A/N- Okay here's chapter 2! I already have the ritual and half of chapter 3 written. I don't know if I'm going to post it yet or not it will all depend on how this chapter is received. Please keep in mind that I don't have a beta and I am by no means a great writer. My grammar leaves much to be desired but I try my best. Please review and let me know what you think of everything so far.
Chapter 2
Eight hours after the shocking phone call about Bella Swan Old Quil found himself in the front seat of an extremely rusted pick up truck. He was strung as tight as a wire. The two and a half hour flight was spent bouncing his legs up and down, and making numerous trip to the bathroom. The rest of the passengers probably thought he had a bladder issue when in reality he just couldn't sit still.
When the plane Finally landed and the stewardess announced that they could exit the plane Old Quil jumped from his seat before the other passengers had their seat belts off. He burst out of the jet bridge and threw the terminal gate to find a familiar blonde giant dressed in a blue flannel shirt and a faded pair blue jeans. When he reached him them giant wrapped him in a bone crushing hug causing his feet to dangle six inches off of the ground.
"Drustan...can't...breath." he wheezed. Drustan quickly released him taking the small duffle bag out of his hands and slinging it over his broad shoulder.
"It's good to see you old man. Harrison was going to send a cab to come get you but I figured you'd be jittery and full of questions." he teased.
Old Quil mumbled something under his breath about smart ass young people before asking what they were waiting for. Drustan turned leading him out into the busy airport.
"Looks like i owe Harrison five bucks. He said you'd be ornery." he called over his shoulder with a laugh.
The pair made their way quickly to the parking lot outside. Or as quickly as one could manage in a crowd of people fighting for the title of the world's slowest walker. Drustan led him to a very old, very rusted Ford pick up that made Bella's monster look new.
Old Quil shot him a dubious look "You don't expect me to get in that do you? The wheels look like they're about to fall off."
Drustan just rolled his eyes tossing the duffle bag in the bed of the rust bucket.
"Just get in the truck old man. I don't have all day, I want to get back to Bella."
He hopped into the front seat leaned over and opened the passenger door. He held his hand out.
"If it's too high for you I can pull you in." he taunted.
Old Quil slapped the offered hand away and climbed into the cab shutting the door with a bang. He bristled when he heard Drustan chuckling.
"Just get a move on already. You're not the only one who wants to see Bella you know."
With that Drustan started the engine and backed the decrypted truck out of the parking spot. They sat in silence while they left the airport parking complex and turned on to the highway. Old Quil's leg twitch was back with a vengeance as he tried in vain to occupy himself by looking out the window.
Finally, when the waiting became unbearable he asked "Okay, spill it how is she?"
"Wow four minutes. Looks like I owe Harrison ten more bucks. He said you wouldn't last five minutes before asking about her. You're really starting to cost me old timer."
"It's going to cost you a lot more in doctor bills if you don't quit being such an asshole and answer my questions."
"First off, you know I heal way too quickly to ever have to worry about doctor fees. Second, calm down and I'll tell you everything I can. Bella is physically fine. She was pretty banged up when we found her. She had a broken wrist, a cracked skull, and her right ankle was completely shattered."
"Dear god what happened to her?"
"Two of the Cullens had her in a jacked up jeep speeding out of town. We guessed they were taking her to the rest of the coven and couldn't allow that to happen . So we blocked the road with a fallen tree a ways in front of them .We didn't expect the tiny one would slam the brakes but she did. Bella hit her head off of the dashboard and that's when she cracked her skull. Both vampires got out and engaged us leaving Bella alone in the vehicle. I'm not sure when she got her other injuries it could have happened before we got there or when she fell out of the jeep. After the fangers ran off we found her unconscious in her side yard."
Old Quil was taken aback "Wait you found her back in her own yard? The pack was all over that place. There were guarding the house, Paul saw the Cullens show up and sent up the alarm. The others got there just in as the leeches were driving off. They should have seen her if she made it all the way back there. Jacob never would have left her there like that."
"Jacob. Jacob Black? She's been asking for him in her sleep, what is he her boyfriend?"
Old Quil smiled "Something like that, things were...complicated."
