A/N: Not much to say about this chapter except: Drama goes down at the Cullen house. Purity Ring's "Bodyache" fits this chapter pretty well, I think. Purity Ring anything, in fact, fits with Edythe, IMO. Anyway. Enjoy!

…

I did the only thing I could do—I went back to school.

Most of the other students did as well, aside from Beau, and Taylor.

It shouldn't have been such a feat for me to stay where I was, but I found myself fighting that irresistible magnetic pull that had me wanting to go find Beau, and check up on him. Like some sort of freaky obsessed fan girl.

I compared this day to the first day I'd met Beau Swan. To think I'd thought of that day as so incredibly boring. Today, compared to that, was like being in a vegetable state, coma-like. It was as if the color had drained from the bricks, the trees, the sky, the faces around me...

There was something else I should have been doing, that I wasn't. It was crucial for our kind to keep a low profile, but when, over time, suspicions rose, it was vital that we cover our tracks. I owed it to my family to make excuses for what I'd done—but to me, the morals seemed twisted and skewed. Right for some, wrong for others. I decided I just couldn't shed that sort of light on Beau's reputation.

And so when Mrs. Banner approached me before class began and asked how I was, I told her I hadn't been hurt. When she asked specifically about Beau and Taylor, I told her I hadn't heard anything. I should have given her the same excuse I'd discussed with Carine—that head injuries could misconstrue memory and recall, and that I'd heard Beau's had been particularly severe, even that he'd been incoherent for awhile… But I just couldn't bring myself to say the words.

It felt despicable of me, when Beau had really been nothing but cooperative with the whole thing. So far, he'd seemed to go along with everything I'd said, despite his lack of belief in the account. He hadn't said anything to betray me, despite having good reason to do so. Would I betray him when he had done nothing but keep my secret? No.

When I walked into Spanish, Mr. Goff asked me the same questions, and I gave him the same vague answers.

I hope you have a good explanation for what happened today. Roy is pissed.

I ignored Eleanor as I took my seat behind her, but she didn't miss the eye roll as I passed.

In all reality, I had come up with a perfectly explainable justification—one I hadn't really even had to think through. If I hadn't acted so quickly, if I hadn't saved the boy and his blood had been spilled on the icy blacktop… It went without saying I would have exposed us in a much more obvious and horrific way.

It was a perfectly excusable reasoning… But the deep shame associated with it kept me from using it.

Look out for Jessamine, Eleanor continued as Mr. Goff started class, She's not as angry… but she's more… Committed.

And then I saw in El's mind what Jessamine was so committed about, and my vision turned red. The room tilted and warbled with the strength of the rage that flooded through me, and I was out of my seat before I could stop myself.

SHEESH, EDYTHE! GET A GRIP! Eleanor shouted mentally, reaching out into the aisle to grab my arm and pull me back into my seat. She used her full strength now, which was impressive for a vampire. She rarely used her full strength—there was seldom a need, for she was so much stronger than any vampire any of us had ever encountered. She gripped my arm, rather than pushing me down. If she'd been pushing, the chair under me would have collapsed.

"Necesitas disculpas, Edythe?" Mr. Goff inquired.

CONTROL YOURSELF! Eleanor demanded.

I could only shake my head in the man's direction, staring lasers into the wood top of my desk. I tried to calm myself, but the task proved difficult. The wrath swelled in waves through me, consuming me, drowning me in its insurmountable tides.

Jessamine's not going to do anything until we all discuss it. I just thought you should know the direction she's headed.

I took a few deep breaths, and eventually, I felt El's grip on my arm loosen slightly.

Chill out, Edythe. I mean it. You're in enough trouble as it is.

I took another breath, and then nodded at her to let her know I was feeling composed enough for her to let go. She released me.

None of the students knew what to make of our brief confrontation, and they simply shrugged it off. The Cullens were freaks—everyone knew that already.

Damn, girl, you're a disaster.

"Bite me," I hissed.

