AN1: Wow another chapter coming in at almost 7k words. I seriously didn't expect to have two chapters back to back that were this long. It's been a week since my last update so this for me is a very quick follow up.
AN2: Thank you everyone for the amazing response to the last chapter! As of right now I've gotten 35 reviews for it and it more than doubled the previous numbers of reviews. Thank you everyone for your enthusiasm and support. Hope this chapter is a suitable follow up for you all
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With that, faster than the eye could follow, Victoria launched herself at Edward.
Edward was caught completely off guard by the sudden attack. Faster than a blink Victoria crossed the space between them buried her fist in Edward's face. He flew backwards in what Bella could only think of as kung fu theater fashion, flipping over his chair and crashing into the wall at the far side of the room.
He must have hit a power switch when he hit the wall because suddenly most of the lights went out. There was a furious roar from Edward as he was almost instantly back on his feet. Victoria answered back with a challenging roar of her own, her eyes pitch black and her fangs glinting in the dim moonlight coming through the windows. It was a completely inhuman sight and it hit Bella how completely unlike her these powerful creatures really were.
With fangs bared and eyes black Edward launched himself across the room at Victoria. They collided and it took considerable willpower from Bella not to turn and watch the fight. She had already been pouring her magic into the bracelet on her left wrist, ready to snap up a shield of defensive magic with a thought. Instead of watching Victoria she turned to face the rest of the Cullens sure that it was only surprise that was keeping them from entering the fight and piling on to Victoria.
What Bella actually saw from the Cullens was unexpected. Esme and Carlisle had placed themselves between Rosalie and Emmett and the fight speaking to them too low and too fast for her to make out. Jasper had put his hand on his wife's shoulder who stood with a shocked and slightly horrified expression as she watched the fight.
She didn't know why but it seemed what she thought were the eldest vampires were preventing anyone from interfering with the fight. Bella couldn't help but sag slightly in relief that it didn't look like they were about to get mobbed by seven angry vampires. Still Bella didn't let go of the magic she had gathered and held it tightly coiled at the ready.
The sound of something hard hitting flesh and a grunt of pain dragged her eyes back to the fight taking place just a dozen feet from her. Edward swung at Victoria, his fists blurring impossibly fast, but Victoria seemed to constantly be ahead of him dodging his attacks by fractions of an inch. This went on for a few impossibly long moments before Victoria saw an opening and struck. Victoria drove her fist into his sternum and there was a loud cracking noise that told Bella that Victoria had just broken part of Edward's diamond-hard vampire skeleton. Edward pushed himself away with a grunt, trying to get some space but Victoria stayed right next to him without giving him a second's respite.
As Bella watched the incredible high speed fight part of her brain was analyzing what was happening even without any conscious effort on her part. There was probably no way Edward could hope to beat Victoria. The vampire had once confided in her that she had once used her power primarily to run away from danger. However since being with Bella she had been forced to adapt and push the limits of how she could use her power since avoiding fights altogether seemed impossible when she had Bella to protect. Now Victoria could use it in battle and to their mutual surprise it had become almost impossible for anyone to beat her in a fight. Victoria just knew in real time how and where the danger was coming second by second and she knew perfectly how to avoid it. It was part of the reason they had stayed alive as long as they had. Unless someone had some ace up their sleeve fighting one on one against Victoria was worse than fighting a ghost. It was suicide.
Maybe if Edward had been able to read her mind it would have leveled the playing field somewhat. However that was gone and thus he literally stood no chance.
Bella watched as Edward tried to tackle Victoria, only to have her step neatly into him and throw him over her shoulder. She held on to his arm and slammed him hard on the ground, breaking through the expensive wood flooring. There was a quick violent motion Bella couldn't follow and then there was a loud snap followed by an enraged howl of pain. Bella saw with some dismay that Edward's arm had been badly broken at the elbow.
"MINE!" she howled at him. Bella couldn't help but feel both pleased and frightened at the raw possessiveness in her tone.
