A/N: We are back and I have some excellent news! From the Ashes was nominated as BEST DRAMA in the Twilight Fanfiction Eclipse Awards! Voting starts May 5 twilighteclipsewardsblogspot DOT ca. Go check it out to vote for your favourites! My sincere love and gratitude to Dolores for the gentle nudge to finish this chapter, and my undying love and gratitude to TwiliteAddict and Gasaway Alley for their beta blessings.
McKinley Village, Nenana River Valley, Alaska
The old Bella probably would have felt a tad ashamed that she had shacked up for twelve hours straight taking full advantage of her newly-made-immortal-moment with Edward in the Eagle's Nest.
The current new and improved version of myself? Well, after a night of the most sensual, intimate, and
erotic night of loving with my mate, my cares about what others thought were non-existent. So what if I couldn't keep the smug, "I just had lots and lots of mind blowing sex" smile from hijacking my face.
Any concern I had, however, ceased to matter as the family seemed quite distracted with their own little party. I can't say I was surprised at the revelry. The past week had been the most harrowing of our very existence, so to see the Cullens healthy, happy, and in a well-deserved celebratory mood was a blessed thing.
Gathered around the central hearth in the Great Room, they were listening to the most beautiful folk music. It sounded like the Celtic pieces Renee used to play when she was going through one of her many spiritual incarnations and uprisings. Jasper was standing by the fireplace playing a twelve string guitar. The sunlight glinted off the polished wood and strings, dancing and gliding like magical, glimmering sprites. Alice was performing a little step dance, her frighteningly fast kick-ball-change footwork barely touched the floor. Her eyes were bright with amusement and she floated over to plant a gentle kiss on my forehead, and then danced away like a wee fae spirit. Jasper brought the tune to a close and we all applauded our appreciation, whistles and cat calls also echoed through the room.
"That was delightful, Jazz. What was the tune?" I inquired.
"Balarney Pilgrim," he answered while casually plucking another reel from his strings.
Edward gave my hand a reassuring squeeze before announcing to his family, "We've worked up an appetite... anyone up for a hunt?"
Seated with Rose on the loveseat, Em snorted loudly, no doubt gearing up for a snappy, suggestive comeback. No comments were forthcoming, however, as Rose gave him an arched eyebrow with arms crossed over her chest—which I assume was code for: Shut it. Yesterday.
I was quite impressed that's all it took to silence the king of wit.
Clearing his throat, Em put on his best serious face, which quite honestly, just looked earnest and adorable.
"I'd really like to go, Bells, if that's okay? Maybe you could use me in case you er...ummmm, get out of control or something..."
Tension rose as the heavy memory of that dramatic moment when I attacked Edward surfaced like a dead body. Jasper broke the spell by barking out a laugh. "Brother, you must think an awful lot of yourself if you think you can control an entity like Bella. She just iced the Volturi, man!"
"Technically, she torched them," Em sniffed. Rose rolled her eyes.
"Besides, we all agreed." Jasper intimated.
"Agreed on what?" Edward and I voiced en force.
Esme was the one to answer, causingEdward and I to relax instantly. "I just know that this first hunt is going to be a... strange, yet important milestone for you. We trust you and Edward to take care of each other. We all think you should go by yourselves."
They trusted us. Though humbled by our family's unconditional love and support, the truth of Esme's words rang true - the one proven certainty in my existence was no matter what transpired, Edward and I would always took care of one another. I had to remember to repeat that like a mantra in my head if doubt superseded my heart again.
I turned towards Edward and he tipped my chin. "She's right."
"I know," I whispered. "So what do you say we get this over with?" I smiled at him.
"Let's."
)()(
The beauty of Alaska cannot be defined in images or words. It needs to be experienced with all of one's senses. The mountain range rose like a large, rambling beast of rock reaching jagged fingertips to blue edges of the sky. The sharp bite of pine wrapped in a layer of chimney smoke and dirt was the most prevalent scent, while the intensity of sound had to be compartmentalized or I would've been lost in the cacophony of confusion arising from Mother Nature's symphony.
I wondered if maybe I just wasn't focused enough on hunting to try and separate the bird calls from the bear growls. The thought of taking blood from an animal still made me uncomfortable, but I was excited to watch Edward hunt.
"What types of animals do you hunt out here?" I lifted my nose to sniff what the winds carried along, delighting in the wild tang the outdoors now held for me.
