going so badly. They were already losing people! Bella needed to think fast, because Alice still looked fit to argue.
"Okay, okay," she broke down. "I'll get shocked, and if-if that's not enough, she can shock you too. If that doesn't do it, I don't know what will."
Bella's instincts booed and hissed in protest. She didn't really mean that, but she had to do something before everyone followed the lead of the French and ran off, leaving them with no allies with which to fight against the Volturi.
Alice hesitated for a long second. They were both fighting the same instincts here. Neither wanted the other to get hurt.
"You've got about five seconds before I catch the next plane to Alaska," Kate informed them, tapping her foot, and Alice threw her a withering look.
"Fine."
Bella breathed a sigh of relief, and Alice stepped aside reluctantly, eyes hard.
"You'd better go easy, Kate," she huffed at the Denali sister.
"That's not really the point, sweetheart," Kate smiled back sweetly before stepping up to Bella. Everyone else crowded around to watch, forming a circle. It only made Bella even more nervous. Her instincts were already jumping.
Kate held out her hand, looking way too excited about this. Clearly she didn't think Bella was going to do anything but crumple and cry before they'd all go home and cut all ties with the Cullens for this farce.
The last thing Bella wanted to do was take Kate's hand, but at this point, she had no choice. This was their last chance to prove Bella was what they said she was, that their fight with the Volturi was real.
I can do this, Bella told herself forcefully. I can do this. I have to do this.
For the Cullens. For Leah. For myself.
For Alice.
Bella took a deep breath, reached out, and put her hand in Kate's.
The effect was instantaneous.
Electricity bolted up her arm and throughout her entire body. She yelped and dropped to her knees, clutching Kate's hand but only purely for the fact that she could not let go. They were locked together by the force racing through Bella's body, down through Bella's spine, lighting up every nerve like the fourth of July.
When Bella was little, she had a bad habit of sticking her fingers into wall sockets. (She wasn't the smartest kid, alright?) She would always squeal and cry, run red faced to her mother with her finger burning, but in the end she would do it again because she liked the tingle.
Bella didn't like this tingle.
The jolt of sticking her fingers into a wall socket was nothing compared to this. She gazed up at Kate with her entire body convulsing, unable to scream or even hardly think because every nerve was firing in response to the electricity coursing through her. It was like grabbing onto an electrified fence and refusing to let go.
She swore she could hear it, too, very faintly. Thousands of tiny little birds squeaking from the point of contact. Kate watched her, unperturbed, eyebrows high.
Oh Christ, Bella thought desperately, gasping for air, arching her back inwards. Make it stop. This needs to stop!
It may not have hurt as much as Jane's power, but it still hurt like a son of a bitch all the same.
The rubber band was there, unlike when Zafrina's powers were assaulting her. It snapped without warning and Bella snarled, clutching Kate's hand harder, but it trailed off into a pained whimper. The storm that blew to life inside her mind was useless.
"It's not working," Alice said nervously, her voice high and hard. "Kate, it's not working."
"I can see that," Kate replied. "Fifty percent isn't doing much. Let's try turning it up a notch. How about… A hundred percent?"
That was only fifty percent? Bella thought, eyes widening.
She tried to jerk back instinctively, to get away.
Too late.
A bolt of lightning shot out of Kate's hand and kept coming. Bella's whole body went stiff as a board and she cried out, clutching her wrist, shaking violently.
Stop, stop, stop!
Bella's mind snarled in protest. She lost all conscious thought. It all became a haze of rage and pain. She bared her fangs. Black spots popped in her vision.
"Kate!" Alice yelled.
"She's going to kill her, Carlisle!" someone that sounded a lot like Edward shouted.
"Lay off, Kate!" That was Emmett.
"Still nothing?" Kate huffed, as if put out.
Still nothing. Bella's mind fought for every way out but all she could do was try and break Kate's hand, desperately trying to weather this until Kate stopped and she could rip her fucking face off.
Her body, apparently, still didn't consider this situation deadly enough to be rational enough to use the strength of her power.
