Here's chapter two. I've written a lot of the story on my computer and I'm going to try and upload the chapters as fast as I can. If you've stuck around to read the second chapter, you're the best. Thanks!
It's shorter than last chapter, but I really like this one.
Disclaimer: Don't own Twilight or water bending, but I do own Ivy.
(Chapter Two)
You'd think that passing out would be fun, blissful, pain-free. Well, it wasn't.
I was nauseous and it felt like I was swaying back and forth in a hammock and there were splinters of pain everywhere - pricks in the crease of my elbow, cracks in my rib cage with every breath, spikes in my throat when I moved my head.
It totally sucked.
Finally, finally, I broke through the fog and woke up.
I was in a white gown, covered from head to toe in bandages, laying on crunchy hospital sheets in a plain hospital room—my least favorite place in the world— alone and pissed off.
That damn vampire just had to loose it and send me into a freaking tree!? That's it! I am getting my license no matter what it takes.
On cue, Carlisle walked into the room with his best doctorly expression on his face. He even had on his knee-length lab coat and patient file in his hands.
"What the hell happened?" I rasped through a voice that reminded me distinctly of chipped paint.
I tried to sit up and cringed onto the sheets. "Take it easy." He said apologetically. "Alice had an intense vision and crashed the car. You were severely injured and we had to pull you from the wreckage."
"How bad am I doc?"
"Three broken ribs, six serious gashes including one on your face along with numerous other scrapes, and extreme blood loss. We couldn't type you, so it was touch and go for a while."
"Why'd you bring me to a hospital?" I asked, rather annoyed. I mean breaking out of hospitals was a tricky business. When you were as young as me every staff member always had a million pesky questions. Like what my name was and who my parents were. Nosy, am I right?
Carlisle chuckled at my tone, "What else would you have had me do?"
"I don't know? Draw a bath?" I said, breathing evenly through my nose. I needed water. Lots of it. Sooner rather than later would be nice.
"We considered that, but I was afraid of drowning you or causing an infection."
"I can breath water." I said, struggling to my feet.
"Let me help you." He said, sweeping me into his marble arms. I shivered from their cold and he smiled apologetically.
"You need to get me out of here. I don't want to get on the news for being a medical miracle again."
"Again?" He asked, then shook his head. "Of course, but there's no need to sneak away. This room is in our home. I had it built when Edward began dating Bella in case she ever needed medical assistance and we couldn't explain her injures."
I blinked. "That's really messed up."
"That's the way of things unfortunately." He shrugged, making my abdomen scream in pain. "Edward would never purposefully hurt her, but if you hadn't intervened at her birthday, I would have brought her here to stitch her up."
"How many days has it been since her birthday, by the way?" I asked, hardly wanting the answer.
"Five."
I cringed. That's a long time to be asleep. The pain was steadily becoming overwhelming as it spread through every limb. "Please, get me to a bath full of water." I begged, burying my face into his chest. "Unless you have a pool around here somewhere."
"Of course." I felt him moving and there was a considerable amount of wind blowing through my matted hair and when I opened my eyes we were in an massive bathroom.
Esme smiled at me as she filled a deep jacuzzi tub with steamy water. "Dear, I'm so happy to see you awake." She smiled, patting my face.
I managed a smile back and eyed the tub greedily. "I think I can stand."
Carlisle helped me slide to my feet and after a moment of extreme dizziness, I looked up into the mirror. Horror froze me in place. My hair was red with blood, my face was black and blue with a terrible cut going from my hairline to my jaw. The hospital gown was stained with gore and there were bandages all over my arms and legs seeping blood.
"I look hideous!" I shrieked. Thank God for these healing powers. Soon I would be good as new. I turned to my vampire helpers. "How can you be around me, anyway?" I asked curiously gesturing to the blood.
"It's difficult for me." Esme said almost shamefully, "But our diet gives us clear consciouses and better control over the cravings. We drink only animal blood. Carlisle himself is practically immune to the draw of human blood."
"I'm impressed. That must explain the eyes." I said, relieved when the tub was full. I crept slowly to the side and looked back at them. "This could take a while. I can breath under the water, so don't try to pull me out."
They nodded, looking at me curiously. I dipped my finger in the water, making it a degree hotter before easing my entire body into the heated tub that now glowed like the full moon.
Under the water was heaven. My muscles relaxed as soon as the heat circled them. (I really loved being warm.) I drank a huge gulp, allowing the healing infused water to soothe my sore throat and neck from the inside out, as well as any internal injuries I may have sustained.