"Complicated how?" Drustan asked genuinely curious.
"Jacob and Bella have known each other their whole lives. There were inseparable as kids, always keeping Charlie and Billy on their toes. Then Bella moved away with her mom Rene. I think Jacob cried as much as Charlie when she left. When she moved back to Forks he was so excited. But she got wrapped up in the Cullen boy and he didn't see very much of her. After they left she broke inside she just went catatonic. Scared the shit out of Charlie. He almost sent her back to her mom so she could get a fresh start. Then one day she showed up at La Push to see Jacob. After that they were attached at the hip again. You couldn't see one without the other. It took sometime but she started getting better, started acting like the old Bella. Everyone who saw them knew they were head over heels for each other, but she was scared after what the leech did to her. Jacob never pushed her he wanted to go at her pace. Even though they weren't official together I knew she loved him and he'd loved her since he was a baby. That's why I was so confused when they said she chose to go back to the leech."
Drustan's mouth settled in a hard line, his death grip on the steering while turning his knuckles white.
"She didn't choose to do anything. Bella didn't leave with them willingly." he growled.
Now Old Quil was confused. He talked to each member of the pack and they all said the same thing, Bella Swan agreed to leave with the Cullens.
"What do you mean she didn't leave willingly? The entire pack heard her tell Jacob she chose Edward."
"I'm sure she did say that but that doesn't mean anything. Look I told you I would tell you everything I could but this is something that Bella deserves to hear first, but I'm warning you if I find out your pack knowingly left her there like that. Recreating Bella's injuries will just be the start of what I'll do to them." he said darkly.
"She almost died Quil, only my light saved her." he said worry evident in his voice.
Old Quil sat in silence lost in his own thoughts. He didn't want to doubt his pack but if they left her the way Drustan described he'd help the man fulfill his threat. Before he knew it they were pulling onto the dirt road that would lead them to the house. Thanks to the flat topography of the area the house was visible long before they would reach it. There nestled against the base of a butte was the large colonial farm house. The house was a pale yellow with light blue shutters, it had a matching blue porch that wrapped around the back. Large bay windows framed the front door. Old Quil had spent many winter mornings curled up on their comfy cushions watching the sunrise over the prairie.
Drustan threw the truck in park and hopped out of the cab. He grabbed the bag out of the bed sliding it back on his shoulder as Old Quil slid out of the passenger seat to the ground.
"Well looks like this old piece of shit got us here in one piece." Old Quil joked.
"I told you it would."
"I know you guys can afford top of the line everything so why do you drive around in that death trap?" Old Quil asked as they climbed the four steps to the front door.
"Hey don't hate the truck she doesn't look like much but she's my baby."
"You sound like Bella when someone talks about her old clunker."
Drustan smiled at the idea that Bella and him had anything in common.
"Plus we couldn't have fancy new cars and not expect people to talk about it. We may be twenty miles out of town but the rumor mill still spreads this far. The less people notice us the better." he replied opening the door allowing Old Quil to enter first.
"Do you want me to take you to your room or do you want to go with me straight to Bella?"
"I'm not even going to answer that stupid question."
"To your room it is!" Drustan laughed as he danced out of reach of Old Quil's incoming fist. He held his hand up in surrender.
"Okay. Okay, I was just joking follow me."
Turning around he led Old Quil up the intricately carved wooden staircase. At the top he took a right and led him to a bedroom near the end of the hall. Drustan turned the knob and silently swung the door open. Old Quil looked around the room and found it looked exactly as it had two years ago except for the two sleeping figures in the corner. Bella laid swaddled up to her chin in blankets and quilts. She looks like a human burrito Old Quil mused.
Harrison Mackinnon didn't seem to be as comfortably situated as Bella. He sat slumped in a wooden chair fast asleep with his neck in an uncomfortable angle. His feet were pushed against the bottom of one of the bed post and seemed to be the only thing that kept him from sliding onto the floor. Old Quil walked over and placed a hand on Harrison's shoulder and gave him a few gentle shakes.
Once he saw the man's eyes were open he whispered "I think it's about time I take watch. Go get some rest I'll come find you when she wakes up."
