A/N:
You've waited quite some time for this now! Well, it's 2019 now so it's back to business, but before that, did everyone have a good Christmas and New Years? (Or, you know, whatever you celebrated!)
Mine was quiet, but good enough.
So, I left you just as Rosalie was about to tell Emmett her story, and I know that most of you know the story since this is canon, but she's telling Emmett for the first time, so she's not sparing on the details ;-)
Title: Origins: Destiny in the Mountains
Author: MarieCarro
Beta: Alice's White Rabbit
Pre-reader: OnlyInValhalla
Genre: Family/Supernatural
Rating: NC-17
Summary: Emmett Brian McCarty never had much in life, but growing up poor didn't stop him from enjoying life and all its pleasures.
However, always seeking thrills most often means it will end badly, and one day, while hunting for game in the mountains, Emmett meets his destiny. Canon. ExR
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
CHAPTER 6
FRIDAY, APRIL 19th – WEDNESDAY, MAY 1st 1935
"I don't even know how to begin," she admitted in a sad tone. "It feels as if it will all come out wrong no matter how I tell you."
I furrowed my forehead in confusion. "Are you afraid to offend me in some way? How could you possibly do that? Besides, I promised I wouldn't hold anythin' you say against you, didn't I?"
She nodded. "You did. And you've been absolutely wonderful to me this entire time, even though all I do is push you away. Why aren't you running from me?"
"Haven't you noticed?" I asked her with a small smirk, and she gave me a questioning look. "I can be as stubborn as a mule myself."
This time, she didn't laugh at my joke, but I felt the shift in the air before she spoke again. "You told us all about your life, and … well, my life was quite the opposite of yours before all of this," she said and gestured down at herself.
"That I already knew," I said in honesty and also hoped she'd feel at ease if I showed her that I didn't mind her much more refined background. "It wasn't particularly difficult to guess, either. You both move and talk like a proper lady. Not many of those go through Gatlinburg, but I easily recognize one when I see her."
"Proper lady or not, I had no right to act the way I did when I was human and—" She stopped herself and dug her hands into the soil underneath her, almost as if she were bracing herself. "And I had no right to make the decision of ending your human life."
There was a fraction of a second's silence between us as her words hung in the air.
"What are you talking about?" I asked, not at all following her train of thought.
She sighed. "What you have to understand, Emmett, is that I have always been a selfish person. It's the way I was raised by my parents. If there was something I wanted, I couldn't understand why I shouldn't get it. Not that I ever had to so much as ask for it." She studied her hands intently, and it fascinated me to no end that she had no problem showing me how vulnerable a person she actually was when she showed nothing but hardness toward the others despite them having known her for a much longer period of time.
"In my world, being beautiful was the highest value, and because I was, no one ever denied me anything. It was a given that I would have success and riches, even though what that actually meant was I would find a husband who already had all of that and could shower me with more of the material things I was used to having."
I felt a surge of discomfort run through me when I realized I was nothing like the man she had always expected to find. I had never had a well-paid job, or even owned my own house, or possessed enough money to brag about it. I hadn't the slightest idea how to even act as a gentleman.
What could she possibly see in me? Why had she saved me? I pushed my own insecurity aside quickly and focused back on Rosalie.
"I enjoyed being the center of attention, but what I wanted more than anything was something my closest friend got before me. My parents were never particularly loving toward each other. At least, not around me or my brothers. I thought that was how it was supposed to be until I saw how Vera's husband was around her."
She finally looked up at me again, and her bitter and harsh smile stunned me.
"I was so jealous of her. It was a feeling I was unfamiliar with. Usually, people envied me, not the other way around. I remember questioning why she got all that. She wasn't nearly as beautiful as I was, after all, yet she got even more of what I wanted. Not long after her wedding, she had a son."
There was a longer pause as she built up her courage to tell me what was weighing so heavily on her.
"I wanted the shallow things in life, I'm not going to deny that, but I know better now than I did then. I know now what I truly yearned for was a husband who would love me above everything else and for us to have a family of our own. I don't know why, but I guess the powers that be saw that as too much to ask for," she finished with a grimace as if she had a sour taste in her mouth.
"Was that when it happened?" I asked carefully. I had a feeling she was getting closer to the darker parts of her life.
She tightened her lips into a thin line and nodded. "Being assaulted is always traumatic," she said in a constricted and forced voice. "Yet, I can't help feeling that being gang-raped by your fiancée and his friends is just a tiny bit worse."
I felt every inch of energy I had leaving me, yet I remained standing as my body refused to succumb to the weakness of my mind. I was shocked, disgusted, and furious all at the same time. I couldn't get a single word out.
"I guess it was partly my own fault," she continued in a small voice. Her tone reminded me of someone admitting a dark secret, yet I couldn't understand how she could possibly believe she was to blame for her assault. "I didn't really know Royce, after all, when I accepted his proposal. I was just desperate to get the things I felt I deserved. And my parents shamelessly pushed the wedding to happen as soon as possible. It caused rumors of pregnancy to circulate, but for once, I didn't care what others thought because I was so close to getting what I wanted and showing Vera that she wasn't the only one who could reach happiness."