I ripped off bandages and felt the skin on my face close up slowly. I ran my hands over the smooth skin of my jaw, reveling in the feeling of being whole. It felt like minutes, but hours must've passed as my ribs came back together and the bruises faded and every cut was sealed shut after I carefully tugged each useless stitch out with a blade of water. When I finally stood on two feet I was giddy with the healing sensation, completely fine and one hundred percent back to normal.
"Now, that felt good." I said wiping water from my eyes. I was greeted by the entire vampire clan.
"That was awesome!" Emmett said appreciatively.
The rest of them murmured their thoughts and I smiled at their complements. But my smile died when Alice walked forward slowly. "Ivy, I'm so, so sorry. I've had visions before, but they're never lasted that long. And I've never hurt anyone because of one before. I feel so terrible."
I narrowed my eyes at her. "You almost killed me." I accused.
"I know." She said, hanging her head miserably. "If you could have felt what I felt, you'd understand why I got so distracted."
I crossed my arms, feeling more than a little ridiculous that I was standing in a tub dripping from head to toe. "I forgive you, but don't get offended if I never accept ride from you again."
She nodded her head once. "I understand." A smile spread slowly over her face.
"Well." I said, looking at the vampires. "I'm really leaving this time. See ya!"
"You can't!" Edward protested. "You're supposed to stay with us."
"Excuse me?" I asked, slightly worried that they were going to lock me in a closet or something.
"Alice, tell her." He nudged her with his shoulder.
"Well," She began carefully. "The soothsayer was right. You really did change everything. I saw what was supposed to happen to our family from the point where Bella got cut on her birthday to far into the future. Then, I saw it get erased like chalk off a blackboard."
"So?" I asked, "What's that got to do with me?"
"Edward was supposed to feel so guilty about hurting Bella, so guilty that he was going to leave and make us go with him creating a domino effect, but now that future is completely lost."
"I repeat: so?"
"So," Jasper bit out in annoyance. "In our new future, Alice sees you staying with us."
"And why would I ever do a thing like that?" I asked, my annoyance matching the vampire's.
"Because we can give you what you lack," Said Esme in the sweetest tone imaginable. "A family."
I froze in shock, completely taken aback by the offer. The family thing, not the place to say since she already offered that once.
My eyes narrowed. "How do you know I don't have a family?"
Rosalie surprised me by answering. "When you were in the accident, we took it upon ourselves to search for any relatives you may have. It was difficult since we only had your first name, but we tracked you down in an old search alert for a runaway foster child. And we sort of guessed the rest."
I relaxed. They knew I had been in foster care, but they didn't know why. And that was a story I had rather keep to myself at the moment.
"I've been on my own for a while. I'm used to it." I said, looking seriously at everyone in the room.
"But you don't have to be anymore." Alice said. "Our initial meeting was rough to begin with, but we can get past that. I've seen you stay and you blossom with us."
I'll admit, the temptation to accept their offer was strong. These people were rich, lived in a nice house, drove nice cars, and seemed relatively happy and close-knit. But that didn't mean I would fit in with them and be happy as well.
And another draw back… They were bloodsuckers!
"Being afraid for my life every second doesn't seem that appealing to me." I said and a few of them looked offended.
"No one has fallen off the wagon in decades." Carlisle said soothingly. To be honest, I wasn't all that soothed.
"This family was started because none of us had a home. You're still a child in so many ways. Don't you feel tired? Don't you want a place to stay? To have people looking after you instead of just looking after yourself?" Edward asked.
They all looked so open, so hopeful for me to join their ranks. Even Jasper… well sort of. He looked like he would be content either way.
My eyes became suspiciously misty.
Edward hit the nail on the head. I did miss having a home. It had been so long since I'd been able to kick up my feet in a place that I felt welcome. Not a place I had begged to stay at or scrounged up money to rent for the night. 'Maybe, just maybe, this could work. Maybe I don't have to be alone anymore…'
I took a huge breath, "I can't believe I'm saying this, but I accept your offer. I'll stay." I said, surprised by how happy they all seemed at my words. "It's strictly on a trial basis and absolutely no biting." I said sternly. "Or I'm gone."
And just like that I gained a set of parents and more siblings than I knew what to do with.
Esme got to work right away saying she was going to convert what she called 'Carlisle's art room' into my bedroom. Emmett challenged me to a sparring session, 'vampire versus elemental: the battle of the century' or so he called it. Alice and Rosalie said we needed to go shopping. Carlisle asked me hundreds of questions about my powers and Edward wanted to know about the spell on me that blocked his mind reading. The only quiet one was Jasper, but I didn't take it personally. He seemed to be quiet in general.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa." I said, holding up my hands to stop the flood of words. "First thing's first. I need my stuff from the hotel. And," I added, plucking at the nasty hospital gown. "A change of clothes."