The anger simmered just underneath the surface, reigned in, but barely. Eleanor was more forgiving than Jessamine, but her opinion on the subject was clear in her mind, and she wasn't as much on my side as she was on Jess's.

It was true—Eleanor was stronger than I could ever hope to be, but she had yet to beat me in a spar. She was always attributing my victories to the fact that I could read her mind and predict her moves, but that was only a smaller part of the big picture. I was faster and more composed about my fighting strategies than she was, and we would be evenly matched in a fight.

A fight? I thought to myself, disturbed by the sudden direction my thoughts had taken. Who had said it would come to a fight? And would I really be prepared to defend a human I barely knew against my own family?

I thought about that for a moment, thought about the fragile feel of the boy's frame in my arms in juxtaposition with Jessamine, Royal, and Eleanor—supernaturally strong and fast, built to prey on the simple frailty of humans...

Yes, I would fight for him. Against my family.

I shuddered. I didn't like to think about it, but I knew I would need allies if it came to a showdown. I would not be able to defend the boy alone.

I knew without a doubt that Carine would be on my side, at least from an opinion standpoint. She would be vehement against the stand Jess and El were prepared to make. Her stance against the matter might be all we needed, but I wasn't quite sure…

Earnest? Doubtful. But he would not fight against me, and he would hate to disagree with Carine's perspective. Above all else, he would do whatever it took to keep his family whole, and intact. His first priority would not be decided over what was right or wrong, but through his ever-present filter of love. If Carine was the soul of our family, then Earnest was the heart. She gave us a leader who deserved following; he made that following into an act of love. We all loved each other—even under the fury I felt toward Jessamine and Roy right now, even planning to fight them to save Beau, I knew that I loved them.

As for Archie… I had no idea which side he would take. It would all depend on his vision. I assumed he would side with the victors.

So, I had to assume I would be without allies. In which case, evasive action would need to be taken… How would Beau react to my kidnapping him? I almost smiled at the thought of it… But then, I didn't know how I would manage that… Being in such close quarters with him for any length of time…? Perhaps I would deliver him back to his mother, though even a journey as short as that would be burdened with peril—for the both of us, I realized.

Of course, this risked his life in the most extremist of ways. But I was beginning to understand that if my composure were to lapse, and I… killed him, the pain of that disaster would be very, very intense. Not for Beau—I would not make him suffer—but for me.\]re9wi0w672995p

…

Eleanor and I walked out to the parking lot together after the final bell.

Royal's thoughts, of course, were an unending stream of profanities and curses, directed solely at me. Eleanor was contemplating what an argument would mean for her, worrying over which side she would need to choose.

Eleanor had been right about Jess. She was absolutely set in her ways.

Archie was distressed, worrying about Jessamine, flipping through images of the future. No matter which direction Jessamine came at Beau, Archie always saw me there, blocking her. Interesting... neither Royal nor Eleanor was with her in these visions. So Jessamine planned to work alone. That would even things up.

Jessamine was the best, and certainly the most experienced, fighter among us. My one advantage lay in that I could hear her moves before she made them.

I had never fought more than playfully with Eleanor or Jessamine—just joking around. I felt sick at the thought of really trying to hurt my sister...

No, not that. Just to block her. That was all.

I concentrated on Archie, memorizing Jessamine's different avenues of attack. As I did that, his visions shifted, moving further and further away from the Swans' house. I was cutting her off earlier...

Quit it, Edythe! It can't go down this way. I won't allow it.

I didn't answer him, I just kept watching.

He began searching farther ahead, into the misty, unsure realm of distant possibilities. Everything was shadowy and vague.

When we got to the house, Carine's Mercedes was already there. We were all relieved the discussion would be able to take place right away, then.

She and Earnest were sitting at the dining room table when we came inside. Of course, we never used it for its intended purpose, but we liked to put up the charade, just in case. The long oval table was made of polished mahogany, surrounded by simple, cream-fabric upholstered chairs. The back wall of the dining room looked out over the panama beyond.

Earnest held Carine's hand on top of the table, but his golden gaze was fixed on me.

Please don't go.