However the fight still hadn't gone out of Edward yet in spite of everything. He wrenched his arm loose from her grip and charged her again aiming to tackle her to the ground. Victoria stepped back as he lunged and grabbed his arm and the front of his shirt redirecting his momentum into a spin. She twirled in a full circle and with visible effort hurled Edward straight out one of the large windows, shattering it and sending the vampire flying out into the night.
Victoria wasted no time in going out the window after him. In the space of a breath all other Cullens moved at vampire speed and followed the two outside. Bella cursed and hurried after them much slower as she was only able to follow at her own human speed.
Careful not to cut herself on pieces of jagged glass Bella stepped through the broken window and came upon an unexpected sight. Edward was laying on the ground on his back and Emmett was crouching behind him, his hands on Edward's shoulders in what looked like a brotherly gesture but was also clearly stopping him from getting back up. Esme and Carlisle were standing between them and Victoria with their hands held up in a placating gesture. The remaining three vampires were standing off to the sides and looked ready to jump in at a moment's notice.
Looking on Bella felt herself start to feel increasingly calm and peaceful and content. It was a very nice feeling until she realized how inappropriate it suddenly was for the situation. Bella's quick mind searched for an answer and she felt the pricklings of magic affecting her emotions. With a start she realized who must be responsible and her gaze snapped to the vampire Jasper. His brow was furrowed in concentration and Bella guessed he was straining his powers to calm everyone down.
With a start she realized Carlisle had started speaking. She started paying attention and her jaw almost dropped open at what she heard.
"…apologize for his behavior, he doesn't understand what he was doing," Carlisle was saying. "No one will try to take what is yours, I give you my word as the leader of this Coven. The challenge was uncalled for, it was born out of ignorance and will not be repeated I assure you" he said placatingly.
Victoria stood still with her eyes black and her posture tense but at least she had stopped to listen. She gnashed her teeth in frustrated aggression and looked like she desperately needed an outlet but Bella could see she was slowly calming down. Victoria started speaking to Carlisle and to her annoyance she spoke too fast and low for her to hear. Carlisle replied in kind and Bella found herself in the awkward situation of being the only one who couldn't hear or understand what was being said.
After a short conversation Emmett took his hands off Edward and slowly stood up, not touching him but watching him warily, standing close enough to grab him again in case he did something. Edward stood up just a little bit awkwardly with one of his arms visibly broken. Carlisle and Esme both turned and spoke a few short rapid words to him. Edward said nothing and instead just glared balefully at Victoria. Victoria glared right back with her lips threatening to curl into a snarl. Despite whatever Carlisle had said to her and Jasper's peaceful influence she still looked to be one provocation away from attacking him again.
Carlisle said something sharply to him and his gaze finally turned to his father. Looking around to everyone and fixing Victoria one last angry scowl Edward turned and fled into the woods. Everyone seemed to breathe a collective sigh of relief once he was gone.
"Well," said Carlisle sounding just a tad too cheerful for the atmosphere, "why don't get back inside and we can resume our conversation?"
Without a word the Cullen vampires began to file back into the house through the broken window jumping inside without a problem. Instead of going inside right away Esme walked straight towards Bella instead. Suddenly this made Bella nervous and Victoria turned to stare at them with the eyes of a hawk. She seemed to have calmed down to some extent but was still wound tighter than piano wire.
Esme leaned in slightly into Bella as she walked past her. "Go to her sweetie," Esme whispered to her, "make sure to touch her. It will help" With a tender reassuring smile Esme left and walked back into the house.
Just like that Bella was alone with Victoria in the Cullen's back yard. The redhead stood in the same spot and Bella could see she was struggling to put her instinctual, vampire nature back in a cage. Bella hesitantly walked up to her while Victoria eyed her up and down greedily with black eyes, and while her gaze was possessive and not sexual it still made Bella's insides clench.
"Stupid hormones"she grumbled in her own mind.
Hesitantly Bella reached out and took Victoria's hand in both of hers. Her hand was cool and despite the situation it gave Bella a little thrill to be holding it. She rubbed her thumbs over the back of Victoria's hand in what she hoped was a reassuring fashion. "Are you ok?" Bella asked, her voice filled with concern.