Harrison rose from the chair with a nod. He waited for Old Quil to sit down before patting him on the back taking his leave.
Old Quil sat in the chair observing Drustan. He watched as the young man placed the back of his hand to her forehead checking her temperature. he knew that Drustan felt protective of Bella, as he should. It was still strange seeing someone watch over her with such emotion that wasn't Jacob. He knew Drustan and Bella would never have what Bella and Jacob shared but it still unnerved him a little. Old Quil had thought Jacob would have imprinted on Bella once he phased. The entire council was shocked when he didn't. Now Bella was being thrown into a role she didn't even know existed and nothing would be the same again. A small part of him wondered if the opportunity for Bella and Jacob had come and gone. He pushed that small part away if there were ever two people meant for each other it was those two. Somehow they would find a way back to each other.
"Go on son, take my advice and get some rest. I doubt you've had much sleep since she got here. I'd like sometime to sit with her. I'll watch over her you have nothing to worry about."
Drustan looked as if he were about to argue when he sighed.
"Sleep would be nice, I've only had a handful or fours in the past six days."
"Go on then. I've got her."
Drustan leaned down and pressed a quick kiss in her hair before heading for his own room.
Old Quil gently unwrapped Bella enough to find her hand. He enclosed it in his own, he needed to hold apart of her to assure him that this was all really happening. Still holding her hand he leaned back into the chair content to watch her sleep.
Bella awoke the next morning to find her hand enclosed in the palm of another. This hand was much larger than hers with callouses and skin the color of polished bronze. She smiled and grasped it tighter.
"I missed you. I had the strangest dream last night." she yawned.
"I've missed you too but I don't think I'm who you think I am." someone chuckled.
Someone who was definitely not Jacob. She yanked her hand from the mysterious grip as she sat up.
"Q-Quil? Is that you?" she stuttered. "That's it I'm going crazy."
"Calm down you're not crazy. Harrison called me yesterday he figured you would appreciate a familiar face with everything that's going on."
"Then that wasn't a dream?" she asked hoping he would tell her it was.
Old Quil gave her a sad smile.
"No darling, I wish it was. Why don't you go take a nice warm shower and then we can talk while we get you something to eat."
"I have a lot of questions I want to ask you. like how did I.."
Old Quil covered her hand with her mouth to stop her before she could begin. he stood and patted her shoulder.
"Shower first, questions later. It's been awhile since you've cleaned yourself up and honestly you smell a little ripe."
Bella's face went from pale to red in second. With a wink and a laugh Old Quil left the room he knew two people who were eagerly awaiting news.
I did not smell. or at least I hoped I didn't smell. Only one way to find out with a quick sniff I wrinkled my nose. Damn him. I did smell but not that bad. What did he expect I've been out cold for almost a week he's lucky I didn't wet myself.
Carefully I swung my legs over the edge of the bed and stood.
A little shaky but not bad.
I looked around the room and saw a door partially open. The door had a piece of notebook paper taped to it that read "Shower" in big black letters with a block arrow underneath.
Very subtle old man.
It took me longer than I'd like to admit to make it into the bathroom, my legs were extremely stiff and I had to stop every few steps to regain my balance.
The bathroom was a little bigger than the one I shared with Charlie at home. There was a double vanity sink, and a toilet in the corner, but what really caught my eye was the mother of all shower that took up one entire wall. It was breath taking. The tiles had a mixture of deep greens and earth tones swirled together. All of the numerous fixtures were polished bronze. It had round rods that ran from ceiling to floor with hundreds of tiny holes that allowed the water to spray out. The main shower head covered the expanse of the ceiling with at least fifty tiny nozzles facing the floor. The glass doors had intricate frosted swirl pattern with large gleaming handles.
I quickly undressed and stepped into what I now called "heaven on earth". luckily the controls were pretty basic and moments later I was standing in the warm spray.
The water from both sides felt amazing. I could feel my muscles loosening with every passing second. I turned the fourth knob and suddenly I was standing in the middle of a light rain, only with warm water.
I was right heaven on earth.
In a strange way this shower reminded me of home. Surrounded by the greens and brown as water fell on my head. It was like standing in the woods behind my house.