I wished I could say something to make my father—in all senses of the word—feel better about the conversation that was about to take place. But I had no words of reassurance to offer him now, so I simply took the place to the left of Carine.

Briefly, Earnest lifted his hand off of Carine's and reached across the table to squeeze mine. He didn't know the nature of the discussion that was about to begin; he was only concerned about me. Apparently I looked distraught.

Carine, however, had a better idea of what was to come, and her grave expression caused her to appear much older than she was.

My various siblings took their places around the table, and I noticed, as they took their seats, that the battle lines were already drawn.

Royal sat at the foot of the table, directly across from Carine. He did not look at her, only focused his rage-filled glare on me. Eleanor sat silently beside him.

Jessamine paused when she stepped into the room and paused a moment before turning to go and stand behind Royal's chair, leaning back against the wall. She was decided, regardless of the outcome of this discussion. My fist, on the table underneath Earnest's hand, clenched into a hard ball. She did not meet my gaze.

Archie was the last to come in, and his eyes were focused on something far away— the future, still too indistinct for him to make use of. Without seeming to think about it, he took the seat beside Earnest. He ground the pads of his fingers into his temples as if he had a headache. Jessamine jerked uneasily and considered joining him, but she stayed where she was.

"I want to apologize," I began when everyone was seated, directing my gaze first to Royal's and then to Jess, and then to Eleanor. "I didn't intend to put any of you at risk. It was thoughtless, and I'm sorry, and I take full ownership of my error."

"Full ownership?" Royal repeated icily, "What do you mean by that? Are you going to fix it?"

I worked to keep my voice quiet and even. "Not in the way you mean. I'm willing to leave now, if that helps matters." If I believe that Beau will be safe, if I believe that none of you will touch him, I amended in my head.

Earnest shook his head, anxious eyes on my face. I turned my hand over to wind my fingers around his.

"It would only be for a few years," I assured him, keeping my eyes on my siblings across the room from me.

"You can't go anywhere now," Eleanor said, as if the idea of my leaving was ludicrous. "That would be the opposite of helpful. We have to know what people are thinking now more than ever."

"Archie will catch anything major," I disagreed.

Carine shook her head. "Eleanor has a point, Edythe. The boy is more likely to talk if you leave now. It's all of us leave, or none of us."

"Beau won't say anything," I insisted, a hint of hysteria in my tone. Desperately, I wanted them to believe this. But I at least wanted the fact out there in the open before Royal detonated—which he was building up to now.

"You don't know his thoughts," Carine reminded me gently.

"I know that he won't talk," I insisted, "Archie, tell them."

Archie gazed down at me. His butterscotch eyes were tired. "I can't see what will happen if we just ignore this." He looked at Royal and Jessamine.

I realized that no, he wouldn't be able to see around their stubborn will to act.

Royal's palm smacked down on the table with a loud bang. "We can't allow the human a chance to tell anyone anything. Carine, you must see that. Even if we decided to all disappear, it's not safe to leave suspicious thoughts behind us. We live so differently from the rest of our kind—you know there are those who would love an excuse to point fingers. We have to be more careful than anyone else!"

"We've left rumors behind us before," I reminded him through my teeth.

"Rumors," he repeated, leering at me, "Not eye-witnesses and evidence!"

"Evidence," I repeated scornfully, cocking an eyebrow at him.

Jessamine's eyes were hard, though, and she was nodding along with him.

"Royal—" Carine started.

"Let me finish, Carine," he contended, holding up his hand, "It doesn't have to be any big production. The boy hit his head today. So maybe that injury turns out to be more serious that it looked." Royal shrugged. "Every mortal goes to sleep with the chance of never waking up. The others would expect us to clean up after ourselves. Technically, that would make it Edythe's job, but this is obviously beyond her." He shot me a scathing look. "You know I'm capable of control. I would leave no evidence behind me."

"Yes, Royal," I hissed, "We all know how capable an assassin you are."

He turned baleful eyes on me, a fierce warning growl issuing from between his teeth.

