HEYYYY!
Okay. My babbling has officially exceeded all human recordings. Yup. I've babbled WAY too much in this chapter. For that, I am sorry.
"I'll, just have to endure it." *Edward stomps from room and slams the reception door that won't slam.* (hehe. Sorry. That made me laugh in the DVD, you could tell he wanted it to slam, he evidently used his vampire strength on it, but the door overcame that… I'd of been pretty disappointed myself.)
Right. So I'm now muttering on about doors am I? Okay…
Oh, and I did update extra super speedily, but this chapter is shorter than the last few I did… sorry about that. It was either a slightly (okay a bit more than slightly) shorter chapter… or a far later update. I'm guessing you'd prefer this option?
Wow. You reviewers out there are freaking awesome! YAY! Thanks so much people! I got such lovely reviews that cheered me up tremendously! Oh, and before I forget. This chapter I've decided to dedicate to Jade Lyssy Swan. For two reasons:
1). *most importantly! :p* She always seems to give mammoth reviews that inspire me to update fast.
2). She has an amazing story herself on fanfiction called: 'Rosa' and I really advise people to read and review it! It's amazing, and doesn't have the reviews it deserves! So yup. Maybe… (after you read and review this chappy naturally ;p) you could review hers? Seriously. Her reviews are GREAT! You owe her a lot for my UPDATE. (hehe. Go rhymey-me!)
Okay. Wait. I sound horribly bias. I'll change that. This chapter is dedicated to everyone who reviewed the last! Seriously thanks SO much for all your reviews you give! Oh and wait… TONNES of you worked out my enigma *gasp* resulting in me having to give away all my sneak peaks! *double gasp* yup. So I was truly gob smacked at that! (hehe. Gobsmaked! Such a silly word :p)
Alas, alack! (another saying that is not used enough in these modern times *sigh*) I am no longer fuelled on chocolate, it having all been eaten my myself and partially consumed by one certain very, very, bad cat (who shall be punished and feel my almighty wrath -which takes form in my eyes-)*glares at Mouse*
Now. For any of the following to make sense (which it will, no doubt, still make no sense anyway, knowing me) you need to understand that I have NO money. I spent my last of it on a Twilight DVD. Which has now been watched too many times. Okay. So yup, basically, I was very foolish. I made a bargain with my dad. He claims I read too much, (how can you read too much?!) and said that he wouldn't buy me ANY books *yup. I started to hyperventilate right then* … until I'd read the ones he approved of. (In over words: roll in the biographies on Churchill; Organic Chemistry Advanced Conundrums; and Mathematical Puzzles!) See… that's such a horrid taste! (okay… Chemistry Conundrums? Can you even get those?) Oh… and to anyone who does like Churchill Biographies… sorry I offended you ;)
ANYWAY… he said that he'd buy me a book, as apposed to an Easter Egg. *gasp* I accepted. (having already received an Easter egg from my mother) NOW though. I am left with NO chocolate. And an 800 page book that I read ALL last night. Leaving me ALONE.
So yup. No book. No more chocolate *sigh* Life's so unfair…
Oh. And I'm ticked. The City of Glass (LAST of the Mortal Instruments Trilogy by Cassandra Clare) isn't out where I live in stupid rainy England *It was RAINING on Easter Sunday- meaning the EASTER EGG HUNT! (Yes. I still have Easter egg hunts. I always beat my ten year old sister when finding the eggs. And then have to SHARE my magnificent findings -huff-) had to be postponed until Monday.) …. What was I talking about? Oh yeah.
So, the book I really, really, really, need right now. Shan't be out until July (JULY?! NOOO… that's AGES away… *sniff*) and I'm upset. Curse all you lucky people in America who already have access to it! (okay, I'll lift the curse. You review, so you can't be cursed :p) Yup. Basically, this all leads to me being subdued. I have no book. No chocolate. No prospect of a great book-coming-to-England-Bookstores-anytime-soon. And Mouse is trying her best to type on this laptop. (I have officially decided that the hairs from my cat shall never come out of the keys)
So hmmmms… seeing as I'm so… depressed? Could I get cheered up by reviews? :p
I did warn you about my babbling at the top…
Right. Sorry. I'll shut up for good. On with the chapter ;)
What Happened Last Chapter:
Edward had stiffened, the hand he'd placed against my cheek fell, a remote look had formed in his eyes.
And I was nothing short of terrified.
In one swift motion, he pulled my body closer to him, his smouldering eyes boring into my own, a whole new kind of intensity burned din them. One that I feared. My heart was beating furiously, half in fear, and half in whatever Edward's presence seemed to so to my pulse. My back was placed against the tree; Edward refused to loosen his stance, as if preparing for an attack.
"What?" I asked, confused and terrified by his expression and posture. "Have you heard it before?"
He spoke through tight lips.
"Oh, I've heard it alright…"
***
The Twilight Of The Gods.