"Give me your hand," Kate said to Alice.
Something inside Bella perked up at that, like a watchdog pricking its ears.
"Now, Alice!" Kate demanded, holding her other hand out for Alice's.
No, something inside Bella whispered softly.
After a split second's hesitation, Alice met her eyes, blurred in her failing vision, and then grabbed Kate's hand. Rationality became a distant thing of the past as all of Bella's focus on herself jumped onto Alice.
It happened instantly.
"NO!"
The world shook as Bella took it by the horns and then shoved it away.
Kate went shooting through the air as white hot force emitted from inside Bella, cutting the electricity off like flipping a switch. It almost felt good, the expulsive force that scorched her insides. She lunged forward immediately and wrapped her arms around Alice, thinking only of protecting her from that pain which had been rippling through her moments before.
Not my Alice!
They hit the ground with a grunt as Bella growled, breathing hard, mind vibrating, bones quivering, veins throbbing.
No one will hurt her. No one.
She felt Alice shaking beneath her as she attempted to shield her from the world, panting wildly. It made her worry for her lover increase a hundredfold and she looked down, frightened that Alice was hurt, that Kate had seriously injured her-And she would kill Kate for daring to touch her mate, her Alice-
Alice was giggling. She was downright laughing.
"Atta girl, Bells," she said breathlessly, arms wrapped around Bella's neck. Her amber eyes twinkled and a huge grin split her face apart, the kind that always made Bella's heart skip beat.
Bewildered, Bella stared down at Alice, and blinked when Alice kissed her lightly on the lips, still giggling. She looked around when she heard rustling, growling protectively, and was surprised even in her state of mind to see everyone in the yard was sprawled out flat on their backs, struggling to sit up.
"You little brat," she heard Rosalie snap. "These are designer jeans… Can't even keep it to a five foot radius…"
"Woo! That was awesome, Bella!" Emmett laughed, jumping to his feet.
"Goddamn… Are you a believer now, Marshall?" Garrett chuckled, shifting onto one knee and grinning broadly.
Marshall, who had somehow landed face down, sat up and spit out a bit of dirt.
Then he gave a grim smile.
"I would say so," he grunted.
"Magnificent!" a man with a thick accent and bright blonde hair gasped, before he sat up Indian style and clapped another man beside him on the back. "What do you think the Volturi will say to that, Stefan?"
"Vladimir and I never needed any convincing to fight the Volturi, Carlisle… But I will admit, I cannot wait to see their faces when they get a load of this beautiful Isabella Swan," Stefan' said, his blood red eyes lighting up.
"And what about you, Miss Kate? You still have the magic touch?" Garrett said as Kate, who had landed fifteen feet away from everyone else came storming back up, looking pissed, her hair a mess and covered in dirt.
She came to a halt beside him and stood there, chest heaving.
"I don't know. Let's find out!" she snapped, and grabbed him by the arm. Garrett flinched and everyone froze. After only a second though, he grinned again.
"My powers are gone," Kate breathed in shock. She turned to gaze around at everyone. "They're gone," she said again, as if she couldn't believe it.
"Mine are too," Zafrina gasped from across the yard, looking down at her hands.
"As are mine," Jasper threw in, brushing himself off.
"I told you we were telling the truth," Carlisle chuckled as everyone finally managed to get to their feet. Carlisle wasn't a smug man, but there was definitely pride in his voice as everyone gazed at Bella with new respect and awe.
Bella just hissed at them.
"Easy, Tiger," Alice murmured, and gently cupped her cheek to guide her eyes back to her own. The raging storm seemed to quiet down as they gazed into each other's eyes. "Come back to me, darling. Come back to me, sweetheart…"
The winds settled down, the clouds drifted away. The sun came out and shone softly, warmly, inside of Bella. The air smelled sweetly, of white chocolate and berries.
Alice…
Alice…
Alice!
"I did it," Bella breathed, coming back to herself, to Alice.
Oh my God, I did it!
"You did it," Alice echoed, beaming as Bella gasped in excitement.
