Chapter Fifteen: Unexpected Friends
The Cullen/Swan Residence - February 11th
"It was a marvelous deception, we had no idea you were faking your misery." Eliza said with a big smile. Marcus was sitting across from everyone next to Didyme on a loveseat against the far wall from the fireplace. The floor to ceiling windows overlooking the river were letting in enough direct sunlight to reveal how each member of the Swan and Denali covens were different.
"We are both masters of deception, I knew you were different, but not to this extent." Marcus observed, giving her and Isabella a respectful nod.
"It was easy to hide when it was our job to keep up appearances. If I had any idea you would conceal our nature, I would have confided in you decades ago." Isabella said simply, but Marcus waved it away.
"It is easy to understand that your secrets were to protect yourself and your daughter, in truth I had secrets of my own as you see. My misery was easy to fake, I simply stayed as I was when I thought she was gone. That is not important, what is important is what we do now. Without the support of the Volturi, can we count our forces as those present now?" Marcus waved his hand towards the gathering. Everyone was present except for the wolf packs, Rosalie and Angela.
"Yes and no, my second and my sister are checking on something personal. There are also the Quileute, they are our friends and allies. They number around twenty." Isabella offered, knowing that she was placing trust in Marcus with this information.
"As much as I feel like you are kin, I don't know what to call you. So I'll start with Isabella, I did not know you had a living family." Didyme said with a wide happy smile, the look on her face spoke to an affection for Isabella that was a bit unexpected. Isabella looked at her with her head tilted in curiosity for a few seconds before responding.
"I didn't know they were alive, and I only found out on Monday when they showed up in Forks after the destruction of their patronage in Chicago. This is my biological father, Charlie Swan." Isabella motioned towards Charlie who stepped forward towards Marcus, his hands awkwardly at his side.
"Ah, it is a great honor to meet you. Isabella did not speak often about her human life, but I got a very good impression of you as an honorable man, a dutiful servant of the law and an excellent father." Marcus said, rising and holding out a hand to Charlie who glanced at Isabella and then took his hand shaking it. In the brief contact Charlie got a taste of Marcus' long life. Thousands of years of memories, mainly focused on the woman beside him, his love and loss. Although in the last century he had plenty of good interactions with Isabella and Eliza, those were precious to him,and Charlie felt awed getting to experience some of the time he had lost with his family.
"I wish I had a better impression of you, we avoided the council at all costs." Charlie said, pulling his hand away a bit reluctantly.
"Yes, you must be one of the phantom enforcers Michael Caravelli kept concealed." Marcus guessed, his eyes examining Charlie's face for any hint of his abilities.
"Fun name, but not so dramatic. Angela and I are both gifted and were worried about being forced into serving the Volturi guard. In retrospect maybe we should have." Charlie looked back at Isabella with a touch of melancholy on his brow. He would mourn the time they had missed, but was determined to hold onto his family with whatever strength he had.
"Gifts." Marcus said almost as a curse shaking his head in obvious shame and disappointment, "Aro was obsessed with the gifted. I found his need to collect the gifted tedious and morally bankrupt. That being said, my time in the Volturi was not always negative, and to that I would be remiss not to acknowledge three familiar faces. Eleazar, it is good to see you again my old friend. Talia, I'm happy you chose Isabella, I always knew you were too good of a soul for the Volturi. And Henry, I know this is not the life you would have chosen, but I hope you can find some peace with it." Marcus' voice was almost alive with affection and genuine emotion, and it was startling to all who knew him. Yet it was also so welcome to see him happy that none of them were bothered by the change. Talia in particular looked shocked, and forgetting Angela was elsewhere looked around for her support. There she found Esme, who offered a shoulder which she took after less than a second of hesitation. The warmth of the motherly embrace felt calming and happy.
"Are you okay?" Angela sent across their link a second later.
"I am just surprised that Marcus even noticed me." Talia sent back, her mind spinning from the information.
"I am still adjusting." Henry confirmed with a small nod, which also drew Talia back to the present.
"I'll be fine, focus on Rose. I can't believe…" Talia had a vague idea of what was happening during the tests Angela was conducting on Rosalie, and was trying not to react.
"Please keep it in confidence until I know for sure, if I'm right all of our lives are about to change." Angela's inner voice was conflicted, but Talia could hear hope and joy laced through her words. It was more than she had felt from Angela in the entirety of the short time they had been connected.