Victoria didn't answer instead looking down at their joined hands with a laser like intensity. Slowly her eyes traveled up and up until they settled on Bella's face. Something came across Victoria's face then, something decidedly dark and hungry and utterly primal. Bella's eyes widened and her heart sped up at seeing that look.
"Tori what…"
Her question was cut off as Victoria reached up with her free hand and grabbed Bella behind the neck gripping so hard Bella couldn't contain the pained squeal that escaped her. Bella let go of the hand she was holding and brought her hands to the one around her neck. The human teen felt like a fish on a hook as she couldn't help but arch her back and throw back her head to try and lessen the pressure. Dimly she realized she was very obviously exposing her throat and that might not be helping Tori regain control.
"Ease up Tori, ease up," Bella said gently while trying to keep her breathing even. While she knew Victoria couldn't really hurt her she felt the awesome power in those fingers and felt like her neck could be snapped with a flick of the wrist. Perversely, maybe because she knew she couldn't actually be hurt, that power that Victoria had over her was turning her on and she could feel the moisture start to quickly pool between her legs. She had to make a conscious effort not to let herself moan like a whore.
She was pretty sure Esme's plan of 'touching' Victoria to help her out was backfiring horribly.
The witch had long been in denial but in that moment it became clear. Bella was hopelessly, painfully in lust with Victoria.
Fuck her life.
Then Victoria began to lower her head towards Bella and for a heart stopping moment she thought she was about to be kissed. Instead Victoria turned Bella's head to the side slightly and began to rub her cheek against Bella's while the vampire made a sound halfway between a purr and a growl. Bella was momentarily confused and turned on by Victoria rubbing her cheek all along Bella's face and neck. It took a few moments before it finally hit Bella's hormone laden brain what was going on.
She's scent marking me!
The idea was oddly pleasing to the young witch and she relaxed and let Victoria do whatever she wanted. The coolness of her cheek was like a soothing balm against Bella's increasingly heated skin. After a few moments she turned Bella's head in the other direction, repeating the same with the other side of her face and neck. All the while she kept up the growling/purring sounds that made Bella think of an overgrown jungle cat, the vibrations rising through Tori's chest and throat and transferring wherever her skin was touching Bella's. Other than the occasional rare bite this was the most intimate the two of them had ever been together and Bella didn't know whether her heart was going to burst out of her chest or stop beating altogether.
Unexpectedly Victoria suddenly froze, froze in that unnatural stillness that was only possible for vampires. Bella was about to voice a question before the redhead released her suddenly and Bella had to struggle to regain her balance and not fall on her behind. When she was steady on her feet again Bella saw that Victoria had removed her enchanted thumb ring and her eyes were no longer black but a dark red.
"I hate that thing," she muttered looking off into the darkness and not looking particularly happy. She put the ring in her pocket and walked past Bella refusing to meet her eyes. Bella watched Victoria's back as she walked back towards the window she had broken.
Bella realized she was breathing too hard and forced herself to slow down. Her sex throbbed demanding attention but more than anything she just felt confused. Why did it feel like Victoria was suddenly giving her the brush off after all that? What had just happened in there? What was with the scent marking? ...What was she really to Victoria?
Feeling vaguely hurt at what felt like Victoria's abrupt dismissal of her Bella realized her many questions would have to wait. They hadn't finished with the Cullens yet despite all the excitement thus far. If she was honest if they could walk away with only one supernatural fistfight to complicate things they could count themselves lucky. These things never turned out the way you expected them to.
Damn supernatural politics. Always getting in the way of her non-existent sex life.
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Once they were back inside Carlisle began to speak.
