3: Desillusion

Charlie missing, Billy attacked, it was painfully obvious that we were being targeted, no one really doubted that there was a distinct possibility the Volturi movement Alice had mentioned was linked to all this. Things were looking grim. Around ten o' clock mom and dad came back.

Ever since Isabella Swan (actually Cullen by then) became a vampire she underwent a change, at least to the outside world. She had always been shielded against mind invading vampiric powers, but ever since she turned she had a total control of her body language as well. No one could read her emotions when she didn't want them to. That evening I saw that ability break. When my mother came back from Charlie's place, she was visibly broken. There is nothing more heartbreaking then to see a beautiful vampire woman sad, except perhaps when that vampire is your mother.

"Bella, we'll find him" my father whispered softly, a look of deep concern, not for Charlie but for my mother on his face. She just looked at him, in her eyes questions and pain. Somehow I was reminded of a statue I once saw on a picture a cemetery monument of an angel weeping over a grave.

Alice walked up to my mother and gave her a soft kiss on the cheek and whispered in her ear;

"He will be fine, I did see that"

The corners of my mothers mouth twitched as if she tried to force a smile but didn't succeed.

"Trust Alice" dad said.

My mother sighed and all of a sudden her shield was up again, the graceful immortal she had been for the last six years. My mother asked to see how Billy was found. I thought it might be painful to show everybody how the Indian had been lying on the floor, we decided to wait till later when Jacob and Carlisle arrived. When he entered the house near midnight Carlisle agreed with mother that we should share all the information we had. It was up to me to show everybody what I had seen. Jacob at times called me his "walking tv set" and right then I felt exactly like that. But I tried to pass on the images with as little annoyance I could manage. Being a teen is hard enough without your father knowing your thoughts and the rest of your family knowing you can show them on demand, finish it up with your best friend seeing the outcome of every bad mistake you make and have a love spell woven between you and an Indian werewolf and you are as remote from a normal childhood as you can possibly be. This was me reaching adulthood at seven.

Jacob informed us that Sam was leading his and Jacob's pack in a close guard around Billy's house where many of their friends and family where assembling as well. In my minds eye I could see the small house surrounded by the enormous wolves and then I pictured our own Adams family fort again and managed to smile a bit.

It was deep in the night when I excused myself to take a short nap. Though I was becoming more and more vampiric I could still, and needed to sleep every once in a while. Not like a human eight hours, but short naps of half an hour up to two hours every few days. The last day hed been more taxing then others and so my body requested sleep. I lay down on the couch in the living room, not wanting to leave the current company completely. I was following discussions on how to assemble our friends and how to fortify against the Volturi, when Alice game over to me. I hardly noticed her coming across the room. Her catlike stride was unnoticeable to humans and it had been for me, but my senses were still sharpening and she couldn't sneak up to me anymore, much to Alice's disappointment off course, "yet another game spoiled" she had sighed when I discovered I could now hear her in "stealth mode".

Alice was next to me in seconds, though my vampric mind could have stretched the moment as long as I would like… a useful skill at times. Alice sat down next to me, I opened my eyes to show I was awake, she smiled at me. And stroked my cheek, her hand felt pleasantly cold, I myself might have been cold to human touch, but the vampires skin was still several degrees colder then mine. The difference was lessening though. Again my changing body had messed up one of Alice's games, she used to love hearing me shriek when she put her cold hand on my back.

"Sweetie" She said "Don't worry too much, I know thing look grim, but I have seen solutions, and though people might get hurt" She hesitated when she said it "you have to be strong". She kissed me on the forehead and danced off again. I let myself slide into oblivion, but my mind kept repeating the words, you have to be strong, the emphasis on "you" had not escaped my attention.

When I woke up an hour later plans were being formed. To my disappointment Garret had already left to start assembling friends. Alice said he didn't want to wake me, but Emmet said Alice did not "allow" anybody to wake me, he laughed when he described how the small woman had stood in the way of my enormous werewolf boyfriend who only wanted to give me a quick kiss. I smiled at the mental picture. It was normal for vampires to stay away for months but still perceive it as if one has been away for nothing but a small errant, the importance of a proper goodbye was alien to the nomad vampire. I guess that time shifts differently when you have unlimited amounts of it and have been around for centuries rather then decades, or a few years like me. My sense of time was adjusting, and I was somewhat used to it, but at times it still annoyed me. Still a bit disappointed about Garret having left I got Emmet to bring me up to speed on current plans. The fortification plan still stood and getting our more fragile friends close was also still part of the plan. It was a big problem that many of the vampires who would be coming were not on the same diet as my family. I imagined a wild dog in a small room with large chunks of meat lying around having something of a similar problem. It was Jasper who had come up with the idea of setting up two compounds, one reserved for non-vegetarians.

Carlisle had come up with the idea to stage some sort of disaster, perhaps a viral outbreak, to empty the town of Forks before the Volturi came and innocent people were caught in what might prove to become the greatest supernatural conflict in ages. With Carlisle as one of the most important medical specialists in the region with collaboration of Forks' chief of police, that plan, far fetched as may have sounded might actually be doable. Forks wasn't that big, it could however draw unnecessary attention to our community. So taking the risk at that time was still up for vote.

Dawn was breaking when Jacob announced he was going to check in on Billy, when I asked if he wanted me to join him, he shook his head. He gave me a quick kiss and jumped out of the window having phased before he landed the wolf Jacob ran into the forest. My father stood behind and softly said;

"He has little faith in our plans, he just wants to run off with you"

I nodded and looked into my fathers eyes.

"That might become a problem in time, Alice seems to think so"

Suddenly her words from that night came back "YOU have to be strong". Dad tried to smile apologetically as he said;

"Don't blame Alice, at times like this her power is a burden rather then a gift, she needs you as a friend"

I looked at the pixie woman, she had been staring at me, no doubt understanding the talk my father and I were having and recognizing the understanding that was forming in my mind. I would have to rip my mind in two, ignoring the magical bond of the imprint and prevent Jacob from becoming a loose cannon, a liability in a confrontation were balance and exact execution of our plans were essential. To break an unbreakable bond. I walked over to Alice, I was not going to shoot the bearer of bad news I hugged her and let her hug me like the six year old I essentially was, a scared little girl facing a terrible path. Alice lifted my head and looked me in the eyes as she said;

"You are ruining that hideous make up of yours"

I laughed, though I could almost feel my heart breaking, though the meaning seemed to be seeping out of my life. I pictured Jacob, broken, and I laughed, because I was too scared to do anything but laugh.