Marcus nodded with a knowing smile, "That's good. I feel now is a proper time to address an old wound. Tanya." Marcus turned towards the Denali who were all gathered together, each couple holding onto each other. Tanya reluctantly nodded towards Marcus. She had been uncomfortable in his presence since he arrived.
"I know my presence causes you some pain, but please understand that I never agreed with the choice to kill your mother. While Vasilli had to be put down, we had no choice in that, Sasha did not deserve execution for loving the child. It is a policy as corrupt as Aro and Caius, to kill those who would make a single mistake." Marcus had never publicly stated such an opposition, his implicit approval by not expressing his opinion had been weighing heavily on his shoulders for centuries.
"It was a known violation of law, and she understood the consequences. But it still hurts." Irina said diplomatically, her jaw working from anger. Tanya was oddly silent, her face still and expressionless, but her eyes were alight with conflict.
"I took no pleasure in taking her life, but then I had no ability to empathize. When Didyme came back into my life, I went over all my actions with a new appreciation for the humanity I had thought was lost when she died. Among my transgressions, Sasha's death did stand out to me. I am sorry for my part in it, although I know there are no words to make such an act forgivable." Marcus didn't feel responsible, but he did feel guilty, that much was clear in his expression.
Tanya just stared at Marcus for several long seconds, as Irina pulled her into a hug and Tanya let go of something she had been holding onto for centuries. Kate gave him a small smile, "thanks, we don't talk about her very much."
"I guess we should move on to a different topic. Joham." Isabella interrupted, and Eliza visibly tensed at the name.
"I have not heard of him in quite some time." Marcus raised an eyebrow and sighed heavily. "A reprehensible man, the council was deadlocked when it came to his punishment. Caius wanted him dead, I couldn't weigh his actions outside moral objections so I abstained, and Aro wanted him freed. It was a rare moment where Caius and Aro were not in lockstep. Eventually Aro convinced me of his value so I agreed he should be released. Now to hear he is the one responsible for all these explosions and destroyed covens, I deeply regret my choice."
"I wouldn't exist if he hadn't been freed. I hate the man, but he gave me life." Eliza said without much emotion in her voice, trying desperately not to share the anger she felt.
"Hmm, I see fate is not without a sense of irony. You may be a significant part of Joham's eventual undoing." Marcus smiled at her, and his acceptance made her visibly relax.
"Well I see there is a lot to discuss. Although I feel we should probably wait for Rosalie and Angela to return." Isabella interrupted again, her arms crossed and her expression hard. She didn't want to talk about Joham, but it was finally time to evaluate their options.
The Swan House - February 11th
"Pregnant?" Rosalie gasped, her hands immediately moving to her stomach, her mind reeling and shocked. Yet as the news filtered through, a sense of euphoria overwhelmed her senses and she started to sob heavily. Angela faltered slightly, before reaching forward and opening her arms for her. Rosalie didn't even hesitate, and buried her face in Angela's shoulder. It took almost a full five minutes for her to recover, pulling back she thought about the biggest and most glaring issue with the news.
"I don't understand, I haven't been intimate with Emmett in over two weeks since all of this started with Isabella." Rosalie frowned, her mouth falling from the smile that had brightened her features more than at any point in the last two centuries.
"Well, I did some tests. Checking for egg production and fertility, and what I found is quite frankly beyond my expertise, but I'm doing research. It seems as though you… we… I suspect…" Angela stammered a bit, still reeling from the information. She could feel Talia starting to react too, but sent a distinct impression to her not to interrupt. Talia relented, a bit deflated but still excited while trying not to show it on her face to the coven.
"Just spit it out." Rosalie said getting a touch irritated.
"I've been curious about our… systems for lack of a better term. How we digest blood, why we can eat now, how does our body heal as it does. So I examined blood, used the ultrasound and took a few x-rays of myself. Our organs have shifted and in some cases merged. We are not really human or vampire, a new species I believe. What I could find without dissecting one of us is that all our old organs have turned into a closed loop that consumes blood as fuel for cells. We don't have a circulatory system, we don't need oxygen, we apparently function through a very complicated form of osmosis. Food is burnt as well, it just takes longer and doesn't provide as many nutrients to our bodies. That change to our system has apparently altered the nature of our reproductive system. I don't know how it happened, but apparently we are now asexual, capable of reproducing at will." Angela sounded awed and a bit overwhelmed by the information, her usually serene and perhaps hard countenance were twisted into an expression of worry.