After about a half an hour I grudgingly turned off the water and dried off. It was time to face the music and figure out exactly what was going on. A knock sounded on the door.
"Bella I have some clothes here for you. I'll leave them on the bed and wait for you in the hallways." came the gravelly voice of Old Quil.
"I'll just be a minute."
As soon as I heard the bedroom door click shut I exited the bathroom and quickly made my way to the bed to dress. I was relieved to see that the clothes were a comfortable pair of black yoga pants with a form fitting green t-shirt. I wished for a brush but settled for running my fingers threw a few times before walking out the door. As promised Old Quil was waiting just outside the door.
"Better?" he asked.
"Much. That's some shower."
"You ain't seen nothing yet Little Light." he chuckled.
I smiled at the use of my childhood nickname Old Quil hadn't called me that in years.
He turned and started down the hallway and I easily fell in step beside him.
"So I'm guessing your wondering where you are."
I nodded and he continued.
"This is one of Harrison's many houses, actually it's his favorite house. We're about an hour outside of Rapid City. I've known Harrison for a long time about thirty years and visited him here frequently. I've known Drustan for about ten years. He's a good lad but a bit of a prankster. I'd check under your pillow before you go to sleep." he said a little lower than the rest.
By then we had come down a flight of stairs and were standing in the entryway. Old Quil stopped and I couldn't help but notice how bright everything was. Two large windows allowed the morning light to shine in, illuminating the entire front of the house. His face took on a serious expression as he placed one hand on each of my shoulders.
"What you're about to hear Bella may sound a little...unbelievable, but you already know that some myths are in fact true Harrison and Drustan are going to tell you think some of which you may not like. I'm asking you to listen with an open mind and think everything over before you dismiss it as false. I've known you since you were a baby and you've always held a special place in my heart. Now i have to ask do you trust me?" he looked at me, well more like he looked through me. I felt as if he could see right into the heart of my soul. It reminded me of the way Jake used to look at me.
"Yes." I answered honestly.
"Then I need you to trust that I will never lie to you and I will support you in anyway I can."
He reached up and patted my cheek.
"Now let's go get you something to eat."
Billy Black was a man stuck between a rock and a hard place. His best friend's only daughter was missing. A week ago Embry and Quil carried a very naked very broken version of his son threw his front door. Billy's heart stopped when he saw his sons limp body assuming he was dead until he heard the sobs coming from him. Billy knew those sobs, he'd cried them himself when his wife passed away. While his son's two best friends settled him in his room Sam Uley explained what happened. Bella Swan had made her choice and it was not his son. The next morning Jacob tore out of the house went full wolf into the woods. No one in the pack had heard his thoughts since that day. Wherever he was he was too far for the pack link to work.
Billy knew there were dark times ahead for his son but that's not what had him worried now. Right now all of his concern was focused on a very frazzled Charlie Swan.
Charlie was currently laying on the couch surrounded by empty beer cans. For the past six days Charlie had been frantically searching for any information on his daughters possible whereabouts only to come up empty handed. It was if she fell off the face of the earth.
Last night Embry knocked on his door and told him he needed to get to Charlie before he did something stupid. Billy wasted no time in calling Sam and asking him to drive him to Forks.
Once inside the Swan house they found a sight that would haunt Billy to the end of his days, maybe even beyond. A very drunk Charlie Swan sat at his kitchen table with his hand on a loaded gun. Thankfully shifters are extremely fast and Sam got the gun away from him before he even realized they were there. After six more beers Sam carried an unconscious Charlie to the couch.
When Charlie finally woke up Billy was waiting with Tylenol and a large glass of water.
"What are you doing here?" Charlie croaked, his head felt like someone smashed it with a sledge hammer.
"Stopped by last night to check on you then I stayed thinking you might need some help this morning after I saw how much you drank."
"Don't worry about me. I'm fine. I'll be fine."
Billy knew a lie when he heard one and by the look on Charlie's face he knew it too.
"Well you don't look fine Chief and no one expects you to be. Honestly I'd be worried if you weren't a mess."