"I must apologize again," said Carlisle, looking so somber Bella was inclined to believe he actually meant what he was saying. "I realize now I have been remiss in not educating my entire Coven properly in how to deal with vampires in the world at large. Perhaps I've allowed us to become too isolated, too content to live our own lives while forgetting about the larger vampire community around us. Frankly teaching proper court rules and protocols reminds me too much of the Volturi and I naively believed those skills were not be necessary for some of my 'children' to learn"
Bella was somewhat relieved at hearing the implication that Carlisle didn't like the Volturi much. Still what he was talking about seemed like a major oversight.
"You see one of the benefits of a diet of animal blood is that it numbs some of our instincts and makes others easier to deal with. One drawback however is this can also lead to us not being fully in tune with how our actions might be taken by someone whose instincts are more active and at the foreground. I don't think he really understood how what he was saying and doing would be taken. I believe he was speaking perhaps out of… misguided concern. It was not meant as a challenge to take the human you have claimed away from you."
Claimed? Victoria had claimed her? What did that even mean? Maybe it had something to do with how she had been scent marked. Even she with her completely ordinary human nose could catch the faintest trace of Victoria's unique scent on her, a smell that was a combination of a sweet flower and something spicy. The knowing look from Rosalie and the teasing grin she had gotten from Emmett when she came back in along with his waggling 'sexy eyebrows' let her know everyone was well aware of how she smelled now. Bella was sure she had blushed bright scarlet and that had gotten her the tiniest upward tug of lips from Rosalie.
Victoria for her part looked uncharacteristically uncomfortable with the conversation. "As long as you make certain he understands what is and isn't acceptable we can consider the matter closed. Just make sure he understands or I won't hesitate to remove a few of his limbs next time."
"Of course," agreed Carlisle quickly "it was unwise to give provocation like that."
"Wait, so what exactly happened?" asked Alice, looking cutely confused. She really did look too innocent and adorable to be a vampire.
Victoria didn't look inclined to speak so it was Esme who answered her. "Vampires are naturally possessive and territorial. Dragons hoarding their gold have nothing on us," she joked with a smile, "I know you've experienced some of this instinct on your own when it comes to Jasper. Every vampire is like that with their mates. However in the case of most vampires who are not animal drinkers territorial and possessive instincts come into play with more than just heir mates. It can happen with any territory they have claimed, with food and far more rarely with any human a vampire has claimed as 'theirs'. Usually this is what happens when a vampire selects a human they wish to turn. Edward made it sound like he was going to take Andromeda's human away from her and her instincts reacted to that threat. Most vampires would know that pushing the issue on something like that is the surest way to start a fight and Andromeda's instincts took over." Esme shook her head slightly "Carlisle is right we have been remiss in not teaching these things to the four of you. These are basic fundamental facts about dealing with vampires and it never occurred to me that you would be so ill equipped to deal with it. I feel I have to apologize for that," said Esme, giving her 'children' a soft regretful smile.
"Whatever, Eddy boy was being an idiot," said Emmett, snorting and rolling his eyes "A blind man could have seen that Andy here was going to blow her lid when he started running his mouth and he just wouldn't stop. Far as I'm concerned he dug his own grave and eagerly jumped in head first. By the way, have the human come live with us? That's the first I ever heard of it. No offence Bella Bear but even for us hippie vegetarian vampires having a human around all the time would be a bit of a challenge," he told her with a friendly grin.
Bella smiled back. She couldn't help herself. Emmett's good cheer was infectious. Even as she told herself to be cautious she couldn't help but like the large and boisterous vampire.
"It's ok, I think being around vampires who insisted on wearing hemp and ran around in Birkenstocks would be too much for me anyway," she said shyly, venturing to joke with the big male.
Alice looked horrified by her suggestion and Emmett broke out in real laughter. All the Cullens looked at least a little amused, except for Rosalie who just lost a bit of the sour look on her face but Bella counted that as a win. It effectively broke the tense atmosphere that had settled over the group and that made Bella breathe a big sigh of relief.
Most gratifying to her was that Tori lost a bit of the serious mien she'd had since they had arrived at the Cullen's. She swore she even saw a hint of a smile.
"I can't believe you would say something like that…" said Alice, still looking vaguely shell shocked at the very idea of such a fashion disaster.
