Chapter 45

Bella lay naked completely relaxed, feeling the cool, damp earth beneath her as she cuddled up next to Garrett on the forest floor. The rustling of leaves and the chirping of birds in the trees added to the tranquil ambiance as they lay there. She had taken him to her favorite spot for practicing with her abilities.

She had been about to lead him to the rock she liked to sit on, when she was overcome with an intense urge to make love to Garrett. Her desire for him was insatiable, and she couldn't resist the temptation to feel him close to her. She led him to a secluded spot, away from the rock, not wanting to destroy it in the heat of their passion.

As she traced her fingers over his chest, she daydreamed about all the adventures they would soon share. In just two days, they would depart for Boston, and from there, they would embark on a journey through Europe. The thought of exploring the continent with Garrett sent shivers down her spine, and she couldn't wait to start their adventure together.

"Garrett," Bella murmured, nuzzling her face into his chest. "I'd like to do some training with my abilities, and I was thinking that maybe you could help me. I've always done it alone, but I love the thought of us doing it together as a team."

Garrett's eyes lit up with excitement. "Of course, I'd love to help you out. What do you need me to do?"

Bella hugged him tighter, a mischievous smile playing on her lips. "Before we begin, we should probably get dressed. I take my training seriously, and I don't need what's hanging between your legs distracting me."

Garrett chuckled, running his hand through her hair. "I understand what you mean. But I have to admit, you look like a goddess when you're naked like this. I'll behave, I promise." He leaned in to kiss her, their lips meeting in a heated embrace.

As they pulled away, Bella sat up, admiring the lush surroundings. The sun was filtering through the leaves, casting golden rays across their sparkling skin. "Let's get dressed and start training. I can't wait to see what we can do together," she said, grinning at him.

They stood up, and quickly got dressed, their eyes never leaving each other. The forest was alive with the sounds of birds and the rustle of leaves, but they were lost in their own world, caught up in the thrill of being together.

Bella led Garrett over to her rock, the place where she usually practiced her abilities. The dense foliage surrounding them provided a natural shield of privacy. The air was cool and crisp, with the scent of pine and damp earth wafting around them.

"Usually I train with my shield here," Bella said as she gestured towards the rock. "My more destructive powers I do further away if I'm going to be destroying an area."

Garrett chuckled. "Destructive powers you say. I'm scared to even ask."

Bella grinned at him. "Oh, you'll see those eventually. But right now, let's practice with my shield. I'm sure we can think of some exercises that incorporate you."

"Sounds good to me," Garrett said with a smile. "Let's get started."

Bella turned to face Garrett, a mischievous glint in her eye. "Let's start by getting my mind in the right head space," she said, grinning. "You don't mind being my guinea pig, do you?"

Garrett raised an eyebrow, a playful smirk tugging at his lips. "As long as you don't turn me into a real pig," he joked.

Bella laughed and shook her head. "Don't worry, I won't. But I can't promise I won't make you squeal a little."

Garrett chuckled nervously, wondering what he was getting himself into. But he trusted Bella, and he was excited to see what she could do with her powers. "Alright, let's do this," he said, taking a deep breath.

"Ok. Just go with whatever I ask." Bella placed a flat, invisible shield under Garrett and lifted him off the rock, his legs dangling in the air. At first, he cried out in surprise, exclaiming 'Holy Shit!' as Bella raised him higher, up to about 50 feet in the air.

"Ok, Garrett. Why don't you stand up and start walking around. Don't worry, I won't let you fall." Bella focused intently, her concentration unbroken, as she maintained the shield under Garrett. He slowly stood up and took a few tentative steps, trying to get used to walking on nothing. Bella was ready, quickly putting shields down wherever he stepped to ensure he didn't fall.

"This is some next level crazy, Bella," Garrett exclaimed as he walked around, amazed at the experience.

