All right! This chapter is up! I think there will be two to three more chapters after this one! I am currently brainstorming another story. But I'll wait till this one is finished before I put another story up. I would greatly appreciate your input on this chapter. It was extremely hard to write. I crammed a few days into one chapter. Oh and I'm adding this in. Today is my birthday! Yay me. So everyone got a present on my birthday. Remember, Reviews are like birthday presents! Thanks for reading.
Chapter 21: The proposition
Angela helped Stephanie wobble down stairs to the basement. Stephanie looked exhausted. I remembered the first time I had my world shaken with the realization that humans were not alone at the top of the food chain. How could Angela be so calm? Then I remembered, Alice had all ready predicted that the witches would be fine. It was the werewolves and vampires that had uncertain fates. Leah and Seth went downstairs in wolf form to get comfortable on the plush dog beds Rosalie bought, intending for the gesture to be a joke. Her joke backfired when she realized that the dog beds were more luxurious that most human beds. Leah and Seth even found the dog food bowls with their names on it funny. This evening feels like an alternate universe. A week ago, anytime the wolves went downstairs to sleep they would tell Rosalie thank you for the bed and she would growl. Now, no one felt like joking. Jacob's head was bobbing, as he fought with the desire to sleep. He was letting his head drop to his chest, and then shake his head, as if he were waking up, and then bob back down again. Renesmee sat next to him on the couch and watched us try to come up with a plan.
"We're going to die, aren't we momma?" She asked solemnly. Everyone stopped breathing. I felt my voice start to shake.
"No, dear, we will be just fine. We all need to think of a plan, that's all." I was a bad liar as a human, and it seems my skills had not improved much. Renesmee looked at me and stood up. She walked over and gave all of us a goodnight hug.
"We got away from the Volturi once, Momma, we can do it again." Her faith made me want to cry. Edward and I followed her upstairs and made sure she was tucked in and we sat next to her bed, just as we have done for the last four years, and we asked her what book she wanted us to read.
"Will you tell me the story of Aida?" She asked. My mind instantly went to the marquee in New York. I had seen the play with Alice.
"Ah, the story about the star crossed lovers?" Edward asked smiling. Renesmee smiled.
"Every story is a love story." She recited the line from the play. "I like hearing stories about people that have a lot to overcome for love."
"Like Romeo and Juliette?" I added in. She shook her head.
"They had it easy. I mean like a vampire hybrid and a werewolf, or a human and a vampire, but Aida will work for me."
"There was a group of people at a museum. The exhibit was over ancient Egypt. There was a mannequin dressed in pharaohs clothing, and jewelry, and even a large square made out of rock. People start passing by all the exhibits. There is a man on one end of the exhibit, examining the pharaohs clothing and there is a woman at the other end looking at the rock, both glance at each other and stop. The world starts to fade away. There is only the two of them in the museum. The trance is quickly broken, and the two turn away. The pharaoh mannequin starts to sing." I was mostly describing how the story looked on Broadway.
Edward and I started telling her the story. She insisted that we stop and sing the songs, when a song part came up in the story. While we were singing a song about Aida, I felt my throat constrict. I would miss this the most, if something bad were to happen. Our little ritual of reading a book with our little girl might seem dull to some parents, but now, all I can think about is how perfect the world would be if Edward and I could spend eternity sitting next to Renesmee's bed telling her stories. I felt the fear of the impending visit lift for a little while, as we told the story. We joked about the princess' theme song from the story. Her song called, "My Strongest Suit."
"That song is a lot like Aunt Alice." Renesmee laughed. Edward and I joined in. The princess makes a point of saying that the best thing about her is her ability to dress up extravagantly. Edward laughed.
"That is Alice's theme song." We all agreed. Renesmee was growing tired as we reached the end of the story.
"Radames and Aida were sentenced to be buried alive in large tombs. But as an act of kindness, the princess decides to bury the two in the same tomb. As the light from the candle starts to dim in the tomb and as the two are losing air and light, Radames promised Aida that he will find her again, even if it takes a thousand years. Then, everything goes black." I paused. Renesmee yawned and then looked at me.
"Then what?" She acts as if she has never heard the story.
"Then we skip back to the beginning of the story, in a modern museum. The man and woman in the museum exhibit of Egypt are suddenly drawn together. They seem to be moving toward the mannequin of the princess. They meet in the middle. It is Radames and Aida, in the present time." Renesmee laid her head down on the pillow.
"Momma?"
"Yes?" I watched her mull over the question in her head.
