Chapter 10:
So slowly that there would never be any uncertainty of her actions, Bella pushed herself up into her tiptoes to press her lips against Edward's.
At first Bella only registered the stark difference in the way her mouth molded to Edward's stone cold lips, a shock of something electric and hypnotizing. A sense of rightness at their connection. Could Edward feel this spark between them? Her lungs began protesting and she realized that she had been holding her breath against any protests Edward might have.
Edward himself was still, so completely immobile that Bella worried that she had done something wrong or had pushed too far too soon. She had startled herself with this act of boldness, it was so far out of character for her to make the first move.
Bella pulled herself back from Edward and immediately despised the separation. She inhaled the smell of fresh linen, honey, and something else just so specifically Edward as she tried to ground herself in this moment. Before Bella could begin to apologize Edward surprised her by following her, kissing her back with a softness that melted her heart. She felt his hands grasp the sides of her face, his fingers smoothing over her cheeks and her jaw.
The kiss was tender and shy, soft like snowflakes on skin. Bella had expected love to feel earth shattering and sudden, but this felt like contentment and bliss. This small space between Edward's hands felt like home.
Edward broke their kiss and stared at her with his eyes so dark. Bella couldn't help but feel pleased by the wild look at him knowing that she had caused it. Her heart was pounding away in her chest almost threatening to break out of her ribs.
"Oh, Bella."
The sound of Edward's velvet voice roughened by emotion sent warmth shooting through Bella. It was criminal how attractive he was.
"I know I said it would only be Carlilse and Esme, but would you like to officially meet the others?" Edward said, pulling away from her.
It took Bella an extra moment to process his words since she had been properly dazzled by him. So distracted by Edward and his mouth that she hadn't realized that there were more voices downstairs. Before she could respond to his question there was a flurry of activity bursting into the room.
Bella was swept into an iron hug and was surprised to find Alice on the other end. Their only interaction ended on a sour note and yet that didn't seem to have bothered Alice in the slightest since she clung to Bella so tightly. She hadn't intended on seeing Alice today or she would have rehearsed several apologies.
"I just knew you'd get together." Alice continued on in a stage whisper. "He was practically insufferable the last few weeks and the anticipation was literally killing me."
Relief washed over Bella and she leaned into Alice's embrace. Edward had said before that Alice was the most enthusiastic about their relationship, but hearing it and seeing it were two very different things.
"There's going to be a storm." Alice said excitedly. "It will rain after nine, but it will be perfect for a game."
Bella looked between Edward and his sister oddly. Alice's eyes were sort of glazed over perhaps from a vision of some sort and Edward was watching her intently, probably seeing through his own power.
"You're coming too Bella." Alice stated as if it were predetermined. Bella struggled to release herself from Alice who let her go easily.
"I must be missing something. You need a storm to play a game?" This must be a vampire thing to play games in storms that would chase normal people inside. Bella wasn't too keen on being outside in anything but sunny weather. Bella smoothed her hands down the sides of her pants before stuffing them in her pockets to keep from nervously twisting her fingers.
"Oh you'll see." Alice said ominously, she followed it up with a wink that didn't reassure Bella in the slightest. Alice then disappeared as quickly as she arrived muttering something Bella couldn't quite catch.
"We have to wait for thunderstorms to play baseball or any contact sport for that matter." Edward flashed a crooked smile at her. "It's hard to explain, but you'll see."
"If you say so." Bella mumbled. It was honestly so tiring having to puzzle together all of these vague non-answers the Cullens seemed to like to give out. Edward didn't even bother to reply, instead choosing to lead her out of his room and back to the first floor where Bella could hear the others deep in conversation.
It was strange to see Edward's brothers and sister outside of school. Bella didn't have any classes with anyone other than Edward, but she had seen them enough in the cafeteria and in the parking lot. To be quite honest they appeared more human now than they ever did at school even with Emmett gesturing wildly at vampire speed with his hands and Jasper sitting as still as a statue. Alice was perched in Jasper's lap, playing with the hair at the nape of his neck with a small content smile on her face.
