AN: This chapter is a little fluffy in preparation for the Cullens arrival. Tomorrow's chapter will be pretty damn dark.

S. Meyer owns twilight

CHAPTER 9

BPOV

J and I lay cocooned naked in bliss. I felt him harden against my thigh and lazily pushed myself on to him, moving slowly. This was a bonding experience, not the desperate pounding of flesh against flesh.

Our hands ran over each other's bodies. I kissed the scars I could reach. "I love that you're so accepting of my scars." He said breathlessly. I smiled, licking the mating mark I'd given him. "I prefer to think of you as being ribbed for my pleasure." I said. He laughed, the movement adding to the electricity moving through my body. "You'll never cease to surprise me, Bella."

We reveled in the feeling of skin against skin; hugging, kissing, touching, gently thrusting. He was mine. I felt him release inside me, his face relaxed, absorbing the euphoria of the moment. His twitching inside me brought my own waves of pleasure. He was amazing.

The alarm sounded shortly after. It was six PM; time for a daily meeting followed by a feast cooked by the Wives and Healers. The Masters had given the four of us Horsemen the day off.

J was still inside me. I groaned, I didn't want this moment to end. My disappointment spiked as he pulled out of me. He kissed me deeply and said "we're going on vacation as soon as we can. We'll spend weeks connected." I watched him walk to the bathroom, he left the door open as he turned on the taps and stood under the shower. "Coming Bella?" He asked, I raced to join him.

We'd dressed in our full Horsemen uniform and were headed to Caius's sitting room. The Masters and Healers were already there. Pete and Char joined us not long after, dressed to match us in their cloaks and masks. "Before we adjourn to dinner I wish to discuss what I have learned about the Cullen coven." Aro said. He turned to Rose, "I saw a fuzzy recollection of a conversation you had with Bella when she was human. You spoke of Edward's immaturity and how the values from his human life became twisted. Rosalie, you were spot on. He sees women as possessions. Trinkets to sit on a shelf, on display until they wither and die or challenge him."

I felt used. Aro's voice softened "I'm sorry, Isabella." I heard a voice behind me; "the relationship bond I saw between Edward and Bella was predator and pray." Marcus stood in the doorway, his voice was stronger, but sadness affected his tone. I turned to him "Marcus! How do you feel?" I asked. He smiled and replied. "I'm getting better, thank you Bella. Are you okay?" I nodded and said "I can't help but feel stupid." J came up behind me and lay a hand on my shoulder "he isolated you from everything, manipulated every situation to suit his needs." He said.

"He's sick" Rose spat out. Her eyes were black. Aro nodded his head "You may be more correct in that assessment than you think, Rosalie. The Denalis are travelling with the Cullens. I'll ask Irina to assess him when she arrives."
"What about Alice?"
"She's coming with them. We need to assess her as well. She is dangerous with her power, but I saw snippets of something else, I'll need to read Carlisle to be certain."

Emmett was sitting next to Rose. I couldn't imagine what he was thinking about all of this. I caught Rose's eye and nodded my head to Em, he needed her. She sent me a sad smile and hugged her mate. Emmett raised his head and spoke. I could hear the agony in his words. "I hate that they've been given these powers only to abuse them. I used to respect them. Carlisle turned me, he taught me to value human life. Was it all a fucking lie?" Emmett paused and breathed deeply to compose himself. "They were my family and through them I hurt you, Bella, by leaving. You are my niece. My little sister. I love you so much and I abandoned you because of them." His voice was bitter.

I walked over to him and took his hand. "Em, you did what you could at the time. You were manipulated as much as I was. Believe it or not, you and Rose were protecting me by staying with them. Your presence curbed them from doing worse. You did the right thing by staying with Rose, you were where you were needed most." I said. Em nodded.

Aro continued his briefing. "There are many things I have seen that I need to question Carlisle about. As a so called father and coven leader there were things I saw in your minds that raise questions I need answered." He turned to J "I saw his methods pertaining to your episodes. I'm truly sorry you experienced that." He said.

