It was silent for two heartbeats, and then Jasper took a step into the empty space between the vampires and the wolves. Jasper threw a wary glance toward Edward, who nodded, and then Jasper turned his back to the werewolves. He sighed, clearly uncomfortable. "Carlisle's right," Jasper spoke only to us, he seemed to be trying to ignore the audience behind him. "They'll fight like children. The two most important things you'll need to remember are, first, don't let them get their arms around you and, second, don't go for the obvious kill. That's all they'll be prepared for. As long as you come as them from the side and keep moving, they'll be too confused to respond effectively. Emmett?" Emmett stepped out of the line with a huge smile. Jasper backed toward the north end of the opening between allied enemies. He waved Emmett forward. "Okay, Emmett first. He's the best example of a newborn attack."
Emmett's eyes narrowed. "I'll try not to break anything," he muttered.
Jasper grinned. "What I meant is that Emmett relies on his strength. He's very straightforward about the attack. The newborns won't be trying anything subtle, either. Just go for the easy kill, Emmett." Jasper backed up a few more paces, his body tensing. "Okay, Emmett – try to catch me." Emmett charged him like a bear, grinning while he snarled. Emmett was impossibly quick, but not like Jasper. It looked like Jasper had no more substance than a ghost – any time it seemed Emmett's big hands had him for sure, Emmett's fingers clenched around nothing but the air. Then Emmett froze. Jasper had him from behind, his teeth an inch from his throat. Emmett cussed. There was a muttered rumble of appreciation from the watching wolves."Edward, you're next." Emmett left the temporary fighting area with a skulking expression. Edward took Emmett's place and they both face each other in a crouch-like form. Edward moved first, closing in around Jasper and this fight was more even than either of the others. Jasper had the century of experience to guide him, and he tried to go on instinct alone as much as he could, but his thoughts always gave him away a fraction of a second before he acted. Edward was slightly faster, but the moves Jasper used were unfamiliar to him. They came at each other again and again, neither one of them to gain the advantage, instinctive snarls erupting constantly. They went out without giving on until Carlisle cleared his throat. Jasper laughed, and took a step back. Edward straightened up and grinned at him. "Back to work," Jasper consented. "We'll call it a draw." Everyone took turns, Carlisle, then Rosalie, Esme and Emmett again. Every once in a while, Jasper would give instruction and making notes. The day was almost done, when the sparring had ceased. Jasper spoke up, "We'll be doing this tomorrow night. Please feel welcome to observe again."
"Yes," Edward answered. "We'll be here." Edward turned to his family. "The pack thinks it would be helpful to be familiar with each of our scents – so they don't make mistakes later. If we could hold very still, it will make it easier for them."
"Certainly," Carlisle said. "Whatever you need." There was a gloomy, throaty grumble from the wolf pack as they all rose to their feet. The alpha wolf led the rest of the wolves. Every one of the Cullens stiffened when a wolf came to memorize their scent. Once that was done, the wolves were backing away, not taking their eyes off the Cullens as they departed. Once the air was clear, the Cullens were relieved that the plan worked, now was the time to work on other details.
"Carlisle?" He looked over to Ella, "How are we going to draw Victoria and the newborns away from the city? Wouldn't we need some kind of bait? We haven't discussed that yet. Plus I think that the area that we just practiced would be a perfect place to bring the fight. She must have some sort of plan by now that would allow Alice to see her decisions." Everyone froze and then looked at her. They realized that she was right. They needed a way to bring Victoria and the army to a place away from the city.
"Oh! That's perfect, Ella!" Alice exclaimed, seeing the decision being made.
"What is it?" Jasper asked, looking back and forth between Alice and Ella. Edward read Alice's mind and grinned.
"Carlisle, since you're a doctor, would it be possible that you can find a way to bring some blood or know someone whose willing to be bait?" Edward asked. Carlisle's eyes lit up but tentatively smiled.
"Sweetheart, what's the matter?" Esme asked as she held onto his arm.
"I'm not too sure if this person is willing to be bait. I'm sure that he's willing to give blood but I don't want to bring him here to the fight," Carlisle expressed.
"Understandable," she said.
"He most likely will if Ella asked," Edward responding as he read his mind.
"Ask who?" Ella asked.
"Dean Winchester," Carlisle answered.
"Hmm, I need to give him a call," Ella replied and then looked at Carlisle. "He owes us for saving his life, especially since you took care of his injuries under the table." Carlisle agreed to it. They all ran home to allow Ella to call Dean and ask him for help. She grabbed her cell phone and dialed Dean's number. It was out of service and decided to call his brother's cell. Her brows creased together when she heard the same thing on his cell. She decided to give Bobby a call and see if he knew where the brothers were.
His phone rang three times before he picked it up, "What can I do for you, Miss Cullen?"
Ella smiled at his greeting, "Hi, Bobby, I was wondering if you knew how to get in touch with the Winchester boys. I've tried calling them on their cell but it's disconnected."
"They changed their phones, that's why it's disconnected. Hold on, let me find their numbers," he said as he looked for his phone book. "You ready?"
