stay right here, rocketeer
chapter eleven
The car clunked its way back to Bella's house. After it was parked on the driveway, Bella turned off the ignition and cut to silence. No noise came from inside house. Charlie wasn't there.
"Thanks for taking me to the meadow today, Edward," she said, giving me a kiss on the cheek. "Thanks for listening. I guess I'll see you Monday." Don't go. Come inside. Stay.
"Well, all you have to do is ask," I said with something that might have resembled a smug smile.
She frowned. "You know, I liked it better when you couldn't hear what I was thinking. Less embarrassing."
She reached for her necklace in her jacket pocket when I stopped her. "Alright, but then I can't kiss you. You're choice."
She frowned again. But I want you to kiss me.
"That's what I thought."
Rolling her eyes, she got out of her truck and I followed. We didn't even bother to stop when we entered the house; she just led me straight up to her bedroom. The walls were painted yellow, but so many pictures were taped up that you could barely see it. There were paintings and sketches of luscious rolling hills, fairies, and some other thing.
"Is that the Otherworld?" I asked, pointing to a painting. It looked like a bright cave with flying fairies, a few elves, and some mermaids in the lagoon in the back. The main fairy had curly auburn hair, a light blue dress, and a tiara on her head.
"Yes. And that's Queen Titania."
"Titania? As in Midsummer's Night Dream?" I asked, incredulously.
"Shakespeare was one of the few mortals we trusted. Queen Titania gave him a silver bough to visit."
"But he wrote about the fairies in his play. Isn't that like revealing your secret?"
"Sometimes the best way to hide is to tell the truth. Think about it. Queen Titania and King Oberon were the most accurately portrayed fairies in literature, I think. Human sized, magical, and so much more than little sprites. And no one believed it."
"Titania is still alive today?"
"Queen Titania is. King Oberon, however, died in the last vampire siege twenty years ago. Of course, Tuatha dé Danann are a matrilineal, matriarchal civilization."
"So male fairies are not only ridiculed by society but also neglected politically too. Brutal."
When I turned around, Bella was sitting on her bed with her legs tucked underneath her. She had a pensive expression on her face. "Edward?"
"Yeah?"
Promise to tell the truth?
I couldn't think of anything that I couldn't flat out tell Bella, so I nodded.
"Jacob and the Quileute's. They really are werewolves, aren't they?"
I nodded again. "But it's not my secret to tell."
Bella groaned in frustration and collapsed backwards onto her bed. Great. So I've found them, but how do I convince them to come help us? It's been thousands of years since the werewolves left the islands, what if they don't remember? And even if I did get them to agree to help, how would we get to Ireland? How would I even know where the Otherworld entrance is? I've never been there. They probably don't even know I exist. And I'm a half-fairy, what if—?
"Whoa, slow down," I chuckled. "I'm sure if you just confront Billy and the elders, they'll help you. But hold on a second, if you did succeed in all of this, does that mean you'll be heading to the Otherworld?"
"I guess so. That's the only reason Renee was sent out, so in a sense that's the only reason I'm here. I have to finish her job."
"So you're just going to…leave?" It never occurred to me that Bella would eventually return to the Otherworld and away from me. It was her home, it was where she belonged. I was selfish for ever thinking otherwise.
"Well, I have to." Oh, but I don't want to leave you. Shit, you heard that. And that. And this.
I laughed a little and moved to sit beside her on her bed. "I could visit, right?"
Her eyes brightened. "Of course! There might be some slight misunderstandings at first, but after I explain it, I'm sure everything will be fine. I'll give you an eternity supply of silver boughs so you can enter whenever you want." She conjured up a shiny, twisted branch and gave it to me, just to prove her point.
We continued making hypothetical plans about me going to Ireland and her returning to Forks, but inside, I knew this was all talk. It took nothing short of a month to convince Bella I was different from other vampires, and she was a halfy who grew up in Phoenix. The other fairies would never understand. As Bella and I continued to talk, I only grew sadder knowing our time, our beautiful time, was limited.
"Your father is about to come home," I announced. I could hear the jeep turning into the street a few blocks down. "He went fishing with his friends."
"Of course he did. More fish I have to invent a way to cook." Charlie should really stop catching so much fish. He knows he's the only one eating it around here.
"Are you a vegetarian? A real one?" I asked.
"Huh?" Oh! Edward is still here. Charlie will not like that. Where can he hide…where can he hide…? "Uh, yeah, I'm a vegetarian. All fairies are vegetarians. We live off of nature, not the animals in it. Besides, we can communicate with animals, so it's difficult to eat them."
