Bella watched as the surrounding trees gave way to overwatered, dead grass as Demetri drove out of Forks. Nothing so far had been said between them, other than the expected 'are you ready' when he first got in the car, and she was pretty alright with that. It wasn't an uncomfortable silence, but she could tell there was something not quite right with the man beside her.

He was... stiff, if she had to name it. She had seen him move with all the grace of a river before, but now that he was still, there was a rigidness to him that didn't seem like it had a place. She wanted to ask if he was alright, if only to put herself at ease he wasn't about to snap, but she remained silent, because really? Would it matter if he was or not? Would she know if he was lying? Since both those answers were no, she just kept watching the landscape fly by.

Allowing the purr of the engine to sooth her, Bella slid down in her seat and into the way too big jacket she was wearing. It was only her intention to take a breath as her body settled, but she got a nose full of Demetri's scent, and a hum escaped her throat as a result. At the feel of eyes on her, she shifted her own, and found Demetri had actually cut his eyes to her. They had curiosity swirling in the red depths, and she was pretty damn happy she couldn't blush anymore. Still, she licked her lips and dropped her eyes again. "You smell nice."

A small smirk pulled at the corner of his lips as Demetri returned his eyes to the road. "Do I?"

Not even slightly a fan of the amusement in his voice, Bella's nose wrinkled but she chose to keep her response to herself. She said what she said. He heard what she said. She saw no reason to further feed his ego. So, instead of commenting further on his scent, she played with her fingers as she looked back at his profile. "Can I ask you something?" She watched as he downshifted for a hard turn in the road and nod his head, and after wiping the corner of her mouth on the fabric of the jacket she wore, she changed her mind on what she wanted to ask. "Damn it... why can't I stop drooling?"

Cocking a brow, Demetri glanced at her from the corner of his eye as he began to get back up to speed. "Was that really your question?"

Swallowing yet another mouthful of venom, she shrugged as best she could. "Well, no, but I mean... if you know the answer, that'd be great."

His voice was offhand as he shifted more comfortably in his seat. "Your injury." Turning to look at her, there was a hum in his throat. "It'll get better as it heals, but until then, it's going to cause an unbelievable amount of problems. Unfortunately, there is no way to know the extent of the damage, or just what the problems will be until the injury is put through its paces, and we can't do that until you're properly nourished and your body is properly functioning."

Unable to bite back the whimper, Bella shifted in her seat to better look at Demetri, who had turned back to the road. Her face was drawn, and her dark eyes were flat. "How long until then?" The downturn of his lips told her she probably wasn't going to like his answer, and when he opened his mouth, she was proved right.

"To be perfectly honest, I don't know. An infant vampire who has gone without feeding as long as you have, but in otherwise perfect condition? I could have that infant up to snuff in two, maybe three days depending on how much of an asshole it wanted to be. An abused, unfed infant who is in decent physical condition? Five days to a week, depending on what psychological trauma and physical deficit I have to combat as well. You? I have no answer because I've never dealt with one like you."

Scrubbing hard at the side of her face in agitation, Bella wanted to cry. That wasn't what she was expecting to hear, but she was glad he wasn't lying to try and make her feel better. Even still, she pushed a little more. "So, is there anything you do know about what's gonna happen to me?"

His eyes sparked as a brow lifted to his bangs. Locking their eyes, his voice dared her to question him. "Physically, I can personally guarantee nothing will happen to you without first going through me. I will not allow it." Holding her gaze for a moment longer, he then pursed his lips and clicked the back of his tongue. Looking back out the window, he continued. "Your protection aside, your recuperation, Néos, is going to be up to you and whether or not you accept my help. If you let me, I can feed you, and in a number of days your body will begin to function as it should. You're hearing will come back, your sight will sharpen, and your sense of smell will become stronger. If you let me, I can help you work through your minefield of emotions, specifically your anger, and begin the much longer and far more grueling process of reteaching you the art of rational thought and the concept of wise decision making." Glancing from the corner of his eye, he grinned. "And, for future record, blindly trusting random vampires, especially males, is a very bad decision."