"There is just no way a bear could take on an elephant." Jasper said, apparently continuing on from the earlier conversation.
"They may be bigger, but bears can move faster. They're more mobile and their paws are huge!" Emmett said, swiping his fists through the air to mimic a bear attack.
Bella tried very hard to suppress a smile, it was strange to hear them act so normal. Hearing the Cullen boys debating on which animal would win in a fight was something Bella had overheard several times this year by her peers. She didn't expect to see cobwebs and torture chambers in their home, but the open and light-filled house that exuded comfort was a surprise. It shouldn't have been shocking to find that they also didn't discuss only vampire topics at least while company was over.
"That may be true however the difference of power between them makes an elephant the champion." Jasper replied leaning further into the chair he claimed. His head tilted slightly in Edward's direction in silent acknowledgement.
"Bella." Emmett turned to face her with the most serious look on his face. "Back me up here. Who do you think would win in a fight, a grizzly bear or an elephant?"
"Uh….well." Bella was partially frozen in their gaze as she was suddenly put in the spotlight. Not sure if there was an actual correct answer to their debate Bella decided to just go with her gut. "I think an elephant would win."
"Aha!" Jasper smirked over at Emmett who slumped down into his chair with a pout.
"I can't believe this. You guys are so wrong." Emmett grumbled.
"I mean, elephants can take on lions so it makes sense that they could hold their own against a bear." Bella said, trying to defend her answer.
"Bears are so much bigger than lions." Emmett said, still sounding grumpy.
"Em, they are entitled to their opinions." A new voice said from behind Bella.
Bella turned quickly to see Rosalie cross the room and settle herself behind Emmett's chair. Rosalie ran her hands across his shoulders to soothe him and Bella could see that he sank into her touch with all of the grouchiness fading from his face. Rosalie was more beautiful up close than Bella had thought and she was a stark difference from Alice and Esme.
Rosalie turned toward Bella, meeting her gaze evenly and immediately Bella felt like this was a test. Bella reached out her hand a little less confidently than she had hoped at Edwards ' sister.
"It's very nice to meet you Rosalie." Hopefully she didn't sound as nervous as she felt trying to appease the only Cullen who didn't want a human weaseling her way into their secrets.
Bella's hand was left hanging in the air for several moments while Rosalie appeared to be contemplating something. Finally, when Bella's arm was beginning to tire and she had turned pink due to the awkwardness, Rosalie reached out her own hand to shake Bella's.
"Charmed."
Bella was rescued from any further awkwardness by Esme who poked her head through the doorway with a smile.
"Bella dear, would you like something to eat?"
The relief Bella felt at that moment was almost overwhelming and she grasped at the opportunity to move the conversation along.
"Yes, thank you." Bella followed Esme into the kitchen and she felt Edward accompany her.
The formerly spotless countertops were now covered in dishes and platters filled to the brim with appetizers and finger foods looking like a snapshot from a magazine Renee bought but never bothered to look through. Esme must have spent all morning working on this because there was no way she got all this done in the short amount of time Bella had been there. Similar to the picnic basket there was far too much food for one person to eat in a sitting so portion sizes for humans were obviously unfamiliar to them.
Edward pulled out a chair at the island for Bella and she couldn't help but smile at him. Esme began questioning Edward about school as she tidied the kitchen almost absentmindedly. It was strange to see them doing something so normal and it was short lived as Alice flounced into the kitchen at such an inhuman speed part way through their conversation.
Alice dropped a pile of clothes into the chair next to Bella and then immediately twirled in place. She had changed into sleek leggings with high top sneakers and an untucked navy colored baseball jersey.
"What do you think?" Alice asked, holding her arms out wide for Bella to admire the outfit.
"You look great!" Bella said a bit enviously. Alice was always impeccably dressed and everything fit her so well that it made Bella feel frumpy in her oversized sweater.
"It's going to get a bit cold so we need to bundle you up." Alice pulled Bella out of her chair and rolled her eyes in Edward's direction. She held up several jackets to Bella's frame as if she was checking the size, but she ended up handing over the last two items anyway as if she had already known what Bella would need.
