Chapter – 23
The growl, grunts and howls of the pack's arguing was probably heard throughout Forks. Jake could understand they were worried about her, hell he wanted to jump in everytime they charged her, but she was right, she needed to know how to protect herself. Lil was far too independent to allow someone watching over her all the time, no matter how much he wanted it to be that way.
"Would I ever let anyone hurt her?" He asked Sam, who sat down, probably giving the rest the order to do so, since they all followed his lead.
Lil repeated the routine she had before, earphones in, music blasting, eyes closed and big smile. She was set in getting into her zone, blocking out her surroundings, her audience and her skeptics. She began to bob her head to the music, singing along to Lady Gaga's 'Love Game'.
"Is she dancing?" Rosalie asked
"Lady Gaga" Alice laughed as she nodded
The pack was tense at first, on the verge of coming to her defense, but she had them with their mouths wide open in astonishment in no-time. Lil spent several minutes ducking, jumping, sliding and dodging Emmett and Alice without any difficulty. Suddenly her breath steadied and her heart beats slowed. She was no longer nervous or afraid, she had the upper hand and she knew it. Jake smiled even though his heart was going a mile a minute. The scene was pretty funny, he could hear Rosalie and Jasper's chuckles, Esme's soft exhales of worry, Carlisle's steady breath, Emmett's grunts, Alice's giggles and the eerie silence of the pack.
"It is time to convince them once and for all" Jasper whispered
Rosalie, Alice, Carlisle, Esme and Jake stood on red-alert as Jasper and Emmett attacked. They were sure the pack would join the fight but they seemed to be too shocked to react. Lil dodged Jasper and Emmett several times. Then things got really freaky, Lil sensed something approaching her; she turned towards it, opening her eyes and the glow that came from them seemed like flashlights. Jake had to hand it to Jasper who was running at her head on, he didn't even flinch. She was set of proving to everyone what she was capable of, and boy did she. Lil grabbed on to Jasper's shirt as he attacked, crouching as he flipped her over backwards. When they landed he was on his back, Lil on top of him, pinning each arm with a knee, right thumb at his jugular. She looked up at Jake who had a huge smile on his face. Jasper took advantage of her distraction to shake her off and jump up, crouching in a defensive pose. He launched at her, but she moved out his way, managed to hook his neck with her arm and jumped on his back, then wrapped her legs around him, pinning his arms down, and tightened her hands around his neck, both thumbs to his jugular..
"Amazing" Jasper laughed
Lil's eyed dimmed when smiled and gave Jasper a kiss on the cheek before jumping off of him.
"Are you convinced now?" she asked Sam "Or do I need to do it with one of you?" The smirk heard came from Leah and Lil picked up on it. "Are you volunteering, Leah?" Lil snapped as she glared at her.
The 'huh?' was collective.
"Not a good idea, Lily" Carlisle advised "They don't heal as fast as we do"
"Last thing we need are injured werewolves in the line of fire" Emmett laughed
"Are we good?" Jake asked Sam, who nodded in response.
Thinking Lil was distracted; Emmett tried to tackle her down. She laughed as she easily moved out of the way, doing a 360 and jumping on his back the way she had with Jasper.
"Do you trust me?"
Jake froze. The last time those words came out of her mouth Jess became a werewolf.
"Yeah" Emmett laughed absolutely relaxed. Before Jake had a chance to say or do anything, the same light of before emerged from Lil's eyes as she pulled Emmett's shirt and sank her teeth on his shoulder. Ironic isn't it? A bloodsucker was getting his blood sucked. He had to admit the scene a freaky but kinda hot. "Hmm" Lil smiled as she licked her lips "You taste like a fruit slushee. I was expecting a lot worse"
"I guess there is a first time for everything" Emmett laughed placing his palm over his shoulder as Lil jumped off "Can I ask why? Not I minded, it kinda felt good"
"Because I'm gonna need you to save my life if I get bitten" Needless to say Lil had everyone's confused eyes on her. She turned to address everyone as she explained. "A witch's blood is lethal to vampires, only a few drops of it is enough to kill them. Vampire venom can't turn witches, but it can get us sick to the point of death" she smiled at Emmett "I needed your blood in my system so that if I get bitten, you can suck the venom out without my blood killing you" she turned back to the crowd "Once a vampire's blood is in a witch's system, he becomes immune to her blood" she turned back to Emmett "My blood wont taste good to you, and you'll probably puke your guts out, but you'll be fine. A little sick, but fine"
"Why me?" Emmett asked
"Yeah" Tink yelled "Why Emmett and not any of us?"