Winking at her when she made a face at him, he cleared his throat as he prepared for what he assumed would be the harder pill for the girl to swallow. "What I cannot do, what no one can do, is heal the claw marks. That will take time, and I have absolutely no idea how much." Turning his head to look at her when she whined quietly, Demetri then sighed. "The truth is, infants don't survive shifter attacks. Hell, the vast majority of older vampires don't survive shifter attacks. They are designed by God to destroy the Devil's favored monster. Their teeth and claws are the only thing other than fire we cannot recover from. The teeth of our own kind don't do the kind of damage theirs do."

Lifting her right hand, Bella laid her palm against her cheek, her fingers settling into the grooves caused by Paul's claws. Swallowing again, and licking her lips, she couldn't even bring herself to look at Demetri when she asked her next question. "You're saying these are never going away, aren't you?"

Demetri gave a single, jerky nod. "The scars will remain for the rest of your life, yes. However, over time, and with an ungodly amount of effort, the underlying damage should mostly be able to be undone."

Slowly sliding her thumb over each divot in turn, Bella's voice was nearly nonexistent. "Mostly?"

Drumming his fingers on the steering wheel, Demetri then slowed the car again, pulling over to the side of the road. Shifting the car into park, he turned to lean against the door and crossed his arms. "My priority is restoring as much movement in your jaw as possible. If you cannot open your jaw wide enough, you cannot feed on your own. The longer it takes to get you to that point, the less chance there will ever be of you being in a position to care for yourself."

Rolling her head along the seat, Bella just looked at him for a long moment before speaking again. "What about my arm? I can only move it from the elbow down."

At the expected question, Demetri averted his eyes with a sigh. "You are going to have to trust I know what I'm doing, Néos. It is far more important you can move your jaw than it is you can move that arm."

Shifting her own eyes, she looked at what she could see of the slashes to her shoulder, frowning. "But, can't we do both at the same time?"

Demetri gave a nonchalant shrug, "Sure, but self-defense is pretty fucking useless if you're unable to eat. You may no longer have the ability to starve to death, but if you don't, or can't, feed, you will begin to deteriorate; as I'm sure you can tell from the dimming of your basic senses. Those are the first to go, and over time, your overall ability to move becomes affected. Restoring your ability to eat without assistance will eventually lead to your ability to move that arm. Blood is the only thing that can help you heal, and the more of it you drink, the better off you'll be over time."

"How much time?"

Tapping his finger on the wheel, he cocked a brow. "I do believe I already answered that."

He did; she couldn't deny that, she just really didn't like his answer. He didn't know. However, she was convinced it was more of a 'don't know for sure and don't want to be wrong' kind of thing, so with that hope in the forefront, she pursed her lips as best she could. "So... a few months?" When Demetri shook his head with an expression that clearly said he knew it was longer than that, she did frown, but was somewhat alright with the alternative. "A year?" She wouldn't like it, but she could do a year.

His expression not changing, he shook his head again. "No." Leaning forward, and keeping his movement slow was easy to follow, he reached toward her, and when she allowed it, ran the pad of his forefinger along the third claw grove, and the one that was the cause of most of the issues. "This one didn't just damage the surface like the others did." Using the other hand, he lowered the sun visor and flipped open the mirror, he then gently turned Bella's head enough so she could see what the injury actually looked like. "We're talking a time measured in decades, Neos."

If it were possible, Bella would have choked on her tongue. She had all but gone out of her way to not see what she looked like after Demetri led her from the woods, but now that she was basically forced to, if she could vomit, she would. Eyes only slightly in focus at this point, she shooed his hand away, replacing it with her own. She could actually see inside her mouth.

Where her eyes were locked, however, was on the hinge that had been sliced clean through. Pushing lightly on the underside of her jaw, she watched as the two parts slid against each other, but the sound she heard was two pieces of stone grinding together. Her voice was so quiet, had the windows been open, it would have been carried away on a light breeze. "Decadessss... as in more than one?"

Demetri answered with a shallow nod. "Our bodies can recover from a lot. We can bounce back from things that would blow your mind. But, we are not meant meant to bounce back from a run-in with a shifter; we are meant to die. The recovery for those who somehow survive their encounter is very long, and exceptionally painful."

Can this asshole stop with the truth bombs? Like... fuck. No, she wasn't mad per say, at least not at him. It was actually kinda nice in some sick way that he was being so forthcoming with his answers, but Jesus. It certainly lended credit to the saying 'the truth will set you free, but first it'll piss you off'. Clamping her hand over what she discovered to be a hole in her face, she then 'harrumphed' before snapping away from the mirror, once again returning her attention out the window.