They could hear the others clamoring in the backyard even through the glass doors. It honestly sounded like an animal was dying out there as one of the boys was wailing about something.
Carlisle entered through the other side of the kitchen, he too had changed into something more comfortable.
"Oh! That's right," Alice turned toward Bella once again. "Call your Dad and let him know you're staying over for dinner."
Bella's mood dimmed as she shrugged into the clothes Alice gave her. How late was it? Was Charlie home already? Bella fumbled through her pockets looking for her phone. There were no missed calls or messages and it was too early for Charlie to have gotten off of work.
The phone rang three times before Charlie answered, his voice a little rough.
"Hey Bells."
"Hey Dad."
"Everything alright?"
"Yeah, of course. I just wanted to tell you that I'm staying at Edward's house for dinner tonight."
"Edward? The Cullen boy?"
Cold fingers intertwined with Bella's and drew her attention to the boy next to her. He wasn't looking at her face, but he did have a slight crooked smile on his face that distracted her from the conversation.
"Uh yeah, but his sister invited me over. Will you be okay without me for dinner?"
Charlie chuckled on the line. "I think I can fend for myself. I didn't go hungry all the years before you moved in."
Bella rolled her eyes at Charlie's remark. Of course she knew that he was perfectly capable of feeding himself. Bella had just been doing a better job at it in the last few weeks.
"Don't stay out too late Bella. Call me when you're on your way home."
"Okay Dad. I love you."
"Love you too."
Bella had barely hung up the phone before Alice was poking her head back into the kitchen. She hadn't even realized that the others had left her and Edward alone, probably to give a semblance of privacy for her phone call.
"We'd better get a move on." Alice said with a grin before dashing back outside.
Bella and Edward followed at a slower pace just in time to see the rest of the Cullens run off into the forest. Rosalie threw a glance over her shoulder before grabbing Emmett's hand and disappearing into the trees.
Rosalie's interactions hadn't been as awful as Bella had imagined. With Edward's vague descriptions of his family and how he ignored Rosalie completely Bella had just assumed that she had been completely against their relationship.
"Rosalie was a lot more pleasant than I had anticipated." Bella said, casting a sideways glance at Edward as they crossed the yard. His expression was thoughtful, but it didn't give away anything about what he was thinking.
"Rose has accepted you for the most part, but it is purely for self-centered reasoning."
What did that mean? Edward seemed hesitant to elaborate, but he continued on without looking at Bella.
"My sister seems to be under the impression that it would be possible for you to turn a vampire back into a human."
A pang of uneasiness went through her. Mom. That's why this had all come about. Bringing Mom back and showing Edward how easy it had been was the reason they suspected this possibility existed.
Turn a vampire back into a human? That was a far cry from resurrecting someone, but it was in the same realm of impossibility and Bella had done the impossible before.
The possibility of changing Edward, of changing anyone at all, had never even crossed her mind. Would it be possible for them to be human again? Is that something that they wanted?
Bella felt her stomach twist painfully. Even now, a year later, Bella was expecting to get a call that something happened to Renee, that the power she had used had faded and her mother was gone. Could Bella take that risk with Edward and his family?
A cold but gentle touch to her face surprised Bella out of her thoughts.
"I'll need to carry you the rest of the way. Is that alright?" Edward asked quietly.
Bella nodded and wrapped her arms around Edward's neck. He smelled of honey and clean linen, a subtle and calming scent that Bella inhaled earnestly. She felt a little creepy sniffing him, but she decided that it was proportional to finding out that he watched her while she slept. Edward lifted her as if she weighed nothing at all and his grip on her legs was gentle.
The wind whipped Bella's hair out behind them and she couldn't help but hold him tighter. She wasn't afraid that he would drop her, but the trees flashed past them so quickly so how could he possibly dodge each one? When he finally slowed to a human pace at the edge of the forest Bella felt all of the adrenaline and exhilaration coursing through her. Running with Edward, or rather being carried by him, was more fun than a rollercoaster.