"Edythe, please," Carine said, holding a hand in my direction, and then she turned to Royal. "Royal, I looked the other way in Rochester because I felt that you were owed your justice. The men who killed you had wronged you monstrously. This is not the same situation. The Swan boy is an innocent."

"It's to protect us all," he ground out through his teeth.

There was a brief moment of quietness while Carine contemplated over her reply. When she nodded, Royal's eyes lit up. He should have known better. Even if I hadn't been able to read her thoughts, I could have anticipated her next words. Carine never compromised.

"I know your intentions are well-placed, Royal, but... I'd like very much for our family to be worth protecting. The occasional...accident or lapse in control is a unfortunate part of who we are." It was very unlike her to include herself in the plural, though she had never had such a lapse herself. "To murder a blameless child in cold blood is another thing entirely. I believe the risk he presents, whether he speaks his suspicions or not, is nothing to the greater risk. If we make exceptions to protect ourselves, we risk something much more important. We risk losing the core of who we are—as Cullens."

I couldn't help it, I lifted my hands, smirking sarcastically at Royal, and applauded slowly.

Another livid snarl burst from his teeth and he was on his feet, leaning toward me.

"Edythe. Royal."

Royal sat and forced his gaze back to Carine. "It's called being responsible, Carine," he implored a moment later, the hardness not quite gone from his voice.

"It's called being callous," she returned firmly, "Every life is precious." These latter words were gentle as she appraised her oldest son's face.

Royal exhaled heavily, folding his thick arms over his chest and slumping back in his chair. He turned his face away from the table.

Eleanor put a hand on his shoulder, trying to reassure him.

"The question," Carine continued, "is whether it's time to move on?"

"No," Royal griped sullenly, eyes still cast away, "I don't want to start over again, and I like it here. There's so little sun, we almost get to be normal."

"Well, we certainly don't have to decide now," Carine allowed, "We can wait and see if it becomes necessary. Edythe seems certain of the Swan boy's silence."

Royal rolled his eyes.

But I was no longer concerned with Royal's opinions. I could see that he would go along with Carine's decision, no matter how infuriated he was with me. Their conversation had moved on to unimportant details.

Jessamine, however, remained absolute.

I understood why. Before she and Archie had met, she'd lived in a combat zone, a relentless theater of war. She knew the consequences of flouting the rules—she'd seen the grisly aftermath with her own eyes—more than once.

It said much that she had not tried to calm Royal down with her extra faculties, nor did she now try to rile him up. She was holding herself aloof from this discussion— above it.

"Jessamine."

Her eyes, just a little more wild than the rest of ours, flitted to my face.

"This is my mistake, an error I made. I will not allow him to pay the price for that."

Jessamine shook her head minutely. "Then he benefits from it? He should have lost his life today, Edythe. I would only be setting things right."

"No." The word issued through my clenched teeth in a fierce hiss. "I won't allow it."

This surprised her. She hadn't expected that I would act against her to defend the boy.

"You haven't lived through what I've lived through, Edythe," she argued, "You don't understand, even if you've lived those experiences second-hand through my memories. I will not allow any of my family, especially Archie, to live in danger—no matter how insignificant the risk."

I shook my head at her. "I'm not disputing that, Jess. But I will not let you hurt Beau Swan. I can't."

Jessamine stared at me, and I stared back. She was assessing the atmosphere around her, gauging the strength of my fortitude.

"Jess."

Jessamine did not look away from me as she answered Archie. "Don't tell me you can look out for yourself, Archie; I already know that. I've still got to—"

"That's not what I was gonna say, babe," he said with a chuckle, "I was going to ask you for a favor."

I saw what was on his mind, and my mouth fell open with an audible gasp. I stared at him, shocked, only vaguely aware that everyone besides Archie and Jessamine was now eyeing me warily.

"I know you love me n' all. Appreciate that. But I would also really appreciate it if you didn't try to kill Beau. Firstly, because Edythe's totally serious, and I don't want either of you getting hurt. Second of all," And his tone brightened marginally, "Beau's my good buddy. At least, he will be."