Demetri, left blinking at the childish show of temper, took it as the clear sigh it was the conversation was over and settled himself back in his seat to finish the last twenty minutes of the drive. He saw the other cars pass them while he was talking to Bella, and had every intention of beating them to the airfield.

It wasn't by much, but he did pull into the entrance first.

Bella, while Demetri ignored every single road law ever created and then some, continued to sit silently in her seat, watching the world fly by. She still found the fact she could still make out every detail perfectly slightly odd, but she had mostly gotten used to it while she was in the forest. On the drive, though, she wasn't able to really focus on any one thing. Her mind continued to plague her questions, and she spent the time to the airfield trying to come up with something that resembled a suitable series of answers, but wasn't even able to come up with ones she didn't like. Sure, nothing Demetri said fell into the realm of 'okay'. It wasn't even really even on par with 'fucked up'. It was lower than that.

Even once Demetri stopped the car Bella didn't move much. All she did was shift slightly when the older vampire leaned toward so he could grab something out of the glovebox, but otherwise, she remained in her seat, staring off into the distance.

Demetri left her to do as she would as he gathered the random shit strewn throughout the car. He didn't pay much mind at all actually until after he was done cleaning out the car of their presence, and getting both his and Felix's bags from the trunk.

Likewise, Bella didn't really pay any attention to Demetri until he appeared outside her window, but all she did was shift her eyes up to him. When he cocked a brow at her, she sighed. She didn't get out of the car right when he opened her door, and instead gave herself a another minute and used that time to comb her hair with her fingers and forced it to lay over the side of her face and cover most the claw marks. Demetri's hood only did so much because she was so much smaller than he was and his jacket didn't fit her, and she didn't want anyone to see what had been pointed out to her.

She had only gotten her feet on the ground when the two SUVs pulled in, and the corner of her lip curled as she watched them slow to a halt several feet away. Taking Demetri's offered hand, she allowed him to help her stand, though once on her feet, Bella remained in the space between the car, the door, and Demetri's body. Looking over the door, her eyes narrowed and she turned her head slightly toward Demetri, and spoke in a level voice as she waved her hand in front of her cheek. "Did they have anything to do with this?"

Glancing at the SUVs from the corner of his own eyes, Demetri hummed in his throat. "What happened to you was the end result of a series of spectacularly bad decisions. Every single one lead to what happened, but it is rather difficult to put the blame on them for what comes naturally to a dog." He then glanced down at her with a spark in his eyes and smirk on his lips. "Won't stop me from doing it though. If they had simply used their brains, it certainly wouldn't have happened, and it's that truth that is going to bite them in the ass."

There was a grunt from Bella as she allowed Demetri to pull her away from the car. "I'd rather one of those wolves bite them in the ass. Seems like something of a better punishment for all involved. Turnabout being fair play or something like that."

There was a deep rumble in Demetri's chest as he chuckled and held his hand out to the side, indicating he wanted her to proceed him onto the plane. His mind kickstarted, formulating how to make that work, and what all would be involved when it came to caging and transporting, specifically, the wolf that harmed her. However, the tone in his voice when he spoke sent a tremor down Bella's spine. "I'm sure I can arrange that for you, Neos."

"Demetri."

Both Bella and the called after tracker paused, both turning back to Felix, who was now out of his truck, and leaning against the front tire. He had his arms crossed, and there was a darkness to his crinkled eyes. "We could have a problem." When Demetri cocked a brow, Felix pointed his thumb at the passenger area of the truck. "These assholes didn't shut up the whole way here, and the cockpit isn't exactly soundproof."

Demetri looked sidelong at the newborn, and caught the end of her rolling her eyes. She spoke under her breath, "color me fucking surprised." To which Demetri snorted.

Shaking his head, he returned his sights on his second. "It is only a problem if there is no solution, Felix, and I can think of four off the top of my head. You and the twins are resourceful enough. Figure it out."

Felix's lip curled in the corner as his boss and the changeling vanished into the plane. "Easy for you to say. You have the easy job."

"What does he want us to do?"