"Process of elimination" Lil smiled "Carlisle is the doctor, we need him to be on his game, and so he was out. Edward and you are out because we need your gifts now more than ever. Esme, well I can't bear her to get sick so she was out. That left Jasper, Rosalie and Emmett. Jasper wouldn't do it, he'd be terrified to go anywhere near my blood, even if it doesn't appeal to him"
"I thank you for that" he nodded
"Rosalie, she'd do it in a heartbeat, I know" she smiled at Blondie before turning to Jake "But do to the history between her and Jake, well we all know what would happen if he saw her sucking my blood. Emmett and Jake are good friends and I know if there is any vampire that Jake would trust my life with, other than Alice of course" she smiled at Tink who smiled at Jake "It would be Emmett"
"I won't let anything happen to her" Emmett promised Jake with a pat in the back "I got her"
"Thanks" he smiled. Lil smiled at Jake as she walked over to wrap her arms around his waist and tiptoed to kiss the hollow of his neck."Why didn't you tell me what you were gonna do?"
"Because you wouldn't let me do it" she smiled
Jake shook his head as he wrapped his arms tightly around her. Relieved everything was ok.
"Are you ok?" he asked "How do you feel?"
"I feel great" Lil smiled "It was a real rush"
"Your eyes are glowing" he stated "Literally, not like 'they're so beautiful they glow, but like you have two flashlights on"
"I feel great" Lil answered shrugging her shoulders
Jake kissed Lil's hair over and over again, calming himself down as everyone settled. Jasper and Emmett continued their demonstrations, Lil, Jess, Seth, Quil, Embry and him occasionally taking turns. The rest of the pack was not comfortable enough to participate. As the night progressed, it grew colder, reaching a low of thirty degrees. Jake made sure to keep her warm by hugging her tightly, keeping her body as close to his as possible.
"Edward and Bella are coming back" Tink announced "It's too cold for her, I think. I can't see clearly"
Just as she finished the sentence Edward emerged from the trees with a stiff bluing Bella in arms. Knowing an explanation wasn't necessary, he sat down with a stubborn Bella who refused to go back home. The pack either felt sorry for her or feared she would freeze to death and sat in a circle around Jake and Lil, Edward and Bella, creating a ring of heat. The temperature rose immediately, but Bella was too frozen to feel it, even after hours.
"Wha…wha…what time is it?" Bella stuttered
"Almost 2am" Edward answered
"Bella your still blue" Lil noted "Stop being stubborn and get over here"
Jake and Lil were nice and toasty, Bella on the other hand was shaking and blue, even with the blankets and two jackets, hers and Lil's. Poor bloodsucker looked miserable sitting as far away from her as he could possibly get while remaining inside the circle.
"N..n..n..no" Bella continued to be stubborn "I'm fi…fi…fine""Maybe we should go back" Edward suggested, again.
He'd been trying to convince Bella of going back home forever. Honestly, Jake thought she would get frostbite running through that but, he just wanted to make sure she was ok.
"Stop being stupid Bells" he said "Get your ass over here"
"Trust me Bella, Jake has more than enough heat for both of us"
"Lily is right Bella" Edward agreed "You need to get warm before you get hypothermia"
"Come on Bells, you're like my sister" he smiled "You think your bloodsucker would be ok with it if he knew I was up to something"
"He would be the first neutered wolf in history if he was up to something" Lil added
"You either get warm or I'm taking you home" Edward finally gave her an ultimatum
"Fi…fi…fine" she whispered
Jake and Lil unwrapped the blanket allowing Bella to get in. She sat behind him, placing her legs on either side of Jake's, dug her face in his bare back and wrapped her arms around his waist resting her hands between Jake's stomach and Lil's back.
"Aah!" Lil breathed out, arching her back when she felt Bella's icy hands
"Damn Bells" Jake complained "You're a block of ice"
"Sss…sorry" Bella whispered
Jake wrapped the blanket around the three of them and before long; they were all nice and toasty. Jake was sandwiched between Bella and Lil, keeping them warm and couldn't help giving Edward a cocky smile. I'm a lucky bastard. Edward half-smiled, rolling his eyes.
"Yes you are"
"He's what?" Lily asked
"A lucky bastard" Edward smiled
"You know how many guys would kill to be in my place?" Jake half-smiled "Present company included"
"A lot more than you think"Edward answered
"Really?"
"Some you know about, but you'd be surprised by others" he answered
"Then we need to talk later"Jake said lifting his eyebrow
"Of Course"Lil said sarcastically"Cause every guy who's ever made the mistake of fantasizing about us needs to get his ass kicked"
"Glad you see it our way"Edward smiled
"Boys"Bella and Lil chorused shaking their heads
"Ready for some wedding planning?"Edward smiled at Jake
"Except for the trips to New York and Milan"Jake complained
"That's the least of your worries"Edward laughed"With over a year to work with, Alice is going to drive you crazy with all sort of details. She will definitely make it the biggest wedding in LaPush's history"
"I don't want the wedding to be at LaPush"
"What???"Edward, Bella and Jake chorused. By the way the pack's heads snapped around, they shared the same reaction.