"If something bad happens to us tomorrow, will you and daddy find me?" I sat on the edge of her bed and Edward stood near me. My hand shot out and grabbed his hand, and gave it a squeeze.
"Even if it takes a thousand years" Edward repeated the line from the play. "But, don't worry, everything will be fine." She nodded and closed her eyes. Edward and I walked out and turned out the light. Once we were a safe distance from Renesmee's room, I grabbed Edward for support. I felt as if my legs were buckling. He stopped and pulled me into his arms. I felt myself sob into his shirt. My sob was dry and sounded false. I feel as if my heart was ripped out of my throat and put into my palm. Edward ran his fingers through my hair and stood there comforting me outside of our room. I knew my entire family could hear me break down. Edward wiped his fingers over my cheeks to wipe away the unshed tears. I walked downstairs, still clutching his shirt. I looked around. Esme was leaning on Carlisle, burying her face into his shirt. Rosalie and Emmet were both looking down, either praying or crying dry tears. Alice and Jasper were huddled together. The sad atmosphere was harder on Jasper than any of us. Edward and I walked over to Alice and Jasper and I put my hand on Jasper's shoulder. Jasper looked up and gave me a grateful smile. Our tender moment was broken by the knock on the door. Alice went to the door and answered it. She didn't look as if she was expecting it. It was Sam, with a pack of wolves close behind. Sam was in human form, while the rest were in wolf form.
"We are here to defend our family. All of you." He motioned to the wolves. Alice ushered all of them in, thirteen in total. The wolves came in and Sam led them downstairs. Carlisle insisted that everyone get some sleep. They had been running all night, they must be exhausted. Jasper promised to talk strategies in the morning. Once the wolves were downstairs, Jasper stood up and looked at me. I tilted my head, as if I were trying to decipher a code he was giving me.
"Bella, they are going to make you the prime target. How is your shield?" He looked gravely at me. I nodded.
"As strong as usual" Since our last fight, I had worked on my shield and I could flex it almost subconsciously, I didn't feel the strain I used to.
"How does your shield do while you are under attack?" He asked. I shrugged.
"I've never tested it." I admitted. He motioned for me to follow him outside. The family followed. He placed Alice against the wall of the house; Edward next to her, while I am about fifteen yards away from them.
"I am going to fight with you, just small training tactics. I want you to put your shield around Alice. Alice will sing a song in her head. Once Edward identifies the song, I will know the shield has slipped." I quickly put my shield around Alice. Alice gave a quick thumbs up. Jasper smiled and lunged at me. He seemed to be everywhere. I was quickly apprehended. I heard Edward growl as Jasper had me pinned, my arms behind my back and my head pulled to the side, exposing my neck, his teeth less than an inch from my throat. I heard a guffaw from Emmet, and sigh from Esme.
"The shield's still there. Good job Bella. Let's do it again." Jasper seemed optimistic. The second time was less embarrassing. I managed to elude Jasper for a few more seconds. I still ended up apprehended, but Alice's mind was still silent to Edward. We practiced for hours. I found it easier to predict Jasper's moves as the night wore on. Jasper was finding it harder to apprehend me. He was still winning every match, but it was taking him longer each time, and my shield never once faltered.
By the time the sun came up, we were sure of two things. First, my shield was still strong, even as I was physically getting beaten, and the second, was that Alice's choice in songs were horrible. After hours of having her sing a song in her head, trying to see if Edward could identify it, she had the tune stuck in her mind and she started to hum it. The song she chose was, "Celebration". I let my shield drop from Alice and walked in doors to find Esme rushing about the kitchen, cooking a huge feast for the wolves and Renesmee. Esme was a whirlwind. She would cook and clean, running at vampire speeds. She was the only vampire in the house. Edward, Alice and Jasper were outside fighting and working on strategies; Rosalie and Emmet were hunting, while Carlisle was at the hospital, trying to save as many people as he could. I walked up to help her. She was quickly polishing a spoon, while cleaning the sink.
"Esme, let me help." I offered to take something and she handed me the spoon. She sighed and looked at the kitchen.
"I need to get this place cleaned up." She announced. "There's so much to clean, and so little time." Even with my vampire eyes, I couldn't see any dirt in the house.
"The place is beautiful; I don't know what you mean, Esme." For the first time this morning, Esme stopped. She looked around the kitchen again, then back at me.
"You know how humans always say, I'll do it tomorrow?" I nodded. "For vampires, time is fairly irrelevant. Everything stretches out before you, suddenly tomorrow, could be ten years from now." She picked up a dish and put it away in one of the cabinets. "Now, the idea that the world for us could stop tonight is frightening. I don't know what to do without the promise of tomorrow." She took a haggard breath. I quickly hugged her and she wrapped her arms around me. "Bella, the presence of you and Renesmee has made our family perfect. I just hope that we will have more time to fully enjoy it."