"Well, out here for large, more challenging game we have bear – black or brown. Em and Rose used to enjoy hunting the gray wolves until they became threatened by human impact."
I admired how the Cullens and Denalis refrained from hunting animals on the Endangered Species List. I grimly considered the environmental changes of late, and wondered just how big that list would become as years progressed.
"Bison, moose, and caribou are quite large, but not much sport." Edward shrugged. I remembered him
telling me how much he enjoyed hunting mountain lion, and decided to ask him about his preferences in the hopes I could find my own.
"Why do you enjoy the mountain lion so much?"
Tension rippled across his body and settled like a constrictive net around his shoulders. His hunger was becoming harder to rein in and the mere suggestion of food had the effect of a Pavlovian bell ringing in the air, deafening us both. I immediately regretted asking him, but he shook it loose and his voice became controlled and quiet.
"They are so agile and powerful; fast, too, on pretty much any terrain. I appreciate a beast I can chase a bit."
A shiver coursed down my spine, but it was not from fear. It was desire. More than anything, I wanted - no, needed- to watch him chase an animal that was worthy of his pursuit. Observing me for a measured moment, Edward muttered a low oath under his breath. I quite enjoyed his squirmy reaction to my obvious arousal, yet I knew him well enough not to tease him about it. In fact, I finally understood why he was so adamant about me not watching him hunt. Em's wisecracks and love for innuendo all but confirmed the sexual energy hunting creates for their species. I can only imagine how difficult it was for Edward being the only single member of the coven, his ability to read minds a crucible forcing him to hunt alone. Had I been made to understand this dichotomy of sex and death for their species, I never would have pushed Edward all those years ago to let me watch him hunt. The issue wasn't so much he didn't want me to see him as a killer, it was because he was unsure of how to handle the strong, sexual overtones that surrounded the act of hunting for his kind. Given Edward's gentlemanly turn of the century upbringing, I'm sure being confronted with the unabashed curiosity of his seventeen year old, seemingly naive human crush gave him much pause.
I would have to work hard at easing his doubts on my comfort level with the alchemical melding of death and sex. With Edward, I've found more often than not, the only way to convince was action. Given the sexual tension vibrating between us during this excursion, that should be soon, but common sense told me to wait until he made a kill.
Edward pointed towards Mount McKinley in an awkward effort to change the subject hanging heavy between us.
"She wasn't always called Mount McKinley – the locals still refer to her as Mount Denali."
"Was this area named after the Denali coven?"
"Officially, no. Unofficially, however, the coven is this area's most respected and oldest secret. You see the coven came here during the Russian occupation and were highly revered, even worshiped as protectors, by the Koyukon Athabaskan people after the Denali sisters made a pact with them."
"A pact? Kind of like what the Cullens and the Quileute used to have?"
"Well, yes, I guess so, but for different reasons. The Denalis' feared exposure for what they were after coming to Alaska in exile from Russia. Tanya made an offer the Koyukon couldn't refuse – to never harm the human population and serve as their immortal protectors, which is why the area and mountain were named after sisters. The Koyukon people in turn left the Coven to live in peace, undisturbed. I've sometimes wondered if some of that local worship still exists today as there was quite a push by the indigenous people to have McKinley changed back to Denali. It was turned down at the Federal level, but remains recognized by the state of Alaska as Denali. I guess the Federal government doesn't like it when you name a mountain after a US President and then request to take it back."
By early October, Mount McKinley was blanketed in snow, but Edward informed me September had been unseasonably warm which allowed the tundra at her feet to hold her autumnal display of color. I was so thankful for it. Evergreen and white spruce rose like dark green obelisks across the land, lending lovely contrast to the sunshine yellow of the poplar, willow, and quaking aspens. Dwarf birch scrubbed the land with its stout brushes of red ochre. Seeing it all beneath the baby blue sky made me wish I could fly and see it all again from above.
Fly? Check that. No way. No time soon, I hope, anyway.
Remembering turning into the Phoenix and plummeting towards the earth, I made the quick decision to entertain thoughts of flight another day. When your first flight ends in a fiery crash, you tend to want to forget that. I refocused on Edward and gave him a teasing shove.
"Race you to her base?"
"With rhyming like that, how can I refuse?" With a light tug of my hand, we were off running side by side, fleet as the wind itself. Tearing across the tundra, my peripheral vision was not a blurred streak like I would expect, but a continual flash of images in a perfect millisecond of time, framed like a snapshot as we passed by. Impossibly, I was able to take note of every detail in each flash, and process with base instinct as either threat or no threat. Now I knew how Edward was able to move so fast, yet not bump into anything, trip or take a wrong turn. Information was fed with perfect clarity to the brain, and the speed in which it is processed had no limits.