"I'll get her something!" Alice and Rose said at the same time, running from the room so fast it made my wet hair sway in a gust of wind.
"Um, okay." I said. "Jasper, will you drive me to the motel? Fingers crossed they haven't thrown out my stuff yet." I said, thinking the quiet one would be the best option for a driver. Not a physic or a mind reader who are too easily distracted by thoughts or visions.
He nodded once, not looking happy. Well fine. I wasn't going to consider him an honorary brother if that was the case.
"We should make this official, Ivy. We could forge papers allowing Esme and I full guardianship. You could attend school, get a license…" Carlisle said with a hesitant, hopeful smile. I was a little wary about having anything official written down about me, I preferred to stay off the radar. But he did say forge and license…
"Alright. It's Ivy Mae Adair. I'll be seventeen on December 8th." I said, knowing his quick brain would remember the information.
"I'll draw up the papers now. Would you like to attend Forks High School with Edward and Alice and Bella?"
"Um…" Now, a home I was excited about, but I hadn't been to school since I ran away from my foster home… at twelve. I'm sure they've gone over much harder stuff since then.
"You'll do fine, dear." Esme said helping me from the tub to wrap me in a chilly hug. She was acting more and more motherly with every passing second, but it didn't feel forced. Taking care of people just seemed like her natural state of being.
"Alright, but I'm not bookish in the slightest." I said reluctantly. "I'll probably flunk out the first day."
"Nonsense." Carlisle said patting my head in a fatherly way. "You'll do fine. I'm going to draw up those papers. Esme?" He said, pulling her from the room, Edward followed close behind.
Now it was just Emmett and Jasper.
"So…" I said, pulling water from my hair carefully and tossing it back into the tub. "What's it like living here?"
"Boring usually." Emmett answered, his eyes on my every movement as I worked with the water.
My brow furrowed. "You have endless time. What do you do with it?"
"School." Jasper said.
"Keeping up the human charade." Emmett added.
"That's all?" I asked in disbelief.
"What else is there?" Jasper asked almost rhetorically.
I stated the obvious. "Helping people, obviously."
Emmett snorted. "We have to stay hidden. If any regular human finds out about us, we will be put to death and so will they."
"So? The Voltori are a world away." I said, naming the boogeyman of vampire bedtime stories.
"How do you know about the Voltori?" Emmett asked, brows raised.
"I find it useful to know my enemy." I said, tossing my now-dry hair over my shoulder and placing my hands on my hips. "You have power, gifts, money; but it seems like Carlisle is the only one of you who actually contributes anything to the world outside."
Neither vampire boy had a thing to say against me.
"Wow." I sat on the edge of the tub. "Self-centered much?" I said to myself quietly before I remembered that they could hear me.
"Excuse me, but I don't see how a child would know more about this than we would. Emmett and I are decades older than you'll ever be. We understand the workings of the world from a vampire's standpoint. You don't." Jasper said, his frown was on the knife's edge of irritating and terrifying.
"I don't care how old you are." I ground out, pissed that he was always annoyed with me. And I really didn't like being called a child. "Do you know where I was two weeks ago?"
He was silent.
"A coal mine on the east coast had hit an underground river and it flooded with water. Tons of workers were trapped in the maze. While the rescue team was struggling to find a way to help them, I swam inside, froze the leak, and got the seventy-six survivors out." I stood nose to nose with Jasper. "I may be young, but I don't squander my talents. I save lives. What do you do? Play teenager?"
Done with the conversation, I swept from the room. Ignoring Jasper's angry eyes and Emmett's appreciative "Damn."
Ugh! What a jerk! How could they just sit around and do nothing when they were basically invulnerable to harm? The lives they could be saving. The difference they could make in the world…
"There you are!" Alice said, running up to me at lightening speed with a pair of grey skinny jeans, flower print blouse, and green cardigan right when Rosalie darted to my side with a regular pair of jeans, red sweater, and black converse tennis shoes.
"Sorry, Alice." I said, reaching for the sweater and jeans. "This is more my style. I'm not a blouse and cardigan kind of girl." Rose looked triumphant and Alice pouted openly.
"Told you, Alice." Rosalie chimed.
