Bella MacLeod's Twilight Fanfiction

Catharsis

By Mama4Dukes

Chapter 09:

“I brought more muffins!” Emily, whom Bella was convinced, was some sort of amped up Betty Crocker, chortled. She set the plate in the middle of the coffee table that the wolves, imprints, and elders sat around. “Bella, aren’t you going to have some?”

“Um, gee, I wish I could, but I’m on a low carb diet.”

“You’re on a diet?”

“Yes, we both are!” Sam added. “We’re doing the low carb, high protein thing. I decided that I want to be at my peak performance level as a wolf.”

“And I said I’d join him.”

“After all, there’s nothing better than a supportive imprint.”

“Oh, so I suppose you won’t be having any of the brownies I made.” Ellen Uley arched an eyebrow at the newly imprinted couple.

Sam and Bella stared at the brownies. They loved brownies. They turned to each other, and then hesitantly to Ellen, resolutely declaring that they couldn’t have the brownies.

They watched while the plate of brownies quickly started disappearing.

“Aren’t any of you going to have my muffins?” Emily asked sadly.

There were two brownies left. Bella snatched them before anyone else could. She gave one to Sam who quickly devoured it.

“Alright, I admit it. We lied, but that’s because we didn’t want to hurt Emily’s feelings.” Bella grabbed a muffin from the tray, and turned to Jake’s imprint. “I know you mean well, but these muffins suck. Muffins shouldn’t be rock hard. She tapped a muffin on the coffee table.” She paused. “If you come to my house, I will teach you how to make muffins properly. We’ll all chip our teeth on these.”

“Thank God!” Jacob cried. “Someone finally spoke up!”

“You couldn’t be honest with me, Jake?” Emily started bawling. She turned to Bella. “I don’t know why my muffins turn out so hard. I make them exactly as the cookbook says.”

“Are you throwing everything into a stand mixer?” Bella asked.

“Yes, of course.” Emily nodded.

“Duh!” Leah cried. “There’s your answer, Bella. Em, you never, ever use a stand mixer for muffin batter. You stir until everything is just combined. Otherwise, the muffins come out hard like yours.”

“Well, you could have told me! You’re my cousin!”

“I didn’t know your muffins were hard. I know how bad of a cook you are. I’m not crazy enough to sample anything you make.”

“Man, that sucks for you, Jake,” Paul commented.

“Haha, you haven’t had Rachel’s cooking yet,” Jake replied with a cackle, only to get his arm pinched by his older sister. “If it ain’t canned, frozen, and microwavable, she won’t cook it for you. Oh, and I use the term ‘cook’ lightly when it comes to her.”

“Hey, I admit it. I can’t cook, and I’ll probably never learn,” Rachel confessed. “Besides, my brother is an excellent chef. Bella and he learned to cook from my mother when she was alive.”

“It’s true. Mom taught both of us to cook whenever Bella visited in the summertime.” He then turned to Emily. “I don’t mind doing the cooking. I’m a way better chef than you are.”

“Alright, enough of this chatter. Bella, did you bring the photos?” Levi Uley asked.

“Yes. In fact, some of them were on my phone so Sam and I brought them to Walmart and made prints.” She handed him an envelope.

“Thank you, Bella.” He laid the photos down on the table. “I recognize five of them. If I’m not mistaken, the blonde male is Carlisle Cullen and the brunette is his mate Esme.”

“Vampires have mates?” Leah asked.

“They do. Actually, they feel the same way about their mates as we do about our imprints. They feel the same electricity and warmth, and they feel the pull when they’re apart,” Levi informed her.

“Pull? What pull?”

“You know. It’s that dull feeling in your chest, as if something is missing, whenever you’re not near Sam.” Kim, who Bella had never spoken to, explained.

Bella stood up and walked away from Sam into the kitchen. “I feel fine. Am I defective?”

“You’re in the same damned house as he is, Bella!” Leah chastised. “She means like when you’re at home in Forks and he’s in La Push.”

“Ohh… so, that’s not heartburn? I get it now.” She turned to Levi Uley. “Is there anything that can be done to alleviate the ache?”

“You have to be near your wolf.”

“It’s a good thing we’re in all the same classes.” Bella nodded to Sam who pulled her back down next to him.