"Yeah, hit me up," she said as she memorized the numbers he had given her. She repeated the numbers to make sure that she got them right. "Thanks a lot for your help, Bobby."
"It ain't no problem. Is there a problem going on?" he asked. He knew that she would only call him up if there was a serious problem and this was the first time he's heard of it.
"There's a vampire creating an army here in Washington State and we need some blood and bait to draw the army out to a secluded area to contain it," she said, briefing it.
"You were hoping that Dean would help, right?" Bobby asked, getting the gist of it.
"Yep," she answered.
"I'm sure that he will help. If he doesn't behave, then send him my way, and I'll slap him upside the head," Bobby replied.
Ella laughed, "I'm sure that I can handle Dean, Bobby. He's nothing I can't handle. Thanks for helping out Bobby. Give me a call if you ever need any help, local or international, okay?"
"You got it, Ella," he said and they both hung up. She dialed Dean's number and waited for him to answer it.
A couple of rings later, a voice called out, "How'd you get this number, Ella?"
"Bobby," she answered simply.
He sighed. He should have known that Bobby would have given her his number. "What is it, Ella?"
"I need your help," she started off and went to a more private area of the house to explain the situation. The rest of the Cullens started to clean up and call around for more help. Moments later, Ella returned in the living room area with a smile on her face. She was humming as she flitted and danced across the room.
"Love, what's going on?" Edward asked.
"Oh, nothing much," she answered, smiling. Alice creased her brow as she tried to look into the future. Out of nowhere she froze and Edward read her mind and broke out a mega-watt smile and couldn't help but laugh.
"What's so funny?" Emmett asked.
"Did you really make him believe that he was fighting a bunch of hormonal vampire wannabes?"
"It was the only way to convince him to come and he is or else Alice wouldn't have seen that vision. All we have to do is draw some of Dean's blood and plant them somewhere and tie Dean up," she explained. Emmett barked a loud laugh.
"He's not going to be happy about it," Esme said.
"True, but had I told him the truth, we would have been stuck and would have been trying to find another solution, so I told him an exaggerated truth," she answered.
"That's still not right," Esme commented.
"Aw, come on, Esme. A little fib won't hurt," Emmett said.
"Even though, Ella resorted to telling a small lie, the important thing is that he's coming. And Ella is right, we do need to make sure that Dean is secured somewhere," Carlisle explained.
"Oh, and his brother, Sam is coming too," Ella added.
"I wonder how we can incorporate his help," Jasper said.
"Well, maybe we could use some of his blood too, if that helps," Alice responded.
"I spoke to him and told him the truth. He's willing to help out in any way he can," Ella replied.
"How long will it take for them to arrive?" Carlisle asked.
"Luckily for us they're here in Washington State for their own hunting case. Based on where they told me, they should be here some time around lunch tomorrow," Ella answered.
"They'll probably be hungry. I should go to the store to buy some food for them," Esme said.
"Could I go with you? I want to buy some things for Harry," Ella asked.
"Of course," she answered. Everyone else went separate ways to take care of the house for Dean and Sam as well as training the next night. After going to the store and buying all the necessary items. Esme and Ella came back and put things in the kitchen. When she was done helping, she decided to go to her bedroom that she shared with Edward and write two letters. One she wrote to Harry and one to McGonagall. During this tense situation, she regretted not being able to be there to give Harry his Christmas gift. The first one she wrote to McGonagall, in hopes that she'd be willing to get the money from her vault in Gringotts Bank to buy Harry the Firebolt broom. She added a note with her signature in hopes that it'll suffice for the tellers. Then she wrote a long letter to Harry telling him what's been going on and to write back. She hoped that he was doing well. She truly felt that something bad was going to happen while she was gone. She feared that Voldemort may attack him during her absence. She is well aware that Hogwarts will protect him but it didn't satiate her worry. After writing her letters, she went to where her owl was and attached the letters to the owl's leg. "Send the letters to Hogwarts as fast as you can but don't stress yourself," she told the owl as she gave it some food and water as well as a couple of Sickles. The owl flew out the window in the mission of going to Hogwarts.
McGonagall was in her classroom organizing paperwork for the classes after the winter break was over when an owl flew in and hooted. She looked up and saw the letters attached to its leg. She unhooked the letters and gave it a couple of Knuts, "There's food and water in the owlery," with that, it flew to the owlery. She saw that one was addressed to Harry Potter and put that aside. She opened the one that was addressed to her and opened it. She read through the letter and smiled. She immediately got up, grabbing Harry's letter and headed to the Gryffindor's Common Room, in hopes to find Harry there. When she entered and saw him there, "Potter?"
He looked up at her, "Professor?"
"I have a letter for you from Miss Cullen," she replied as she gave him the letter.
"Thank you," he replied.
She left the room and went to Dumbledore's office," Albus?"
"What is it, Minerva?" he asked as he stood up from his desk.
"I've just received a letter from Ella and I need to go to Diagon Alley. She has given me permission to access her vault to buy Harry's Christmas gift this year since she isn't here to give it to him," she told him.