The field they finally stopped at was enormous. Bella had never seen such a wide expanse of land without trees here in Washington. Unlike the meadow, the ground was covered in knee-high grass and spotted with bushes. Edward put Bella down at the crest of a small hill where the rest of the family was gathered.
The clouds were darkening quickly even for the late afternoon and Bella was worried that it would become far too dark for her to see anything. Perhaps the Cullens could see clear enough to play games in the pitch darkness, but Bella was lacking in that ability. Would they laugh at her if she told them she couldn't see? Bella tugged her borrowed jacket closer as the wind picked up and brought the smell of rain with it.
Jasper and Rosalie were farther out in the field tossing what looked like a ball back and forth, but the speed in which they threw and caught each time was so impossibly fast. Bella had already seen firsthand how quick and strong Edward was, but she was excited to observe the rest of them.
"The teams have been decided." Esme said welcoming them with a smile.
"Myself, Alice and Edward on one team. Emmett, Rosalie, and Jasper are on the opposing side." Carlisle interjected.
"You're not going to play?" Bella asked Esme who merely shrugged.
"No, someone has to keep them honest." Esme threaded her arm through Bella's and turned them to face the others. "You and I are going to referee."
"Are you guys done?" Alice said as she appeared out of thin air. "It is time." She clasped her hands together ominously in time with a loud clap of thunder.
Edward leaned in to kiss Bella's cheek and she warmed at his clear affection for her. She watched his race out into the field with his crooked grin firmly in place.
When the first crack of the bat echoed through the mountains Bella understood why it was necessary that they wait for thunderstorms to play. She thought Emmett had cracked the bat with the force of the hit and was surprised when Alice caught it with such ease barehanded.
You'd think with the amount of baseball that Bella had been subjected to over the years with both Charlie and Phil that Bella would have remembered at least some of the rules, but it apparently didn't matter. The Cullens didn't seem to adhere to the MLB guidelines since they didn't use gloves or have any limitations on the field. Each base was only distinguishable by the amount of dirt disturbed by their running and sliding. There didn't appear to be an area where one could score a home run or at least the distance was far too great for Bella to see.
In the end Bella stopped trying to figure out what was going on and she simply enjoyed watching them play. She relied on Esme's sight and knowledge of the game to know exactly what was going on, especially when they ran into the trees to catch the ball.
Everyone appeared to be having fun, even Rosalie managed to smile every once in a while. Bella cheered loudly for every run that was scored no matter who had achieved it, but she may have been a little more emphatic for Edward.
Most of the game was a blur with just how fast everyone was able to run, but every once in a while she managed to see something unbelievable. Edward leapt over a giant pine to catch an especially quick hit by Rosalie clearing the tree by several feet. Alice vaulted over Jasper during a play and her laugh echoed all the way back to Bella. Emmett and Jasper collided once when they were both too determined to catch a fly ball and the sound was almost as blaring as the thunder.
Emmett was back at bat with a determined glare on his face. Alice swung her leg out gracefully and pitched the ball too fast for Bella to follow it, but she heard the crack as it reverberated through the mountains when Emmett hit it. He was a blur running to the bases, but Edward didn't move a muscle to try and stop him. His eyes were caught on Alice who was immobile, apparently lost in thought.
A fraction of a moment passed and then Edward was standing next to Bella staring down at her with an expression she couldn't define. Something between pain and dread was written on his face and Bella felt her stomach drop. What happened? How did the mood shift so drastically in such a short span of time? Whatever it was, it had to be serious.
Carlisle and Jasper were next to Alice, speaking to her but they were too far for Bella to hear them. Alice looked sick as she spoke and Jasper's eyes scanned to treeline. Something or someone must be coming, but what could a vampire ever be worried about?
"Five." Edward said, but he wasn't speaking to Bella. It must have been in response to one of the others. Five? Five what?
It was then Bella realized that it was fear that she had seen on Edward's face. But it wasn't fear for himself, it had been fear for her. There must be others on their way to the field, other vampires that didn't hold the same values as the Cullens. Edward had tried to stress how dangerous his kind were before, but she held no fear of him and she trusted him to keep her safe. It was hard enough to believe that vampires existed in the first place and she hadn't had any reason to believe that she would ever meet more of them, but that was the risk of being in their world wasn't it? Eventually they would cross paths with more vampires, ones that thought she was nothing more than a meal.