"I'll soon change your mind." Alice promised with a giggle. "Jasper! Time to take our new sister to the motel!" She called and I jumped a little at the unfamiliar title, ducking into the nearest room and quickly changing clothes. Thankfully the bra and panties Rose snagged were the right size, as well as the rest of the ensemble.
"Ready?" I asked Jasper when I emerged from the room fully clothed.
"Let's go." He said, leading me to the garage, now minus a black Lexus. He chose a silver Volvo and slid in the driver's seat.
I opened the door, but didn't get inside. "Promise you won't crash?"
"Just get in." He said with the perfect imitation of a storm cloud and pulled my arm so I was forced to sit.
"Ow!" I complained rubbing my wrist. "Don't manhandle me, got it?"
"I'm not afraid of you, you don't have any water in here." He said smugly. Then it started raining. Not just drizzling either, but a torrential downpour in a matter of seconds.
"You were saying?" I smirked, making circles and spirals in the rain for him to see.
"Alright." He grumbled. "Put on your seatbelt, you win this round."
"Thanks." I clicked the belt into place and off we went.
It didn't take long for Jasper to get us to town, mostly because he sped so quickly I thought I was going to have a stroke. I used my power to move the water away from the wheels, so at least we wouldn't hydroplane. No matter how great my body felt, I wasn't ready for another head-on collision.
We pulled into the motel parking lot and I got out and strode to the dingy management office, wiping rain from my face as the downpour continued. "Hidy-ho there!" A plump woman with a pleasingly chipper Canadian accent said from behind the checkout desk. "What can I do for ya?"
"I was in room 13 a few days ago and I was in an accident and couldn't get back to pick up my belongings. Do you happen to have my bag? Its a blue book-bag with random keychains hanging on the zipper." I crossed my fingers, hoping she didn't throw it out. It was all I had in the world.
"Oh, you betcha! I have it right here!" She said kindly, pulling out my worn bag and handing it over.
"Thank you so much!" I said, pulling the straps over my shoulders. "Can I give you something in return for holding it for me?"
"No, don't worry about it. It was no problem. You just have a nice day, alrighty?"
"I will. Thank you ma'am." I waved and walked out of the office, too preoccupied with my bag to notice the guy walking in. I bumped into him pretty hard.
"Excuse me!" I said, stepping around him. But he moved in my way, huddling close to me under the tiny awning over the office door.
"What do we have here?" He said. I looked up into a weathered mid-forties face with a scruffy beard and frayed jeans and flannel. A hunter, no doubt. "You like a girl who could use a good time. Me and my buddies were just about to buy some beer and rent a room. Want to join us, beautiful?"
Wow, a yankee in these parts. Who'da guessed?
It was probably as novel as a southerner here actually…
"Sorry, I'm a minor." I said, trying to side step him again, but he blocked me.
"That's alright, we won't turn you in." He winked and I felt my stomach turn with disgust. Yeah right!
"Like I said—" I began but was cut off.
"Why don't you be on your way and leave my sister alone?" Jasper said coming up behind the rude guy. He couldn't see Jasper, but he could sense the predator in his bones. Bloodshot eyes went wide and he actually shivered with fear.
"Sorry." He said, turning to peek at Jazz from over his shoulder. "You have a good day." He said to me before rushing inside.
I chuckled as Jasper growled under his breath. "Hey," I hit his chest lightly with the back of my hand. "Ease up. I could've handled him." I said.
"Lust is very irritating." He said wiping at his arms as if they were covered in dirt and he was trying to get it off.
"Come again?"
"I'm an empath." He said, not elaborating much. But that was alright, I knew empaths were gifted with the ability to feel other's emotions, control them as well if they were powerful enough.
"That must suck." I said, patting his shoulder sympathetically before trudging back to the car.
He caught up easily, "And that doesn't bother you? That I can feel what you feel?"
"Why should it?" I shrugged. "I wear my emotions on my sleeve. It's nothing to hide."
He chuckled before ducking into the car. "I know you could have handled him." He said once we were on the road again. "But you're one of us now. We look out for each other. Get used to it."
"Okay. I'll return the favor the next time an older woman gives you untoward attention." I said with a cheeky smile, wringing a laugh from the stoic vampire.
I think I was going to like it in this family.
There. Short, but sweet.
Thanks for sticking with me this far. I have to admit, the idea of people reading my stories makes me feel kind of sick with nerves, but if I ever want to publish an original work, I'd better get used to actually letting people read my stuff.
Love will soon be in the air for any helps romantics like me out there.
Chapter 3 soon!
P.S. As usual, please forgive my spelling/grammatical errors. I wrote this in a hurry. :)