“As I said, I recognize five of the vampires. Carlisle Cullen and his mate Esme, Emmett Mc Carty and his mate Rosalie, and Edward Cullen. Am I correct?” Levi asked Bella.

“Yes, but you should know that they go by different aliases, especially if they feel they’ve stuck with one name for too long. For example, this time around, Rosalie used the last name Hale, her maiden name, while Emmett went with Cullen. They masqueraded as high school students and actually attended Forks High School while Carlisle played the working father and Esme, the housewife.”

“He worked outside of the house and the other vampires attended the high school?”

“Yes, Carlisle Cullen worked at the hospital as an emergency room physician. Rosalie and Emmett pretended they were high school seniors, who were dating. The other two vampires: Jasper Hale and Alice Cullen, pretended to be high school juniors, along with Edward Cullen. You should also note that at any given time, they could go by the last names, Branden, Hale, Masen, McCarty, Platt, or Whitlock.”

“Did you get that?” he asked Ellen, who was acting as secretary.

“I did. Let me just confirm the names, Branden, Hale, Masen, McCarty, Platt, or Whitlock. Am I correct?”

“Yes.” Bella nodded her head.

“Sam mentioned that two of the new vampires have powers that are more formidable than Edward Cullen’s telepathy,” Billy mentioned. “Is this true, Bella?”

“Yes, Alice is a seer. She has the ability to see into the future; however, her gift is not absolute. For example, any one of us could make a split-second decision that can change the outcome of her visions. Alice’s mate Jasper is the one with the scary power. He’s an empath, who is able to control emotions. He used to be a major in the confederate army during the Civil War. When he was changed, he fought in the Southern Vampire Wars.”

“Wait a second, missy! What Southern Vampire War?”

“Oh, the Southern Vampire Wars are vampire territorial wars fought down south, somewhere in the vicinity of Texas and Mexico. It started in the early 1800’s and is still going on today. Anyway, I guess what happens is that the warlords form armies with newborn vampires and decimate each other. Newborn vampires are physically stronger because their own human blood still lingers in their tissues, but emotionally unstable. Jasper was able to control their emotions to make them even more powerful so they could win. Eventually, Jasper couldn’t take the emotional toll it took on him. You see, he feels everyone’s emotions. After nine months to a year of being in a newborn army, his job was to cull them.”

“Cull as in slaughter?”

“Yep, and he felt their emotions as he ripped their heads off with his bare hands, lit them on fire, and watched them dissipate into purple smoke.”

Everyone was staring at Bella slack-jawed.

“And this Jasper told you all of this?” Harry managed to choke out.

“Oh, sure, I got along well with Jasper. He’s really nice. We both like history, you see, and since he was actually in the Civil War, I was able to ask him a ton of questions. Last year, I got an A+ on my paper on the Civil War because he was a direct source.”

“You are grounded!”

“You can’t ground me. I’m not your kid.”

“You might as well be. I’m your Uncle Harry, and I don’t like the fact that you were hanging around with… with… a warlord! No more of my fish fry for two weeks!”

“You can’t do that! I like your fish fry!”

“I mean it, young lady! When I come over to your house tonight for the game, you get no fish fry!”

“Fine! I’ll just make the chili at Sam’s house. You won’t get any.”

“Oh, Bella, you can’t do that!” her Uncle Billy cried. “I never said you were grounded. It was only Uncle Harry who said that.”

“No fish fry, no chili.”

“Is it any wonder why your kids are so distracted?” Old Quil shouted. “Here you two buffoons are going on about fish fry and chili when Isabella is trying to give us pertinent information! No wonder these kids have attention issues.” He turned to Bella. “Do you have anymore information?”

“No, that’s it for now, but if I think of anything else, I’ll tell you.”

“Fine! I’ll bring enough fish fry for you tonight,” her Uncle Harry finally conceded.

“And I’ll make the chili.” Bella smirked at him.

“Uh, can… may I come to your house with my dad?” Leah suddenly asked. She figured it was time to make amends with Bella. With her father watching the game at the Swan’s house, it was the perfect time to set things straight.

“Sure, that would be cool.” “Thanks.” Leah looked up to see Sam glaring at her suspiciously. She just rolled her eyes and shook her head.