"Holy shit." Both Talia and Rosalie said out loud. Angela tried not to react to Talia apologizing for the interruption, and trying to walk it back so she didn't have to explain.
"You could say that again." Angela said a bit deadpan, mildly irritated with her new lover.
"So Emmett…" Rosalie's brow furrowed as she followed the chain of information.
"Is not the father. Actually, I'm pretty sure he could reproduce with a human woman, but we are different." Angela hadn't considered her own needs yet, whether she would want another child. To give Zoey a sister. Yet it was a terrifying prospect, the infant would be a complete unknown. Sure it was unlikely to be more powerful than any of them, but would it be a monster? The implications were impossible to wrap her head around.
"It doesn't matter, he will be a wonderful father." Rosalie said, rocking back and forth. Her entire sense of self was starting to unravel. She had wanted to be a parent her entire life.
Angela clicked her teeth a couple of times, "you may not want to get too excited yet, we don't know if this pregnancy will go to term. We don't know exactly what the gestation cycle will be or the nature of the life inside of you. However, I did some basic math, from the rate of growth using how long you have been like you are as a starting point, I estimate maybe a month before you give birth. If that is even possible. I will be with you through it all, monitoring your progress, I just hope this massive battle ahead of us doesn't rear its ugly head before then."
Rosalie rolled her eyes in annoyance, "right. Just when I'm getting everything, fate seems to want to punish me."
"I don't think so, I'm being pessimistic because that's who I have become. I want to be who I once was, the sweet girl who wanted to be your friend…" Angela tilted her head, wondering if she should say the other thing that had occurred to her over the years, then realized there was no reason to conceal it. "Actually I had a crush on you, although I didn't realize it for what it was until years later. Heh, sorry."
"No reason to apologize, I'm flattered. I always thought you were a beautiful person destined for a wonderful life. When I heard it was cut short I was very upset. I'm so glad you found Zoey, she's a wonderful kid." Rosalie put a reassuring hand on her shoulder, and for once Angela didn't pull away.
"Thanks Rose. Zoey has restored some of who I used to be, but like Isabella, I doubt I'll ever be the same." Angela looked down, and Rosalie squeezed her shoulder slightly causing Angela to look up and smile softly at her. It wasn't the bright and innocent smile Rosalie remembered, but it was still wonderful to see.
"Anyway, I think… I mean I wonder, should we tell everyone now? Or wait to see if this pregnancy is real?" Rosalie asked, trying to figure out how this kind of news would land. It was going to be mixed no matter how it was related to the family, that much was certain.
"I don't know, but I guess it is partially my decision to make. We should tell Isabella first." Angela sighed slightly then shook her head before standing up from the chair near the bed they had used for the examination, and moved over to her make-shift lab leaning forward against the table feeling like the weight of the world was suddenly on her shoulders. She had given up on life for all intents and purposes, now she basically had a serious and permanent girlfriend and the possibility of expanding her family. It felt like too much.
"Alright, I'll let you know how Isabella reacts. Thank you for this." Rosalie pushed up from the bed and started putting on her shoes.
"I'm happy to help you explain it to her." Angela frowned, then took a deep breath before continuing. "I should tell you that Talia already knows."
"Of course, you bonded with her right?" Rose said with an easy nod, with no hint of anger or frustration. Angela let out a relieved sigh, turned around, and gave Rose a small smile.
"We are, and it is kind of amazing. She's my match, my… god soulmate I guess. She's such a good person, and I'm starting to feel like maybe I'm deserving of love after all." Angela felt awkward, unsure of her own feelings no matter how clear and focused she felt about her new lover.
"You are, we all are. I guess I felt the same for a long time. How could anyone love a block of stone? Thankfully Emmett reminded me daily that I was worthwhile." Rosalie smiled, her love of her husband clear on her face.
"Alright, let's do this. I can already imagine how she will react." Angela almost chuckled, and Rosalie nodded once before they took off together towards the other house.
The Swan/Cullen Residence - February 11th
"You're saying we can reproduce at will!" Isabella said aggressively under her breath. Everyone gathered in the house were talking quietly amongst themselves, but they were all trying to discreetly watch the three of them talk.
"Basically yes." Angela said with pursed lips.