"I want all of my family attending"Lil explained"It has to be done in neutral territory"
"Your right"Jake agreed"Everyone will feel better in a neutral place"
"It can be done at the meadow"Bella proposed
"Not happening"Tink protested, jumping over Quil to enter the circle"Too small"
"Right here"Jake and Lil chorused
"Seems like you have your wedding location"Edward smiled
"I hope everything else is that easy"Lil laughed
"With Alice involved" Edward smiled"I highly doubt that"
Tink glared at Edward as she stuck out her tongue. It was obvious she was still annoyed about not having her visions.
"Don't be so glum"Lily teased"Being normal is not that bad"
"Like you would know"Tink mumbled
*****
It was then something occurred to Lily. Alice alone can't see, I do sometimes but mostly in dreams. Maybe together and with the help of my powers, we might accomplish something. Can't hurt?
"Alice, would you try something with me?"Lily asked"I think we can help each other"
Lily and Alice sat face to face, legs crossed, knees touching, fingers intertwined, eyes closed as they concentrated hard. Several minutes passed without the slightest movement from either of them. At first it was like sitting in a dark theater, nothing but pitch darkness, then someone turned the movie on and they got all sorts of visions. Bits of pieces of things to come, Bella's wedding, someone's positive pregnancy test, Emily holding a baby girl, an argument between Jake and Sam, Rosalie buying a new car, Lily's wedding, everyone present, meaning everyone would walk away from the fight, they were getting a flash of Seth with a little girl that looked a lot like Edward when everything went pitch black, thanks to Emmett's booming voice.
"Holy shit!" Emmett yelled
Lily and Alice felt like they'd fallen out of the sky, landing with a loud 'thump'.
"Wow"Alice giggled"That was… beyond words"
"That was crazy" Lily laughed she ran to Jake "We were able to see so many things"
"Main thing is that we were able to see we all walk away from this" Alice beamed
Everyone stared at them, utterly speechless as they shared a 'what the hell?' look.
"Why are you guys staring at us like that?" Lily asked
"You're acting like you've seen a ghost" Alice joked
"Close to it"Emmett answered
"You didn't feel anything?" Rosalie asked them
"No feelings" Alice answered "Just flashes of several visions"
"You were glowing" Edward stated, explaining everyone's reaction "Completely surrounded by a bright light"
"Not to mention floating in thin air" Emmett added
"We were not" Alice rolled her eyes
"Yes, you were" Carlisle stated
Lil looked at Jake with wide eyes as he nodded.
"A soft glow, similar to the one radiating from your eyes during the practice with Jazz, began to cover your body, growing brighter as it surrounded you" Edward explained
"It surrounded you completely before expanding to cover Tink" Jake added "As if that wasn't enough; you began to levitate until you were suspended about a foot off the floor. You two seemed completely unaware anything was going on"
"We were" Alice answered
"How do you feel?"Carlisle asked Lily
"Exhausted"
Probably due to the concentration it took for her and Alice to project together, Lily suddenly felt entirely worn out. She sat down, leaning back against Jake and began to doze off, but a combination of Bella's sleep talking and Jake's snoring kept her up. She opened her eyes to see Edward laughing quietly.
"All you needed was for me to start sleepwalking"
"How can you sleep with that snoring?" Edward whispered
"I'm usually asleep by the time he starts snoring" Lily smiled "Since you don't sleep, her mumbling must keep you entertained throughout the night"
Edward nodded still laughing quietly. Lily chuckled before placing her hands over Jake's. As a reflex he hugged her tighter. She smiled and kissed his bicep before resting her head on it.
"He loves you just as much as you love him" Edward whispered "He's dreaming of you"
"Really?" Lily stated full of wonder "What is he dreaming?"
"Forks High" Edward answered "He's admiring you from across the parking lot, you're standing between Jessie and Jessica"
"The first time we met" Lily smiled
"The moment he imprinted on you"
Lily closed her eyes, remembering that moment, before she knew it, she was asleep.
She was having dream about being in a sauna, wondering why someone would not only put lights in there, but why they would put such bright lights. It was then she heard Edward's laugh. Lily opened her eyes to see him laughing as he held hands with a medusa-looking Bella. It was morning, the temperature had gone up and with the extra clothes and Jake's arms wrapped tightly around her, and Lily was sweating like crazy. She tried to wiggle out of Jake's grip but he hugged her even tighter as he continued to snore lightly.
"Help me" Lily whispered "I'm gonna have heatstroke"
"I don't know how you can deal with the heat all the time" Bella smiled
"Same way you deal with Mr. Frosty" Lily laughed "My body's used to it"
"True" Bella laughed
Edward walked over to Lily and grabbed her hands.