I continued to stare at him. The very air around us seemed electric, suddenly charged with a thousand volts, matching the current beneath my skin. I felt as if sparks were radiating off him, just like diamonds did whenever sunlight reached his flawless figure. He was staring at me, with such a peculiar expression; it made me wonder what my own was like. His, indecisive, as if trying to prevent himself from doing something. The air around us was frosty; my breath came out in white puffs of smoke. Though I was oblivious to this. Oblivious to his cold touch, to the bitter air.
I'd never felt so warm, so hot, (and yes, I mean that in the literal sense, you know the one regarding temperature…) in my life. The cold could not penetrate me yet. Not now.
I didn't dare to look too closely into his eyes, afraid somewhat, of what I would see. Or not see. Though soon my pretence waned, and I gazed into them, searching for something, anything.
And then I snapped back into reality.
His eyes were fearful, and I remembered my previous terror. The reason why I was so close. The protective stance. The realisation he'd had.
So yeah. I'd momentarily forgotten the seriousness of the situation. Who could blame me? It wasn't my fault! Truly, it wasn't; trust me, when one is in Edward Cullen's presence. It's easy to get distracted.
Keep telling yourself that.
"Shut up!" I shouted into the silence. Realising all too late, I'd spoken my thoughts aloud. Mentally (yeah. This time I did it mentally) kicking myself.
Edward cocked one perfectly sculpted eyebrow, composing the shocked expression that had briefly flashed across his angelic face at my sudden - and not to mention very random - outburst.
"Excuse me?"
"Never mind. I was just…" I let the sentence die on my tongue. What could I have said: telling my mind to shut up? Yeah. Because I was sounding really sane today as it was. I snapped my mouth shut. Edward, for a moment, seemed amused at my flustered expression, though when his features slipped into a grimace once more, a question bubbled to my lips.
"So that thing in my dream, the poem, whatever, you've heard it before? What does it mean? No, wait, what is it?"
His voice was lower than I'd ever heard it, agitated, he spook fluidly, as if reciting from a book. Yet generally, when you recite something, you never tend to sound so worried. Well, not in my experience anyway. Still, the way he spoke, so quietly, it was as if he was afraid people would hear. I instantly felt my eyes linger on the forest behind us.
"Yes, I've heard it before; it's the chant of the Ragnarök."
I knew I was meant to stay calm and composed in a situation like this. I mean, it was pretty darn significant. But I couldn't. My instincts took the better of me; I spoke in exasperation, as if Edward expected me to know what on earth the chant of the Ragnarök was?
"I'm sorry, but Ragnarök? What the hell is that?!" I asked in disbelief. I saw the vivid spark of emerald from my eyes reflected in his. I frowned. I wasn't angry. It was evident my eyes just sparked green when I showed any emotion linked to irritation or annoyance. Great.
He frowned then, evidently trying to remember, when he spoke though, each word seemed to get more strained. As if the sheer scale of the situation was only just dawning on him. His eyebrows were now firmly mashed together, matching the hard line of his lips.
"Ragnarök: the destruction of gods; in Norse mythology, the final destruction of the gods in a great battle against the forces of evil, after which a new world will arise." His voice had turned from scholar-like to little more than a whisper, as if it was about to crack."The Volturi," He whispered.
"So what, they're this Ragnarök then?" My voice wasn't like his, less brittle, less fragile. What was so bad? "And wait, a little more information please about all this? A new world will arise? What?" He sighed shakily, but instead of removing his arms, held in such away they seemed to shield me from the dark forest behind us. He seemed to draw himself closer, as if trying to make me blend into the shadows, become unnoticed. The thought of this chilled me. Edward had never seemed so unnerved. He was always the epitome of control, of certainty.
So why was he now looking at me as if the earth was in peril?
"The Volturi aren't strictly speaking the Ragnarök. No, it's a term used to describe downfall, a disastrous conclusion of events. A very old term in fact. In English it translates to 'Twilight of the Gods', basically, it's an overthrow of power, with evil winning from sheer numbers. But that phrase you saw, well, heard Aro say in your dream… it's what they used to chant. I…" but he trailed off. I didn't think I'd ever felt more afraid, my own breath had caught in my throat.
Edward looked so desolate, I was unsure of what to do. Suddenly I felt a tear slide down my cheek. I was shocked. I wasn't crying was I? Though when I heard the sound of water hitting trees, I soon realised it had merely been a raindrop, as apposed to tears. I looked up. The sky above us now was still dark, the clouds had intensified since I'd last seen them, and now rain was falling thick and fast.
But Edward was looking past where I was, staring off into the blood red sunset, oblivious to the rain, steadily soaking him. I was partially sheltered by it, in cover of his arms and the tree. He wasn't. It made his shirt cling to him, I closed my eyes briefly, trying to avert my attention from that, then looked at his face instead. He looked lost in thought, it was only when a horrible fear passed across his expression did I realise the seriousness of the situation. He turned to me, his golden eyes burning. The only light in the darkness. That and his luminescent figure, an incandescent pale white contrasting with the dark forest. A dove amongst the crows.