Charlie attempted to sit up but when the room started spinning he fell back on to the couch with a thud. He definitely had too much last night. It was stupid he knew that, all he wanted was his little girl back, and after the hundredth dead end he figured what the hell and tried to drink the pain away.
"Where is she Billy? Six days. She's been gone six fucking days and I have no idea where she is! I don't even have an idea of where to start looking for her. This is not like her. Yeah she was messed up when that asshole left but the Bella I knew would never leave like this. She cared too much about everyone else to let them worry. Hell, she'd always leave a note on the counter reminding me when she was going to you place to see Jake even if she'd just told me on the phone."
Billy agreed with his friend this was not like their Bella, this was the Cullen's Bella.
"Has Jake heard anything? Has she called your house?"
"No she hasn't. You know I would tell you the minute she had."
Billy saw the tears start to pool at the edge of his friend's eyes. Billy rolled to the edge of the couch and put a comforting hand on Charlie's shoulder.
"You'll hear from her soon. You're right about Bella, she cares about you too much to let you worry. I'm sure as soon as she's able the first thing she'll do is call you."
Billy only hoped he was right.
"Have you gotten a hold of Renee yet?" he asked.
"No, and I've call her about a hundred times a day! I just get sent straight to her voicemail which is now full. Bella said she lost her charger a few weeks ago and of course she doesn't have a landline. What kind of mother doesn't call their daughter in over three weeks?"
Charlie sighed and ran his fingers threw his unwashed hair. He could feel the three day beard across his jaw. When did things go so wrong. Bella had been doing so much better the past few months. She was smiling again. Not the smile she wore with that Cullen bastard but the happy go lucky smile she wore as a little girl.
"Why Billy? Why would she run away? Was living here with me so bad? If she was unhappy I would have changed. I could have watched less baseball, skipped more fishing trips, helped around the house more. I'd have done anything she asked me to. Maybe I should have said all of this to her but you know I'm not good with words. I just got her back, how did I manage to loose her so soon?" Charlie's voice shook as he broke down.
Billy knew why she left but he also knew that the leeches could have Bella anywhere in the world right now. He wanted to tell Charlie everything he hated keeping anything from him especially this. Much to his horror Billy realized all he seemed to be doing lately was keeping things from Charlie and that killed him. He already called a tribal council meeting to ask permission to share the truth with him. The pack, the Cullens, Bella, everything. The meeting was scheduled for the night Old Quil returned from his mysterious vacation.
That old man better hurry the hell up because I'm not waiting much longer.
For the moment Billy's hands were tied. All he could do was be there for his friend and that is exactly what he planned to do.
Harrison and Drustan were patiently waiting, or impatiently waiting in Drustan's case for Bella and Old Quil to arrive in the kitchen.
"Will you stop pacing you're going to wear a hole in the floor!" Harrison exclaims.
He was quickly becoming exasperated with his young friend.
"So much is riding on how this next conversation goes. How can you just sit there and read the damn paper?" Drustan retorted equally as annoyed as his older counterpart.
"Patience in a virtue Drustan, one I mastered a long time ago." Harrison explained.
"Well excuse me for not being ancient." Drustan muttered under his breath.
Harrison shot Drustan a sharp look.
"I heard that. Why don't you make yourself useful and start making her something for her to eat."
Just then the kitchen door swung open as Old Quil walked in with a nervous looking Bella. Harrison folded his paper and smiled at the pair.
"Ah lass it's good to see you up and about. How are you feeling?"
"Umm good, better than yesterday." she replied.
She followed Old Quil to the table and sat down in the seat immediately to his right.
"Are you hungry?" Harrison asked.
"Already on it!" Drustan called from behind the counter.
"Don't worry Angel I'm making you the Best Breakfast You'll Ever Eat Special." he said with a wink.
Old Quil rolled his eyes, with a nod of his head he motioned for Harrison to begin. No sense in wasting time he thought to himself.
"Do you remember anything about our previous conversation?"
Bella turned to Harrison and really looked at him for the first time. He was extremely handsome. He looked about Charlie's age in his mid-forties. His skin was pale almost as pale as her skin, his face dusted with light freckles. His hair was a rich auburn, cut shorter on the sides with extra length on top giving it a wind swept look. He had a very close trimmed beard that hugged the contour of his strong jaw. His steel grey eyes were captivating. She'd never seen anyone with such color eyes before.
