BELLA
I woke up the next morning to find Edward's eyes on me and I swear I remembered him in the same exact position last night before I finally closed my eyes and fell asleep. I mentally face-palmed. "So, I see that you haven't moved one inch since last night huh?", I smirked at him.
He had a look of surprise before he said, "Why in the world would I even dare to move when I had the perfect view of my mate to look at all night?", he winked at me. I just rolled my eyes and he chuckled.
We spent the rest of the day at his place talking. We showed them some more magic and they watched on fascinated... Well except maybe Emmett who looked like a five year old child watching colourful lights at a fair. We all had laughed heartily at his childish compassion.
The next few days passed the same way. I wanted to wrestle with Jazz and Em but something or the other would come in the way. Either Edward was too reluctant to let me fight (though he tried to show otherwise, I didn't want him to be upset) or the girls dragged me down to the mall for shopping with them despite my repeated refusals. Alice just wouldn't listen but it really was hard to deny my sister anything when she seemed so excited for something as delusional as shopping. I truly had the most unique family in the world and I loved them all to bits. Even Rosalie made a conscious effort to get to know me and we were getting closer gradually...
I woke this morning to Edward's lips on mine. Edward was not as conscious about rules as of late now that he knew I wasn't really that breakable. He definitely was more flirty now and I found that really endearing. Also I loved the adorable shyness clear on his face when I would flirt back.
I kissed him back and he pulled back a moment later. "So I see you're in a mood today.", I smirked at him. He pouted. I pecked his lips once more. "Oh c'mon now don't tell me I can't kiss the love of my life. And no matter what you say I know you love it.", he replied with a wink. I chuckled.
That is when I noticed it was sunny outside. A smile quickly spread across my face and Edward noticed the way I was looking at the window. He slid one hand under my knees and the other hand on the smell of my back and picked me up gently. He efficiently jumped out the window and onto the back lawn. After setting me down, I kissed him on the cheek before diverting my attention to the sun.
I loved the sun. Especially if I had my wings out. The warm rays of the sun were almost therapeutic. I closed my eyes and twirled around a bit forgetting that Ed was there gazing at me with the most happy look I've ever seen on his face. Still standing there with my eyes closed, basking in the sun I said, "I love the sun. The warmth, the comfort, the natural beauty of it all...hmmm..."
Edward didn't say anything letting me enjoy the warm rays, smiling heartily at me. We went back to the house after some time. We got dressed after breakfast and were about to leave for the Cullen house. "Well, seeing as how the sun is shining, I assume you want to fly Bells?", Ben asked with a smile. I nodded enthusiastically not caring if I looked like a five year old child who got a new toy instead of the 1000 year old faerie-witch. I heard Edward chuckle and threw him a vulgar gesture. His eyes widened but he shook his head still trying not to laugh. I rolled my eyes.
I threw open my wings and gestured for him to hold on. He nodded and we flew off as Ben winnowed back.
EDWARD
Flying right now was no less exhilarating than the first time. The wind whipping at our faces as the sun shined upon us. I smiled at seeing Bella enjoy the sun yet again. Even her wings seemed to be enjoying the weather. Before long we touched down in front of the house and Emmett came bounding down the steps and went straight for Bella.
"Oh, can I please see your wings Belly bear? That first day you just flew off with Eddie man here! And you haven't brought out your wings ever since then.", Emmett pleaded. I growled. He knew I hated that nickname. Bella nodded but said, "However, no touching!"
Emmett had a mischievous look on his face as I saw the plan forming in his head. Before I could stop him, he reached out a hand to touch her wings and she swatted his arm away, too fast for me to see and snarled at him. Emmett was shocked and instinctively jumped back. Bella took a deep breath to calm herself down. A moment later she said in a strained voice, trying to keep calm, "Sorry Emmett. We're just really...protective...of our wings so if you would please not try to do that again." Emmett gulped and nodded. I have to admit, even I was scared of her. I would most definitely never want to be on the receiving end of that anger. And now that I think about it she let me touch her wings the last time. I grinned internally knowing she only let me touch her wings.
But right now, I knew I just had to get her away from Emmett before he started cowering behind the bushes. I was still a little hesitant, her face hadn't calmed down yet. I raised my hand to put it on her shoulder but thought better of it because while walking my hand would automatically touch her wing. I knew this wasn't the time for that. I lowered my hand and held her hand in mine. She saw this and rolled her eyes, placing my hand on her shoulder.
"But you let Edward touch your wings, Bella.", Emmett pouted not knowing when to stop. Bella glared at him and pulled me closer, "Because he is my mate.", she said possessively and I couldn't help but have a smug look on my face. We walked into the house to find amused looks on everyone's faces, having heard the entire encounter. Ben chuckled at Emmett's flabbergasted face and said, "Well, atleast now you know not to mess with my sister. She can be very ferocious when she wants to be. Especially when it's about her wings. No one in history except Edward and herself have touched her wings." Emmett just let out a nervous chuckle and Jasper, having a hard time not laughing after feeling Emmett's embarrassment, just shook his head with an amused expression.