"What?" My lip trembled.
"Lucie," His voice sounded broken. "they're after… you."
"What?" I repeated, sounding thick. Only hearing his words distantly, as if spoken from far away. Distorted like when passing through water. The Volturi? Oh yeah, I knew that already thanks.
I felt disorientated. The red sunset sky seemed to blur with the forest. Black against red. Like lines of blood seeping through a dark cloak. I felt sick; I was sure I would fall if Edward's arms hadn't been wrapped around me
"Do you want to know how the Ragnarök succeeded in this? The prophesied downfall of gods?" The rain fell from his face, terribly close to my own. Collected in droplets in his hair, in the prevailing darkness, it no longer seemed bronze. He tightened his grip around me; it did nothing to lessen my fear.
No. No I didn't. Not at all.
My eyelids fluttered rapidly, matching the tempo of the rain drops falling.
"How?" Damn you curiosity! My voice was too quiet, too weak, unsteady. My heart rate sped; it hurt my ribs, beating so quickly I felt giddy. I knew this sensation. I knew it all too well. Having experienced the effects of it too many times.
Oh crud. Not now.
I desperately focussed on Edward's eyes, the golden sunlight seemingly fading from them with each unsettling word.
"They sacrificed a gifted child," He spat; the idea clearly repulsed him, his eyes darkened as he said it, the brilliant gold now only a faint topaz. "and consumed her mortal blood."
Then. Everything went black, and I could hear Aro's elegy as I slipped from Edward's grasp, his once luminescent figure faded before me. Aro was right.
Darkness consumes.
***
Edward's POV: (Ha! Bet this was unexpected!)
She had slumped into my arms. Her beautiful eyes, gemstones flickering from caramel to emerald had shut. I didn't know exactly when I'd started running towards the house, my mind was screaming at what Id just figured out. The horrible fact of what the Volturi wanted to do to Lucie had hit me hard. I didn't regard the girl in my arms weak for fainting, though I knew she would, for if I had been human. I was sure I would have done so too.
If you were human, instead of a monster. I wanted to ignore my mind, bitter and dark. But one can only ignore the truth for so long…
I didn't care for the damage I did to the door as I burst into our home. My only thoughts were purely orbiting around the girl in my arms, her golden hair falling around her pale face - wet from rain - and the horrible fate destined for her. I'd regretted my choice of words, almost as quickly as I'd uttered them: and consumed her mortal blood. It was my fault that she was now unconscious.
I felt sick. A desire to see Bella suddenly took me, she was with the Blacks, Alice had taken her previously. My mind pictured her porcelain face, forever troubled recently. I wished I could read her mind, unwind the secrets she was keeping from me. I just wanted to help. Why was it, that everything I loved, was put in danger? This thought brought me back to reality again, I looked to Lucie, wishing for her sake, that I didn't; wouldn't; couldn't love her.
Why was I even considering love? My confusion mounted once more.
She was motionless in my arms, but her heart wasn't. It was beating furiously, as if she was running. But I had no thought for her blood running subtly under her supple skin. The monster inside me didn't dare arise when my mood was like this. My fear had overruled it. The desire to watch whatever was making her pulse rise took me, and then I could only see darkness and shadows. Nothingness, a rising sense of fear-
"Edward?" Carlisle's alarmed voice snapped me out of Lucie's mind. His eyes shot to her, and instantly his medical training kicked in, moving beside me in an instant, and removing her from my arms. I was unwilling to let go. But let him suspend her all the same. It was probably better this way, I thought. No, it is better this way. Why do you have any desire to hold her? You love Bella. My thoughts were both sickening me and scaring me. There was no denying how right they were. I looked back at Carlisle though, desperate for a distraction.
What happened? He thought.
"She fainted, Carlisle… something bad has happened." I couldn't speak properly though. My voice caught in my throat. Something bad? It was so much worse than that. But I couldn't tell him yet. Not until I knew she was safe. Carlisle seemed to understand, we moved to the sitting room, he placed her on the large sofa, she shivered. I wrapped the afghan guilt that draped across a chair around her.
She's fine son. I'll get Alice to inform us of when she'll awake, don't worry she's just in shock, what did you tell her? What's wrong? How urgent is-
"Please." I murmured, my head felt like it was going to split open. "One question at a time." I didn't wait for one though, I needed to tell him, and fast. "Okay, you know the Ragnarök?" It was a stupid question; of course he knew.
Yes. A very archaic term though I must say. The Twilight of the Gods and the end of the cosmos in Norse mythology, also translated in German I believe to Götterdämmerung. But why on earth do you ask?
I exhaled in a long gust, a breath that I don't need. Carlisle's knowledge is larger than my own. I knew this already, but still I found my self feeling comforted. I had my own questions, urgent, that needed to be answered.