"I've wanted a child for as long as I can remember, that's two centuries of longing." Rosalie tried to explain, looking to Angela who nodded once in agreement.
"What Rosalie is trying to say is that we believe that her need for a child is what triggered the pregnancy, I'm not entirely sure it was conscious. It is also likely why it happened to her first, and so quickly." Angela amended, and Isabella slowly nodded as she tried to absorb something almost unbelievable.
"Alright, let's share the news." Isabella said with a deep and mildly irritated frown.
"I would suggest caution, we don't know how viable this is. Until we know more it might not be good to get anyone's hopes up." Angela warned, but Isabella immediately shook her head.
"Yeah, and under normal circumstances I would agree. However, we can't afford to have our best fighters out of commission. Eliza is in love, if they start talking about a family… I cannot lose her skills in this fight." Isabella kept her voice low and steady, no matter how she felt about it emotionally. She also had her side of the link shut down almost completely, not wanting Alice, Eliza or Brianna to hear about this yet.
"That's cold, even for us." Rosalie admonished.
Isabella met her gaze and held firm, "I know, but I have to be pragmatic. Rosalie you were never a combatant, and a pregnancy will not interfere with your ability to help me lead this coven. When the time comes we'll figure it out, we have some time I imagine."
"About a month, give or take." Angela said without hesitation.
"A month! Fuck me." Isabella swore loudly, looking up at the sky which was starting to threaten to rain again, the clouds heavy and black. "Alright, do you know how it works?"
Angela shook her head, "not yet, but it is possible some of us have already started the process. It depends on the nature of the person. I can examine all of us to be sure. I guess it was a mistake to turn us all at once."
Isabella half nodded with a head tilt, closing her eyes in tacit acceptance, "maybe, but I have been like this for a century. Now you're telling me I could've had several children on my own?"
"Yes, in theory, " Angela nodded once with a bit of hesitation.
"It is what it is. Let's do this." Isabella didn't wait for them to respond, and turned towards the house. She kept going until she reached the middle of the room and surveyed everyone gathered. "There has been a development. Marcus, Didyme, this is coven business would you mind waiting out of earshot. We will come for you as soon as this is settled."
Marcus looked to his wife, and they both nodded in unison before gracefully standing and walking out the back towards the river and jumping across hand in hand. Isabella wasn't sure, but she could swear Marcus actually chuckled with joy as he landed.
"Okay, I'm going to give Angela the floor because I'm honestly having a hard time wrapping my head around this one." Isabella motioned for Angela who stood and moved to the center, facing the entire room without an expression on her face.
"Rosalie, please you should say it." Isabella motioned for Rosalie to take the floor.
Rosalie moved forward, her body language closed and unsure. "Um, well… I'm pregnant."
"What?!" Emmett said, his eyes bulging as his face curled up into the biggest grin ever. Then after less than a second of shock, he flashed over and picked up Rosalie into a huge bear hug, swinging her around a few times before setting her down gently with a somewhat sheepish look on his face.
"That wouldn't hurt the baby right?" He looked over at Angela.
"No, you're fine." Angela gave him a terse smile.
Esme was there a second later, placing her hands on Rosalie's upper arms. Rose met her hopeful gaze and muttered, 'mama'. Before burning her face in Esme's neck letting out a happy sob. Angela took the floor and bit her lip before launching into the explanation. Five minutes later and the room was silent, the expressions ranging from shock and bewilderment to absolute joy.
"So we really are the beginning of an entirely new species." Henry scratched his chin. "Or rather… I guess I'm a genetic dead end."
"Not necessarily, you should be able to procreate with a human woman. Although I have no idea what the result of that coupling would produce. It would also be dangerous for the mother, as the child would be measurably stronger even in the womb." Angela corrected.
"That follows, given that hybrids already exist." Henry nodded with a thoughtful chin dip and slight tilt of his head.
"The implications of this alone are staggering. You're telling me that we are the beginning of an entirely new race of people?"
"Perhaps, I haven't really thought that out yet. To be honest, I'm kind of terrified of the fact that I can now have biological children. It is a lot to work through after being living stone for almost a century." Angela pondered, her entire body clearly tense and coiled up. Then Talia moved over to stand next to her, and intertwined her fingers with Angela's right hand. Angela shut her eyes tightly, a little torn about how much the simple touch affected her.