We all hung out in the living room for a bit before Emmett, Jasper and Ben started playing Mario Cart. Rosalie was just flipping through some kind of magazine upstairs. Esme and Carlisle were out hunting and Bella, Alice and I were talking about completely random things. [Lol idk why I wrote that....]
"Dang it! Rematch. NOW!", Emmett boomed as Jasper and Ben snickered. Ben was much more comfortable with us but he did not trust us completely yet. Whatever he would be doing, he would keep an eye on Bella. But we were getting somewhere atleast. We were trying not to laugh at Emmett's childish behavior. Finally Bella couldn't take it anymore and got up.
"So, Emmett you ready to be beaten in another game now?", Bella said smugly. Emmett just glared at her. "Sure baby sister, unless you don't wanna lose.", Emmett shot back. Technically Bella wasn't actually Emmett's younger sister but we all preferred it this way including Bella. Bella simply winked at him and walked out. We followed. I wasn't keen on seeing Bella fight but I wouldn't contest her decision. She could make her own choices and I was in no position to stop her from doing that no matter how much I hated it. Plus Ben was okay with this. That meant even he thought Bella could fight Emmett. That placated me slightly but I was still worried.
They stood facing each other and crouched down ready to attack. Bella had a determined look on her face while Emmett had a look that clearly said that he was excited for this and that worried me. "Ready lil sister?", he teased. "Well, I'm always ready. Are you ready to lose big brother?", Bella's comeback surprised Em for a second before he growled playfully at her. Bella smirked once more before they shot at each other. Emmett was going to punch Bella in the stomach but she was faster and moved out of the way as Emmett ran straight into the ground. He got to find Bella casually standing nearby with her arms crossed.
He ran at her again but she dodged successfully. this went on for some time before Bella seemed to get bored and came at Emmett herself. As Emmett tried to attack her again, she skilfully dodged and punched him in the gut. He went flying backwards and collided with a tree or two. Emmett was growing impatient now, and came at her once more. Bella dodged and attacked but this time Emmett managed to dodge as well. They kept moving around each other attacking and dodging and it was getting difficult even for us to keep up as they moved with lightening speed. It was as if they were dancing around each other at a very high speed.
Suddenly unexpectedly she came at Emmett from behind and tapped his shoulder. He turned around, and Bella punched him in the face. Emmett at the same time had punched Bella in the stomach. They both were sent backwards. Emmett fell on the ground on his back as Bella was thrown backwards. She used the friction between the ground and her feet to stop herself from going backwards. That left deep marks on the grass covered land, much like the marks of a car tyre when it turns suddenly at a very high speed.
Bella then ran around Emmett at such a high speed that even though Emmett tried to catch her, he missed. She suddenly kicked Emmett in the knees as he fell down on the floor. She ended the fight by jumping up and climbing onto his shoulders with her hands around his neck. If this was a real fight then Emmett would have been done for. He would have no way of stopping her. Only now did I release the breath I did not even know I was holding.
This was pretty amazing and I couldn't help but feel a sense of pride in her. The fact that she fought Emmett without using magic and defeated him was commendable. She jumped back down and Emmett just stared at her wide-eyed. She smiled at him innocently. The surprise wore off a minute ago and we readied ourselves for Emmett's shout for a rematch. However, Emmett's reaction was not what we expected at all. He just grinned wide and picked Bella up and placed her on his shoulder and started running around as Bella squealed. "Put. Me. Down. Emmett. NOW!", She yelled. But Emmett wouldn't budge. Ben started laughing loudly then, followed most people in my family. Even Rose smiled. Bella glared at them. I laughed at the expression on her face. Half-annoyed and half-amused. "Edward!", the shout brought my attention to her. She was glaring daggers at me. The phrase 'if looks could kill' suddenly ran through my mind. I gulped and hurried to stop Emmett.
I gave him the put-her-down-or-I'm-gonna-have-problems-with-my-girl kinda look. He smirked and thought, Finally, you idiot. Finally you understand! It's not fun when your girl is mad at you. It was about time you understood.
Nevertheless he put her down. I sighed in relief as Bella swatted Emmett's head and he chuckled. Bella just rolled her eyes. Just then there was crack heard nearby. Turning towards the sound we saw a young man appear. He was not much taller than Jasper with dark black hair and eyes. He was dressed in dark blue tunics with a sword attached to his hip.
He took in his surroundings for a moment before spotting Ben and Bella who were standing close by. He dropped down on one knee and unsheathed his sword and rested the tip against the ground. He lowered his head. "Greetings, Your Highnesses.", he said in a deep voice.
"I've told you, you don't have to do that here.", Bella said as Ben nodded in agreement. He stood up and smiled a bit before adding, "But its protocol ma'am."
"Well then don't you think we are the ones that decide the protocol?", Ben countered with a smile. He seemed to think for a moment before grinning and said, "Well, alright. You got a point there Ben."
