Title: Eight Days Of Rain
Prompt: Rain
Bella and wolves
Summary: Spring break brought a big storm with an unexpected ending
Rating: T
Eight Days Of Rain
It was the beginning of spring break. Bella made the mistake of taking the sun shining through her window when she woke up as a good sign. She stood outside waiting for Jake to arrive. He was running a patrol somewhere nearby. They were going to meet at her house and drive back to La Push together. Not wanting to miss a second of the rare sunshine Bella decided to stand outside. With her eyes closed and face turned up, she soaked in every sunbeam she could. She heard her fathers stumbling footsteps as he came to stand next to her.
"Enjoy it while you can." Charlie told her. Her eyes flew open and she stumbled backwards at a sudden, loud bellow of thunder in the clear sky. Her father reached out a hand to study her before she could fall. Thick dark clouds rolled in the distance quickly approaching them. "There's a big storm coming."
A childlike almost feline voice sang from the cover of the trees, "If you only knew."
Their heads automatically turned to the voice. The first thing Bella noticed was the bright red locks that danced upon the breeze. "No." the word came out in a choked whisper. In a blink Victoria was standing a few feet in front of them, a wide smile on her face. The sunlight not yet shrouded by the clouds danced the allusion of flames across her marble skin.
"What the hell?!" Charlie pulled off his jacket and rushed forward as if he could put out the nonexistent fire.
"Dad, no!" Bella had to wrap both her arms around his to even slow him down. She was afraid she wouldn't be able to stop him from approaching the vengeful vampire.
The dark clouds thundered in, blocking the sun and halting the phenomenon. The pouring rain not far behind them, the large drops pounded the ground and obscured their vision.
Victoria took only one step forward before suddenly stopping again. She tilted her head to the side and hissed, "Stupid mutts!" turning on her heel she looked back over her shoulder, "This isn't over." She said menacingly. She glanced at the trees before running off.
A mass of dark forms came sprinting out of the woods, the sight of them knocking Charlie off his feet. Bewildered, drenched through, and sprawled on the ground, her father seemed so frail.
"Dad." Bella cried. Hands shaking, she reached out to help him up, but didn't have the strength to support his weight. Large warm hands hooked under his arms lifting him to his feet like he weighed nothing.
"Easy chief."
"Jake?"
"Yeah, it's me." He said, still holding one of Charlie's arms to keep him up.
"What the hell is going on in this town?" Charlie asked himself more than anyone else.
Instead of answering Jake suggested, "Maybe we should get inside."
"Yeah," Charlie said absently.
He paced the front hall wringing the towel Bella handed him to dry off in his hands. Once in a while he would stop, open the door, look out, shake his head, slam it shut, then continue his pacing and incoherent babbling.
Bella stood in the kitchen watching the coffee pot slowly drip out a rhythmic beat. She tucked her hands under her arms, her fingers digging into her ribcage, and her teeth chewing her bottom lip.
Jake stood leaning his back against the doorframe arms crossed over his chest. He looked from one Swan to the other wondering what one would snap out of it first. Charlie won out.
He shook a finger at Jake and scolded, "You picked me up!"
Jake's eyes widened slightly. "You're welcome?" He made the statement into a question.
"You weren't here." Charlie said half accusing half confused. "When did you get here?" He walked to the door, opened it, slammed it. "How did you get here?" Truly looking at the boy for the first time he yelled, "And where the hell are your clothes!"
"What?" Jake looked at himself. "I'm wearing shorts."
Bella finally turned her attention away from the coffee pot. "Dad. maybe you should sit down." She sounded weak, defeated.
Sitting in a kitchen chair he looked between the two teens. "What's going on?" He narrowed his eyes. "You two know something I don't."
"Dad… we can't tell you."
"Can't… tell… me!" Charlie repeated through clenched teeth.
Bella shook her head and looked to Jacob for help.
"There are things we can't tell you." Jacob started, "Whether they be tribe secrets or information that could start a war. That's not something you want to happen."
"Bella knows." Charlie stated as if he knew this to be fact.
"She guessed." Charlie lifted his eyebrows. "Mostly." Jake admitted.
"Fine, then tell me what you can."
"Charlie, you don't live in the world you think you do."
Impatiently Charlie grumbled, "And what kind of world DO I live in?"
"One where monsters and magic exist."
"Was that what those things were, monsters?" Charlie rubbed a hand across the back of his head.
"No!" Bella snapped. "The wolves are not monsters."
Charlie's eyes widened. "Those things were wolves?!"
Jake cut in, "The red head was a monster." his eyes roamed between the Swans.
"She was just a girl." Charlie shook his head. "Those other things... wolves?"
"Their monsters too." Jake gruffly said
"No they're not!" Bella chastised her best friend.
Holding up his hands Charlie fell back into the chair. "Okay, Tell me what I need to know. In any way you can."
"Nothing! There is nothing you need to know." Bella insisted.
"Bells," Jake whispered. "She came too close honey. You know you will be safer on the rez," Bella looked like she would argue until he said, "Both you and Charlie." Once she thought about how close Victoria came to her father she was quick to agree. Charlie, took more convincing.
"I can't just stay at Billy's because some girl has a grudge against you for reasons you won't even tell me about."
"She's not just some girl!"
"So you keep saying."
"You know what," Jake cut in. "how about you both pack a bag and come to my house. Dad can talk to Charlie, possibly make things more clear. If you still don't want to stay fine, if you do you will have your bags."
Not having the same limitations as Jake, Billy was able to tell Charlie about the wolves. After their talk Charlie looked pale and seemed to keep a little extra distance from Jake.