---

That same evening, Sam Uley was in an atrocious mood. He wanted to go to Bella’s house because Leah was going to be there, but instead, he was at a restaurant in Port Angeles with his mother, Embry, and Tiffany Call. It was their monthly family dinner. He could tell that Embry, too, was in as morose a mood as he was.

“Are you two boys still not speaking to each other?” Tiffany asked.

“No, why?” Embry asked.

“Because you both look like you want to hit each other.”

Embry turned his eyes away from his mother.

“I’m just wondering how Bella is holding up. Leah is having dinner at her house, and I’m worried,” Sam admitted.

“Why the hell would you worry about Leah? It’s your girlfriend who is outright insane! She dated a vampire and had actual conversations with them-like they were her friends!”

Sam stood up and shoved Embry. “Don’t you ever talk about my girlfriend when we both know that yours talked behind her back when she hadn’t even met her!”

“Both of you sit down immediately!” Alison chastised. “I am ashamed of you! You both know better than to behave like this in public! You are brothers, and you do not let a girl come between you! Now I know for a fact that Bella is a bit quirky, but she is not malicious, Embry! And Samuel, you need to drop whatever feud you have going with Leah and Embry! They imprinted on each other. It was fate! Just like it was fate when you imprinted on Bella. Both of you need to let go of whatever animosity you have for each other!”

“I agree.” Tiffany glared at both boys, indicating that she’d had enough of their ongoing hostility. “Now it appears to me the girls are trying to make amends. Give them the opportunity to do so on their own terms without any interference from you. You are brothers and have been your entire lives. It’s time you behaved like it.”

---

Bella’s eyes widened when she realized, not only did Leah come over but so did Emily.

“You told me you were going to teach me how to make muffins,” Emily mentioned.

“I did, didn’t I? I don’t break promises. Don’t worry, I will teach you. How about if we do it after dinner? Fish fry tastes awful when it’s soggy.”

“That’s a great idea, thank you.”

The dads sat in the living room to watch the game while they ate. The girls decided to eat at the dining table. They ate silently for a few minutes until Emily blurted, “My cousin has something to say to you and so do I.”

“Okay, go ahead.”

“I want to apologize for being prejudiced about you when we first met. Jake kept saying you were very nice, but… but… well, it’s just all of the stuff that happened between Sam and my cousin clouded my mind.”

“I understand. You were loyal to your cousin.”

“But I shouldn’t have been. I didn’t have both sides of the story then. I realized today how nice you were to be so honest about my muffins.”

“I wasn’t honest. I lied in the beginning.”

“But it was only to spare my feelings.”

“I accept your apology. It’s nice to make new friends.”

Bella smiled warmly at Emily who abruptly hugged her.

“Oh, thank you. You’re so nice! I’m going to give you a nice haircut, too.”

“My cousin is a hairdresser. She’s really talented,” Leah informed her. She does my hair.

She checked out Leah’s stylish bob. It suited her well. Bella’s own hair was a wavy, tangled mess, which she always kept gathered up in a ponytail.

“I just graduated in June from the vocational technical program in hairdressing at my high school. I was just hired at a salon in Forks. I’m really excited about it. My aunt and uncle are letting me live in the spare room at their house.”

“You’re lucky you have relatives close by. How far is the Makah Reservation?”

“It’s a little over an hour away without traffic. There’s always traffic, though. Living with my aunt and uncle also allows me to be closer to Jacob. You see, I never in my wildest dreams, thought any of this could happen to me, but it did. I’m still a bit frightened about the whole situation.”

Bella realized that Emily was a chatterbox. She was actually a very sweet girl, the opposite of her first impression of her. Sam called her a fufu nightmare-he did get the ‘fufu’ part correct because compared to her, Emily was very girly. She wouldn’t describe Emily as a nightmare though.

“Did you know I used to have a crush on Sam?” Emily continued.

Since when had they moved on to Sam?