"It's okay if you don't remember anything you were mentally and physically exhausted."
It was then Bella realized she had been openly staring at him for over a minute. She felt her face flush as Old Quil chuckled obviously aware of what she'd been doing.
"Ugh no I was thinking…" she lied as Old Quil chuckled again.
Stupid old man.
"I remember us talking but I'm not sure if I remember everything. It gets a little fuzzy at times."
"That's okay just tell us what you do remember. I think it would be easier to just fill in the blanks than to start all over again. " he encouraged. His Scottish burr was deep and flowed past his lips like warm honey. Thick and rich.
"Well I remember you said your name was Harrison Mackinnon and Prince Charming over there is Durstan...I think"
Drustan walked towards her and set an over flowing plate in front of her.
"It's Drustan actually. Drew-stan. Now dig in" he laughed pointing to the mountain of food.
Bella looked at the plate and her stomach grumbled loudly. There was an omelet smothered in cheese, homemade home fries with onions and peppers, biscuits with some form of white gravy piled on top, and finally three pieces of toast topped with peanut butter, jelly, and butter. Picking up her fork she cut into the omelet and found that it was filled with ham, sausage, bacon, and (her personal favorite) mushrooms. She couldn't contain the small moan that escaped her lips as the delicious food hit her tongue.
"Oh my god this is amazing!"
"It's not called the Best Breakfast You'll Ever Eat for nothing."
Everyone waited patiently as Bella ate her food. Luckily for them she practically inhaled it. Once she had finished Harrison asked her again to tell them what she remembered.
"You said thousands of years ago demons almost managed to almost destroy humanity. The sisters of fate stepped in and each choose a champion. They gave them something that was supposed to help them and the three warriors fought the demons. There can only be three warriors at one time. Which makes sense one champion per sister and apparently you're under the impression I am one of those people."
"Well that's the gist of it only...extremely simplified."
"You never told me who the other two "warriors" were." she said using air quotes around the word warrior.
"Drustan and I are the other two. Maybe it would help if we explained a little about ourselves and our gifts. My name is Harrison Mackinnon and I was born in 1448 on the Isle of Skye. I was Laird of my clan until the year 1492 when I was chosen by the sister Lachesis."
Harrison saw the look of shock cross Bella's face and paused waiting for the question he knew she would ask.
"Wait so you're saying you were born in 1448? That would make you…"
"Five hundred and sixty six years old." he finished for her.
"Though physically I'm not a day over forty-five. Now Lachesis is the second eldest sister of the Moirai. She is responsible for deciding someone's destiny and the length of someone's life. She prizes knowledge and level thinking above all else, seeing as how she has always been the mediator between her sisters you can see how that makes sense."
Bella smiled at this, the way he spoke he made the sisters seem like a group of bickering old women. Harrison continued unaware of her humorous mental image.
"She blessed me with the gift of understanding. It allows me to see every side of any argument helping me to weigh all of the options when making a decision. I have an eidetic memory, and also have elemental control over air."
"I'm sorry but did you just say you control air?" Bella interrupted, her expression full of disbelief.
"Each champion is gifted with control over either air, water, or earth."
"So you like the adult version of Captain Planet. You forgot two though who gets fire and heart?" she replied sardonically.
"Fire is the demon's element no Warrior of Light has ever controlled it. As far as heart goes I'd like to think each warrior has mastered that."
Drustan jumped in then hoping to avoid the conversation from getting any worse. Harrison may be the smartest of the pair but he had no way with words. Bella was already looking at Harrison as he were a four year old describing his imaginary friend.
"I'm Drustan Mortensen, unlike this old timer" he hooked his thumb in Harrison's direction. Bella chuckled as she watch Harrison roll his eyes.
"I was chosen by the sister Clothos ten years ago, I was twenty-four. Clothos is the youngest of the sisters. She decides when and where a person is born. She also can decide if someone should be granted mercy from death. She is very energetic and has a unique sense of humor. She blessed me with elemental control of water."