Turning his head, Felix sighed through his nose as he looked at Alec. "Didn't say. Just to figure it out." Looking back at the front of the jet, he waited until both Demetri and Bella were visible through the windows, and hummed. "He wanted to have her secured before the Cullens got out of the car, so we have about two to do that."

In the cockpit, Bella's eyes were wide as she looked around the space at the different lights and buttons. There were hundreds of them, and she blinked. "You can actually fly this thing?"

Grinning over his shoulder, Demetri chuckled. "Flying is easy. It's the landing you need to be concerned about."

Eyes going wider, she then scoffed and crossed her arms when Demetri winked at her. "You have a very dark sense of humor."

Grin still in place, he turned to face her fully. "Maybe, but..." using two fingers, he pushed against Bella's chest, knocking her enough off balance for her to fall into the seat behind her. "I was only half joking. Big plane means big gas tank, which then means big boom." Grin growing, he cocked his head to the side. "Do you have a guess as to what is more detrimental to our kind than shifter claws?" Her face clearly said she didn't actually need him to answer that, but when she remained silent, he leaned toward her and did so anyway with a whispered voice. "Big booms."

Swallowing hard, Bella's eyes darted back and forth in an attempt to keep herself from looking into Demetri's amused ruby eyes, but in the end, she looked right at him as she ran the back of her jacket covered hand over her bottom lip and chin. "You are slightly terrifying."

Straightening his spine and standing back up, Demetri actually laughed outright, and to Bella's shock, she actually found herself smiling slightly behind her hand at the sound. Giving her a real smile, Demetri dipped his head, his amusement still in his voice. "Thank you."

Bella's brows creased as she twisted around her seat as Demetri took the three steps to the exit of the cockpit, watching as he slid the door closed and shrug out of his jacket. "That wasn't a compliment."

Snorting quietly as he crouched, rolling his jacket and dropping it on the floor of the jet and adjusting it along the tiny space between the door and floor. "Sure it was. You just don't understand your species." Looking over his shoulder, he licked his lips. "The Cullens are an anomaly within our world. They are not the only ones that live around and interact with humans on a daily basis; the vast majority do. However, they are the only ones to actually go out of their way to not just be part of the human world, but pretend they belong there. If they acted just a little more like vampires and a little less like humans, I can say with damn near certainty you would not be a vampire right now."

While that was a pretty large point of contention in itself, Bella's face smoothed out as she followed Demetri again with her eyes. "And what a great one I turned out to be, huh?"

Unclasping the locks to the window, Demetri glanced back at her as he slid it open, hoping himself up to sit on the slide, poised to make a quick escape if one of the Cullens tried to run. "You seem to be doing alright, under the circumstances."

Anger rising again, Bella growled in her throat as she crossed her arms in a huff. "I have always understood vampires to be these... graceful, indestructible beings, and then there's me."

Looking out to the tarmac, Demetri jerked his head to the side in indication to load the Coven, but he responded without hesitation. "Your misunderstanding of a species you know nothing of when human shouldn't be something you hold against yourself as a vampire." Looking back at her over his shoulder, he pursed his lips. "We do fall, and we do get hurt. It's situational, true enough, but it does happen. Because of how fast we are, it is rarely graceful when we hit the dirt, and I've given injuries to vampires that would make yours look like scratches."

Blinking at him, Bella remained silent for a moment as that settled in her brain, and it wasn't until Demetri was looking away that she spoke again. "But I heard you say back at the Cullen's place that you've never seen a vampire as defenseless as I am."

Demetri didn't look back as he answered, his eyes locked on the herded coven. "I haven't, but allow me to clarify. When I injure someone, they have no need to later defend themselves," glancing at her from the corner of his eye, "because they don't survive their injuries."

Bella's unneeded breath caught in her throat as she remained trapped in Demetri's gaze for a long moment. It felt like every ounce of air was stolen from her when he finally looked away, and she sagged in her seat. There was a rock in her stomach as a tremor danced down her spine. Her voice shook, but she wasn't sure, exactly, if she could say it was from fear. "Did I say slightly terrifying?" Against her better judgement, she shifted her eyes back to the male vampire that was coiled tight and clearly ready to bolt. "You're downright macabre."

All she could do when the sound of the most sinister chuckle she had ever heard danced across her ears was thank God himself Demetri seemed to like her, and make the mental note to never, ever, give him a reason to change his mind on where she stood on his good side.