"You can talk to animals. Of course you can. Is there anything you can't do?"
She smiled. "I'm an all-around fairy, which means I have a little of every power. I can change the weather, talk to animals, cast charms, and control the elements. Earth is more my specialty, then fire, then air, and finally water. I always messed things up when Renee tried to teach me about commanding the water. That's why I said it reminded me of my failure. But the van incident must have sparked something since now I can control water much easier than before."
Charlie was getting closer and I headed towards the window.
"Stay!" Bella called out, then clamped her hand to her mouth in embarrassment.
I laughed. "I'd love to, but my car is still parked outside and we wouldn't want your father to start thinking."
Can you drive home and then run back? She couldn't help but think.
A thrill of excitement ran through me. "I'd love to."
My family was waiting for me when I got home. The second I walked through the door, Alice pounded on me.
"I saw a vision of Bella and you in the meadow, and then another one of your two driving home in her truck. How did I see her? What happened?"
"She took off her necklace," I explained. "Apparently, that's what was blocking off our powers. The stone acts like a shield. She took it off so that I could hear her thoughts and so that I wouldn't be in pain just sitting next to her."
So the necklace can come off? Carlisle thought.
I turned harshly towards him. "Carlisle."
He looked down, ashamed. "Sorry, Edward."
"No, everyone needs to hear this," I said, facing my entire family. "Yes, Bella is a fairy. Yes, her necklace has the power to turn us all human. But the Danann Stone source is already depleted. If we use up Bella's, there might not be much left. Besides, she needs it for her powers. If we take it, it leaves her unprotected from the vampires that aren't necessarily as nice as us. We are not going to take it from her. We are not going to hurt her."
"We would never," they all reassured.
Scanning their minds, I knew Esme and Alice were genuinely honest and really wouldn't put Bella in danger. The others didn't want to hurt Bella, but still pine for the stone. That was okay for now. I was just afraid that the desire would become an obsession which would then not be okay. Obsessions are hard to break, especially if you're a vampire. Just ask Carlisle.
"Edward, you must know that none of us would harm her just for our personal gain. We're family. Don't you trust us?" Carlisle asked.
I used to.
"We don't want to hurt her to get the stone," he continued. "But if we help her, and somehow the stone is restored, it would be nice if we could have a share."
"That's a big if," I said coldly.
In all my years, I'd never really got into an argument with Carlisle before. He was my mentor, my teacher, my father. He was the wisest man I knew. So why was he holding onto a long-lost dream?
Everyone could sense the contempt in the air. They looked around, ensure of what to react. Finally Alice skipped to stand between Carlisle and I.
"Carlisle's right. We're family. So let's just all promise to forget about getting the stupid stone so Edward can relax and go back to Bella since we all know that's where he wants to be right now," she said. She beamed at me and I smiled back. When no one moved, she groaned and held up three fingers in a scout's pledge. "Fine, I'll start. I promise to not harm Bella or try to get her necklace."
"I promise, too." Esme smiled. She walked over and pulled me into an embrace. "I already think of her as family," she whispered, so only Alice and I could hear.
The three of us turned to the rest of the family expectantly. Slowly, Emmett walked over to our side after giving Rosalie a glance. I already have Rose here and now. If I'm stuck a vampire for eternity, and I'm with her, could I really complain? "Yeah, I promise. Besides, I don't think I want to go anywhere remotely near Bella. My nose is still slightly stinging from last weekend."
We all laughed. With each oath, I felt I could breathe more openly, like part of the weight was being lifted off my shoulder.
But…to be able to grow old, rock my babies on the front porch, attend their school plays and soccer games… Rosalie thought. I frowned as the thoughts kept flashing through her mind. She wasn't going to give this up. An opportunity to become human again doesn't just come and go. I might never have the chance again. I can't let it go so easily. I'm sorry, Edward.
"I won't hurt her," she said at last, aloud now. "I promise I won't hurt her. But that's all I can promise right now."
Carlisle stepped beside Rosalie and put a hand on her shoulder. "I'm with Rosalie on this one."
I huffed in annoyance.
"…Jasper?" Alice called softly, as if she was afraid of his answer.
Jasper glanced at Alice, Emmett, Esme, and I. Then he looked at Carlisle and Rosalie. His mind was a jumbled mess. Memories of the Confederate Army, the newborn army, and finding Alice shuffled repeatedly as he stood in the middle, completely ambivalent. He was the newest vampire to join the coven and the newest to our vegetarianism. For a majority of his vampire existence, he was a monster. He hated himself and what he had become, hated what he did with Maria, and hated hurting innocent humans. The question is which overpowers which: the hatred for his life or the love for Alice.