"So if your sister is Lachesis and yours is Clothos." Bella pointed at both Harrison and Drustan in turn.
"Then that leaves Altropos and earth for me." she finished pointing at herself.
"Bingo. You catch on pretty quick Angel. You technically haven't been gifted anything yet. You have to complete the bonding ritual that will allow you meet Altropos so you can grant you whatever gift she thinks you would best benefit from.."
"What even makes you think I'm who you're looking for?"
"We feel it in our core." Harrison answered pointing to his chest.
"So you "feel" in your "core" that I am some earth moving champion of fate. I'm sorry guys but I think you have the wrong girl. I'm a nobody, not only that but I'm the clumsiest person on the planet!"
Old Quil laughed, "She is pretty clumsy."
Drustan had to take two deep breaths to stop himself from calling Old Quil something he would regret. It was obvious to him Bella did not believe them. He thought showing her his control over water but that would only prove he was a Warrior of Light. They needed her to believe that she was one of them as well. The only was she would fully believe them was during the ritual. Once she Altropos met her she would explain everything to her. The question was how to get her to agree to participate in the ritual when she was probably trying to figure out the fastest way home. With that thought a light bulb went off in his head. Crossing his arms he leaned back casually in his chair.
"Alright it's obvious that you're not really buying all of this. So I'll make you a deal. If you do the ritual there is really only two possible outcomes. You will either meet the sister Altropos and realize everything we've told you is the truth or nothing will happen and you'll get to say I told you so."
"So what's the deal?" she asked curiously.
"The deal is if you meet Altropos you agree to train with us so that you can learn to control you gifts. If you do the ritual and nothing happens I will put you and Old Quil on the first flight back to Forks and you will never see Harrison or I again."
Giving her a challenging look he asked "So do you say Angel do we have a deal?"
Bella looked to Old Quil who nodded at her as she weighed her options. On one side she thought it was a massive waste of time. There was no way she was a warrior of any kind. It wasn't that she didn't believe Harrison and Drustan were Warriors of Light she'd be stupid not to after all of her recent experiences with Edward and Jacob. She just didn't believe she was one. No way was plain old Bella Swan anything but ordinary.
"Fine I'll do the ritual, but only to say I told you so when it's over."
Drustan and Harrison both released a breath.
"Okay lass follow me." Harrison said as he stood and strode out the back door.
Bella stepped out onto the back porch closely followed by Drustan and Old Quill.
"Quil do you think you can get her to the spot?"
"Definitely.
"Good Drustan and I will go prepare everything."
"See you at the top Angel." Drustan said as he walked toward the barn with Harrison.
"You ready?" Old Quil asked.
"Where exactly are we going?" Bella questioned.
"To the top of that." Old Quil answered pointing to the top of the very large butte in front of them.
"Of course we are." she mumbled grumpily.
About an hour into the cursed hike I was not a happy camper. Old Quil had been silent the entire trek no matter how many times I tried to ask him questions about what was going to happen once we reached the top. I had to admit, I was quite impressed with the old man's stamina. An hour uphill and he wasn't even breathing heavy. He also much to my own bitterness was not cursed with "fall on you ass syndrome" as I seemed to be. He easily navigated himself up the narrow rocky trail while I had fallen five times. I didn't even bother to count how many times I'd lost my footing.
I stumbled again falling forward I stretched my arms out to break my fall cutting open my left palm. I hissed in pain as I saw blood trickle down my wrist. Old Quil was kneeling by my side in an instant.
"Let me see." he said as he gently turned my hand face up.
Now that I had a clear view of the cut I could see that it was rather deep. Definitely deeper than the cuts Carlisle had to stick up on my last birthday. Old Quil ripped a small thin strip of fabric from the bottom of his shirt. If I had been thinking clearly I probably would have wondered at his surprising strength.
"This may hurt." he warned right before he slowly wiped away the dirt surrounding the wound. Once it was relatively clean he folded my hand between his own and started to mumble in a language I hadn't heard before. It didn't sound like Quillete. Jacob used to mumble in his native tongue when we would sit on our log. It definitely wasn't Latin or one of the modern languages taught in school.