"Yes, we all have to adjust. However, let's keep this topic under wraps for now. Also, I know this must be a shock, but if you are going to be fighting in the battle to come, please refrain from inducing pregnancy if at all possible." Isabella kept her voice devoid of emotion,
"Those are words I never thought would be uttered out loud." Eliza said with a weak laugh, then surveyed the room. Everyone was trying to work through the information in their own way. Except for Alice who looked devastated. Eliza shook that off and continued, "as much as it pains me to say, I think mom is right. This fight is going to be brutal, I have no doubt that word has gotten back to Joham about the failure of his forces against the Denali and Cullens, so he will probably send more soon. How soon is anyone's guess, but I have no doubt he will not underestimate us again."
"He gathers over a thousand newborns and wolves to attack us. He also brings all of his commanders as well. We are the last intact coven still standing. The other survivors will flock to us for protection and revenge. Except we fail. I've tried a thousand different versions and I have not found a single one where we pull through." Alice said somberly.
"Okay Doctor Strange, keep looking. We'll figure something out." Eliza said, flaring her nostrils in frustration.
"I wish there was that one chance. Every single scenario I've seen ends in at least half of us dying."
"Not ideal, but I assume we win the day in those scenarios?" Garrett said with a serious tone of voice. He didn't like the outcome, but couldn't argue if they were successful.
"In that one, yes, it was an intentional sacrifice play and it worked. We just lost too many."
"Keep looking, I'm not giving up on a perfect solution until we are confronted with the reality of the fight. For now let's start with training. I need a show of hands who is ready to fight, who wants to fight and needs training and who wishes to be a non-combatant."
"Alright, then who can fight and is willing to fight?" Rosalie asked, her own hand remaining down although she felt guilty about it. Eliza, Alice, Angela, Charlie, Garrett, Laurent, Emmett, Jasper, Adara, Zoey, Kate, Mei, and Kira all raised their hands.
"Who wants to fight but doesn't really know how?" Isabella asked next. Brianna, Talia, Tanya, and Irina all raised their hands.
"Good, now who wishes to remain as a non-combatant." Eliza asked, and Henry, Esme, Carmen, Eleazar and Rosalie all raised their hands.
"All right, well that's better than I thought." Isabella nodded, feeling happy with the numbers. Although against a thousand newborns she wasn't terribly confident they would succeed.
"We few, we happy few." Garrett started.
"We band of buggered." Alice finished the quote, altering it to give a boost to Eliza who immediately gave her a big smile. She tried to smile back but couldn't find it in her heart. Instead she took a deep breath and shared the thousand versions of the future she had already worked through with her extended family for the first time.
"Fuck." Eliza said under her breath, as she witnessed the futility of their fight. "Maybe we should just run." She followed up, sending the thought through the tether to her family.
"Then Forks would be destroyed outright." Alice replied through the link, showing that version of the fight.
"Then we have no choice. Keep trying, maybe there's something we're not thinking of." Isabella directed, and she got a mental nod from Alice.
"I'll find a way, my love, no matter what." Alice sent back, and Isabella met her gaze across the room.
"I know, you will never abandon me. That's why I don't want you to fight." Isabella spoke across the link with a voice that spoke of determination, but there was something underneath that felt different to Alice. A sense of weakness or need, perhaps just intense worry and a desire not to lose what she had finally regained.
"Mom!" Eliza admonished across the tether, her voice sharp and disapproving.
"You'll let Eliza fight and not me?" Alice added, unable to hide the hurt in her internal voice.
"Eliza will survive this, she's every bit as capable as I am. You are not a strong fighter, because you rely on your visions. If you encounter a blind spot, you could… You might fall. I… I don't think I could survive losing you." Isabella's inner voice broke with emotion, and Alice almost gave in because of it.
"What about me?" Brianna interrupted through the tether, keeping the argument discrete, as she realized that maybe Isabella didn't care enough to keep her from fighting.
"I don't want you to fight, but if I am satisfied with your abilities and fighting technique I'll consider it." Isabella sent a feeling of worry, but beneath it a strong fear of loss. She desperately didn't want her family to fight, even Eliza. She just knew there was no point in arguing with Eliza, but she knew there was an off chance Brianna and Alice might acquiesce to her concerns.
"I'll train with Brianna." Alice threw back at her with a strong mental voice that was clearly not a request.
"Fine, then I'll train you." Isabella sent back with more than a little frustration.