I remembered a vague phone conversation with Rose, I strained my memory but it was no good. "Rose told me what happened while I was human, but I don't remember the conversation. Could someone remind me?" I asked. J nodded and asked Rose. "Rose, would you mind telling her? I don't remember much of it."
"I know Jazz, you were blacked out at the time. I'd be surprised if you remembered anything."

She looked at me "J had an episode, it happened time to time. He was frozen, caught up in a memory." She turned to J and continued. "We panicked and took you home, Carlisle saw you and tried to snap you out of it by introducing stimuli that was supposed to shock you back to reality. He brought in a bag of donated human blood and waved it under your nose, you didn't move. When Edward told him you'd been used by Maria and taken against your will Carlisle tried to get Alice to perform sexual acts on you, she refused because she saw you'd rip her head off."

Venom welled in Rose's eyes, she cleared her throat and continued "Edward and Alice were angry at Carlisle for that. They helped run interference when you had other episodes later on. They'd distract Carlisle and Esme while Em and I sat with you." J hugged her and whispered in to her "I'm sorry you had to do that. It must have been triggering for you." She nodded "I got over it, I'm sorry we didn't do more to stop him." He stroked her hair and whispered "I'm safe, you're safe. We'll get through this." She smiled and looked to us. "J and I were both traumatized. When we'd start to lose it Em would be there, holding us and saying the same mantra." She explained.

The mood was somber. Aro sighed and resumed his report. "Rose, his treatment of you is something I need to question him on. He wanted Edward to be your mate when you were newly turned after a brutal attack. I can't get my head around that. I'm thankful you have Emmett. The fact that you saved him from that bear, and got him help while he slowly died in your arms, really shows your strength." Marcus agreed and said; "your mating bond is incredibly strong. One of the strongest I've ever seen."

Marcus squinted his eyes and looked between the two of them, I'd seen that look when he was looking at my bonds. "Huh. Your bond has changed, there's a glow." He said to Em. Aro's eyes widened "show me Marcus" Marcus held out his hand and Aro took it. "Fascinating. Peter, try and tap into your gift-"
"It doesn't work that way, Aro."
"I know that, but something has changed." Aro turned to dad "would you try looking at them as well? See if you can find any differences." Pete and dad turned to Em and Rose and squinted.

Pete's eyes widened and he started laughing. He held out his hand for Aro to take, he seemed unable to speak through his laughter. Aro smirked "at last! Some good news" he let out a chuckle. "Emmett, it seems you had a latent gift that just decided to pop up." Em's mouth fell open. Pete was struggling to maintain composure "you...can...take...gifts...away" he said, failing to control his laughter.

Aro smiled and explained. "Peter had an idea, if you could take Edward and Alice's powers away they could be rehabilitated to a certain degree."
"What? Why now? How?" Emmett was struggling. Pete had just started to recover "it appears the fates saw the need for you to have this gift so they activated your blood line power. It could also be your proximity to so many family members. Bella, Charlie and I have active blood powers which become stronger the closer we are to each other. Yours may have reacted to the call of ours, although the timing is suspiciously perfect."

Aro smiled and said; "I agree Peter. It is very fortunate timing. I have been racking my mind on what possible punishments I could arrange and how to deal with their powers so they wouldn't be able to retaliate. This is a perfect solution."
"So this would be a protective power rather than healing?" Emmett asked, Pete answered him. "Technically it's both. Some gifts in the wrong hands corrupt the holder, some cause pain to the holder and some are wielded by those with darkness already inside them."

Em turned to the masters, his eyes pleading as he spoke. "Aro, please. I want to watch their trial from the throne room. After what they've done to my true family I need to see them answer for their crimes." Aro sighed "it would be fair to let you, Rose and Charlie watch the trial if you wish. The problem is your disguise. If they recognize you they could use you as a distraction."