"I did it!" Bella repeated happily, and then they both burst into a fit of giggles.
"You sure did, you big weenie. Now will you get off of me?" Alice grinned, kissing the corner of her mouth fondly.
"Oh, uh-Right. Duh," Bella blushed.
Get a hold of yourself, dweeb, she told herself, and then jumped up, pulling Alice with her. She overestimated the momentum, however, and ended up staggering back with Alice in her arms, their noses brushing. To be fair, she was still dizzy from using her powers. Embarrassed, Bella's cheeks burned, but Alice only laughed again.
"Well, hello there beautiful," Alice chuckled and kissed her on the cheek, making Bella swoon before she stepped back, but kept a hold of Bella's hand.
I really love this girl, Bella thought with a goofy grin.
"But our powers will come back, right Carlisle?" Kate was saying as Bella focused in, managing to sober up enough to listen.
"They will, if precedence remains true," Carlisle assured her. Bella thought she saw Zafrina's shoulders lower in relief.
"You believe me now?" She couldn't help but demand Kate.
And okay, maybe her instincts were still requesting if she could beat the hell out of her.
No, she told them.
Fine, they said petulantly.
Kate gazed at her, eyes hard. She licked her lips slowly, and then shrugged.
"Yeah. I do," Kate replied. "Sorry for being so skeptical, but it was a lot to believe in faith alone. But no worries. I'm definitely a believer now."
"If you would stop doubting me all the time…" Tanya sighed exasperatedly, leaning into Edward.
"Okay, so she is what you said she is… Whatever that may be," Marshall stated. "But Carlisle… Are the Volturi really going to kill all of you over this girl?"
Bella wished he'd stop talking about her like she wasn't there.
At this, Carlisle grew serious. As did everyone in the yard.
"Yes. And I know how much we're asking of you all to fight for us. I will still understand if any of you want to leave. I will not lie to you, my friends. Even all together, and with Bella's powers, the Volturi stand a great chance to wipe us all out. They are that powerful."
His words made everyone shift nervously, tension rising. It truly was a great deal to ask; too much, in fact. Bella knew Carlisle and his family must have been loved dearly indeed if even this many people had showed up to even give them a chance.
"And you expect us to go against them for… What? A girl we don't even know?"a man with orange hair demanded, sounding Irish in nature.
"Look at it this way. The Volturi have long been unjust. They rule over us, un-elected, controlling our lives. We live always in fear that we will wrong them somehow, or even merely earn their displeasure. Today it is my family, tomorrow it could be you and yours for any number of reasons. Right now, united, we stand a chance to defeat them, once and for all," Carlisle said passionately in response.
There was silence.
Even Bella's demonstration had not been enough to wholly convince these people to go against the Volturi. After fighting them first hand, Bella knew why.
"Look…" Bella spoke up, then halted, surprised with herself. She was not known for her affection for public scrutiny. Her cheeks tinted red when everyone turned to her, but she knew deep in her heart that she needed to tell these people what she knew and how she felt.
"I… Carlisle's right. It's not fair to ask all of you to fight the Volturi for us. To be honest, I'm the only reason this is even happening," Bella said. Alice opened her mouth to protest but Bella rushed onward.
"It's true, Alice. The Cullens have taken me in as one of their own, but due to a seriously unfortunate series of events which I set in motion, we stand here now, asking for your help. But I'm not asking you to fight for me. I'm asking you to fight for the Cullens. You came here for a reason. You answered Carlisle's call because you must care about these people in some way, and for a good reason. If the Volturi wipe them out, the world will lose an amazing group of people. And Carlisle's right. The Volturi are seriously evil. Just by being here, every single one of you could be considered guilty by association. That's how vindictive they are. But right now, we stand a chance to beat them. Not just for old friends, but for yourselves, for everyone out there under their rule. For what's right."
Alice squeezed her hand as Bella bit her lip, feeling cliché.
But it was the truth. She meant every word.
Looking around, she had no idea if she was getting through to anybody. Vampires were good at hiding their emotions when not under control of their instincts.
She had one last thing to add.