"Ok, let's try something new. Stop right there. I've never done this one with someone else. Pretend you're at the top of a staircase. Why don't you walk down it to reach me?" Bella suggested, curious to see if she could maintain the shield while lowering it at intervals to simulate a staircase for someone else. She could do it fine for herself, but she wondered if the different perspective would throw her off.

Garrett smiled, looking around as he stood high in the air with nothing around him. "Ok, this is your house Bella. I'm just walking in it."

Garrett slowly began to step down as if he were descending a staircase, and each time Bella adjusted the shield to create a new invisible step for him. It was challenging for Bella to maintain the shield while constantly lowering it, but she was determined to make it work. Finally, Garrett reached the ground and sat on the rock next to Bella.

"Wow. Not much else I can say to that one. You're amazing, Bella. What would you like to test next?" Garrett asked, impressed with Bella's powers.

"Why don't you give me some ideas you have? A fresh perspective can open up new lines of thinking that I might not have thought of," Bella suggested, eager to continue working with Garrett as a team.

Garrett thought for a minute. "Well, one of the true dangers to a vampire is fire. Have you ever practiced your shield with regard to that?"

Bella smiled at Garrett. "See, I knew working as a team would be beneficial. No, I've never worked with fire with regards to my shield. Let's do some tests, but let's be careful at first. Why don't you gather some logs and we can make a fire?"

Garrett sped around at vampire speed, collecting logs and arranging them into a makeshift campfire. Bella concentrated, as she used her "mind blaster" power to ignite the fire without causing a massive explosion. The logs caught fire quickly, and soon the flames were dancing merrily in the evening breeze.

"Damn, that's impressive," Garrett said, looking at the now roaring fire.

"Okay, to start with, I'm going to use a shield and start manipulating it through the fire in different directions," Bella said, creating a transparent shield and placing it over the flames. The fire licked at the shield, but couldn't break through. Bella manipulated the shield, making it swirl around the fire in different patterns. The flames twisted and danced in response, but the shield held strong.

Encouraged by her success, Bella decided to take it a step further. "Let me enclose the fire in a shield like a box." Bella concentrated, and the shield grew, encompassing the entire campfire in a transparent box. The flames flickered and waned, but couldn't find oxygen to sustain themselves, and slowly died out. Garrett watched in amazement, impressed by Bella's control over her powers.

Bella gazed at the now smoldering logs before her, her mind racing with possibilities. She turned to Garrett, a determined glint in her eyes.

"Ok, that is a good first step," she said. "It seems my shield is impervious to fire. Let's try this. Go find a good dried out piece of wood. I'm going to relight the fire."

Garrett nodded, understanding the gravity of the situation, and ran off into the surrounding woods to find a suitable piece of wood. Bella used her powers to create a spark, and within seconds, the fire was blazing again.

When Garrett returned, Bella took the piece of wood, which was a couple of feet long, and tightly wrapped her shield around it. She handed it back to Garrett

"Ok, Garrett, try putting the wood over the fire," Bella instructed.

Garrett hesitated for a moment, but then carefully placed the piece of wood over the flames. To their surprise, the wood repelled the fire, and the flames licked around it but didn't catch hold.

Bella beamed with satisfaction. "That worked very easily," she said, impressed with her own powers.

She turned to Garrett. "Ok, let's try something a little more daring. I'm going to place a shield tightly around myself. Garrett, please stand back."

Bella took a deep breath and concentrated on her shield, feeling its energy wrap tightly around her body. She closed her eyes and concentrated on putting as much power as she could into her shield. She could feel the invisible force field encasing her, like a protective cocoon. This was a new level of power she had never experienced before.

She then gestured to Garrett, "Before we test the fire, come here and try to punch my shoulder," Bella asked. Garrett obliged, throwing a punch towards Bella's shoulder. However, the shield immediately deflected it, leaving Bella unscathed. She grinned, "Well, that opens up a whole other line of training. If I have my shield around my body, I'm practically invulnerable to attack. We'll have to do more testing with me trying to fit a shield completely on you as well."