Emmett turned to his wife and stage whispered so everyone could hear. "Honey I know what to get everyone for Christmas this year. We'll order a whole bunch of hemp clothes and Birkenstocks for everybody online and replace all their wardrobes."
"Don't you dare! You might be bigger than me but I swear I'll find some way to hurt you. And seriously Emmett, Bella Bear? Where did that come from? Isn't her name Marie? Giving another woman pet names instead of your wife? You're losing friends mighty fast around here Emmett Cullen!"
"Hey now we have to keep up our image as hippie vegetarian vampires and there's no better way to do it than decking ourselves out in pretentious pot-based clothing. As to Bella Bear, well Andy over here called her Bella in a moment of passion and it's easier to come up with a cool nickname for Bella than for Marie."
Bella almost choked at Emmett's colorful description of how her name had been called out… and then she realized Victoria had lost herself and called her Bella instead of Marie. Damn. She really hoped that wouldn't cause any problems.
She caught Jasper looking at her and she had the sudden insight that her emotions had been giving him more information than she wanted him to have. She wanted to kick herself in the ass for not having realized that as soon as he'd revealed that he could sense emotions.
"So what is your name? Marie or Bella?" Jasper asked her.
Before she could reply Victoria answered for her. "If you remember her alias at school is Bella Swan. We've used the name Bella in her aliases so often I've started to think of her as that instead of Marie. She really seems to like the name" said Victoria with a small smile that looked genuine. It was a nice save. Bella had to admit Victoria was a smooth operator.
Apparently they were back to lying with the truth. Somehow even though it was the smart thing to do Bella felt a bit bad misleading these vampires who so far had been nothing but nice to them. Well, except possibly for Edward but even though he had provoked Tori she couldn't be too mad at him. It seemed that in his own way he was trying to look out for her, a total stranger. That had been nice of him. It's not like he knew Tori literally couldn't harm her no matter how badly she might want to.
Jasper gave the two of them a searching look and Bella felt helpless since she was starting to realize her emotions were undermining Victoria's efforts to keep their real identities as murky as possible. It wouldn't do for everyone and their uncle to know a redheaded vampire named Victoria and a human named Isabella Black had travelled through a place together. The danger of their names and descriptions somehow getting back to the Volturi was simply too great and then they'd be back on the run for their lives again. Sadly Bella knew that no matter how this meeting turned out Victoria would probably be thinking about leaving Forks soon anyway.
Honestly using their real first names as aliases for the school had been risky but Bella had insisted because she felt it would make it feel more like she was living a normal life. Now she was starting to regret that decision. The Cullens already knew enough to sink them three times over if they told anyone what they knew about them.
While Emmett bickered with Alice about stealing her wardrobe and replacing it with something more 'Earth friendly' Jasper walked over to Carlisle and started whispering in his ear. A moment later Esme joined in and the three of them had an impromptu huddle. Bella got the impression they were speaking so low only the three of them close together could hear what they were saying if Victoria's suddenly carefully neutral mask was anything to go by. The witch has a sinking feeling that her emotions had given everything away and she wondered what they would do if that was indeed the case.
It didn't take long before the impromptu huddle broke up. Carlisle sat up and his demeanor suddenly seemed much more serious. Alice and Emmett picked up on it and they quickly settled down. Bella found her palms had started to sweat. She didn't know what Jasper had said but obviously it was something Carlisle and by extension the Coven were taking seriously. Carlisle regarded them in silence for a few long nervous moments before he spoke up.
"I wonder if you would be willing to let Esme read you."
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"So what's the plan father?"
"The usual. Put alarm triggers on major roads and high traffic areas in large population centers. There are few magical practitioners in Washington and none as strong as the girl."
"That's a lot of work, a lot of ground to cover. A large investment in magic."
"Save it. It'll be worth it once we catch up to the girl. Those fancy Volturi bastards are offering stupid amounts of green if we can find the girl and take her out. I don't know why they got such a hard on for one inexperienced witch but frankly as long as we get paid I don't give a damn."