My hand started to tingle as I focused on his words. It sounded ancient, short syllables and harsh consonants sounds. He continued chanting for another minute or so before slowly releasing my hand from his. The tingling was gone replaced by a slight itch. I looked down at my injury and gasped bringing my other hand to my mouth.
The cut was gone. There in its place was a thin streak of new pink skin. I looked up into Old Quil's smiling face.
"How the hell did you do that?"
"Magic." he replied with a smirk.
He patted my cheek.
"Remember open mind Bella. We're almost there about five more minutes."
Five minutes felt like twenty. I manage to only fall twice more as the trail became steeper. I was awestruck when we reached the summit. The top of the butte was flat about the size of two football fields. The view was absolutely breathtaking. The sky was on fire with bright pinks and deep oranges as the sun sank towards the earth. I could see for miles in every direction, nothing but tall green grass. You could almost imagine what it must have been like hundreds of years ago before people came and changed everything.
Drustan same and placed a warm hand on my shoulder.
"It's almost time. Harrison and I have everything ready, when the sun touches the horizon we have to start."
"What exactly do I have to do? I'm not going to cut myself or anything I bleed enough on my own."
He laughed. Drustan has a nice laugh on that cause everyone else around him to smile.
"Don't worry it's nothing like that Angel. I promise this will be painless all you have to do is lay down, close your eyes, and take deep breaths. The rest is up to Altropos."
Well that sounded easy enough. At least if I was already laying down I couldn't fall. I was extremely surprised when Drustan grabbed my hand and pulled me towards the center of the field. I started to pull my hand away but he just gripped it tighter.
He took me to the very center where Harrison and Old Quil were waiting for us. Behind them was a very strange set up for a bon fire. Wood was stacked knee high in a circle about ten feet across. We stopped just in front of the two men. Harrison was all seriousness while Old Quil had the smallest of smile playing at the edge of his lips.
"Are you ready Bella?"
I shrugged my shoulders.
"From what Drustan said there really isn't much for me to do."
Old Quil's smile grew at my words.
"Physically no, mentally yes. You're going to lay down in the center of the circle then we'll light the wood for the fire."
Are they crazy? There was no way I was going to allow them to turn me into a human torch. Harrison must have guess at my internal monologue because he quickly continued.
"Don't worry Bella the flames won't be near you. The fire will be completely under control. The smoke is actually the most important part. While your laying down you're going to need to take very deep breaths. Now it's extremely important that you keep your eyes closed the entire time. If you open them at all the ritual won't work. Do you understand?"
"I think so lay down, deep breaths, and keep my eyes closed at all times seems pretty simple."
"Good then let's get you ready. We have about three minutes until show time" Drustan said as he pulled me forward by our still joined hands. I followed him to the edge of the wooden circle when he picked me up and lifted me over to the other side never letting go of my hand. We made our way to the center of the circle and with each step my nerves increased. My palms are sweaty and my heart was pounding in my chest.
This was a bad idea.
I pulled my hand out of Drustan's and turned around intent on getting the hell out of there. I didn't make it two steps before running smack into Old Quil.
"Going somewhere? He asked with a cocked brow.
"No." I answered looking anywhere but at him.
"Bella look at me." he ordered.
Surprised by the harsh tone of his voice my eyes snapped to his.
"Today I told you I would never lie to you and do everything in my power to help you. I think you need to do this little light. You may not believe it yet but I know you're meant for great things. Just like I know you'll always regret not finding out for certain. Now turn around and trust that I will never let anything happen to you."
I sighed he was right. Even though I thought this was some bug mistake I would regret not knowing for sure. Isabella Swan a warrior never, but it was nice to imagine the possibility of Isabella Swan not just an ordinary girl.
I met Old Quil's eyes once more gaining confidence in his presence. I reached out and pulled him into a hug needing to hold something familiar. I wished it was Jacob I was holding but would settle for anyone that reminded me of home. With one more tight squeeze I let go. Ready to face fate herself.
A/N2- Well I hope you all enjoyed chapter 2! I expect to be finished with chapter three tomorrow or the next day but posting it will be dependent on how this chapter is received. So on that note please leave a review and let me know if your interested in reading more!