Fear was a cold, piercing thing like ice water on skin and it clutched at Bella's heart. She knew that Edward would never let anything happen to her, but at what cost to himself? Bella gripped his hand and rubbed her thumb across the cool marble of his skin. She traced words she wouldn't speak and tried to focus on keeping her panic in check.
Carlisle said something else and the Cullens drifted into position. Alice stood next to Edward and Bella with Jasper hovering protectively a few feet away. Rosalie and Emmett came close while Esme moved closer to Carlisle.
Edward turned abruptly to Bella and brushed her hair away from her face. He leaned in close and Bella shivered when his cold breath fanned over her. He traced her brow and cheeks, trailing his hands through her hair and along her neck. Bella blushed at the attention, aware that all of his family could see them. Edward's lips grazed her cheek and she felt them press against hers so softly before they disappeared.
"It's not enough Edward." Alice said sadly.
"I know." Edward's voice cracked with the desperate edge it had taken on. He pulled Alice's hat off of her head and put it on Bella's, carefully pulling her hair in front of her face and neck.
There were no smiles among them and Bella could feel the tension in the air as they waited. It felt like a lifetime before five figures melted out of the shadows. Bella held her breath as she watched them glide out to meet Carlisle. They were all inhumanely beautiful, but Bella could see that they didn't hide their movements the way the Cullen's did. These new vampires walked swiftly and gracefully, their actions sharp and controlled in a way that no human could move. It was their eyes that gave away how dangerous they were because each one of them was a bright and bloody red.
Bella counted three men and two women that lined up across from them. The leader stepped forward speaking to the Cullens in a clear voice that even she could hear.
"We thought we heard a game. I'm Laurent and these are my companions, Laura, Rick, James, and Victoria." He gestured to the others as he spoke and Bella tried to put their names to their faces.
"We were just finishing up, unfortunately." Carlisle said, waving his hand back towards them. "I'm Carlisle, this is my family, Jasper, Rosalie, Esme and Alice, Emmett, Edward and Bella."
The pleasure at being included with the family was doused by the seriousness of the moment. It was a standoff between the two groups each waiting for the other to move.
"That's a shame, it's been awhile since we've had any fun." Laurent said. Bella swallowed thickly, she didn't want to know what the last bit of fun they had was.
"How long were you planning to stay in the area?" Carlisle continued.
"We are just passing through." Laurent didn't elaborate on where they had come from or where they were going like they were hesitant to give out too much information.
The man she assumed was Rick looked bored, leaning back to glance over his shoulder at the others. By contrast the woman with the bright shock of red hair appeared to want to be anywhere else, her eyes flitting quickly between all of the Cullens. Emmett was the most imposing with his arms flexing as he crossed them and he drew most of their attention.
"We have a permanent residence in the area if you'd like to refresh." Carlisle said, stepping forward to lead them off in the other direction.
Bella breathed a sigh of relief, too early it seemed as the wind whipped her hair across her face. Small droplets of rain sprinkled across her skin as she watched as two of the new vampires dropped into a crouch. Edward followed quickly after, placing himself directly in front of Bella.
"Oh, you brought a snack." Rick said, looking at Bella appreciatively as if he hadn't noticed she was there before.
A sound rumbled from Edward that Bella could only describe as a snarl. It raised the hair on the back of Bella's neck and she was glad she couldn't see the expression on his face.
"She's with us." All of the charm had faded from Carlisle's voice.
"But she's human." Laurent's words weren't a question, but he appeared confused at this new information.
"Yes."
Bella bit her lip, watching the strained conversation and it was the look that James was giving her that turned the tide. It was the hungry, eager expression combined with the bright ruby of his eyes. Her teeth slipped and metallic flavored filled her mouth from a single drop of blood.