We watched the entire exchange with avid interest. Then Bella cleared her throat and said, "uhm... sorry I forgot to introduce you guys. This is David. The spymaster of Ithaca. He comes here once a week to keep me updated with everything that's going on in Ithaca. And David these are the Cullens. Rosalie, Emmett, Alice, Jasper and my mate, Edward. Esme and Carlisle have gone hunting. They must be coming back soon."
"Nice to finally meet you guys. I've heard a lot about you. Especially you Mr. Cullen.", he looked at me winking. I smiled back at him, only to be polite. Something felt off about him but I couldn't put my finger on it. I couldn't read his mind but seeing as how he was a spy, that wasn't very unusual. But I don't know I just had a feeling. I ignored it for the time being.
"So what's going on back there?", Bella asks. "Well, the same old same old. Everyone's missing you both a lot but otherwise its mostly all ok. Its just..", he glanced at us.
"Its ok David. I trust them. Tell me what happened.", Bella said. David nods and says, "We've observed some strange happenings in Vacamia. Their outer borders have suddenly become unmanned. None of their soldiers are on guard. We've tried entering but somehow communication gets cut off as soon as our men enter. Its like they've just vanished." He sounded very serious. Bella and Ben were deep in though for a moment. "The skies?", was all Bella asked.
"That's what is the most astonishing. From up above we can see the entire kingdom in ruins. But whenever we've tried entering from there, again all communication gets lost. We've lost a lot of people trying to enter Vacamia with no luck.", he replied thinking.
There was a frown on Bella's face and Ben was contemplating something. We just watched without interrupting, not wanting to disturb them. Finally Bella said, "This is probably some kind of a trap. Ask your men to stay close to Vacamia at all times. We don't want to miss anything. Also, man the borders, this could potentially be the beginning of something big. Don't do anything else yet. What does mom have to say about this?" David nodded and said, "She gave us similar orders. And she's expecting you there soon."
Bella nodded. "Of course. We need to handle this before the situation gets out of hand. We don't want a war. We've already had a lot of bloodshed. We'll be there tomorrow David, thank you." David gave them a small smile before saying, "Farewell", and disappearing with a crack sound. Bella sighed.
I went and wrapped my arms around her and she leaned into the embrace. We stood there for a few more minutes before going back to the house. "I need to talk to you Ben. Alone...if you guys don't mind.", she said finally. We all nodded and she stepped out of my arms. Soon after Ben and Bella winnowed out, leaving all of us confused and worried.
BELLA
This was serious. If it would have been about any other kingdom, I wouldn't have been so worried but this is Vacamia we are talking about and they don't like losing. Even after being defeated twice in war, we knew they could come after us again. But we did not even think, it would be so soon. Nevertheless, we still had time to maybe stop this before there was a war.
Ben and I winnowed out together. I did trust the Cullens but right now, I just wanted some peace and quiet so that I could think. We winnowed to a spot in the woods near a small stream. No human would come so deep into the forest. We sat down on a huge boulder near the stream to talk. "Vacamia is most definitely planning something. We need to act fast before it gets out of hand.", Ben began. I nodded.
"Jazmine is not one to give up. She is just as vicious as her mother and father. I knew killing them would impact Jazmine but if we hadn't killed them at the end of the 2nd war then many more innocents would have lost their lives.", I said thinking back to the time when it happened.
*Flashback*
*Bang* *Bang* *Boom* The clash of armour against swords and the screams of the remaining retreating soldiers was all that was heard. As the handful of soldiers tried to run for their lives, the king and queen, held captive by Ben and David begged for mercy. Mercy for their daughter safely back in Vacamia. I wasn't going to kill her. She did nothing wrong. She had no role in this bloodshed. And she was very young. But them, thousands of innocents lost their lives because of their greed for power. I knew it would affect Jazmine a lot to lose both her parents but I couldn't let them live. Not after what they did to my people. Not after what they did to Ciara.
I turned a deaf ear to them as I slit their throats and they fell down on the ground with a thump, blood leaking from their throat and mouth. "Send word to the princess and take away the king and queen back to the castle with dignity. We'll have the last rites for them.", I said as I turned around to help the injured soldiers back to the camp so that they could be treated."
*End of Flashback*
Jazmine didn't take the news very well as one would expect. But we somehow handled it and managed to convince her to go back to Vacamia since she had literally stormed into the palace with a group of soldiers. So it was natural of one to expect a counter-attack. Just not so soon.
"We need to be there, to take care of whatever Jazmine is planning. We will stop her. I won't let our people be attacked again. They've already been through a lot because of the wars.", I said out loud to no one in particular.
"Yes, we'll have to discuss our strategy tomorrow for finding out what's going on in Vacamia. I'll go back tonight and ready the troops. We might have need of them. The meeting with the diplomats and army officials will take place tomorrow after your arrival.", Ben said seriously. I nodded and then sighed.
Magic follows emotions and the anxiousness I was feeling was enough to trigger the magic, fighting for a release. And that's exactly what I did. I made the water from the stream shower upon us without actually drenching us. Ben stood up as well enjoying the 'rain'. I smiled softly. Moments like these were important sometimes. I continued making the water drizzle upon us until we heard an unfamiliar growl...
(End of chapter 13)