The image broadcasted with perfectly clarity in his head: Archie, laughing, slapping Beau softly on the shoulder, in one of those one-armed bro-hug things. And Beau was smiling too, returning the gesture, his eyes focused on something over Archie's shoulder.

"We're gonna pretty much be best bros one day, Jess. I won't be very happy with you if you don't leave him alone."

I didn't look away from Archie's face to see what Jessamine's expression looked like. I saw the future flicker as Jessamine's resolve floundered in the face of his unexpected request.

"Ha," Archie chuckled happily—Jess's indecision had cleared a new future, and I could see the tension in his shoulders relax. "Beau's not gonna say anything to anybody. Nothing at all to be worried about. It'll all work out."

The way he said Beau's name… As if they were already friends…

"Archie… I… I don't understand… What… does this…?"

"I told you, Edy, there was a change coming. I don't know." But he locked his jaw, and I could see that there was more. He was trying not to think about it; he was focusing very hard on Jessamine suddenly, though she was too stunned to have progressed much in her decision-making.

He did this sometimes when he was trying to keep something from me. "What, Archie?" I demanded lowly, "What are you keeping from me?"

He jerked his head once, doing his best to keep me out.

"Is it about the boy?" I prodded, "Is it about Beau?"

The sound of his name caused him to slip. Archie's guard only fell for a sixteenth of a second, but that was long enough to see what he'd been hiding.

"No!" I cried out, on my feet, the chair clattering to the floor behind me.

"Edythe?" Carine was on her feet, too, and distantly I felt her hand on my arm.

"It's getting firmer," Archie murmured, "Every minute, you're more sure. There's really only two options left. It's one or the other for him, Edy."

I could see what he was seeing, but I could not digest it. I could not allow it in, could not come to terms with it.

"No," I moaned, suddenly feeling very hollow and weak. I sunk down to sit on the floor, curling my legs up to my chest.

"Will somebody please let us in on the mystery? We're not all mind-readers, you know!" Eleanor griped.

"I have to leave." My voice was hollow, and I couldn't tear my gaze from the floor in front of me. I almost wanted to rock myself, if it would make me feel any better.

"I don't see you going anywhere, Edy," Archie said, crouching down in front of me. He reached out to touch my knee. "I don't know if you even possess the ability to leave anymore." Think about it, he urged silently, Think about leaving him.

It dawned on me, again, the realization of how much it would pain me to leave Beau. But I couldn't stay. I could not stick around to watch whatever future I'd sanctioned him to play out.

I don't know about Jess. If you leave and she thinks he's a danger… Maybe not right away, but somewhere down the road… Would you leave him undefended?

I groaned, burying my face in my knees. "Don't do this to me!"

I was not Beau's protector. I could not be that. Wasn't Archie's divided future enough proof of that?

I love him, too, Edy. Not in the same way, of course, and I would never tell him that out loud. It would break all kinds of man codes, but still. Yeah. The feeling's there.

"Love him, too?" My voice was raw.

He sighed, resting an elbow on his bent knee. You are so blind, Edythe. Can't you see where you're headed? Can't you see where you already are? It's gonna happen, without a doubt. See what I see...

I shook my head mechanically. "No. No, no, no…" I squeezed my eyes shut, as if that would be enough to block out the visions he was trying to show me. "I don't have to follow that course. I will be strong enough to leave. I will."

"Wait…" Eleanor said. She was the last to catch on, though the first to speak. "Edythe? Falling for a human?" She laughed, sounding shocked. "What?!"

A strange choking sound exited my throat, but it was lost in the sudden maniacal laughter booming from Eleanor. She was shocked, absolutely stunned, and her laughter was in part due to that. It was how she dealt with things—finding the humor in them.

"What do you see, Archie? Precisely?" Jessamine asked, at Archie's side now, battle lines forgotten.

"It depends on whether she's strong enough," Archie explained, "Either—" He paused to glare warnings at me, "She'll kill him herself—which wouldn't be good for any of the parties involved—or he'll become one of us one day."

"Neither of those things is going to happen!" I howled.