"How much money are we talking about?"
"Let's just say the payout started at seven figures and only went up from there over the years."
"And for a job that big they came to us?"
"They came to me. But I see your point. I'm pretty sure we're just one out of several groups of mercs out looking for the girl. Whoever gets her first gets the whole enchilada."
"And we have a lead no one else has."
"Exactly. Now let's find this pain in the ass kid and then we can let the boys have their fun."
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"Read us?" said Victoria, and from her tone you would have thought she'd just been asked to eat something particularly foul.
Carlisle nodded once. "With her power. As we have said Esme has the ability to look into the hearts and souls of people. It is an ability that lets her see the true nature of people and something of their intentions. In no way does it read your mind or violate your privacy beyond that."
Victoria was stone faced. "Why would we agree to that?"
Carlisle took a deep breath, an unnecessary gesture for a vampire. "Miss Andromeda, I realize there are many good reasons why the two of you might want to keep secrets. I am not the type of person to condemn you outright if you felt the need to be somewhat… creative with some facts. It is in some ways perfectly understandable. However if you wish to stay in our territory I must know for sure that you bear us no ill will and are not here to do something unfortunate. We've had bad experiences with vampires in the past and it is simply not a risk I am willing to take. If your intentions truly are benign Esme will be able to tell us to our satisfaction and we can all be friendly while we allow you to stay in Forks. I do not believe this is an unreasonable request."
Bella could see the wheels turning in Victoria's head, running down her own version of a risk/benefit analysis. If she had been a cat her fur would have been standing on end, she didn't like the ultimatum. Letting a strange vampire use their powers on you was a risky proposition, it's not like they really knew if they were telling the truth about how Esme's power worked.
Thankfully Victoria had her own power and Bella knew she would be able to sense if Esme using her power to read them would be dangerous. Her ability must have told her it was safe because slowly and deliberately Victoria nodded her assent.
With a reassuring smile Esme stood up and walked towards them. Bella looked at the taller vampire with apprehension as she stopped right in front of her.
"Don't be nervous, this won't hurt I promise" said Esme softly. Slowly as not to startle her she reached down and took Bella's hands in her own.
It may have been a trick of the light but Bella could have sworn she saw the faintest of white glows where the two of them touched. Bella felt the unique sensation of magic being used on her but it didn't feel hostile or threatening. In fact the feel of the magic was warm and nurturing, something like a sunny carefree spring day. It only lasted for a few short moments before Esme squeezed her hands and let go. Esme met her eyes, giving her a look that was understanding and tender and… affectionate? It made Bella slightly uncomfortable. She really wanted to know what Esme had 'read' off her.
She stepped away to move in front of Victoria and repeated the same process with her. This time Bella was positive she saw a faint glow where the two vampires touched. Again it lasted only a few short moments before Esme dropped her hands. The vampire gave Victoria and odd soft look Bella couldn't decipher before she turned away and looked back at her husband. They also must have gotten good at communicating with just a look because Carlisle broke out into a pleased and relieved looking smile.
"Well it seems you pass. After we negotiate a few details I don't see a problem with letting you stay in our territory for a while. Welcome to Forks."
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The rest of the meeting had been relatively short. They had a few conditions especially when it came to where Victoria was allowed to hunt. It was clear it was still an uncomfortable topic for them but to Bella's surprise they had revealed they had other friends who were human drinkers who only went after dangerous criminals and that they were accepting of such a lifestyle, if somewhat reluctantly.
The biggest surprise was when the Cullens had asked for 'payment' for staying in their territory which apparently was the custom in these situations. They had asked to socialize with and get to know the two of them. Apparently having new people to interact with on more than the most superficial level was rare for the Coven and they valued new 'human' contact… well at least that's what they said. Rosalie didn't look particularly thrilled by the prospect. Neither did Victoria.
In the end however they had agreed. To Bella it simply seemed like they were looking for new acquaintances and friends to help break up the routine of vampire life. Masquerading as a family must get pretty boring after the first few decades. She supposed it could have been much worse, they could have demanded pints of her human blood or her firstborn child or something equally unpleasant. For vampires the Cullens had been amazingly nice.