No limits! Now, this is going to be fun.
With a push of effort, I pulled ahead of Edward and ran as fast as I dared for the base of the mountain. A small lake flashed up ahead and I calculated my speed and its width before deciding to try something different.
Why jump when you can just keep running?
Like the lightest skipping stones, my feet skimmed across the surface of the water. My laugh echoed throughout the valley as Edward's soft, confounded cursing trailed in answer to my trick.
When he caught up with me, he folded me into a tight squeeze; his laugh low and rumbly, vibrating against me. I couldn't help but smile into his sweater before looking up at him, beaming like an absolute idiot.
"Isabella Marie Swan, walking on water?"
"I'm pretty sure I was running."
With a tendency for overkill in an innocent batting of the lashes, Edward smirked and gave me a light tap on the tush. I was startled and aroused simultaneously. I would have blushed if I could, and Edward knew it.
"Come on, I think I know where I can find a large caribou. Keeping up with you has made me very hungry."
A low growl sounded in my throat, and I burrowed my nose into Edward's neck, licking a length of his skin.
"Mmmm. Me, too."
"Bella," he croaked. "Please."
I stepped back. He needed to feed and I needed to back off and let him.
"I'm sorry."
"No, don't apologize, it's just – I'm at loss. It doesn't seem you need blood to sustain yourself like a 'regular' vampire does, so I don't know how to... take care of you. "
"Why do you think it is that I don't need blood? I was made into this form by your venom which completely changed my physiology, so it stands to reason I would need to eat the same things you do."
"Bella, love, you have to stop worrying about it. Just go with what your needs are -no matter what they are. I think you've always been something other than human... you have very strong witch and shifter DNA. More so than Alex or Jane, who didn't have the added Quileute breeding you did, and they were two of the strongest vampires of our race. You were already something else before I threw my genes into the paranormal pool. You are entirely unique."
"I guess the upside is I have no expectations to live up to." I snorted derisively.
Edward tactfully agreed, "There is that. It still doesn't answer how I should take care of you."
"How about you show me how you take care of yourself first?"
Straightening, he nodded and placed his body into the wind to sift through her offerings. His hunger struck like an angry viper, his whole body turning rigid and ready, leaning east. I searched the horizon to see if I could spot his quarry, but found nothing. He could sense my struggle; he was incredibly hyper-aware, especially of me. I would imagine this was a natural state for him to be in when looking for prey.
Let's face it. He wasn't the only predator on this plain. Problem is, I only had eyes for him.
"You will get used to the musk signatures of various animals. Soon enough, you will be able to scent them from many miles away," he spoke urgently, as if holding a conversation took all of his concentration.
The rest of our communication was done silently with me following him a few paces behind. He flanked the origin of the scent, careful to remain downwind. Speed was not the primary function for stalking this type of prey. This take down was all about positioning. Once cornered, Edward would exert little effort to outrun and overtake the large animal, so the thrill for Edward was in the stalking. Watching him creep like a phantasm made solid through the underbrush stirred something very primal within me. I could not take my eyes from him and was, in effect, hunting the hunter.
Edward moved with deadly focus, carefully making his way towards the lake where the caribou was taking a drink. Like a switch went off, his humanity was shed from him, yet he was all the more sublime for his true form. I was not afraid. I was fascinated. Besides, how could I fear him? I was no less scary a monster myself! I reveled in the observation of him in his most natural state which went beyond what I glimpsed when he let go during our most passionate lovemaking, and well beyond anything I had ever witnessed or experienced. The exhilaration of the hunt coursing through my veins did little to dampen the low, luxurious heat building within me as I witnessed my lover's ultimate submission to his nature.
Could I submit to my own?
I knew even before we started this hunt I would have no interest in the spoils. Not blood spoils anyway. I trembled with the thought his strong neck yielding to my teeth, the taste of his venom on my lips like spun sugar...
I wanted him, but I knew the pounding, terrible importance of waiting until he finished this kill. Not simply for the reason of sating his terrible hunger, but for his base masculine need to show me his prowess. He liked me watching him, and was not planning to disappoint.
