Finally a new chapter ! Hope you enjoy it !
As Lily entered the Cullens' house, yes she still called it that in her mind, a strange smell hit her.
She effortlessly recognized Emmett and Rosalie, Edward and Esme, but there was one more. She heard the faint heartbeat and the tinny clink of each breath that filled the cramped up lungs. She knew it was Bella, Carlisle had told her after all, but she was startled by how strange she suddenly smelled.
At first she had been worried that after her "slips" as she liked to call them, knowing full well they weren't, she might be more susceptible to Bella's blood. But apparently her worries were useless.
Bella smelled... sick. Like something was wrong with her. Which was probably an understatement, given her condition.
When she came into the room, her breath got caught.
Bella looked terrible.
She was a skeleton of skin and bone, her eyes sunken and surrounded by dark circles. The bulge on her stomach looked unnatural and almost comical considering the rest of her body. If Lily was honest, she looked more dead than alive, and for the first time around a human, she didn't feel a burning fire for thirst in her throat. There probably wouldn't even be enough blood in Bellas body to get Lily full anyways.
"Please."
A tortured voice sounded from the corner.
Sorry.
Lily thought her thoughts as loudly as she could.
The situation was even worse than she had imagined and for the first time she felt sorry for Edward. She could not and would not even imagine having to see Carlisle in this condition. Now it was no wonder why he could hardly bear to think that this could have been her fate as well.
"Hi."
Bella's voice was no more than a whisper.
Lily pulled herself together and nodded at her.
"Congratulations."
No matter how hard she tried, it didn't even sound sincere to her own ears.
Bella was being watched over by Rosalie, Lily couldn't call it any other way. She had positioned herself a little in front of her, definitely ready to defend her if should Lily be overcome by her desires. Lily could only laugh at that, Bella didn't even smell appetizing anymore.
"Did you have a nice trip?"
Bella's question was devoid of judgment, merely trying to distract from the elephant in the room.
Creating a little normalcy in this misery.
Lily nodded quickly and let her gaze wander. Alice and Jasper were not there, perhaps they were hunting or wanted to spare themselves the sight. With Lily's new abilities it was almost worse to bear, she saw every wrinkle, every pore of unhealthy and sallow skin. The dull and broken hair, the bones that stood out clearly under the skin. It was horrible.
A murmur sounded and Lily immediately thought of something else. Edward knew exactly what Bella looked like, he didn't need to see it in her mind too.
"Yes, it was... enlightening."
"Where have you been?"
Bella didn't let up and straightened up a bit, Rosalie immediately rushed over to her and gently helped her. It was almost comical to watch. Rosalie in particular had never made a secret of her dislike for the human, and now she was watching over her with an almost motherly care. Of course, everyone knew that this care was not for Bella but rather for the thing for which Bella was the incubator.
Behind her Carlisle and Esme appeared, Lily could not turn around. It was one thing to face disaster, but Carlisle's look in his face was probably more downcast than Edward's. Esme was probably a close second, too.
She did Bella the favor and told of her trip, of the wild west, of Hector and the territories. The change was welcome and Emmett made an inappropriate comment or two. Lily missed Jasper, he would be surely interested in what his old home was like now. But when she thought about it, probably little had changed in the last hundred years.
Suddenly the scent changed and the mood shifted.
A motorcycle.
A wolf.
Jacob.
Carlisle and Esme disappeared, Rosalie immediately standing protectively in front of Bella, as if Jacob could teleport into the room and had some reason to attack Bella.
Lily took the opportunity and followed the two vampires, on the one hand she was curious what was going on with the wolves and on the other hand, she was not good at pretending that there was not a living dead person with a demon in her belly on the couch.
"Where is she?"
Jacob's voice was demanding and you could hear the anger in it. Lily immediately felt wide awake and stood next to Carlilse, even if Jacob wouldn't be so stupid as to attack someone in the Cullens' house, the wolves' rage was still a little too unpredictable for her.
"Hello Jacob, come in."
Jacob stormed past Carlisle and into the living room. Lily would have warned him yet but his lack of manners toward one of the most polite men she knew gave her pause. He would figure it out for himself, that much was certain.
Carlisle, of course, followed him unimpressed. It would take a lot for him to lose his patience.
Lily glanced at Esme.
Her eyes were empty, lacking the warmth and life in them. Esme was the heart of the family, she was always positive and radiated a calmness that always impressed Lily. But now there was nothing.
She was plagued by worries and Lily could tell by looking at her that she wasn't thinking about a happy ending this time.
Jacob was angry and shocked. In fact, he kicked his bike away and transformed moments later. So much for the wolves' anger.
Lily knew they had to act fast.
Jacob, willingly or not, would tell his pack.
She knew Sam.
Never in a million years would he risk the safety of his family and friends.
Sam took his new role very seriously and he would do anything to live up to it.
Even kill a human if necessary.
Jacob's thoughts would be enough to worry Sam. The legends of the tribe probably did the rest. Sam knew even if the thing died after itwas born, all it took was for Aro to get wind of it and all his people were in danger.
Fighting an untrained army of newborns was one thing, but they couldn't fight off an army full of experienced fighters. He couldn't risk that. Bella or the thing had to die, as soon as possible, Lily was sure of that.
The only question was, when would they attack?
Carlisle performed a few more tests on Bella, and Lily admired his sensitivity. Bella was so fragile, and yet Carlisle touched her with such care that her skin barely show any marks at all. His face was serious and rigid, of course it was still beautiful but she didn't like the expression on it. Suddenly she could see the 400 years on it.