"Everything will be fine, mom, don't worry. There will be a tomorrow for us." I pushed away from her and looked at all of the eggs on the frying pan. "We better finish this up, before our guests wake up.
During our breakfast, Ms. Wintours came in, followed by three other witches. There were two shy blonde girls, and a young man. All of them looked frightened at the appearance of us. Ms. Wintours never said the word, 'vampire' around them. The young man tried to be friendly and offered his hand to Edward and Jasper. Both shook his hand and his eyes widened at the temperature difference. Ms. Wintours had been discussing strategies with Jasper.
"Now, I was thinking that if I could establish the council before the Volturi started accusing your family, our council could consider your family as a sub species, which needs to be protected. That will make your family untouchable." Jasper nodded, and Ms. Wintours continued. "Then, we could start establishing rules to protect your family from their wrath." It was then that the wolves started coming up from the basement. Sam came walking up, while the rest of the wolves, minus Leah and Seth, who were already at the table, came padding up the stairs. The two shy girls and the young man let out gasps as the wolves appeared at the stairs.
"We didn't bring spare clothes." Sam explained, "We were in a hurry." Alice skipped upstairs. She was down in no time with arm loads of men's clothes.
"This pile is for the guys about Jasper's size." She motioned for Jasper, Edward, and Emmet to come to her side. She did a good impersonation of Vanna, as she displayed Jasper. "This pile is for anyone that is about Edward's size." She showed off Edward. "And finally, this pile is for the tall and muscular, Emmet sizes." We all noted that a lot of the wolves claimed to be Emmet's size. They grabbed the outfits with their teeth and carried them downstairs. In no time at all, they were all dressed and upstairs in human form. The two shy blonde girls and the young man sat closer together, and nearer to Ms. Wintours. Jacob sat at the table and saved a spot for Renesmee, who finally walked down the stairs. They sat at the table and began to get food from the buffet Esme made.
"May we go hunting today, Jacob?" Renesmee asked. Jacob nodded.
"We probably better, Bella, Edward, are you joining us?" Edward nodded, as he sat beside me at the table. Our family made a point of sitting at the table, even if only one of us ate.
"Jasper, what is the plan?" Sam asked, once he and most of the wolves were full. "I have a wife and child at home; I would like to know that we are going against the Cold Ones with a plan." Jasper looked up from his conversation with Alice, and stared at Sam. Even though we should all be afraid for our lives, we were all relatively calm. Jasper must be working on overtime to keep us calm and fight with all the fear we must be projecting his way.
"Our plan is to have the Volturi talk, and then we will hope the witch's council will be able to persuade the Volturi to back down."
"What if they attack first?" Seth asked, while eating a pancake.
"The Volturi is all about theatrics. They will make it look like a court, to help them justify their actions." Angela came up and started joining in the conversation.
"What if the witches cannot back the Volturi down?" She asked, wrapping her fingers around her new pendant.
"The witch's council has never lost a war." The young man recited. Angela looked over to him, and the blondes.
"You must be Robert." She guessed and then looked at the girls. "Alisson, and Avri?" The girls nodded. "Ms. Wintours has told be a bit about all of you. But what you forget is that the witches were nearly hunted into extinction during the seventeen hundreds, and the sixteen hundreds did not fair well for us either." Mark closed his mouth and looked at Angela. "Jasper, I would like to be prepared either way. What if we cannot talk the Volturi down?" Jasper turned to face her.
"We fight." He simply stated. "We protect Bella. She is the shield. If Bella's shield is broken, we will all die in a matter of seconds." The newer wolves looked shocked, as did the witches. Jasper continued to explain. "The Volturi has three main contenders that can attack your mind. The first is Chelsea. She has the ability to change your alliances. Even the closest of bonds can be broken. The other two are Alec and Jane. Jane can make you feel immense pain, while Alec can cut off all senses, leaving you in a stupor. Bella is the only vampire that can block their attacks. Her shield is strong enough to cover everyone. She is priority. If something happens to her, Alec and Jane can attack and no one can escape once they get a hold of you." The witches started to stare at me. I felt Edward put his arm around my waist and we both stood up.
"Which is why, it is important that we eat." He looked at Jacob and Renesmee, who stood up and joined us also. "If you don't mind, we're going to hunt." He turned and I followed him out.