The air was suddenly filled with voices, overlapping words and clamor that Bella couldn't decipher. Alice was in front of Jasper, holding his head in between her hands muttering quickly under her breath. Each one of the new vampires was hunched over as if they were going to pounce. Carlisle and the others had retreated to fan out in front of Edward and Bella.
When Victoria moved Emmett followed and that incited the others. Carlisle and Esme countered Laura as she leapt from her position. Rosalie blocked Laurent from advancing and Emmett watched Rick and Victoria.
Edward was locked with James, shifting from one side to the other yet always keeping James at a distance. The cruel, sick smile on James' face left Bella feeling cold.
A flash of red drew Bella's attention as Victoria feinted out of Emmett's grasp. Rick used her distraction to his advantage, but went after Edward who was completely focused on James.
Bella gasped, intending on warning Edward, but vampires were fast. Too quick for her eyes to follow so before she had finished drawing a breath Edward and Rick were grappling for dominance. In a flash her view was obstructed by James who stared down at her with that same cruel expression he gave Edward.
"Stop." Edward's voice was so harsh it was almost unrecognizable. "I'll kill him."
Bella looked past James to see Edward holding Rick in a headlock. Edward had his arm pressed tightly against Rick's neck and the subdued vampire scrabbled for purchase against his grip. Edward's eyes had lost all trace of gold and now they were a murderous obsidian that glared at James.
"I have no need for him." James said, lifting his hand up to Bella's mouth. She was too stunned to even flinch out of the way as his thumb grazed her bottom lip. He had caught a stray drop of blood that still lingered and Bella watched him lift it up to his own mouth. "This would have been such a great hunt."
Bella's heart thumped painfully in her chest as James placed his hand on her throat. A numbness took hold over her limbs keeping her frozen even though her brain was screaming obscenities at her.
Fucking move! Do something! Anything!
This was it? This was the ending she had been destined for? Going through all that guilt and regret and pain for what? To be eaten by a monster while everyone could do nothing but watch? Poor Edward who spent god knows how long brooding over his own immortality to finally open up to someone and then they die?
C'mon Bella if there was ever a time to play hero now would be it.
Edward stared at her with wild, hopeless eyes, his face petrified in a tragic mask. Had it only been a few hours ago that he had been smiling down at her? With his face glowing and expression warm enough to melt all of her walls and boundaries?
Bella recoiled from James once again, closing her eyes tightly to try and block everything out. Concentrating with everything she had Bella mentally shouted with the first thing she could come up with praying that her power was enough to keep her alive.
He's human! He's human!
A throbbing, roiling feeling began in Bella's head and she felt so incredibly hot for a moment as if she had been standing in front of a pit of flames. James screamed in front of her, the sound tearing at her eardrums as it was ripped out of him.
Bella watched as James pulled his hair in a way that was probably incredibly painful. Gasping for air he held out his hands and looked at them in astonishment with eyes that were no longer red. His hazel eyes combined with the new pallor of his skin was the first indicator that he had changed.
He had changed from vampire to human. What did this mean for Edward and his family?
James turned to the others, but it was brief because he started tugging on his clothes with a wet choking sound. Bella watched in horror as his skin began to turn sallow and his blond hair faded to a silvery white. James' skin sloughed off in patches leaving bloody streaked muscle that started to melt off of his bones. His body crumpled with a sharp cracking sound into a pile of sludge and bodily fluids.
By the time Bella managed to look up from what used to be James she realized that the rest of the nomads had fled and the Cullens were staring at her with combined looks of awe and confusion.
Between the stench of the mess in front of her and the pulsing beat in her head Bella couldn't help but be sick. She leaned forward and tried to aim away from her shoes as she expelled everything from her stomach. Cool hands held the hair from her face and laid across the back of her neck giving her some relief.
Bella knew that it was Edward, the tingle where his skin touched hers gave it away. She was relieved to see him out of harm's way, that he had come away unscathed.
"Bella," His voice was full of concern. "You're bleeding."
Bella quickly swiped at the blood with the back of her hand, but it was enough to make her feel faint. She stared at the red streak for so long she hadn't realized that Edward was still speaking to her.
"I don't feel so good."
And then suddenly everything went dark.