"Then let's start training now." Alice said out loud. Her expression settled into a cold and determined scowl. Isabella nodded and motioned outside towards Marcus and Didyme, as the entire house followed.
Volterra - February 11th
"Do we know what happened?" Sulpicia asked, kicking over a block of stone, the surface marred and blackened.
"Carlisle Cullen came to visit, a few minutes later there was an explosion. There's nothing left of Caius and Aro is so badly burnt and dismembered that there is no hope of recovery. Carlisle is in a similar condition, except we managed to piece him together. The sonofabitch is currently gasping in agony. I think we should put him in a box and let him suffer for eternity." Athenodora explained with more than a little anger.
"Cruel, but it does feel like poetic justice." Sulpicia tapped at her chin in thought, "no, we need to be more diplomatic, half of the guards were killed in the blast along with Collins, Heidi and Chelsea. Which means we are vulnerable with an aggressive enemy at our door. I've called Felix and Demitri back home, but they haven't responded. Jane unfortunately confirmed that Alec was killed in front of her, and she barely escaped with her life. She is on a plane now heading to Pisa. Isabella and Eliza are reportedly dead, but the guard we sent to confirm is no longer responding either. The only coven that seems to have escaped the worldwide culling are the Cullens. Perhaps a peace offering is in order."
"Peace, with the family of the man who murdered Aro and Caius?" Athenodora said, staring down into the charred eyes of her husband.
"Sister, please. Without the bonds forced on us by Corin I am free to piss on Aro's grave." Sulpicia said glaring down at the remains of Aro.
"He was your husband!" Athenordora sounded appalled by the idea.
"He was my jailor. I think Carlisle did us a favor, and I wonder if delivering him back to his family would be a good way to make some allies." Sulpicia said with a tone of voice that Athenodora couldn't quite read.
"So you are suggesting we travel to America to make peace with the elitist coven that has actively shunned the rest of us? Thinks down on us, and treats us as monsters?" Athenodora was more than offended, she was disgusted with Sulpicia's callous disregard for a man she said she loved.
"We are monsters, but that is irrelevant. Peace means we keep them close, and you know the old proverb." Sulpicia argued, shaking her head.
"So they are enemies?" Athenodora raised an eyebrow, confused as to where her sister was going with this line of thought.
"I may not care about Aro, but they attacked our home. One day, when the dust has settled, we will get our revenge on them." Sulpicia said with a small curl of a vicious smile on her lips.
"Said the scorpion to the frog." Athenordora finally smiled, realizing where Sulpicia was going with her plan.
"It is our nature." Sulpicia said, her smile twisting into a sneer as she stomped Aro's head into dust.
Township Line, Forks - February 12th
"Are you sure about this, I hear there are Volturi amongst them?" Yvette asked worriedly, her eyes darting all around them for any sign of danger.
"I trust Esme." Henri said easily, pushing forward without much worry. They had few choices left, and if the enemy was lying in wait then it was over. He had to hold on to the idea that the Cullens were alive, they were the last hope.
"Henri, we all trust Esme and Carlisle, but the Cullens are not exactly equipped to deal with this. I had to watch Amun and Kebi die. Even my gifts were not enough to prevent their deaths. I barely made it out of there alive with Tia." Benjamin said from alongside Henri, like Yvette he was keeping watch, but with more than just his eyes. He was using his bare feet to feel the vibrations of the ground, waiting for the telltale waves of feet or paws beating against the ground.
"It is okay my love, I have a good feeling about this." Tia tried to sooth her lover, but Ben just shook his head, reaching out and running a hand along Tia's jaw.
"I love your confidence, but I do share it." Benjamin said with a melancholy she had rarely seen in him. His usually sunny disposition tested severely after watching their covenmates slaughtered.
"They are strong, Emmett, Jasper, Edward and Alice are powerful fighters. If the Denali survived then there could be as many as fourteen. I like those numbers." Henri said with a bitter smile, he had no illusions they would find that many, but stopped his sigh before pushing forward.
As they got closer Henri chuckled to himself, the small town of Forks felt almost impossibly small. "I will never understand their affection for this place."
"It's quaint, I like it." Yvette said, holding her husband tightly as they crossed a patchwork of scents indicating the presence of many vampires, but also the distinct scent of wolves. "Wait, what is that smell?"