"Of course, Minerva. Without a shadow of a doubt that she wishes to be here," he said.
"Will you be alright for an hour or two?" she asked.
"Of course," he replied. She immediately left to Diagon Alley to take care of this one errand. When she reached Gringotts Bank, it wasn't a problem getting the money from the Cullen Vault. McGonagall put aside the note that Ella included in her letter and immediately gotten enough money to buy Harry's Christmas gifts. Once that was set, she immediately went to Quality Quidditch Supplies to buy the Firebolt. The owner of the shop was startled that McGonagall would want to buy one.
"Is this for you, Professor McGonagall?" he asked.
"Oh, no. Miss Cullen wanted me to buy it as a Christmas gift for Harry Potter," she responded happily. The owner was socked and thrilled but a bit confused. "His Nimbus 2000 was destroyed by the Whomping Willow just recently and he's been borrowing Gryffindor's Cleensweep. He didn't play his best because of how old that one was and he couldn't come here to buy a new one during school hours. Miss Cullen knew of what had happened and had forgotten to buy one for him prior to her leaving to resolve a pressing issue with the vampire world. So she sent me a letter asking me to do this favor to her," McGonagall explained. The owner understood and had it specifically wrapped for Harry. When that was finished and McGonagall paying for the Firebolt, she immediately left the shop and headed back to Hogwarts. She knew that Harry would be thrilled to have a broom of his own that was reliable. Plus it'll help Gryffindor win the House Cup from the Quidditch games. There was an extra bounce in her steps. It wasn't long before she headed towards the Great Hall where the students were gathered for the evening feast. She walked in through the double doors and looked for Harry. She spotted him sitting with Hermione and Ron, chattering. "Potter."
"Good evening, Professor," he said. "What's that you're holding?"
"It's your Christmas gift from Miss Cullen," she explained as she handed the wrapped gift to him. He accepted it and placed it neatly in the space next to them on the table. He opened it and was somewhat puzzled.
Hermione was confused as well, "It's a broom."
"It's not just any broom," Ron exclaimed. "It's the Firebolt!"
Harry was shocked when he heard what Ron said and looked over at McGonagall, "I don't understand."
"I know you don't, Harry, but Miss Cullen felt bad that she wasn't here herself to give you the present herself and she knows that your Nimbus 2000 is broken. She thought that this would be a suitable gift for you," she said and leaned down to his ear, "I have to agree with her. We'll finally be able to win the House Cup yet again from the Quidditch games." She straightened up and looked down at Harry's smiling face. With that, she left to her office. She was beyond thrilled that Harry received the top line and deserved nothing but the best since his family was gone. Once she got to her office, she decided to write a letter to Ella and inform her of what had happened. She left to the owlery and went to her bird, gave him a few Knuts and said, "Send this to Ella Cullen, please." The owl left.
Hours later, Ella and her family were sitting with Dean and Sam discussing strategy about the upcoming battle when they heard hooting in the kitchen, Ella stood up and went to the kitchen. She smiled as she saw McGonagall's owl. She grabbed the letter from the owl, gave it a few Sickles, got water and treats for the owl, who was hooting happily for water and food. She opened the letter and smiled as she read what Minerva wrote. "What is it, love?" Edward asked.
"Minerva wrote back saying that she gave Harry the Firebolt broom. He was thrilled to have a broom of his own now," she replied.
"That's good to hear," he said.
She turned to the owl and said, "You may leave whenever you feel ready to go." The owl hooted its response and continued to eat and drink water. They headed back to the living area.
"What happened?" Carlisle asked.
"Oh, Minerva sent an owl saying how happy Harry was when he received his gift from us," Ella answered.
"That's good. He deserves to be spoiled," Esme said.
"Yes, he does," Ella agreed.
"Let's get back to the battle at hand now," Jasper suggested.
"We do need to have both of you to 'accidentally' spill your blood towards the intended place of battle," Ella explained. "We don't know which direction they'll be coming in. Alice is been watching Victoria's decision and most likely be last minute. Jasper, where's the best places to put the blood?"
"One path is north from the town, more particularly from Chief Swan's house," he said and then brought out a map, and pointed another path, "here's the other direct path to the clearing."
"Is that the only two paths that they'll be coming from?" Dean asked.
"No, but it's the best we've got," Jasper said. "But Victoria might have someone who is from Forks and might help her out since she isn't from around here."
"When's the best time to do it?" Sam asked.
"Tomorrow evening. But we need a place for both of you to hide," Jasper commented.
"Jasper, they both have skills in helping us fight the vampires. We could always use more allies to help fight the battle," Ella replied. "They've both fought vampires before."
"She's right," Dean said. "We can help out whenever we can." They've continued to sit and discuss the best options for both Sam and Dean and how they can help the battle. Jasper listened to what their strengths were and how to utilize it against the newborns.
"All right, I think we're set for the night," Jasper said, feeling better about working out a workable solution for everyone involved. We will be meeting the wolves tonight. Both of you are needed to be there, so that we can inform them of the new strategy." Everyone nodded. They figured that they should leave now to get a head start on where they were meeting the wolves.