After a brief pause, Bella refocused on their original goal, "Okay, back to the fire. Don't try to get near me, Garrett. This might be dangerous, but I know this will work." With her shield still tightly around her, Bella slowly walked towards the fire.

With careful movements, Bella placed her hand above the flames, slowly lowering it towards the fire. She paused, concentrating, but to her amazement, she still couldn't feel any heat. Her hand was now hovering just inches from the flames.

She slowly moved her hand towards the fire, and the flames started licking at her shield, but there was still no pain. Bella then plunged her hand into the flames. After a few seconds, she pulled her hand back out of the flames, and to her relief, there was no harm done to her hand.

Bella examined her hand, fascinated by the fact that she had just put it into a fire unscathed. With a smile of wonder on her face, she moved her hand back towards the flames, this time with more confidence, allowing the flames to dance around her fingers.

She then slowly pulled her hand out, inspecting it again to see if there was any sign of damage. There wasn't even a single mark and she looked up at Garrett with a sense of pride and excitement. This was a significant step forward in her powers.

"I can't believe it," she said, still in disbelief. "I can withstand fire."

Garrett smiled at her, admiring her strength and newfound power. "I know I've said it before, but you're the most amazing vampire I have ever met," he said, pulling her into a warm embrace.

Bella hugged him back, feeling grateful for his support and encouragement. "What should we try next?" she asked, eager to continue testing her abilities with Garrett.

Garrett looked at her with a twinkle in his eye. "I think it's time to take this to the next level. How about we try something even more challenging?"

Bella and Garrett spent the day working hard on improving her shield capabilities. Bella was thrilled at the idea that she could now protect others, particularly Garrett, with her shield. They experimented with different techniques and approaches throughout the day, testing what worked and what didn't. By the end of the day, Bella felt confident that she had a much better understanding of what was required, and she was excited to test these new applications with her shield in sparring matches with Jasper and Emmett.

Later that night, Bella and Garrett returned to the Cullen's house to meet up with Jasper and Emmett for a sparring session. As they reached their preferred training spot in the forest, Bella took a deep breath and spoke up with confidence. "Hey guys, I've been learning to use my physical shield in different ways, and I believe there's more to explore in that area. I'd like to test some new techniques with my shield in combat situations. Are you game?"

Jasper and Emmett exchanged a look of excitement and grinned at Bella. "Absolutely, Bella! We'd love to see what you can do," Emmett replied, his eyes glinting with anticipation.

Garrett simply grinned, having just gotten a sneak peek at some of what Bella could do. He was looking forward to being her guinea pig again, as he had full confidence in her abilities. He especially enjoyed seeing his love in action, kicking ass.

"Okay, let's switch things up," Bella said, "I want to try something new. Garrett and Jasper, you guys spar while I fight Emmett. But here's the catch - I'm going to try and shield Garrett while I'm fighting. Let's see if I can multitask and not get distracted."

Bella concentrated, summoning her powers to create a physical shield around Garrett. She molded it to his body, ensuring that it was strong and impenetrable. When she was satisfied with the shield, she nodded to Jasper and Garrett to start their fight.

As they fought, Bella watched closely, keeping her attention on the shield around Garrett. It felt stable so she motioned for Emmett to come and he charged at her with full force. She blocked his punches and kicks, her movements fluid and precise.

Meanwhile, Jasper and Garrett continued to spar, their movements lightning-fast. Garrett felt invincible with Bella's shield protecting him. He was able to land powerful blows on Jasper, but whenever Jasper attacked back, he could not get through Bella's shield. As he watched Jasper struggle against him, Garrett couldn't help but sneak a peek at Bella and Emmett. They were going at it hard, but Bella's shield held strong. Even while fully engaged in combat, she managed to maintain her focus on shielding him. Garrett felt a surge of pride for his mate's impressive mental strength. He knew he couldn't have asked for a better partner in both life and battle.

Bella felt a sense of pride as she held the shield around Garrett while fighting off Emmett's attacks. She knew that her powers were getting stronger every time she used them.