Once the caribou realized Edward was not a lost human wilderness explorer appearing from nowhere out of the brush behind him, he turned from the shoreline to bolt. Edward did not allow the beast a long, frightened chase. Immediately grabbing his large antlers, he forced the animal to the ground and onto its back with a violent hard twist of precisely calculated force as not to snap its neck. The caribou's eyes wheeled in his head, legs flailed in the air, trying to upright himself with every awkward effort the large beast could manage, but it was too late. Edward locked his jaws around the caribou's carotid and drank in great pulls. The frantic motion ceased and the animal went limp with death in my lover's fatal embrace. Eventually Edward's eyes fluttered close in the absolution of his necessary communion.
I felt the need for a prayer for the animal, and perhaps, for Edward, too, and I immediately thought of one that could be appropriate. Fishing wasn't the only torture Charlie and Billy put Jacob and me through. As children, Billy had taught us The Hunter's Prayer. I couldn't help but be thankful I could recall a few words of the poem to suit my purpose.
There were but two beneath the sky,
the thing I came to kill, and I
I, under covert, quietly,
Watched him sense eternity.
Edward pulled back from his prey and stood facing me, but I couldn't read the expression on his face. To my amazement he repeated phrases of the same poem back to me.
And then I felt, I could not see,
Far off a hunter watching me...
Edward was acknowledging my stalking of him. The building burn I had for him caught aflame from the dried out tinder of my self control. He closed in. Fast. Leaning in, lips brushing my ear, he whispered the final lines -
For there were two who had to die,
The thing I wished to kill and I...
His hands ran up my back, and lips tasting of pennies pressed light kisses on my jaw, lips, and eyes, while fingers running through my hair tugged with desperate need to bring me closer. Closer. My desire scorched me black with an intense greed for him. All of him. His body tensed slightly with the recognition of it, then yielded with pliant submission.
I froze with the fear of not knowing what was at the bottom of this precipice we stood upon, shaking, quaking with the need to push off the edge and mine the depths.
"Edward..."
"It's okay, Bella. We both know blood is not what you need. Let's drop the ruse. You need...this."
A sob escaped my throat as he bent his neck in offering to me, and I simply let go, latching razor sharp teeth to his newly healed flesh. Edward's grip tightened, drawing me closer until our bodies were flush, grounding each other. The contact kept me from drifting into the oblivion of a riotous riptide of need just beyond the edges of my hunger for him. I began to realize my hunger was split between the hunger of the body and that of the libido. Focusing on the latter may help pull me back from draining him dry.
Strengthened by this new found perspective, I pulled away from Edward. His eyes were closed, opening with a start when he realized I had stopped. Knitting his brows he began to ask if I was okay before I could silence him with a kiss that left us both teetering against Newton's law in its wake.
"Edward I need..."
"Whatever you need, take it. Take everything."
My right hand trailed around to his front, reaching desperately for him and finding him painfully hard for my touch. My entire body responded with heat to the feel of his strong, eager cock flexing in my hand. Our surroundings darkened, and with the retreating light, the absence of white space coloured the air with magic. A hush fell over everything like a blanket as our clothes found their way to the ground and our bodies found their way to each other. We were the only movement and only sound while the world held its breath in expectation.
Edward positioned himself beneath me, his eyes devouring my body as I took pleasure in the snug feel of him buried within me. Rolling my hips back and forth, his hands rested on them lightly and then began a roaming sensuous, rhythm in time with our deep grinding. We were obliterated with the driving, pounding urge to tease, please, and push each other to cosmic completion. Stars burst behind my eyes as we screamed each other's names in release. When I opened them, I noticed Edward peering beyond me to the darkened sky above. Puzzled, I settled into the crook of his arm to look up with him, shocked by the sight greeting me.
"Is that...normal?" I asked in the hopes of "yes", but knowing...
"No."
Silence did not hang heavy and awkward, which is something considering we were both naked and lying on the ground, staring up into a full solar eclipse.
End Notes
I use pieces of the poem below. I only found one reference to an author of this Native American deer hunting prayer, otherwise it is credited as Author Unknown. According to William Gibson, author of A View of the Mountains, he credits a Florence Freedman for writing this prayer.
The Hunters
There were but two beneath the sky -
The thing I came to kill, and I.
I, under covert, quietly
Watched him sense eternity
From quivering brush to pointed nose
My gun to shoulder level rose.
And then I felt (I could not see)
Far off a hunter watching me.
I slowly put me rifle by,
For there were two who had to die -
The thing I wished to kill, and I.
~Author unknown