"But I can promise you, whether you fight with us or not, we're going to give the Volturi hell. I've already fought them once, and I left two of them human. I don't think you guys want me to demonstrate that particular ability to you," Bella said pointedly and watched a few people shift nervously, watching a few eyes widen.
"Yes, Carlisle told us about that particular affinity of yours as well… Which two?" Garrett inquired curiously.
"Alec and Victoria."
There were gasps all around.
"She got Alec?"
"Jane must be so mad…"
"Can she really do that to people? Change them back?"
"I always hated that redhead bitch," Garrett said mildly, but was clearly impressed.
"You're just going to have to take that on faith, because I'm not biting anyone. We need everyone as a vampire here," Bella continued and watched as all those red eyes seemed to fill with a mixture of both fear and a burgeoning respect. "All I'm saying is they're strong, but maybe they're not that strong. The Cullens are incredibly powerful as all of you know, and no matter if you fight with us or not, I can guarantee that they're going to hit the Volturi back, and hit them hard."
"And you, young one? How hard will you hit them?" Zafrina asked, not mockingly, but genuinely.
Bella thought about that for a second, and then she just had to shrug.
"I don't know. I won't lie, I'm no fighter. But I will say this; I hope the Volturi can fight as well as they can as humans as they do as vampires. Because I'll be damned if I don't go down swinging."
Her words made a few smirks light up the yard, notably from Emmett, Garrett, and even a begrudging smile from Kate.
Everyone glanced around at each other, as if silently communicating on what to do. Alice's arm wrapped around her waist and Bella sent up a prayer, because that was all she had left to give. She wasn't really all that confident. She wasn't very good at giving speeches, but it had come from the heart.
Hopefully it would be enough, because if it wasn't…
Maybe it was time to start thinking of places to hide.
"I don't know about the rest of you," Vladimir, one of the Romanians said, grinning, "but Stefan and I were going to fight before all that. Now you people have no reason not to, besides cowardice!"
"Not that that wasn't a good speech," Stefan inclined his head to Bella with a smile.
"Well of course I'm going to fight!" Garrett spoke and clapped Carlisle on the shoulder. "Revolutions are my specialty, after all."
"American Revolution," Alice whispered to a confused Bella.
"Ah," Bella nodded sagely.
"I don't think I really have a choice now," Kate drawled, and leaned into her sister, who gave her a smug smirk.
"As if we ever did," yet another blonde rolled her eyes. "Of course we're going to fight for our sister."
Sister? How many of these chicks are there? Bella wondered.
"Thank you, Irena," Tanya smiled brightly.
"I guess that settles it then," Marshall grunted. "I am no coward. Of course I will fight for you and your beautiful family, Carlisle."
Bella's heart began to swell.
It was working. They were going to fight!
All around the yard, everyone began to nod and vocalize their support. Not a single one left to join the French vampires that had run off. Altogether they had about eighteen vampires pledging to fight the Volturi alongside them.
It wasn't much, but it was something. Bella breathed a sigh of relief.
Their chances weren't great, but at least now they had a chance to beat the Volturi.
Yet one niggling doubt tickled the back of her mind. She took Alice by the shoulder and pulled her away a bit, not wanting to be overheard.
"Alice… Do all these people know about the Quileutes?" she inquired quietly, glancing around nervously when Emmett laughed boisterously, conversing with a group of people loudly.
"Shh," Alice hissed, alarmed, and clapped a cool palm over Bella's mouth.
"One step at a time, Bells," Alice murmured after making sure no one had overheard. "One step at a time."
At Bella's nonplussed look, she said, "They kind of know, okay? Everything will be fine, I promise."
What the hell did she mean by kind of?
She gave a reassuring smile to Bella's furrowed brow that was not reassuring at all before saying, "Come on, let's go meet our new friends, okay?"
Bella didn't know what else to do but follow after her, still worried out of her mind.
One step at a time then, she thought helplessly.
Unfortunately, Bella's life was not fond of one step at a time. It preferred to take running leaps and bounds.
This would be no exception.