"I've encountered that scent, the enemy is here." Tia shivered involuntarily and tried to force Benjamin to turn and run, but Benjamin held his ground. Then he looked around for a moment before shaking his head.
"We need to be sure, if the Cullens are gone, there may be nothing left to do but hide and hope for the best. That being said, I think we're in the right place." Benjamin couldn't put his finger on why he felt that they were safe, but something in the air gave him hope. Tia nodded, and Henri and Yvette both gave him tentative nods as well. Together the four of them made their way towards the Cullen house.
"What is that noise?" Henri called after they walked in silence for a while, a second before a dozen oversized wolves appeared and surrounded them. The four of them took a separate direction, their backs almost pressed together. Benjamin was about to tear down trees with his gift, when a voice rang out.
"Stop!". The woman that appeared was beautiful, her hair incredibly long and straight. Her bearing and presence spoke to her power, and the wolves immediately stopped their yapping and barking. "I am Leah Clearwater, leader of this pack. State your intentions."
Benjamin smiled slightly, and stepped forward. "Ben, no!" Tia tried to stop him, but he shook his head and pressed forward.
"I think they are friends." He whispered to his mate. Then turned towards Leah. "We have come to find Carlisle Cullen, we were called here by Esme."
"I'm sorry to inform you that Carlisle is dead. However, if you are as you say, you are safe. Please follow us." Leah said with a gentle nod, and waited for them to walk beside her.
"You are quite brave to walk in your human form with us." Henri said with a strained voice, his nerves frayed and his fear ratcheted up to eleven.
"I'm in love with one of the most powerful vampires on the planet, if you hurt me she would hunt you to the ends of the Earth. Plus, there are more of us here, you touch me and you wouldn't last more than a few seconds. If I wasn't fast enough to stop you, which is unlikely." Leah's confidence was impressive, her aura of strength and leadership was unmistakable and Henri immediately backed down.
"You love one of us?" Tia asked with a curious look in her eye.
"Yes, and you can relax. We are many, and we do not expect the enemy for some time. Alice has seen it." Leah said knowing they would calm down with that confirmation.
"So the Cullens live, thank god." Yvette said with a blast of air escaping her nose.
"I will not say more, it is not my place. We are close, and they know we are coming. You better be on the level, or this will be your last few moments alive." Leah warned, and then in a blink she was gone along with the rest of her pack. A second later four vampires appeared out of nowhere, three they didn't recognize and Alice Cullen.
"Merde!" Henri shouted, startled and confused by the sudden arrival.
"Henri! Yvette, Ben, Tia. Thank god!" Alice ran forward and pulled each of them into a hug. They all relaxed visibly, except for Benjamin who eyed the other three with their weird eyes. Then as Alice moved to hug him he kept her at arm's length.
"Your eyes?" He examined her face, and found several more strange things about her appearance.
"There's a lot to explain." She said, glancing back at her family.
"Including the fact that you are in the company of two of the most feared Volturi in the world?" Benjamin asked as he recognized the eye color of the Assassin and Executioner.
"They are no longer Volturi, this is Isabella and our daughters Eliza and Brianna." Alice motioned towards her family one by one in introduction.
"Isabella, isn't that the name of the human you once knew?" Henri asked, looking very confused.
"It's a long story. Let's get you inside." Alice offered, and the four of them reluctantly agreed and began to follow.
"I imagine this will be one hell of a story." Tia said with a small nervous laugh.
"You can say that again." Eliza confirmed with a chuckle, falling in beside Alice and Isabella who was remaining quiet.
"It's one hell of a story." Brianna repeated, sticking out her tongue at her sister, forcing Eliza to shake her head as she let out a belly laugh and pulled Brianna into a side hug.
Author's Note:
Of course the Volturi aren't completely gone, you think I would make it easy? On a kind of positive note Carlisle is technically alive after all, although he is in serious unending pain. I wonder how that might be resolved?
Marcus, Didyme, Benjamin, Tia, Henri and Yvette are all in the game.
It took a long time to figure out how to resolve the baby situation, and I think it is an interesting solution. Let me know what you think!
Chapter 16 will be a beast as the rest of the stragglers show up and training begins. We are only a couple of episodes from the battle, the story is ramping up now with only seven more to go. These are all new now, and are increasingly more difficult to write. I will continue to work at my own pace and cannot promise when each chapter will post. I will continue to update my profile as usual to keep you all informed.
Thank you for reading!