Chapter 2
Edward sped to enter their house and went straight to Alice who was biting her finger anxiously, his feet repeatedly tapping the floor in a pattern. “What happened, Alice? You told me it’s not Bella, then what is it? Where is she?!”
“No, Edward,” Alice answered as she stood up, and suddenly, the whole family was around them. “It’s not about Bella. I saw a vision of her jumping off a cliff. That’s why I came back and visited her, but a wolf had imprinted on her. And she’s safe.”
Edward expected a pang of pain in his undead heart, but he was surprised when he felt none. Instead, he felt an ounce of relief knowing that Bella has moved on from him and will be able to go on with her life without him. “Then what is it that you’re panicking about, Alice?” He tried to reach and read her mind but Alice already knew what he’s going to do so she flooded her mind with memories unnecessary for the situation: like them playing in the snow.
“It’s about a girl,” Alice started. “The girl is awfully familiar, but I can’t recognize her. Maybe it’s because of her situation in the vision.” Edward involuntarily swallowed. He doesn’t have an inkling of what his sister is saying, but her panic and nervousness is enough to send his heart beating again just to fail miserably. “The girl was tortured, Edward. She is dying,” her voice trailed down as she continued. “And you’re begging her to come back while attempting to turn her.”
Loud protests and voices filled the entirety of their living room while Edward managed to drop himself to a couch. He's turning someone… someone bloody tortured and dying. He rubbed his face with his palm and swallowed again. It feels as if his heart had succeeded in beating again because he swears he can hear it, or is it just his mind playing with him due to what has been revealed by his sister.
He could only think of one person he had thought of turning.
There is only one person that he wanted and still want to turn.
And that person is safe in Britain.
She is supposed to be safe in Britain!
“Fuck.” Jasper’s voice was toned down by the scent that lingered in the air.
“She's here,” Alice whispered. “The girl’s already here.”
~
“What’s happening, Billy?” Sam asked as the elders held a meeting a few meters away from the boundary line just a few hours before the sun set. “Who are the weird guys wearing black robes you were talking to earlier?”
The whole pack surrounded the elders. They all have shifted already and ready for defense. Billy Black looked at the rest of the elders who also looked conflicted like him. “You know about the magic protecting our land, right?” As the whole pack nodded and exchanged confused looks, he began telling them the story. “Our land’s magic is gifted to the ancient people of our tribe by ancient practitioners of magick. It is a token of friendship and a promise of protection in case something happens that will endanger the tribe.”
“What do you mean ancient practitioners of magick?” Sam asked, representing the questions of the whole pack. “We thought that the magic is from nature? And now, there are practitioners?”
“There are,” Harry stated. “Two of them are our tribe’s friends. They are Helga Hufflepuff and Rowena Ravenclaw. They hold different kinds of creatures in their realm, and it was peaceful, but they said they can’t be confident that peace will remain, and their gift to us will make us safe if we’re ever put into danger,” he sighed. “That’s the reason for our land’s magic, and the treaty. We were safe.”
“Until they came earlier,” Billy muttered.
“Who?” Jacob asked. His brows are furrowed, worry and distraught etching on his face.
“Death eaters.”
The pack murmured questions and clarifications until Billy cleared his throat. “They are some… evil wizards recruiting us to fight for them. And they are threatening us to kill everyone if we do not cooperate with them.”
Breaths are held, violent reactions attempting to seep into the air. “Our barrier will hold them off for a while, but it will not last. We need to make a choi—”
Everything stopped when they smelled it.
𝐵𝑙𝑜𝑜𝑑.
There in the clearing, they saw it. The boundary line that was empty when their gathering started is now no longer empty.
“Goodness,” Harry groaned upon seeing the woman that took place into the vacant clearing.
The pack rushed towards it and at the same time they reached the woman, the leeches also came. Same with their reactions, the Cullens look shocked upon seeing the woman’s state. The woman’s body is twisted in weird angles, and blood is pooling under her body. Her brunette mane of curls is all sweaty and matted. Her left arm is clutching a piece of wooden stick, and her right forearm is stretched and a word is carved in there harshly, and the elders held their breaths.
𝑀𝑢𝑑𝑏𝑙𝑜𝑜𝑑.
They know what that word means, and by looking at the brunette’s face, Billy once again gasped when he recognized the girl in the distressed state. “Hermio—”
“Hermione.” The whole La Push people looked at one of the leeches, Edward, when he muttered the girl’s name in a bated breath as he kneeled down in front of her.
“What are you doing?” Jacob growled at Edward, his protective instincts kicking in upon recognizing the girl they last saw four years ago.
Sam barely recognized the little girl they once knew as she appeared in front of them now. With all the scars and injuries, and the sudden appearance makes no sense. They all thought she was studying in Scotland. And it also doesn’t make sense that the youngest leech knows her as he isn’t around all the years that Hermione was born and visited them. So how come would he know her?