"Well, Lucie's been having these dreams right. And she told me she heard Aro chanting the same elegy that they said: 'Desire corrupts, temptation powers. Darkness consumes, light devour' … I think they're planning on sacrificing her. Like prophesied…" I couldn't carry on, instead the sentence died on my tongue. Please contradict me Carlisle. Please say I'm wrong.
But his expression did the very opposite from contradiction, he looked at me aghast. And I knew that my fears were confirmed.
"Aro you say?" Carlisle whispered, shocked, "You aren't suggesting this is the Volturi? They plan to…" He trailed off, his thoughts were too fast for me to follow, as he contemplated the news I'd given him. My family surrounded us now, I barely noticed. Itching to sit beside Lucie, and hating myself for it.
Edward? What's happened? Why's she lying half dead on the couch? Jeez what did you do Edward? Do you always have this effect on humans? Normally Emmett could make me laugh, whether intentionally or not. But not now. I looked at him, Carlisle was already explaining the situation, and I was grateful for it. I couldn't speak.
"Wait?" Emmett asked, losing his jovial tone. "Are you saying that the Volturi, they're imitating this old scary tale? They want to…" he didn't finish the end of his sentence. Just like Carlisle had done before. I thought about his words bitterly, wishing that it could be no less that a scary tale as he put it. Alice spoke before I could though, she alone did not seem unnerved like the rest, I scoured her mind for answers, but none arose. She was hiding something.
"They plan to sacrifice her, and drink her blood. The legend said that; though I don't think those who wrote it were aware of vampires at the time." She grimaced, then mused quietly "Oddly fitting, isn't it?"
"Wait, this Ragnarök, I've heard of it before." Rosalie spoke up, I couldn't compose my expression of shock fast enough, Rosalie shot me a glare. "I thought it was an opera, didn't that make up the Der Ring des Nibelungen?" Emmett looked as shocked as I felt. I wanted to ask how she knew this, but Emmett beat me to it.
"How the hell did you know that babe?" It was the same sentence I would have exclaimed, though admittedly without the use of the word 'babe'.
She looked up at him, a coy yet undeniably seductive smile spread across her full lips. I suddenly felt very glad for not asking. Though I was certain her reaction would have been slightly different if I'd said it. Still, it wasn't something I'd be willing to chance.
"I'm not just pretty face."
Carlisle interrupted; I turned to him, grateful for a distraction from my sibling's heads. He'd regained his calm demeanour; it was something that drove me half mad, and grateful. I wasn't sure which was better anymore. Silence or chaos. Both seemed dark now.
"But not just any blood," Carlisle said, speaking only to me and Alice now. "the blood of a gifted mortal…" I knew what he was implying and I refused to believe it.
"They want her blood." Alice muttered, but she went to Lucie's side, sighing slightly as she did so. "She'll awake in a minute."
"How come you didn't see this Alice?" I asked, but my voice sounded more broken than bitter. She bit her lip, frowning.
"I don't know, perhaps it's because she's got the constant prospect of dwelling in the past which makes it harder for me to see. I deal with the future; the past is murky for me." Her tone is rueful; I knew she was thinking about her own past now, and the longing to remember it.
"You say harder?" I didn't miss that.
Alice turned t me then, and for the briefest moment, her mind slipped. Finally revealing a thought she'd meant to keep from me.
Lucie stained with blood, her beauty enhanced, running with ethereal grace. Her eyes, a vivid crimson.
"No!" I shouted, everyone turned round, oblivious to the vision I'd seen in Alice's mind. Lucie stirred restlessly at the noise, I was surprised my cry didn't wake her up.
Her gift Edward. Carlisle was unperturbed by my outburst, his tone urgent. There's no denying it anymore. It's powerful, even more so than Alice's I daresay, if she could somehow sustain it-
"She shouldn't have to." I whispered, "she can see people's pasts, that's hardly a great gift. I doubt it's of any use to the Volturi, I don't understand why the covet her." The lie feels like poison against my tongue.
"Then tell me this Edward," Carlisle mused softly. "is it just me, or are these visions of hers becoming more frequent?" I just stared at him, shocked by the truth of his words. Lucie thrashed suddenly on the sofa and I made a movement to go to her side, soothe her dream, stop her nightmares. She didn't deserve this. All the while fighting down the terrible emotion that I shouldn't feel; could not feel.
Carlisle's firm grasp stopped me.
"No Edward don't, stop it, you have to watch her visions, I don't believe they are merely dreams anymore. They're too accurate. Tell us what she sees." But I don't want to do that. Her visions were horribly haunting to experience. But then her breathing became laboured, and she broke into cold sweat.
My voice was hoarse when I spoke.
"It's hurting her. These visions, her power, it's terrible."
"But strong." Carlisle assured. "both a blessing and a curse, just like yours and Alice's. Though admittedly hers seems more complex, a complexity she doesn't seem aware of."
"She can't know." I said quietly. "It would be harder that way, better if she could remain as ignorant as possible."
"Maybe." Carlisle murmured. "but ignorance is only the safest way sometimes Edward."