Well, if we all become human again, I can still be with Alice…
And I knew we lost him.
He gave me an apologetic glance and backed up to stand at Rosalie's side. The two Hales never looked more alike. I can't, he thought, I just can't.
Just like that, the house was split. Right down the middle.
Bella and Charlie were eating dinner when I got to their house. Without a noise, I climbed into her window and sat on the ground, resting against the wall under the windowsill. It would be a while before Bella excused herself to come back here, so I had time to think.
How did this happen? How did one little half-fairy manage to fly her way into my life, into all our lives, and break the family?
It's not Bella's fault, although if I tell her what just happened back home, she would insist that it was. She didn't do anything wrong. She only showed my family and we didn't know each other as well as we thought. If one disagreement, like whether or not we were willing to put the entire Otherworld population in danger just so we could be human again, was enough to divide us, then who's to say we're compatible enough to even live in a coven?
We're different from other vampires, Bella said so herself. We're not savages, we're not monsters, and we're not evil. We may be heartless, soulless, and damned, but we care. At least, some of us do. If the Danann Stone gets broken or stolen any more, there might not be any left. That would leave the entire population of Tuatha dé Danann unprotected to humans and to vampires. How can Carlisle, Rosalie, and Jasper simply overlook that?
I slammed my fist to the floor in frustration and a picture frame from the bedside table beside me fell. I caught it before it crashed on the floor. Flipping it over, I saw that it was a photograph of young Bella with who I presume to be Renee, her mother. Now, I knew Bella looked different the first day she came to school, I just couldn't put my finger on how. Looking at Renee, a full fairy, I understood exactly why that was.
Renee's face held prominent, non-human features. Her skin was slightly golden and glowed, even in the photo. Her eyes, her smile, and her skin all radiated like she was a firefly. Her nose was sharp, her cheekbones high, three freckles adorned each eye just like Bella's, and her dainty chin made her face angular, yet beautiful. Upon close inspection, Renee seemed a normal human with normal facial parts, but together, there was something alien about it. In the picture, you can see the resemblance between Renee and Bella, Bella was just a toned-down version with Charlie's dark hair.
I set the picture frame back on the table. I noticed that her necklace was right there beside it. She was so trusting. The stone is right there, right there, so open for the taking. I inhaled deeply. No. No.
The sound of Bella's footsteps coming up the stairs was enough to shake the family conflict out of my head. It was amazing how she could do that to me. Grumbling something about "embarrassing" and "sex talk", she jumped onto her bed, face down on the pillows. She didn't even notice me.
After I silently stood up, I lay down next to her on her bed and wrapped my arm around her waist. Knowing she would shriek from the surprise, I wrapped my other arm around her head to cover her mouth. She scream of stifled fear and her body tense. I realized that was probably not the smartest idea in the world since covering her mouth and grabbing her body was the generic I'm-going-to-kidnap-and-murder-you move.
She took a breath and recognized the scent and the coldness of my body. Wait, it's just Edward. With a sigh, she relaxed into my arms and turned around to face me. "Please don't ever do that again," she pleaded. I could hear her heart beating frantically against her ribcage.
I nodded sheepishly and gave her a long kiss. I only pulled back I remembered that she did in fact need to breathe.
What was that for? She asked as she looked up at me. The room was dark and only the half-moon shined in through her window. Her eyes were wide, curious, and raw, and the moonlight accented her skin in just the right places. The tips of her ears peeked out from her cascade of hair.
Edward?
My eyes flickered again to her necklace on the desk then back to her. I saw my own troubled expression through her eyes.
What's wrong?
"I'll protect you, Bella," I said, running my hand through her hair. I'll protect her. I'll protect her from my own family, the very people that I love. I was convincing myself more than anything.
What are you talking about, Edward?
"Standing up to your enemies, now that's easy," I said. "But standing up to your friends, standing up to your family? That's difficult."
Of three things I was positively certain. First, Bella Swan was a fairy who just might be her people's last hope. Second, a part of Carlisle, Rosalie, and Jasper—and a miniscule part of myself, I'll admit that—wanted to steal the Danann Stone. And third…
Bella wrapped her tiny arms around me and nuzzled into my chest, not really comprehending my cryptic sentences and trying to comfort me anyway. I kissed her forehead.
…and third, I was in too deep to back out now.