Rose's eyes widened and she pleaded with him. "We'll drink the human blood mix that the Horsemen drink, it'll change our eye color and our scent. Please Aro, I want to see this in the throne room. I want to see their eyes when they're confronted. We can't do that from the Laird's lug."
"As long as you and Emmett are sure I have no problem. I'll arrange for masks to be made for the three of you. Any preference to white or green?" Aro asked, amused. "Green?" Rose suggested, the others nodded. "I'll ensure it's done. Charlie, you'll have to wear your venom robe, we'll make your mask silver to match it. Would you be opposed to wearing red contacts?"
"No problem, Aro. I wouldn't miss this for the world."

There was the sound of a bell. "That would be my dear Picia, it appears dinner is served." Aro smiled. The atmosphere in the room had lightened considerably. "This will be a dinner of those in the know, we set up a dining room in the foyer of our quarters. Kate, Garrett, Jane, Alec, Mark, Evan, Felix and Demitri will be joining us." He looked over to us "you may take your masks off, but leave your hoods up just in case." We took off our masks, relieved we wouldn't have to feed through a straw.

The foyer held a large rectangular table with nine table settings on each side. Kate and Garrett were already seated facing us, they got up and greeted us. They congratulated us when we told them J and I were engaged, we didn't mention to anyone the circumstances of my proposal, it was a secret kept by Dora, Char and us. Dora winked at us and giggled when we were congratulated.

We took our seats, I sat with my fellow Horsemen. J was next to me, Pete and Char on his other side. Marcus and dad sat at the end of the table with Evan, Mark and Alec. They were talking quietly. Rose was sitting on the other side of me with Em next to her. I leaned over and whispered to her. "Thanks for being there for J all those years. I'm really glad he has you two."
"Hey no mushy stuff" she smiled "we're family, you included. We take care of our own. Thanks to you and Charlie; Em and I have found a purpose beyond endless years repeating high school."
"Yeah, how the hell did you manage it?" I asked. The more invested I became in the vampire world the less I cared about the education I'd left.

"I guess school was a place where the charade we lived was better. We could act like ourselves and the drama was normal teenage stuff. It felt like a reprieve in some ways. Home was so oppressive; Edward and Alice were there and there wasn't a buffer from them like there was at school. Esme seemed so desperate to keep us happy that we often pretended things were, just for her. Carlisle was too focused on his image as a benevolent doctor, he didn't look hard enough at what was really happening." She said.

"Are you happy here?" I asked. She nodded "we feel like we're part of a great future, essential, respected. It's unfamiliar to be valued for intelligence and the drive to help."
"I'm glad you're here and working with dad. You, Em and dad are going to change the world." I paused before adding; "Thanks staying with dad while we were out fighting. I know you and Em would have liked to get into the mix and crack a few skulls."
"Our place is by Charlie and Aro. The fact we're involved, part of something huge, means everything."

Our attention was diverted as Sulpicia and Athenadora entered the room with trays of bowls. We stood and bowed in respect. "Picia, darling" Aro smiled at his mate and took a couple of bowls, handing them out. Dora handed a bowl to Charlie "this is a risotto with tomato, onion and wild mushrooms."
"Thanks Dora, Picia. You went to a lot of effort." He smiled at them. Sulpicia sat next to Aro and Dora went to Caius. She took her seat "our first course is pork soup. Dig in" she smiled.

There was a slight spiciness, it had a rich, slightly sour taste. Aro was delighted, "Picia, Dora, you made this?"
"We spent an afternoon with Rose and Emmett, we watched as they made the different types of blood for different reasons and saw how they used herbs. We decided to try our hand at cooking for vampires." Sulpicia said proudly. Athenadora explained, "we were glad to find that we could create different tastes. I doubt there will be any enhanced effect like with the healers' remedies, but it's been fun playing with seasonings." Aro looked proudly at his mate.

There was only the sound of spoons hitting the bottoms of the bowls. When Charlie finished his risotto he smiled at the wives "thank you, that was amazing. I haven't had risotto before." They smiled and stood up. Caius collected the bowls and waved off any assistance. "We'll bring out the second course soon" Dora said as she and Picia returned to the kitchen.

