petrichor [rosalie hale]

li. forming unity

"Guys, I get it. I do," Kiara said, her loyalty to these people - and to her brother's imprint - trying to pierce through the tension. "But there's more to this than you're seeing."

She was actually quite glad that Jacob and Renesmee were currently nowhere in sight, as she was sure Jacob would already be attempting to rip off her head at the thought of her putting his imprint in any form of potential danger.

"Then enlighten us," Rosalie snapped, her gaze flicking between Kiara and Edward, calculating the risk of physically intervening. She felt a drop of water on her cheek, then another, and realised that the dark clouds above had slowly started to pour on them. 

The rain heightened to a gentle patter against the leaves as Kiara's gaze held each of her family members in turn, the wetness on her cheeks indistinguishable from the droplets that clung to her skin. She could see the doubt etched into their faces, the protective fire in their eyes. The air was thick with the scent of pine and damp earth, a grounding presence amidst the turmoil.

"Listen," Kiara began, her voice steady despite the tempest around them, "we're playing a dangerous game with Renesmee's life whether we like it or not. You know the Volturi - you said it yourself, Carlisle, they'll have to come soon to make sure that Bella is a vampire, and when they do, what do you think they'll make of Nessie?"

She noticed Bella tense a little at the nickname, but she chose to ignore it. Kiara had to paint a bigger picture and Bella being upset over the name was the absolute bottom of her priorities right now.

"We've kept her safe this long," Rosalie countered, her tone as cold as the marble of her skin. Edward was still pressed against Kiara, but his hold had loosened a little as Rosalie had removed her arm from his own. "We don't need help from those who once hunted her."

"Rose, babe," Kiara implored, knowing that if she wasn't being restrained by Edward then she would be restraining herself to stop from reaching out to brush a rain-soaked strand of hair from Rosalie's face. "You have to be realistic. The Volturi are another beast entirely... We need numbers, strategy... unity. We don't know how mortal Renesmee really is - and I think we'd all feel a lot safer if we knew we didn't have to be worried about pissed off wolves at our every turn."

"Unity?" Edward's voice cut through the tension, his dark eyes pained as he looked at Kiara. "Why would you endanger Renesmee by bringing Sam here? He—"

"Because, Edward," Kiara interjected, her hands balling into fists at her sides, "if the packs stand together, we're stronger. There's power in unity."

Leah, who had been leaning against one of the trees with arms crossed, let out a snort, her expression twisting into a scowl. She's been rather impassive to the whole conversation, knowing that Sam wouldn't try to hurt Renesmee due to their imprint law. Sure, she was the last person that wanted to see the alpha, but if it got him to back off then she was all for it.

"Oh, so now we're all about kumbaya with the pack that left me high and dry? I didn't claw my way up to be shoved back under Sam's thumb," Leah snapped, rolling her eyes. They had literally just discussed the day prior that Kiara and Leah didn't want to go back to Sam's pack, yet here she was claiming that her and Sam had had a discussion about reuniting the packs.

"Leah, now is not the time," Kiara barked back, not having the energy to explain yet that Leah wouldn't need to answer Sam if she decided to take up his offer. Leah wouldn't need to ever answer to Sam again.

Kiara's pulse jittered like a drumbeat gone rogue beneath her skin as Edward's grip slackened, the iron clasp of his fingers easing from her arms. The coolness of his touch lingered, an ethereal brand against her fevered flesh. The forest around them held its breath, the tension palpable in the charged air.