"Bells, what do you say, you go to your moms for spring break?"
"That's a bad Idea Charlie." Billy warned. "That thing can follow her there and she would have no one to protect her."
Charlie finally conceded, but insisted he still go to work. Knowing about the pack now allowed one of them to go with him in human form every day, fully dressed. They used the excuse of being interested in a law profession and the good chief allowing them to shadow him.
Bella spent the majority of the week at the Black's house. She cleaned every room spotless just for something to do. She also cooked constantly. She spent a few hours over at Emily's but felt like she was intruding when Jacob wasn't around. Anything the pack didn't eat she ended up freezing. With Jake on patrols, Charlie at work and Billy doing his own thing, she decided to get a head start with any homework she might get in the future. She ended up finishing all the work in her textbooks. It was five days in and having nothing left to do she was officially going stir crazy.
She cursed spring break, then chastised herself. The wolves had been running themselves ragged. The rain would slow and quicken in nonstop spurts, making it difficult to pick up any scents of vampires. Add to that the floods the pack were trying to help with, Bella wasn't sure when or if any of them slept.
The lights flickered bringing Bella out of her thoughts. She shook her head and went to check on Billy.
Before she took two steps out of the kitchen Embry crashed through the front door. He was half carrying a familiar looking boy. It took Bella a minute to place him. "Seth!"
Harry Clearwaters son had a pair of shorts hastily dragged up on his hips, one arm twisted and hanging at an awkward angle, tears running down his dirt stained face. Bella felt awful. He was so young. "Oh, Seth." She said, reaching out a hand only to pull it back afraid of hurting the boy more. "What happened?"
Embry's voice broke. "All hell broke loose."
Jake stumbled through the door next. "Dad!" he yelled in a strained voice.
"What's happened?" Billy asked, coming over.
Jake practically fell over to his father. Bella smelled the Blood before she saw it.
His arm hung limply at his side, there was a gash so deep in his shoulder you could see the bone.
She cried out as Jake landed on his knees in front of his father.
"Bella, go get towels!" Billy ordered. "Jake, tell me what happened."
"They ambushed us. Leah phased then Seth. they must have been watching us. As soon as they sensed we were at our weakest they attacked. Billy grabbed the towels and pressed it to his son's wounds. "We will heal, but I think Harry is having a heart attack. Sam is running him to the hospital. Dad, you got to go."
"I'll go when the two of you heal, Harry will understand,"
Things weren't looking good for Harry. He had been in the hospital for two days not showing any signs of improvement. He was presently in intensive care. His children couldn't go see him because one was under eighteen and the other couldn't stay in her skin long enough.
Speaking of Leah she kept throwing Bella dirty looks, if she had to guess Bella would say Leah didn't like her any more then Paul did. Bella didn't blame her.
After only 24 hours Jake and Seth were back out and fighting vampires. There were more breeches of their borders from nomads in this one week than there were since Sam first phased.
Bella couldn't sit back and let the wolves suffer because of her anymore. Tomorrow Charlie and Billy both had to go deal with damages from the constant rain. Victoria wanted her and that's what she would get.
The next morning she wrapped her father in a big hug and told him she loved him and to be careful.
As soon as everyone was out of the house she borrowed the keys to the rabbit and headed straight for her house. Rushing out of the car and into her yard she started shouting. "Hey, I'm here. Come get me!"
A rustling in the trees had Bella spinning to look. Her breath whooshed out when she heard a familiar voice. "Bella, what the hell are you doing?"
"Jake, I just thought… I was just…"
"Sacrificing yourself." the childlike voice purred from behind her. "How noble." Bella froze in place staring at Jake. He wasn't supposed to be here. This ruined everything, her whole plan. She knew she wouldn't be able to convince him to go, to just leave her to her fate.
"I won't let you take her!" Jacob snarled.
"How will you stop me?" A wolf's cry sounded from somewhere nearby. A pale figure stepped out of the trees from where the sound came from. The rest of her little guard dogs are busy putting out fires, or should I say starting them. Do you really think you can fight him off and get to me before I get to her?"
A strange calm came over Jacob's features. "Maybe not," nodding his head to something in the distance he said, "but they could."
Turning Bella could see Edward and Alice standing behind Victoria, with them came the sun and the end of the storm. Everything happened quickly after that. Between Edward and Alice, Victoria had no chance of escape. Jacob and a gray wolf that came out of the forest finished off her companion quickly.
Before Bella could process anything. Edward was lighting a fire to burn the remains. Jake stood looking at her as if he was asking her a question.
"He wants to know if you are okay." Edward said in his smooth voice. She closed her eyes. She thought she would never hear that voice again. "You can go now." he was saying. Jacob growled. "We won't harm her. Thank you for all you've done, but you are no longer needed."
Before she could think she was speaking. "You don't get to decide that." She turned toward Edward, his beautiful face doing nothing to deter her.
"Bella love, we are back now, we won't leave you again."
"But you did leave. All except one of you without even saying goodbye. The wolves stayed. They protected me, and half of them don't even like me."
"Bella," Alice's voice rang out. "If you would just give us a chance to explain."
"Oh, you'll get your chance, but you don't get to just dismiss the wolves. They're my family too, and you're just going to have to accept that." She told the Cullen's. "Jake, I'm okay, go do what you have to do and we will talk later." Jake nodded his big wolfy head and took off with the other wolf. "You two, let's go inside and you can start talking."
Bella took a deep breath and marched her way inside. She didn't know what her future looked like, but the fact was she had one, and for the first time ever she felt like she was in control of it.