Archie didn't seem to hear me. "It all depends," he repeated. "She may be just strong enough not to kill him—but it will be close. It will take an amazing amount of control," he mused. "More even than Carine has. She may be just strong enough... The only thing she's not strong enough to do is stay away from him. That's a lost cause."

No one spoke. The room was pregnant with silence, and I could only stare wide-eyed at Archie. I could see my distraught expression from five different perspectives, and again, I ducked my face into my knees.

"Well, this… complicates things," I heard Carine murmur thoughtfully.

"I'll say," Eleanor agreed. Her voice was still close to laughter. Trust Eleanor to find the joke in the destruction of my life.

"I suppose," Carine carried on, "The plan remains intact. We'll stay, and watch… And no one will hurt the boy."

Jessamine shook her head slightly, and a growl ripped through me at her thoughts, my face whipping up to glare at her. "No," she said, ignoring my fury, "I can't agree to that… If Archie only sees two inevitabilities, then…"

"No!" My voice was a howl of outrage mixed with despair. "No!"

I had to leave, to be away from the noise of their thoughts—Royal's self- righteous disgust, Eleanor's humor, Carine's never ending patience...

Worse: Archie's confidence. Jessamine's confidence in that confidence.

Worst of all: Earnest's...joy.

I strode from the room and was running before I was even out of the house. I flew down the sloping lawn toward the cover of trees, streaking soundlessly through their foliage, trying very hard not to think.

I leaped the width of the river effortlessly, and then kept running—due east.

The rain had returned, and I liked the downpour, which soaked me through almost immediately. It created a thick wall around me, made me feel safe from outside influence for the time being.

I kept running until I could see the lights of Seattle, and I stopped before touching the edge of human civilization.

And then I found a seat on a large boulder, and I forced myself to think about the conversation that had just taken place with my family, and what it meant to me. The way I had twisted and fractured and mutilated the future was inexcusable, shameful, but I forced myself to look at it just the same.

The first thing, Archie's vision of himself with Beau. Beau had been totally at ease, had not shied away from the coolness of Archie's skin, but his eyes were what had struck me. Impossibly, they'd changed so completely. Where before they'd swam with doubt, indecision and confusion, now they were firmer with resolve, and confidence. I wondered what had changed that, and how many secrets he held behind that ocean-blue gaze.

What did it mean? What did he know? And in that still-life moment from the future, what did he think of me?

Then the subsequent image—just the same, except that now there was no difference in their skin, and Beau's eyes… The shocking bright red of a newborn vampire. I couldn't explain why this image caused me pain, but it was an acute and focused pain, in the pit of my stomach.

I could not suppress the reverberating questions: What did it mean? How had these visions come to fruition? What did he think of me?

I could answer the last one, at least, and I thought this was where that acute pain reverberated from: If I were to force this damned, half-life on him, a product of my own weakness and selfishness, surely he would hate me for all of eternity.

But there was one more image—one more horrifying than all the rest—and I forced it to recall now. My own eyes, vengeful crimson with human blood, Beau's blood. Myself, crouched over Beau's broken, ashy pale body, completely lifeless. This image, above all, had been so concrete, so clear. There was no questioning what would happen if I were to lose even a modicum of self-control around Beau.

And yet… I groaned with frustration. Archie had been right. I didn't think I could leave anymore. I could see what he'd been saying—the notion of it caused me great, multi-faceted pain.

So I focused on what I knew would comfort me—the image of Beau's face, the clear, delicate membrane of his skin, blood pulsing beneath the surface, the wide ocean of his clear blue eyes… But it would not come to mind. I simply could not see past Archie's images of the future.

I curled in on myself, sinking into the dungeon of the two possibilities Archie had seen, writhing in the chains they manacled around my limbs. There had to be a way to circumvent the future. There had to be a way to change what he had seen. I would not let Archie's foreseen pathways direct my own. There had to be some way, some unforeseen third option… There had to be.

…

A/N: As always, I would love to know what you thought of this chapter! I'll see you again soon!