He looked at the family of leeches and judging by their reactions, he knew they also came to the realization that the girl battered up in front of them is the little kid that used to wake the whole Forks with her high energy and enthusiasm, talking about her books and all the new knowledges she acquired, asking everyone and all of Forks questions after questions.
It was sudden. One moment, they were all crowding around the distressed girl, and now, the girl was gone. She was taken by the leech, resulting in the violent reactions of the pack, and he fought himself to keep his composure. He looked at the patriarch of the Cullen family, Carlisle. “You know the girl belongs to us,” he nodded. “Since your son took her, we demand an entrance to your home to see the girl. The girl is a Quiluete.”
Carlisle nodded. “Of course, Sam. As long as there will be no harm involved, you’re welcome to our home to see Hermione, and I will talk to Edward regarding his actions.”
As soon as the leeches left, the members of La Push started throwing opinions after questions, all are violent reactions and questions about what happened,and the involvement of the Cullens.
“She’s one of them,” Quil Sr. Stated, making them look at him.
“One of what?” Sam asked.
“She’s one of the practitioners of magick,” Harry answered, nodding as he connect the dots. “Her sudden appearance and the stick she’s holding. It’s a wand.” He blew a breath as he spoke again. “Hermione is a witch.”
~
Edward’s mind races with questions as he laid the witch he’s holding carefully down his bed. His heart aches for his woman, why is she in this mangled state? He can’t understand why she is suddenly in his place, and situation. He immediately knew that this is the reason Aro sent him home instead of killing him. Aro saw this.
Shaking, Edward sat down beside her and held her small face in his hands. He doesn’t understand. This is not the same Hermione he left two years ago. This Hermione is too thin, too starved. Too scared.
“Hermione,” he whispered in a ragged breathing. “Love.” He carefully brought her hands to his lips as he leaned down and pressed his forehead to hers as gently as he could, kissing her knuckles lightly as he did so.
He doesn’t need to breathe, but he finds the need to if he wants to survive the onslaught of emotions and happenings today. He can’t seem to comprehend what might have happened for her to be like this, and to find anything that could save her. If he could cry, his eyes would swell with them now as he felt his heart shatter for his little witch. Mind swirling in all directions, his heightened senses failed to recognize the faint flick of air as his family rushed through his room.
Seeing the sight in front of them and hearing Edward’s roughed and strained breaths, Esme melted and joined his son on the bed and placed her hand on his shoulder, hoping to offer him the comfort she was sure he needed.
“Edward—” Carlisle put an arm to stop Rosalie from assaulting Edward with words and questions.
“Let’s go downstairs,” he whispered before guiding his kids down to the living room. Carlisle opened the door to their home the moment the wolves came, and welcomed them to their home.
“Where’s Hermione?” Jacob asked the moment he came in, pushing his Dad’s wheelchair.
“In Edward’s room,” answered Carlisle as he looked over the pack. The Blacks, the Clearwaters, and everyone in the pack, and Seth came. Carlisle knew what they wanted. They knew Hermione since she was a child, and probably like the pack was thinking, they are confused as to why and how would his youngest son know the little girl considering he wasn’t around until two years ago.
Hermione, despite being partly a part of the Quileute tribe due to her father, only visited every summer and only stopped coming when she was fourteen. The whole Forks knew her as she would always stroll around the whole city with her books in hand and asking everyone random questions. Apparently, the whole Cullen family is rather fond of her as the girl as she doesn’t know about the treaty and of what they are, thus having no vices of not following the rules and would just randomly go to their house and interview him about his job of being a doctor. Esme would always cook for her and she would indulge in everything in delight while she would study with Alice, Jasper, Emmet, and Rosalie. She would never tire of asking questions and would only stop if it was time to go home, or if her parents would come over and get her, or her godfather. Edward was not with them that time, as he had been given a new life temporarily due to his sickness of living as a vampire, so there was no way he would meet her as Edward. Unless…
They heard a faint sound of air outside the house and by the smell that lingered, he knew exactly who that is.
“Remus,” Billy whispered when the door to his house opened and a scarred and distressed looking man entered. There, entered a long time friend of his despite their huge differences and a once member of the pack of Quileute Tribe— Remus Lupin, the man inflicted with Lycanthropy, and thus, a moonshifter.
“Billy,” he smiled at everyone from the Quileute tribe and looked at Carlisle. “Where is my goddaughter, Carlisle?”
“With my son,” I answered and muttered, “Edward, come down here,” knowing well that he would hear me.
Not a second later, Edward is at my side, looking at the friend who just entered. “Professor Lupin.”
Remus, as he gestured more from outside to come inside and follow him, smiled knowingly at Edward, and said something that confirms my suspicions earlier.
“I knew I sent Hermione to the right place. It’s nice to see you again, Cedric.”