"Do you think her gift is powerful?" I asked, unsure myself.
"Very." he breathed, then shook his head ruefully, casting a glance at her frail figure on the sofa. "It's one thing to accept a power you understand, and learn to control it, and another entirely to have it thrust upon you without realising its profundity."
I did not bother to form a reply. I stared, unblinking, at her face - so pale, so innocent - and revisited the scream to God that threatened to escape me. Why her? She did not deserve this fate; no one did. But least of all her.
I didn't really realise I'd sat beside her; my thoughts were reviewing my actions. I was always callous around her; impertinent. And I could tell she hated me for it. But I had to act that way around her. It was better for her to believe I hated her, I wished I could hate her. But as my eyes looked at her once more, her shirt too expensive to be her immediate preference, lightly revealing how slight she was. Low cut enough to reveal the alabaster skin, and delicate curve of the hollow at her throat.
I wrenched my eyes away. Loathing myself, and knowing it was a lost cause.
What do you see? Alice's thought reminds me of my purpose, I look back at her, glad for an honest excuse to do so, and her dream envelopes me.
I'd missed the start of it again, I could tell. The vision was blurry, I wondered if could touch her cheek it would become cleared, if the contact of her skin against my could somehow strengthen the link. I discard the thought, fearing she'd awake at my touch.
She was standing in a forest, seemingly blind to her surroundings, she looked terrified. But I noticed something then, a movement in the darkness. I turn sharply to see a figure, a woman with hair the colour of the sun against the darkness, watching her.
Eventually, Lucie's eyes opened, she sighed in relief, oblivious to both my presence and the woman's. But then the woman spoke, her voice lost in the breeze, whispering something I couldn't hear.
The vision blurred significantly, I could feel her fear stronger, mixed with… regret? I didn't understand, suddenly I felt like I was falling, she slumped to the forest floor.
Then her pale lavender eyelids fluttered; thick eyelashes caressed her alabaster cheeks and she opened her eyes, blinking into my face. A blush formed on her skin, making it look like a radiant cream as apposed to my own ethereal pale ivory.
Her eyes suddenly sparked, her pupils innocent and wide. Steadily turning a beautifully salient emerald overruling the caramel in her irises. Contrasting stunningly against her features, alight in shock.
One can only ignore the truth for so long…
And I hated my feelings.
Because I couldn't deny them any longer.
Lucie was beautiful.
***
Lucie's POV:
I couldn't see for all the darkness; couldn't hear for the blood pumping in my ears. Another tumult of fear shook me, horrified at the prospect of nothingness. But as I stood frozen, trapped by the eternal night, I realised I could finally hear, as well as see the ominous forest around me. The ink black trees stood out vividly against the blood read sky.
There was no one here. I felt the breath escape my lips in relief, before the dominant fear made them tremble, ceasing the translucent wisps of smoke. The sound, a voice saying something, unclear, unfocused, fading into the distance with each dwindling breath.
I could see someone now, off in the distance, her hair whipping ferociously round her face.
Her voice rang clearly through the trees; hauntingly familiar, I caught one word before I fell, letting the darkness seize me.
"Run."
***
Lying in a serene state is odd. Especially when you have the nagging sensation telling you that danger is drawing closer. Like walls slowly crushing someone, eliminating all hope, let alone prospect, of escape.
So you can imagine my confusion to why I felt so relaxed. Vaguely I could register murmurs around me, muffled, but anxious. They didn't suit the tranquillity I felt. But then, neither did this pressing fear nor worry that seemed to be half suffocating me. I was trapped, half stuck between amity and chaos; two complete opposites. Unsure of which was best. Which was real, dream or reality. Though vaguely I could tell, the answer seemed obvious. And for that reason, I chose to ignore it. Refusing to believe that chaos was the soul sensation that filled my life. With each thought though, I knew my glimmer of peace and tranquillity was slowly dying…
Tentatively I opened my eyes.
Only to find him staring down at me, a smile slowly spreading on his lips. Amused, it seemed, by my shocked expression. Yet this was enough for everything to come tumbling back. The serene state cracked, the flicker of hope died, and that was all it took.
"You." My voice shook furiously, still out of breath from either the dream or before that. "Made me faint!" A bemused look spread across his face. I simply glared back. It was true! And completely unjust too. I hated fainting, why was it that my lapses of unconsciousness seemed to have increased frequently? I would blame it on him. Any remote anger, no matter how trivial, I was prepared to use. I couldn't let the over emotion seize me, not with the knowledge of how unrequited it was.
I could still remember the look in his eyes when he'd caught Bella from falling previously. My stomach twisted. Yes. I would summon all the anger I had.
"Did I?" He murmured quietly, "And how exactly, did I do that?" I knew his reply was meant to stop me from responding. Meant to make a blush rise to my cheeks, but it didn't. I scowled up at him, not forgetting the reason for my faint. And it wasn't because of Edward, just the things he said. I sat up, ignoring his implying tone; a sudden anger was fuelling me with a sense of power. And I wasn't yet willing to give it up.