It was an odd sort of mental dissonance to go from fleeing for her life at the sight of any vampire to suddenly agreeing to 'socialize' with a bunch of them. Bella was sure the absurdity of it all would catch up to her later that night and she would break down into hysterical giggles.
The two of them got back into their car and Bella sagged in relief as soon as they were away from the Cullen property. Despite how nice the Cullens had been she couldn't help but feel a little surprised and grateful they had escaped with all their limbs intact. It wouldn't be long before all that accumulated tension hit her and she was going to spend some time hugging a pillow and hiding under the covers after she had her inevitable post-action stress crash. Hopefully Victoria would stay in the house. Even if she never held her just knowing she was nearby helped.
Speaking of Victoria… Bella glanced at her protector who had her eyes firmly on the road. The vampire seemed uncharacteristically quiet and somber. Bella for her part had so many questions, so many things she wanted to ask about what went on in that meeting she didn't know where to start. She settled for the most inoffensive thing that sprung to mind to start with.
"So, Andromeda?" she asked, putting just a hint of teasing in her voice.
"What's wrong with Andromeda?" came the reply. Victoria wasn't back to being lighthearted like before but she didn't sound particularly angry or upset either. That was good. She could work with that.
"It's not a made up name is it?" said Bella voicing her suspicion.
There was a pause before Victoria answered. "No it's not. It was my middle name."
"Really? Victoria Andromeda?" said Bella again with the teasing tone. She was trying to get Victoria to lighten up and open up. So far it hadn't been working.
"Aren't you the genius?" she said dryly.
"They are a really big ostentatious pair of names. It's good though. I think it suits you. Makes me wonder what your last name was" said Bella unsubtly hinting.
Victoria finally turned to look at her. She gave Bella a pointed look and a quirked up eyebrow as if saying you know better than to ask that. Bella momentarily lost herself in those red orbs.
"You can tell me you know. If you don't tell me who will you ever tell?"
Victoria gave her another long look and didn't reply instead turning back towards the road. Sometimes the way Victoria just dismissed her made her feel like a little kid asking her parents things she shouldn't. Bella held back a huff of frustration and decided to change tracks. Obviously Victoria had no intention of telling her what her last name had been.
On top of that Victoria clearly didn't seem to be in a chatty mood. In fact to Bella she seemed almost… troubled by something. Bella decided to try an avenue of conversation she was sure Victoria would want to talk about.
"How do you think it went with the Cullens?"
Victoria was silent for almost a full minute before answering. "I don't know what to make of them. Other than that idiot I never really sensed enough danger to worry too much about. I have a hard time buying into their seemingly utopian happy-families Brady bunch lifestyle though. Seems entirely too good to be true. There has to be a dark side to it we haven't seen yet."
"Geez, cynical much?" said Bella teasingly though couldn't bring herself to disagree. It was kind of hard to believe.
"We should be fine for now as long as we don't take any stupid risks. Carlisle will keep his word. However that doesn't guarantee any of the others might not do something stupid against his wishes. I also have to wonder how many times they've had 'accidents' and attacked humans. Don't care what they say, abstaining from human blood won't erase their desire for it and anyone can lose control in a bad situation. Don't let yourself be alone with one of them" she said seriously.
Bella absently nodded but her mind was already somewhere else. "Speaking of losing control" she began carefully "what was all that with Edward?"
Victoria's face darkened. "It was nothing. Forget about it."
On this point however Bella wouldn't back down. "It wasn't nothing. It was very much not nothing. What was going on? You've never acted like that before. And the things you said-"
Victoria growled at her, the sound threatening. "Let it drop Bella."
"No I won't drop it! Damn it Tori talk to me. Why did you say those things? Why did you say I was yours?" Bella said determined to get an answer. This was too important to her.
"It was nothing."
"You literally screamed it in front of the whole Coven. Don't tell me it was nothing."