The conversation struck up again. I turned to Kate who sat opposite me. "How have you been?" I asked. She grinned widely at Garrett "really good. We've been travelling around Italy since we arrived. It's been ages since I was anywhere but Denali."
"I wondered why I hadn't seen you" Rose said.

"What's been happening since we arrived?" Garrett asked. "A lot I'm afraid." I groaned. Jane saw my look of irritation and took over explaining, I smiled gratefully at her. I didn't want to talk about Edward anymore.

J squeezed my hand under the table. I smiled at him "the wives are excellent cooks, aren't they?" I said. He smiled and nodded "it tastes like food. I remember having a similar soup while human. We lived near the border of Mexico, there were a few dishes that were part of the cuisine at the time. I don't remember much, but I remember a soup that was sour and spicy, we ate it with cornbread."
"You should tell Dora and Picia, I'm sure they'd love to hear how it brought a memory from your human life, even if it's a little vague."
"I'll tell them. It's weird, since being around you and Charlie I feel more human than I ever have. I love that Em and Pete are your blood relatives. In a way it cements that we're all one family, although it's kind of funny that they're now both my Uncles in law." I kissed his shoulder.

We all turned to face the kitchen when the door opened and the wives came out. They had plates balanced on trays. "We're particularly proud of this creation." Picia smiled. Dora put plates in front of J and I. Our eyes widened; the plate held a few small, jelly blood creations in different designs. "Don't let the consistency scare you away, we both tasted it as it set. It's boars blood Demitri hunted for us." I smiled at them and said "it's been a while since I had something so food like, thank you."

There was a heavier flavor to the blood, savory. The use of gelatin made sense, it was just another animal product. I tried another jelly and moaned. It was lightly flavored and balanced well with the taste of the first one. There was a taste of peppers, the flavor of the boar and spices. It was amazing. I hadn't tasted anything like it. The last couple of jellies tasted different again, spicy and savory and salty. Charlie had traditional lasagna with vegetables, part of me wished he could taste these dishes.

The last course was on its way out. I was starting to feel a little full. I smiled as I saw the tray of small glass bowls holding a deep burgundy foam. "Bear blood mousse for the vampires and chocolate mousse for Charlie" Dora announced. I took a bite and gaped at Dora and Picia in shock. It was sweet and thick. It was amazing.

Emmett smirked "licorice root?"
"Oh hush, Em, don't give away all our secrets" Dora scolded playfully. Picia whispered conspiratorially "just a little licorice and a pinch of cinnamon." Wow. I practically licked my bowl. Emmett took the plates to the kitchen with Jane and Alec. Rose announced there was one more thing to come. "In my human days it was customary to have a glass of sherry to end the meal, Emmett and I have prepared one of Charlie's amazing remedies. Enriched bear's blood." Jane and Alec returned to their seats and Emmett came in carrying a tray of small, ornate glasses. There was a cup of coffee for Charlie.

When we had finished our meal Pete leaned towards J. "We need you to use your power for a minute." J nodded. Pete waved Aro over to us. "Peter advised us there was a way you could help Marcus. He's well on the way to being healed thanks to Charlie. We would appreciate your assistance." Aro explained.
"What do you need me to do?" J asked. "As you know Marcus feels bonds, we would like you to show him the emotion behind those bonds."
"Gladly" J smiled.

Aro stood up "Marcus, we have devised a little surprise for you." Aro smiled and turned to the rest of us "if you could concentrate on how you feel about Marcus we would like to have Jasper show him." There were a series of nods as everyone closed their eyes, I lowered my shield and thought of how he was silent, strong and compassionate. I was grateful he took in those boys and offered to teach them. I heard Marcus gasp and looked at him. "Thank you." He breathed. The other two Masters and the Wives smiled gratefully at us.

We retired for the evening. It was ten o'clock, the Cullens and Denalis wouldn't arrive until 4am. J and I wrapped ourselves in each other, the morning would come all too quickly.