"Well, let's think," I muttered sarcastically, "it couldn't have been at all due to the fact that you told me one hell of a creepy story - mainly complied of a prophesy indicating my death by some sadistic vampires drinking or 'consuming' my blood now, could it?"
"She's good," I heard Emmett mutter in approval, "figured it out a lot quicker than we did."
"Thank you Emmett." I muttered curtly. He grinned, leaning against the window, Rosalie was beside him; Carlisle at the door; in fact, everyone was in the room, and more to the point: they were all staring at me. Great. Centre of attention yet again. Perfect. Just like I'd always dreamed...
Except, I couldn't help but notice one absence. Bella.
Well. That explains Edward's interaction. I couldn't help but think bitterly.
"Yes, well-" Edward had lost all previous amusement, his voice was strained. I tried to stand up, but his cold hand rested on my shoulder, restraining. I wanted to rip it off. But didn't. He probably wouldn't feel it.
Curse you vampire strength.
"Let me up." I muttered darkly.
"You'll get head rush." Edward sighed, as if stating the obvious.
"Will not!" I muttered indignantly, how could he know?
"I'm afraid you will Lucie, I foresaw it a few seconds ago. Just wait a few moments." Alice murmured softly, she was sitting on the sofa beside me. Oh, so that's what I was sitting on. It explained why I'd been so comfortable. I then realised I had a quilt wrapped round me too. I wanted to remove it; it made me seem like a child. But I felt cold, and instead pulled it tighter around me. Out the corner of my eye I saw Edward's expression turn smug. I wanted to kick something. Hazard a guess as to what would be on the top of my list? (Of kicking that is.)
I tried to think then. Ridding my head of sarcastic thoughts, they would not help the situation at hand. My dream burned vividly before my vision again, and I suddenly wished I could have the sarcastic thoughts back.
I could feel my hair strewn across my forehead, but I wasn't sure if it was held there by water from the rain (now pelting down heavily outside, causing a harsh drumming sensation against the windows where it fell) or from cold sweat. I shivered, realising it was probably a combination of the two. The memory of my dream refused to disappear; it made my voice shake slightly when I next spoke.
"H-how long have I been out? Unconscious..." I asked quietly, directing the question to Alice as apposed to Edward.
"Only five minutes." Edward answered for her. I didn't doubt what colour my eyes were turning.
"Nope," Alice said, smiling at me, sensing my annoyance towards her favourite sibling. "you've been unconscious for precisely four minutes and thirty-two seconds," she chimed, "actually." I saw Emmett grin, evidently at Edward's expression, and I couldn't help the vindictive smile spread across my lips.
"Oh, and what time is it?"
My question wasn't answered immediately, though I doubted this was due to the fact that none of them knew the time. Instead, Jasper spoke, I turned to see his expression, it was confused. Though whether that was due to my emotions or someone else's I wasn't sure.
"You're sleeping here tonight Lucie; you can take Alice's room."
It took several long seconds for me to react to that.
"What? No!" I shouted, they didn't look shocked. Alice sighed.
"Told you so." She muttered. Emmett also sighed then, but dramatically, unlike Alice.
"I'd take it Luce, your choice was either Alice's room or Edward's. And trust me, his is way too tidy, he'd probably shoot you if you touched his books."
"Hilarious, Emmett." Edward muttered, not amused. I couldn't smile though, still shocked.
"I-I can't stay here," I sputtered, making to stand up again, Edward's grip on my shoulder seemed firmer though, and I couldn't move from where I sat. Again the urge to kick him arose. It was almost overwhelming. "what about my father? He'll be worried sick and-" But Edward cut across me, his glare murderous, but it didn't diminish my determination. I would not leave my father.
And this time, I chanted mentally to myself, I wasn't going to be weak.
"Lucie," He spoke through gritted teeth. "it's too dangerous. The Volturi are after you. You can't stay unprotected," I was about to protest, but he met my gaze, and I saw the fire burning in his topaz eyes. And hated the way they captivated me. "I won't allow it."
I breathed in through my mouth slowly, choosing my words carefully. This was going to be harder than I'd thought.
"No. I can't. I have to go to my father. If I'm in danger, then so is he. And I will not, let him get hurt." I directed my gaze directly at Edward, knowing it was him I needed to convince. "And besides," I dropped my gaze suddenly. "have you forgotten about Bella? She's in more danger than I am. And yet she's not here." I felt rather than heard Edward's sharp intake of breath. An action I knew, that would make his throat burn with thirst for my blood. The thought of this irked my pulse, and the tempo of it increased.
It was Alice's voice though, that spoke.
"She will be." Her voice is the calmest I've heard and also the most certain.
"Then where is she?" I asked. And to my surprise, it was Rosalie who answered. A disgusted edge to her usually harmonious voice.
"She's with the dogs."