Looking at her Victoria looked conflicted and angry, gripping the steering wheel so hard she was putting dents in it. If she pushed a little more she might get something.
"Why is it so hard for you Tori? I'm not an idiot you know. I can pretty much figure out it means you have strong feelings about me. Why is that so awful to admit?" said Bella and despite herself she couldn't keep the tinge of hurt from her voice.
"Oh I have strong feelings about you all right" she said in a nasty tone. Bella didn't let herself get distracted.
"Will you explain it to me please? Tell me what happened in there. Just hearing it was 'your instincts' isn't really a satisfactory explanation. Why would your instincts react that way in the first place?"
"Instincts aren't always in sync with everything else."
"Instincts are part of who you are. Don't try to make it sound like it has nothing to do with you. Why can't you just admit you at least like me?" said Bella her voice rising. She didn't even notice the tears of frustration gathering in her eyes.
The vampire said nothing. Bella wasn't about to give up.
"Would you prefer it if I went to live with the Cullens?"
Victoria visibly ground her teeth. "No. That's not safe."
"But it's more than that isn't it? You completely lost it when Edward kept pushing for them to take me in, to take me away from you. Tell me why Tori. Why can't you just admit that you actually give a damn about me?" said Bella, her voice raw and pleading.
At that Victoria slowly turned to face Bella taking her eyes off the road completely. Her face was dangerous and unyielding. Bella felt a shiver of fear run down her spine.
Taking one hand off the steering wheel she brought it up to her neck. With one nail she flicked the metal collar around her neck, the metallic clink seeming to echo in the silent car.
Oh. Bella's face dropped and her heart fell to her stomach.
"Tell me Isabella," began Victoria in a mocking tone "if you could take this off, would you?"
Bella shrank down in her seat and had to look away from Victoria's accusing stare.
The truth was that Bella did not know how to remove the magic of the collar. It was incredibly complex magic created by her parents and they had not bothered to design a way for the spell to be safely removed. If Bella were ever to take it off it would take a considerable amount of research and luck before she had any clue how to do it safely.
The truth was however she had never done any research. She had never looked beyond just knowing how the magic of the collar worked. In large part it was because she didn't want to know.
Would she remove Victoria's collar? No. She was too much of a coward.
Bella's biggest fear was suddenly finding herself alone. Alone in the world, alone without anyone she could count on or turn to who would be by her side. Alone to be hunted like game across the world by the Volturi without anyone who would help her. All her family was gone and being on the run had made it impossible to form any real meaningful bonds with anyone. On top of that who would want to get close to her if it meant they would be targeted by the most powerful group of vampires in the world?
Victoria was the only person she had. It made Bella feel beyond awful that she was there against her will, both because she was afraid it meant the vampire didn't actually care for her and because Victoria was special enough to her that she didn't want to see her unhappy. Bella had often been glad she had no idea how to remove the collar so she never had to make that choice. Because part of her was convinced Victoria would leave her the first chance she could if the collar ever came off.
Just the thought of Victoria abandoning her made her feel like a rock was crushing her chest making it hard to breathe.
Part of her had always wondered how much Victoria actually cared for her. She'd thought that her earlier outburst and marking her were proof that she did care. In fact it had made her stupidly happy to have some tangible proof that on some level she truly mattered to Victoria. But would that be enough to keep her from leaving?
Her silence and refusal to meet her eyes answered Victoria's question.
"That's what I thought," the vampire said with disdain "and you have the gall to wonder why I have a problem liking you? Instead of having immortality I'm going to die right along with you and you wouldn't even change it if you could. Stupid girl."
Bella had never felt more awful or like such a terrible person as she did in that moment. She had always avoided thinking about the implications of the collar but here they were being brought out naked into the open. Hearing the anger and frustration in Victoria's voice she couldn't ignore the reality of it anymore. Tears started flowing freely down Bella's cheeks.
"I'm sorry" she whispered. Victoria didn't answer her.
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Hope that wasn't too much of a downer. Like always more reviews equal faster updates!