Bella stopped the sparring again, "Ok, that seemed to work really well. Let's try something else. I have some combat moves that I've never used before. Let's see if they work or if they would just get me killed if I tried them against a real opponent. Who wants to be the challenger?"

"I'll go," said Emmett, always up for a challenge.

Bella and Emmett began sparring, exchanging blows and dodging each other's attacks. After a few minutes, Emmett saw an opening and grabbed Bella, throwing her in front of him. However, this was all part of Bella's plan.

As she flew through the air, Bella quickly summoned a shield in front of her and used it as a springboard to propel herself back towards Emmett. She landed a solid hit on him and continued to press her advantage, moving around him in a blur of motion that left Emmett disoriented.

Bella then summoned many shields as she ran in the air that she could step on, allowing her to move in any direction as she moved so fast gravity did not effect her. She moved sideways, upside down, and all around Emmett, landing blows from unexpected angles that he couldn't anticipate.

Emmett tried to keep up, but he was unable to defend himself against Bella's relentless attacks. Finally, after a series of lightning-fast strikes, Bella landed the finishing blow, knocking Emmett to the ground with her mouth at his neck.

"That was incredible," said Jasper, amazed at what he had just witnessed.

Bella grinned, feeling a rush of adrenaline. "I've been working moving like that for a while now," she said. "It's good to finally put them to the test while in combat."

Bella then explained the next test to the group. "This might sound crazy, but bear with me. I want to see if I can create fake opponents using my shields. Garrett, come sit with me and watch."

Jasper and Emmett exchanged confused glances, but they stood at the ready, prepared for whatever was to come.

Suddenly, Jasper was blindsided by an invisible attacker, while Emmett was knocked off his feet by an unseen force. They scrambled to their feet, still on guard, but they couldn't see any opponents.

As Bella concentrated, she created two crude human-shaped shields and set them to fight Jasper and Emmett. The vampires swung wildly at the shields, but Bella remained unfazed as she deftly maneuvered and outsmarted them with her fake opponents, landing blows that left the two vampires bewildered and disoriented.

As the fight continued, Bella gradually began to realize that using her shields in such a way was not only impractical but also a bit ridiculous. She eventually decided to call off the experiment, "Okay, while that was interesting, it's not really useful in a real fight. At least now I have a greater idea of what my shields are capable of and maybe a fake person shield like that could be used in a fun prank or something." Bella was very pleased with how her tests had gone.

"Wow, Bella," Emmett exclaimed, with excitement. "Some of those moves were straight out of the movies!"

Bella grinned, feeling a sense of accomplishment. "Thanks, Em. While I still prefer to fight without using my extra abilities at all, it's good to know what works well and what doesn't. Although," she paused, a hint of sadness creeping into her voice, "I do have to admit that I could probably just use my shields to kill everyone instantly. But that's not what training is for. It's about being prepared and hopefully never having to use these skills in a real-life situation."

Jasper said, "Keep doing what you love, Bella. Physical training can never hurt as it keeps ones mind and body sharp. Continue working on your extra abilities as that will only make them stronger. In the vampire world, gifts tend to become more powerful as you age, and those who practice and train with them tend to have the easiest time mastering better control. You're still a child in vampire years, yet you already have unbelievable control. It's scary to think about what you will be able to achieve in a century or two. We're all proud of what you've accomplished so far,"

"Thanks, guys," Bella said, "Let's do some more physical training for now and leave the powers alone for the rest of the day. How about a two-on-two spar? Garrett and I will go against you two."

As Bella and Garrett sparred with Jasper and Emmett, the physical activity was a welcome respite from the mental focus required to use her powers. Though she had been a bit amped up from using her shield extensively throughout the day, the thrill of combat helped her to channel her energy in a more productive way. She felt a sense of exhilaration as she blocked and countered her opponents' moves, and it was a reminder of why she loved to train in the first place. By the end of the sparring session, Bella felt more centered and focused than she had in days.