"On the count of three" Edward smiled "One, two, threeee"
Edward pulled Lily out of Jake's arms in a quick movement, causing him to jump up in a defensive crouch as he looked around in confusion. Edward pulled Lily and Bella behind him, just in case.
"You ok, Jake?" Lily asked from behind Edward
"Yeah" he answered straightening up "Just reflex"
"You were giving her heatstroke" Edward smiled "She asked me to pull her out"
Lily removed her hoodie as she walked over to Jake. He placed his hands on her waist and kissed her forehead as she kissed his chest.
"Sorry" he whispered
"It's ok" Lily smiled as she looked up at him "My body's used to your heat. It was the extra clothes that did it"
"The closer you are to me, the fewer clothes you should have on" he smiled
"Is that an observation or a request?"
"Preferably naked" he smiled lifting his eyebrow
"That's what I thought" Lily laughed as she wrapped her arms around Jake's waist.
"Time for Collin to take Bella" Edward announced as wolf Collin approached them.
All smiles went away as Bella and Lily exhaled sharply. Jake took Lily's hand, intertwining their fingers as they walked towards the pack, who was gathered a few feet away. Seth was approaching them, looking cheerful even in his wolf form. Lily smiled at him and ran her fingers through his fur as he walked past her. Jake stopped Lily a few steps from the pack and turned to face her. He locked eyes with her, wrapping his arms around her as she wrapped hers tightly around him. All efforts of not crying were in vain. They'd soon be having a death battle with psycho vampires and even though she'd had a vision of everyone alive and well, visions were subjective, there was no guarantee they'd come out unharmed. Jake didn't say anything but he didn't have to, his eyes said it all. He hugged her tightly and kissed the top of my head as she kissed his chest trying to hide her tears.
"There is no me without you" she wept "I need you to get back to me safe and sound"
"I will" he smiled "You aint gonna get rid of me that easily"
He placed a finger on her chin and tilted her head up. He kissed her forehead and her nose before landing his luscious lips on hers. The touch of his soft, blazing lips on hers sent shockwaves through her body. Lily wrapped her arms around his neck as he placed one hand in the back of her neck and the other on the small of her back, pulling her as close to him as possible. The kiss was long, exceedingly hot, incredibly steamy and extremely passionate. His lips stopped moving before hers and she opened her eyes to see him smiling at her.
"I love you"
"I love you too" she answered "Get back to me ASAP"
"Always" he smiled
Before she had time to analyze what she was doing, Lily stood Edward behind Jake, the north, Bella behind herself, the south and as if they knew, Collin stood to their left, west, and Seth to their right, east.
"Shi ingolth-a" she whispered
"Nayeli" he answered, gently holding her face in his hands before kissing her again. This time the kiss was gentle and very, very sweet. He gave her a couple of pecks and then ran away as Lily stood staring in the direction he went. She felt a giant knot in her throat as he emerged as a wolf and as much as she tried to hold the tears in, a few managed to escape. More than ever, she knew she couldn't live without him.
"Way to beat us to it" Edward half-smiled
"Sorry, I didn't plan it"
"I know" he smiled "Does he know what just happened?"
"I think so" Lily smiled
"What happened?" Bella asked
"By ancient Indian laws, Jake and Lily are married now"
"But that's our little secret" Lily smiled as she walked away. She was not hungry but thirsty and remembered a canteen of water was hanging from the tree. As she walked over to it, she noticed Edward had an army knife in his back pocket. She took it and placed it on her back pocket.
"That won't help you in a fight with vampires" he stated
"It's a mental thing" Lily shrugged her shoulders "Makes me feel safe"
"Whatever works" he smiled
Edward and Bella were having their goodbye scene, so Lily left them alone. She drunk water and went to sit between Collin and Seth. Collin was meant to be Bella's babysitter so there was doubt in her mind that Seth was instructed to be Lily's.
"I know why you're here" Lily said to Seth "But you don't worry about me, ok?
"He says Jake would kill him if something happened to you" Edward translated
"Nothing will happen to me" Lily assured Seth "I can take care of myself"
"I have orders to stay with you at all times" Edward said for Seth
"They're Jacob's orders" Edward added "He has to follow them"
"Fine" Lily answered "You follow your orders and stay with me, but don't get in the way and leave the fighting to me, got it?"
Lily was prepared to hear Seth's hundred and one arguments but there was no time for that, the wolves stood up howling in unison. In a split second Bella and Lily were standing in the middle of the clearing, surrounded by crouching hissing vampires and snarling werewolves. They held hands knowing danger was coming, and it was coming soon. They looked in the direction everyone else was. But saw nothing. Then out of the trees the red-headed vampire that attacked Lily in the woods, the one that had been hunting Bella for over a year stepped out. Victoria had arrived!
(Just wanted to let you know Shi ingolth-a means 'I love you' in Apache and as many of you know Nayeli means 'I love you' in Quileute)