Our hunting trip took hours. Mainly, we were spending time with our little family. When we got back, Stephanie was up and preparing to go home. I rushed up to her.
"We're so sorry to have dragged you into this." Stephanie nodded.
"It's all right, Bella, your family saved my life last night." I dashed into my room and grabbed some money for her. I was back before her mind fully registered that I was missing.
"Take this!" I urged, handing her a stack of hundreds. "It's to get you out of town tonight. Tell your husband that you won it or make up some good reason for having this much money." Stephanie's eyes grew to the size of saucers as I handed the money to her. "Stay out of Marks tonight. Angela will have your cell phone number. If she calls and tells you to move to another town, be prepared to. We will try to get this resolved without you being brought into the Volturi's line of fire." Stephanie put the money into her purse and nodded.
"We'll go to Seattle again." She mumbled. I quieted her before she could say anything else.
"Don't tell us where. If we know, then the Volturi could easily learn." She nodded and gave me a hug. She then hugged everyone, and left. Esme watched Stephanie's car disappear down the driveway. I put my hand on her shoulder.
"I don't think she will be in any trouble." I comforted her.
Carlisle came home later in the afternoon. Jasper briefed him on the plan. Carlisle gathered everyone into the main room and had a group prayer. The odds of surviving an argument with the Volturi is a once in a life time thing, and we're planning on attempting it twice in less than a decade. Esme cooked a wonderful meal for the human food eating part of our family. Everyone ate in silence. Rosalie hung close to Jasper, hoping he could put her anxiety to rest. Emmet's ecstatic. He is sure we're going to win. I looked out the window and noticed that the sun had just set. It was twilight. Alice looked up.
"We better get ready. It's almost time." Edward stood up and I took his hand. He looked at me, questioningly. I whispered to him.
"You were right. Twilight is the saddest part of the day." He smiled at me and hugged me again.
"I'm sorry love, I was wrong about it being the safest part of our day." He did remember our conversation one of the first months that I had met him. Alice had planned what everyone was going to wear this evening. She was prepared for the weather to be cold, and for the witches, the weather was a factor in their outfits. We still dressed in nice warm jackets, with pants and gloves. We did not want to attract too much attention from someone that was casually passing by.
Before we knew it, we were all getting into our vehicles and driving down the Wal-Mart. The store was empty and the streets were deserted. I looked over towards the woods. The Wal-Mart was not far from the wooded area. Darkness had engulfed most of the world. Our only light was a few scattered lights hanging in the parking lot. Their light pink glow cast shadows throughout the area. The wolves had all taken on wolf form and spread out throughout the area. Jacob, Leah and Seth stayed near us. Jacob was glued to Renesmee's side. Leah was near Rosalie and Emmet, and Seth was standing by Edward and Jasper. I noted that Angela stood near Alice, she and Renesmee had on their new necklaces displaying the Cullen crest, and they held their heads high. Alice looked up and pointed towards the woods.
"They're heeeere." She sang quietly. We all turned our heads in the direction she pointed. After a few moments I saw the visions that would have haunted my nightmares. The Volturi came floating towards us, their black robes wafting after them. I took a deep breath, in anticipation. Aro was in the front, followed by his guards and Marcus, and Caius was flanking him. Their guards followed closely. I spotted Jane, Alec and Demetri. I quickly counted 17 Volturi members. Aro stopped his group about fifty yards from us. Aro was the first to speak.
"My friends," Aro's words were full of mockery, "we were traveling throughout America, doing inspections of covens and explaining our new laws. After our last visit, we felt the need to change a few laws, and we wanted to make sure everyone understood these laws perfectly." I felt Jane's powers try to infiltrate my shield. Years ago, her power felt like pricks, sharply stabbing at my shield. Now, they feel like nothing more than light taps. I could almost see the haze of Alec's powers floating around my shield. Neither Alec nor Jane looked happy about my shield's strength. Carlisle stepped forward.
"Aro, we are here to listen to your laws that you are putting upon us." Aro looked suspicious of us, but continued.
"We have decided for the good of our species, we will not allow the creation of any more yellow eyed vampires." He watched us, wanting to see if our reaction would cause the fight. Our family stayed still. Edward spoke up.
"I suppose by that law, that we are not allowed to continue with our 'yellow eyed' existence?" Caius smiled.
"You will be requested to partake in normal feeding activities for a vampire." I saw most of my family glare at Caius.
"We are also prohibiting the creation of mixed creatures. Even as a pet, your half vampire child is a danger. She attacked a boy, and went out in full sunlight." Aro smiled and looked at me and Edward. I tensed, and I noticed that Carlisle stepped forward again.
