MORE PEOPLE had turned up at the Cullen house, prepared to witness the rarity of Renesmee's birth in person in a verbal (hopefully) battle against the Volturi. Bella had been told about Luna, Alice and Jasper's sudden disappearance and broke the news to Athena in - she would admit- a rather polite and considerate way of doing so. She came to her house, so they were alone and gave her all the information that she knew with a comforting smile and tone. Athena acted the best that she could, being disappointed and shocked when she should have been and quiet when Bella discussed her thoughts with her. She never uttered a word of knowledge about their disappearance private to it occurring, even though she didn't know anything more than she did about the situation.
With the increased number of vampires turning up, more and more younger members of the wolf pack began to turn in the forest. Jake must have forgotten to tell them about Athena as she was attacked by a rather stubborn wolf on the edge of the reservation before going to Billy's. Which of course was forgiven but only when matched with the promise that he would not do the same thing again.
But with the new guests, came some news that the Cullen Clan were not prepared for in any way shape or form. So a meeting to discuss this sudden change in the looming battle occurred. "When Aro wants someone from a coven, it's never long before evidence turns up proving some sort of crime," one of the Vampires who Athena hadn't quite gotten the name of yet, began the meeting. "It happens so rarely, I never realised it was a pattern."
"This is all about Alice," Edward replied, a look of blind fury hidden behind his eyes."Or possibly-" Athena snapped into his head, cutting off his speech within seconds.
"Don't Edward," she whispered into his mind, letting go of her grip on his mind. "I don't want all these people knowing."
Emmett, probably knowing what they were looking at each other so intensely about, took the conversation in another direction, "Why does he need witnesses?"
"To spread the word that justice has been served," another vampire, she thought to go by the name Alister, brought up - weird for him as he didn't usually say a single word. "After he slaugters an entire coven."
"Benjamin, Tia, we're leaving," Amun interrupted as he strode across the room, giving Benjamin a look that sent an anger flow through Athena's veins.
"And where will you go?" she piped up, looking directly at him instead of the spot on the sofa that she was sitting on. "There's nothing stopping them coming after Benjamin next. Or anyone really."
"Their goal isn't punishment, it's power. It's acquisition," Edward added then his expression turned serious, looking around the room at all the people present. "Carlisle might not ask you to fight, but I will. For the sake of my family. But also for yours. And for the way you want to live. "
Silence followed Edward's grand speech, tens of minds turning in deep thought as they considered the risk against their lives. "The packs will fight," Jake broke the silence, standing as he continued, "We've never been afraid of vampires."
After that, many voices followed all agreeing to be on the good side. A side that would finally show people going against the Volturi was possible. "We'll join you," Benjamin agreed after conjuring with Tia for a moment.
"No," Amun immediately disagreed, looking at him with betrayal written on his brow.
"I will do the right thing, Amun," Benjamin replied, not seeing Athena's prideful smile as he continued."You may do as you please."
-
"Proud of you for finally standing up to Amun," she chuckled softly as she, Tia and Benjamin walked through the forest, going on one of their daily talking strolls.
He laughed along with Tia, who she could tell also felt some level of pride for him then. The laughter died when Tia squeezed his hand, gesturing to Athena with a questioning gaze as she looked up into a nest now without birds. "Why did Edward look at you so intensely when he mentioned something possibly?"
She fought the urge to sigh, knowing that would give off her true feelings. "It's nothing,"
"Don't be evasive," Benjamin replied almost instantly, knowing that part of her was hard to avoid in some circumstances.
"I'm not being evasive," she countered, a scoff falling from her lips without her meaning to.
Tia, with a more softened gaze than Benjamins, asked calmly, "What's going on?"
"It's truly nothing, " she reassured with a smile, though neither of them believed it. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going on the res." She walked off so they couldn't get another word in, climbing over a pile of logs from fallen trees before she broke into a sprint.
"Athena!" Benjamin called after her, having dropped Tia's arm to run after her upon her okay.
She turned on the very border of the reservation, yelling back "Don't follow me, Benjamin! The wolves will kill you on sight." She favoured the treaty more than before now, getting to use it as an escape mechanism for conversations that she would never have. The experience with the Volturi was something she would only tell people she trusted deeply and with her life - it wasn't that she didn't trust Benjamin or anything but in truth, she had only known him in person for about two months. The bond and reasoning for that type of conversation just was not there - maybe one day it would be.
She walked into the house, dumped her coat at the door and just began to pace the length of the living room and into the kitchen before going back again. Billy did not even bat an eye to this sudden appearance and pacing, knowing and having seen the exact same thing many days before. It had become the norm and following the norm rules, he just waited for her to say something about whatever was going through her mind.
Eventually, after a good ten minutes of pacing back and forth with a swirling mind that once again never settled on one thing other than the bad things, she stopped. "What if I have to break the promise?"
He raised a brow, looking at her instead of the book in his hand. "Promise?" he echoed, unsure of what she was talking about.
She sighed and began pacing again, this time only doing the length of the living room. "I promised Jasper I wouldn't give myself over to the Volotri so everyone else could live, a barter situation. But if it gets to that-"
Billy, rather surprised and appalled by the idea of her going back to the Volturi, tried to keep his cool as he replied, "Would it even get to that situation?"
"It's possible. If the witness thing goes incredibly wrong, whatever Alice has planned goes wrong too. If they're on the brink of a battle - I could stop it all by giving Aro what he wanted. Me and his brain returned to normal," she paused, the very words sending shocks of thick dread through her stomach. "I know he would take it, he's like that. He doesn't actually care about the child, he just wants either Alice or me - according to Edward though it wouldn't surprise me."
"Could you not just fix his head? Would that not be enough?"
"No. He won't settle for that, he likes to think he's getting the up on the deal," she sighed aggravatedly this time, stopping her pacing again. She then continued at a normal, unphased with dread level, "Jake, come out from behind the wall for Lucifer's sake."
"Sorry," he apologised as he turned the corner, looking down to the boards beneath his feet."I just didn't think-"
"You've heard it now. Just don't tell anyone," she sighed and sunk down onto the floor, back against the wall.
"And don't let her do it," Billy chimed in, voice stern and unwavering - like he was barking an order not to be broken.
"Not happening," Athena countered, glaring the thought out of his near mind.
"I doubt it will ever get to that point anyway," Jake added hopefully, having a conversation with his father with only his eyes. Athena didn't bother chime in, already knowing what it was about. "With the combined forces and everything, a battle isn't likely to happen."
"I know that, I'm talking about if it did," she replied, running a hand through her hair and touching the wood surface of the floorboards as Billy did the same only on the table.
"But it won't," Jake tried to reassure, not sounding so sure of it himself.
"Hope and pray to Zeus, Jesus or Satan or whoever," she muttered, looking around the room and focusing on the specks of dust in the air for something to change the thoughts in her mind. The stress levels of looming battle reached a peak, a peak that she only knew to fix in one of a few ways. Two of those ways weren't possible in the house she was in but one of them was. Plys, it gave Billy and Jake time when she was not there. A rarity, now he had to protect Renesmee. She turned, looking back to Billy with a hopeful gaze, "Do you have-"
"It's all in the kitchen," he interrupted, knowing exactly what she had been thinking. She smiled and stood, walking into the kitchen where all the ingredients for stress baking lived.