I suddenly felt livid, and I crouched down right in front of Rosalie. She didn't startle, but I could see that she hadn't expected my close proximity.
"Don't say it was your fault," I said to her passionately. "Not even, just a little bit." I took her hands in mine, and with as much care as I could muster without using too much of my enhanced strength, I squeezed comfortingly. "A man who assaults a woman isn't a man. He's a monster, and there is absolutely no excuse for what he did. Much less that he invited his friends to join. The lot of them deserve to burn in hell for eternity."
A dark smile replaced the pain in her eyes. "Oh, believe me, they are."
I immediately understood what she was insinuating. She'd said it during our first hunt. "They're all dead. I made sure of that myself." I knew she had killed them, and her smile indicated that she had been brutal. It didn't bother me at all. If that was what she needed in order to start healing, I wasn't going to be the one to tell her that what she'd done was wrong. That would never be my place.
Instead, all I said was, "Good."
"They deserved nothing less. Being the cause for what I am today."
Everything became so clear to me. It was no mystery why my angel remained bitter and trapped in her trauma. "You were changed that night, weren't you?"
"Yes."
"You never wanted any of it." It wasn't a question.
Her eyes fell to the ground again. "No."
"Why did you ask Carlisle to change me?" I asked her softly, yet she grimaced as if I were going to hit her. "I promise I won't be mad."
She closed her eyes, and I hated not to be able to see the golden color, but I refused to give her what could be perceived even as the smallest order. Never would I even attempt to dominate over her.
"You reminded me of him," she said, and when she understood that I had no idea who she was talking about, she clarified. "Vera's son Henry. He also had dark curly hair." She reached out and traced her thumb over my cheek, which warmed me up like only her touch could. "And dimples. You looked so innocent when the bear slashed at you, yet I knew if you hadn't shared those traits with Henry, I most likely would have left you to die. As it was, I couldn't. Even though I knew it would have been the most merciful thing to do."
I instantly shook my head in disagreement. "It wouldn't have been the most merciful thing," I said, and she narrowed her eyes in confusion. "If I'd died, I would have been deprived of ever meetin' you, and that thought alone tears me apart."
A feeling deep in my gut told me that while I wanted nothing more than to kiss her in that moment, I knew she was feeling too raw and vulnerable to see the true emotion behind it. So instead, I reached up and kissed her forehead. "It might be difficult for you to grasp right now, but you've quickly become the most important being to me in this universe, and I won't ever blame you for saving me because that's what you did."
I released one of her hands and cupped her cheek. "I don't yet know how to prove it to you and help you believe it, but if there is ever anythin' you need, don't hesitate to come to me. Even if it means you only need someone to punch or scream at, 'cause I can take it. Just promise you'll always be honest with me?"
Rosalie's eyes welled up, and I thought she was going to cry, but it appeared as if no tears could fall. "Thank you," she whispered in the most grateful manner I'd ever heard anyone speak. "And I promise."
{=DITM=}
I snickered as I watched Edward cringe in response to the thoughts I was intentionally throwing his way, but when he bolted out of the house, I could no longer hold it in and laughed loudly.
"What's wrong with him?" Rosalie asked as she entered the room just in time to see Edward's retreating back.
I gestured for her to sit down next to me and slowly placed my arm around her shoulders. She appeared to relax against me in total ease, but what I was certain the others couldn't detect was that the annoyed hint in her tone and the tightening around her mouth actually were indications of her insecurities around what she felt comfortable enough to allow me to do.
We were always working on her boundaries, but I never pushed when she pulled back. However, my angel was adamant about maintaining her protective walls, even toward her family, and she thought it was best if they believed we had become an immediate couple.
While that wasn't completely untrue, she didn't correct them either whenever we overheard them talking about our, apparently, "overzealous" sex life. She said it was better to let them believe what they wanted because then they wouldn't ask questions she didn't want to answer.
I didn't argue with her, and it actually gave me a great opportunity to mess with Edward, who was easily the most tight-laced person I'd ever come across in my life, which in turn made it even more fun.
"He makes it too easy for me," I said and gestured in the direction of where he had disappeared. "It doesn't even matter that I haven't actually seen you naked yet because he always runs before I get to the good stuff."
Rosalie hit my chest, but her expression was amused, so I knew she appreciated my humor.
"One of these days, you're gonna have to tell me what it is you're thinking to scare him off like that," she said, and while the ambiance was still humorous, I took the opportunity to insert some seriousness as well.
I took her hand in mine and kissed the back of it. "One of these days, I'm goin' to show you."
Her eyes widened ever so slightly, and her expression told me that had blood still been running in her veins, she would have blushed. After all, my angel was a proper lady, and I doubted anyone had ever been so upfront with her like I was.
Lucky for me, she seemed to like it.
A/N:
We got another little taste there of Emmett being both serious, and generally just awesome, as well as being the teasing oaf we all know he can be :-D
And if I say so myself, the last thing he says to Rosalie in the forest is the kind of thing that would have melted my heart, and I wanted him to say something that would make it clear he's offering to be her strength when she needs it.
I hope you're still liking the story, and I would love to hear your thoughts on it, thusfar.
As always,
Stay Awesome!