"Aro, you have seen the child through other's minds. She walked into the sun, and did not sparkle. She was wearing makeup. Our family created a makeup that protects us from sparkling." Marcus did not look impressed.
"First, you deny yourselves human blood, now you are going out into the sunlight wearing makeup? You are a disgrace to the vampire species! What is next? Eating human food? Getting a pet dog?" He growled. His growls were met by the growls of the werewolves in the woods and Leah, Seth and Jacob all tensed up, ready to pounce. Aro raised his hand.
"Silence brother, you will have your turn to speak. We are also installing a law stating that the half vampire human creature is not to mate. What's next in this world, a vampire, human shape shifter?" Aro laughed. Jacob growled a ferocious growl toward Aro. Aro straightened up. "I see." He smiled, taking in Jacob's reaction. I hissed. He was talking about Renesmee as if she were cattle. I felt Edward grab my hand. I had shown Aro my weakness. Aro looked amused at my show of anger. Then he straightened up and looked distracted. He was sniffing the air and listening.
"You brought humans?" Aro asked incredulous. "I didn't think I had to make a rule about bringing humans around us" Aro looked angered as Ms. Wintours walked up.
"Aro, I am Ms. Wintours." Aro seemed to recognize her and relax immediately.
"From the witch's council." He smiled. "I remember you." The other vampires smiled. Ms. Wintours looked un phased. Robert and the two blonde girls stepped forward to stand behind Ms. Wintours. Angela stayed near my family in the back.
"Aro, our numbers have grown, as have our strength. For centuries we carried forth the rules and helped guard the secrets of the mythical creatures, the differently biotic. Now, we request to be put back into power." Ms. Wintours looked regal as she stood there next to Aro. I could feel the tension in the air. If Ms. Wintours is allowed into power, the Cullens will be fine.
"I would love to install the witches back into power." Aro started. "Unfortunately, the other species prefer to be ruled by creatures with more strength." Ms. Wintours cocked her head.
"Surely, you know of the witches powers." She replied, leaving the threat to hang in the air. Aro put his hands up in the air to mock surrender.
"I do know of the stories, Ms. Wintours. Witches possess the power to turn vampires into humans, thus forcing us to age to our true ages and shrivel up and die." The guard members looked uneasy. "I do also know that the witches that possess such powers were considered old soul witches, their powers were passed down through the blood lines. Most of the old souls were destroyed during the inquisitions." He smiled kindly down at Ms. Wintours, who still held her ground. "If you are an old soul, you would be the rightful ruler of the council. The witch that possesses the power to turn vampires back into their human form is rare. But since I am quite old, as are my brothers and my guard, and the Cullens are so very against violence and death." He let his voice trail as he watched our reactions, waiting for one of us to spring. "How about if you turn the youngest vampire back into their human form? They will only age a few years and that would prove to the other creatures that you are the rightful ruler of the council." The wolves relaxed a little and looked around. I did a quick scan of the guards. None of them looked like newborns.
"Agreed," Ms. Wintours nodded. "I'll turn the youngest vampire back into their human form, and then the witches will be allowed back into power." Aro smiled at the invitation. He raised his hand and pointed his bony finger towards me.
"I do believe that Bella Cullen is the newest arrival into the vampire world. If you can change her back into a human, we will be convinced of your power." In that instant, Aro's words made sense. If I am transformed back into a human I will age five years, and my shield will only cover me. I will be an easy target and my family will not be shielded from Jane or Alec. I could sense Jane's attacks probing at the edge of my shield and I could feel Alec's mist go around the shield trying to break through. If Ms. Wintours turns me into a human, Renesmee, Jacob, the witches my family and Edward are doomed. Edward hissed, and put his arm in front of me, pushing me behind him.
"NO!" Rosalie screamed and she dashed over to my side. Her quick movement startled a guard member and he rushed forward to grab her, but he was met by Leah's fierce teeth. Leah had placed herself completely around Rosalie. She was guarding her and growling. Rosalie gave Leah a shocked look, and Leah shrugged a shoulder in reply. I watched Ms. Wintours nod and close her eyes. She started mumbling an incantation. She raised her hands up and her fingers twisted and pointed straight at me. I bit my lip and closed my eyes.
Ms. Wintours had walked right into Aro's trap.
~*~
Of course
I'm turning this into a cliff hanger moment! It takes me about a
week or two to post chapters. I will try to get the next one in
sooner. I only foresee two or three chapters after this one. As
always thank you in advance for the reviews.