"Werewolves," Alice corrected her. My stomach tightened. Jacob, my mind corrected. "she needs to warn the Quileute reservation, now she's in danger, they'll want to be warned of it." The glance at Alice shot at Edward then, who had now frozen, was not something I missed. She continued a dark edge to her voice. "They won't be too thrilled at the prospect of more vampires coming to Forks…"
"Oh, I should think they'd be perfectly thrilled," Edward spoke suddenly; Alice's tone no longer seemed dark when compared to his, ominous and bitter. "It'll give them something to wag their tails at. The prospect of a fight."
The tension in the air suddenly seemed to have intensified.
"My opinion of the werewolves has officially risen." Emmett stated, oblivious, or just incredibly good at times like this, at acting, to the mood that had just fallen. "Anyone who's ready for a fight is good in my books." He grinned again.
"By that you mean: anyone who's stupid enough to enjoy fighting and putting their life at risk?" Rosalie asked, the sentence was scolding, but her tone wasn't. She smiled at Emmett, and I knew it was for breaking the tension again. But I noticed the topic of my nights' stay had come to an abrupt holt. No. I wasn't going to give up that easily.
"I'm going home." I stated. My voice didn't waver. Beside me, Edward growled.
"No."
"Edward," Carlisle spoke, and Esme was now beside her soon, prying his hands gently from my shoulder. At first, it was if he was unwilling to let go. But the next moment, he'd stood up, and turned to face Carlisle. "she can go home. Her father needs protecting too. It just means one of us will need to stay with her."
For some reason, Carlisle's words sent a peculiar sensation through me; ecstasy and fear, raising the hairs on the back of my neck, and goose pimples along my arms. I held on to the ecstasy, forcing myself to believe it was because I'd stayed strong for once. And got my way. Edward stopped his protests then. He turned slowly, looking from me to Carlisle, indecision plain once more on his features. He breathed out in a sound alike to a sigh of defeat.
"Fine. I will." He murmured in a voice no more than a whisper. I don't know why. But this very confirmation (the one I'd subconsciously both craved and feared.) That Edward Cullen would be watching my house whilst I was asleep tonight, made my heart jump like Alice having consumed coffee again. I felt my cheeks flush in embarrassment at my pulse, and heart, knowing that each vampire in the room could hear it
Jasper was the first to leave the room, being most affected by the change in my heart rate. The news of this made my cheeks reddened further. I shot an imploring glance at Alice, feeling awful.
"Sorry." I whispered, she just smiled, vanishing before I could blink to join him. That was another thing to add to my list of things-that-vampires-could-do-so-much-better than-myself: super speed. But I cut my thoughts off there. I didn't want to think about how many things could be added to that list. My prediction was in the thousands.
But this reaction, with Jasper and Alice gone, seems to make everyone else follow suit. Well. Everyone, having one exception. The room had suddenly turned silent. Leaving only the thudding sound of my pulse in my ears. After a while it drove me crazy. I made to stand up.
But wasn't surprised when Edward stopped me. Again.
I turned to him, not knowing which emotion was strongest; my irritation, or temptation to succumb to his voice, believe the things he said, feel glad as apposed to anxious at the prospect of him watching me sleep.
"Tell me what's wrong." His voice was alluring, supple as velvet. My breathing caught, I forgot my irritation, trapped suddenly by-
Right. That did it. If he sounded anything close to sultry I would kick him, regardless of any vampire strength. I was already falling for his stupid persuasive techniques. I composed my face and did my best to glare at him.
"I'm getting sick of over-protective vampires." I muttered for an answer.
"I'm far from overprotective." Yeah. Sure. Edward, overprotective? Preposterous.
"Then why," I said through gritted teeth, "won't you allow me to even stand up?" Instantly, he removed his hand from my shoulder. The skin there felt like it was burning. I stood up; he was staring at me again though. This was the sort of time when a one eyebrow raising look would have been perfect. As it was though, I settled with raising both. He mirrored the look, speaking before I could make my lips form words.
"Happy now?"
"Yes. Thanks." I muttered curtly, now feeling stupid standing there, and slightly intimidated too. I never realised how tall Edward was, maybe it was enhanced by the fact that we were close…
I frowned. Willing myself to hold the composure I'd managed to perfect minutes before. Trying to feel angry at him again. The silence had fallen once more. Only my shallow breathing broke it. He wasn't breathing. With a sharp twinge of guilt I imagined how much pain he was in being so close. Inches away from my skin, and the blood that pumped beneath its surface.
"Lucie," He said quietly his tone ardent. For some reason, his words, breaking me out of my thoughts, sent a shock through me, as if I'd just touched a live current.
I looked up. There was an intent look in his eyes (no trace of humour remained) making the light in them more prominent, captivating my gaze. I was lost then, momentarily awed. But I had to concentrate. I closed my eyes, sighing angrily in frustration willing my heart to shut up! "Lucie?"I snapped my eyes back open, Edward looked confused, though I averted from looking into his eyes again when I spoke.