Lily wondered if she should share her thoughts with him, or if it was just an extra burden on his shoulders. Of course, he blamed himself for the whole thing. He should have known, he should have warned Edward, and if he had failed to do so, he would have to help her now.
He couldn't do any of that.
Before she could open her mouth, she smelled the stench of the wolves again. Immediately she was alarmed, would Sam attack so recklessly?
Jacob had beaten her to it and warned the family.
To her surprise, there was no doubt that the Cullens would defend Bella.
Which, of course, put them in the next predicament.
Carlisle would defend Bella with his life and so Lily had no choice but to fight as well. Against people she'd known for a decade.
Against Sam.
Against Paul.
It was a thought that broke her heart and she pondered feverishly, looking for a solution but no matter how she twisted or turned it, there was no other way.
Sam would defend his tribe and the Cullens would defend Bella. There was no point in talking to Sam, even if he would listen to her. Sam had seen what Bella looked like in Jacobs mind. How in the world was she going to convince him that the thing growing in her and draining her was harmless.
Lily felt Edward's gaze on her and knew he was listening to her thoughts with more attention than usual.
Maybe he wanted to make sure there really was no way to change Sams mind, or maybe he wanted to know if Lily was choosing the right side. How could she not, no matter what Carlisle was involved in, she would always choose him.
Edward seemed relieved, apparently worried that she might make the wrong choice. An absurd if not entirely far-fetched thought. At the thought of hurting Sam or Paul or anyone else from the reservation, her petrified stomach turned.
Briefly, she wondered if she could get Carlisle away.
Far away from all the drama, from the danger of the wolves and the Volturi.
Just away.
The problem was that Carlisle would never abandon his family, thus she would have to force him. Something she could never do to him even if she wanted to.
They made a battle plan, Lily paying little attention. Sam would not attack, not while they were outnumbered. He would not risk his pack so lightly, he would wait until they were vulnerable. Because of their food source, sooner or later they were.
Lily made a promise to herself- she wouldn't leave Carlisle alone for a second. Even if that meant she had to be there when this thing was born. If you could even call it that.
Jacob, God bless him, was by Bella's side every day. He was either too good for the world, too stupid, or just plain masochistically inclined. Or a mixture of all of the above. Bella was visibly better, yet she looked terrible.
They were stringing Charly along with a made-up story about some illness. Lilys mind wandered . If she really have had a family, would they tell them the same thing? Would she be dead or just away. Would anyone even come looking for her?
Alex's parents probably asked about her, Carlisle surely had a believable story ready and they, gullible as they are, after all they had no reason to distrust the flagship doctor of Forks, will have believed the lie.
At least she would not meet them again, especially not now. Still her eyes were the shining witnesses to her dark deeds, and even if her new flawless countenance and piercing eyes weren't striking enough, it was her healthy legs that would give her away.
Lily wondered if she would miss them. Whether she would miss people. But the answer was as hard as it was honest.
No.
Carlisle was everything.
He was everything she wanted and everything she needed.
As if he had heard her thoughts, he looked up and caught her gaze.
His eyes were a little lighter, but still too dark not to betray the hunger he must be feeling. Not only did he look tired, he looked exhausted. Yet he still looked like the better looking younger brother of Zeus himself.
When he moved, it seemed like spilled oil. Calm and smooth were his movements, betraying nothing of the sheer power hidden behind them. Even if his gift could not be used in combat, one should not be deceived by his goodness. Carlisle was an experienced fighter.
Lily remembered her time as a human, even if her memories were becoming increasingly hazy, she could remember him clearly. The moments when he was with her were the only ones where she felt anything other than sadness and pain. Like a drug, he took away her pain and suffering- completely unconsciously. Just with his presence.
His lips shone rosy and inviting. He smiled and suddenly his face was like the sun. It made him even more irresistible. There was not a single line on his face, it was almost a joke that he got away with his lie. Even dejected and hopeless, he was spring. Fresh, lush and bright.
He crossed the room and with each step in her direction, she felt the excitement rise. It was strange that after all this time and all that had happened, she still felt like a young human woman nervously awaiting rounds with a stomach ache full of anticipation.
His look was kind, as if he wanted to reassure her that everything would be fine. He was much more trying to convince himself of that, she thought. He put his hands on her arms, and if she could, she'd get goosebumps.
She could easily recognize him by touch alone or by smell. She would know him blind. Not because she was a vampire. Because she was his. And he was hers.
"After all, we've got our own Luke Skywalker over there, the wolves don't stand a chance."
Emmett's voice echoed through the room and Lily tried to reconstruct the conversation. Carlisle did not take his eyes off her and answered curtly.
"Lily doesn't have to fight if she doesn't want to."
She knew he said that because of her connection to the wolves, and his attentivness touched her.
Emmett let out a snort.
"Yeah right, like she's going to sit that one out."
"You can use a spear as a walking stick, but that doesn't change its nature."
Jasper's voice was low and collected. Lily would have known, even without knowing her, that such poetic words would not pass Emmett's lips. The latter laughed and seemed to like the quote.
Carlisle's eyes grew sad and Lily took a step closer into his almost embrace.
Of course she would fight.
After her trip to the armies of the south, many things had become clear to her, but one thing was clearer than anything else.
She was a weapon, a fighter.
Perhaps it was the irony of fate that a pacifist, of all people, had chosen her as his mate.