"Sorry, go on."
He raked a hand though his still wet hair; a stressed gesture. It still maintained a flawless casual disarray though, the bronze colour contrasting beautifully against his burning golden eyes. Do not look at them!
"Your dream Lucie," I wished he hadn't said that. Suddenly I found myself fighting the elusive memory desperate to impair my vision again. The darkness that threatened to pull me under. Her voice…
Run.
"Yes?" My voice was barely audible, but he heard it. He lent closer still, are foreheads almost touching, I could practically feel the heat from my skin react against the miracle cool breath.
"Who was that woman? The one in the forest?"
I couldn't help it. I stared into his eyes, willing the intensity to give me strength. But when I replied, my voice was devoid of anything but that. I said the truth to him, wishing I could lie.
"My mother."
***
*gasp* and breathe…
Oh poop. I think I forgot the action AGAIN. Well maybe… ugh, it's no use. I have haven't I? You don't hate me do you? Oh dear… is that a cliff-hanger? It is? *hides from possible cliff-hanger-related-threats* :p
I don't believe I typed this: 'Hazard a guess as to what would be on the top of my list?' I'm sorry, but it had me laughing a lot. Hazard a guess? Am I the only one who finds this hilarious?! (I am aren't I? :p)
And yeah… it's short eh? :s Sorry! Next chapter shall be longer. If this is being dragged out then I'm sorry… ugh.
Hehe. Carlisle reminds me of Gandalf in this chapter! HA! (No, I do not mean that he has spontaneously sprouted a large grey beard and downed a wizard costume. Though that would be an interesting plot development! :p) He just seems so very wise don't you agree? :p Maybe I'll call him… 'Carlisle the White' from now on (it could refer to his medical uniform..) Ach. Oh dear. I've just re-read my A/N… you readers must think I'm crazy, I fear you're close to the truth… :p Oh, and speaking of Gandalf-esque Carlisle, that reminds me. Did you like Edward's POV? Hate it? It was needed, because I had tonnes of reviews saying how much Edward was a git. He isn't really poor thing, just very confused.
Hehe, I'll give an example:
'Edward's being ANNOYING. I hate annoying Edward. When Edward's annoying he's not sexy anymore. He's just some annoying, irritable, aggravating, grumpy, unpleasant, stupid, idiotic, unthinking, brainless, thoughtless, unintelligent, dull-minded, rattlebrained, air-headed, dimwitted, imbecilic, moronic, cretinous, obtuse, foolish, unwise, reckless, absentminded, thoughtless, absurd, foolish, inept, nonsensical, illogical, preposterous, asinine, mentally defective vampire who doesn't deserve to be called a vampire.' That was quoted from Cappuccino C. Cullen's fabulous review. You have to admit, she's quite the wit! (Quite the wit? … another hilarious phrase, there seems to be tonnes out there! Ah dear me :p)
OH, and don't worry about the absence of Bella… Edward's mind seems slightly less preoccupied about her here, eh? Rest assured that next chapter (… or maybe the chapter after that…) she'll be included. O.O I mean… what about dear Vicky? Dun dun dun…
Anyway. What did you think? Okay… the whole Ragnarök bit? Did that make any sense whatsoever? The information I put in is mainly true (as true as legends go) but I'm afraid the creepy chant they said was made moi, and the whole thing about consuming mortal blood (that was pretty creepy too…) was also made up by me :p
Oh dear, this just proves how atrocious my editing (or lack of thereof) is… did none of you notice this last chapter? Or were you all too polite?
'(talk about how Alice cannot see Lucie's future clearly, because she's always dealing with the past. So long as Lucie has her gift, Alice's visions about her will be unclear.)
FRENCH!'
hehe. I put that, it was my notes! See, I was making myself some tea and had to leave my laptop, and what with me having a premature short term memory and all… I forgot to delete it :P believe it or not, but the whole FRENCH bit was to remind me to revise….
Yeah. I did *cough* tonnes of that last night *cough*
So if that confuzzeled you then I'm sorry. It's been deleted now, don't thret. Forget I mentioned it in fact (why on earth am I highlighting my errors? Stupid. me...)
Anyway. Thanks for anyone who offers to BETA for me and correct any silly typos and such, but seriously, it's too complicated. I'd never end up posting…. But hey… you people can live with my grammatical errors? Right? :s If they become to frequent though, don't hesitate to say: 'OMG. Your Writing SUCKS.' *sigh* I'll just wallow in misery for a while then eat some chocolate and feel better :P
And wow. Some reviewers say they actually don't hate me for my A/Ns? This is a surprise! I don't think I'll count on that to last though… I'm sure you'll get sick of me soon enough ;) Yeah. Sorry about the whole babbling thing... it's getting worse, isn't it?
Anyway. I have a request.
REVIEW! Please? It's seriously the ONLY thing that makes me write this story.
Lily- who wonders if the Easter Bunny was the one who stole her sanity…