“It was after Embry and Leah imprinted on each other. I felt so bad for him. I tried to make him feel better by bringing him cookies and talking to him, but he didn’t really like me. Now I know why! He needed you!” She suddenly gasped, putting her palm over her mouth. “Oh, I forgot. Leah wanted to say something to you. She’s ever so sorry for saying those things about you. It’s just that she had been in love with Sam at one point, and she really didn’t understand when he had become a wolf because…”

“Okay, Emily, I can take it from here. Thanks, though,” Leah interrupted.

“Oh, you’re welcome. I know you find it hard to talk. I’ve always had better interpersonal skills than you. Ooh, but I should let you talk.”

Leah sighed. “Bella, I want to apologize for being a jealous bitch. It’s just that this whole wolf and imprinting thing hit me like a ton of bricks. The truth is, Sam and I had been growing apart months before I changed into a wolf. He hurt me when he disappeared and dropped out of high school. I had no idea what had happened to him because he couldn’t tell me. It was only after I became a wolf that I learned the truth, but I imprinted on Embry on the same day, and I was overcome by all the feelings of being imprinted.”

“I bet it was double for you since he imprinted on you as well.”

“I never thought about it that way, but you bring up a good point. I guess we both might have been clouded by our emotions.” She took Bella’s hands in hers. “The point is, I want to apologize profusely for my behavior, and I want to make a fresh start.”

“Sounds like a plan. I’m all for fresh starts. Now, should we teach Emily to make muffins so we don’t have to risk chipping our teeth anymore?”

“Sure!” Leah nodded her head and cheerfully followed Bella into the kitchen trailed by a smiling Emily. It was a tentative beginning to a new understanding and a new friendship.

---

At just before six am, the following morning, Bella heard a tapping noise at her window. She reluctantly got out of bed to check to see who it was and found Sam hanging from the tree limb outside her window, wearing nothing but a pair of shorts. He had been tossing pebbles at her window sill. She opened the window wide so he could hop inside.

“Sam, why are you here so early?”

“I was worried about you.”

“Why?”

“Because of Leah.”

“There was nothing to worry about. Emily and Leah just apologized.”

“Is that all that happened?”

“And then Leah and I taught Emily how to make muffins. After that, Emily gave me a hair…” Bella’s head snapped to the door. “Quick! Hide!”

Sam dove into the closet just as the door opened.

“Oh, you’re up.” Charlie took a look at the open window. “Are you okay? You usually sleep in on a vacation day.”

“I’m fine. It was warm in this room so I opened the window.”

Her father walked to the window to close it. “The latch is broken. I’ll repair it for you on my next day off.” He put his hand on her forehead to check her temperature, and then glanced at the bed. “Well, no wonder you feel like it’s hot in the room. It’s because you sleep underneath all those blankets and wear those flannel pajamas. You’re going to overheat. Anyway, I have to leave now if I’m going to make it to Olympia by nine for the seminar, and I won’t be back until late tonight. You make sure you shut that window and keep the door locked. I don’t mind if you go out, but text me to tell me where you’ve gone. Understand?”

“Yes, Daddy.”

Charlie reached into his wallet and handed Bella two twenties. “You can eat at the diner or coffee shop if you get hungry.”

“Daddy, I know how to cook, but thank you.”

“Yeah, yeah, but I know you. You’ll probably end up going out with one of your friends anyway, after you get more sleep. And you need gas in your car.”

“You know me too well.” She climbed back under the covers. “Thank you for this.”

“I’ll see you tonight, kiddo. I love you.”

“Love you, too. Drive safely.”

“I always do.”

As soon as Sam heard the car leave, he left his hiding spot in the closet. He hopped into bed next to Bella and pulled her into his arms and kissed her. “Okay, so what did Emily do?”

“Oh, she gave me a haircut. Apparently, she’s a hairdresser.”

“Yeah, she is. She offered to cut my hair once.” He checked out her hair. “Your hair looks pretty.”

“Thank you. I think so, too. By the way, she used to have a crush on you.”

“I know. She stalked me for a while. Now, she has Jake to stalk.”

“She’s really nice, and so is Leah.”

“If you say so.” He kissed Bella again, this time for a bit longer. “So, your dad is in Olympia all day, huh?”

“He is, why?”

“No reason.” He leaned in to cuddle her. “I’ll just have to spend the entire day with you. We’ll have to have an epic make-out session.”

“Ooh-that sounds like fun.”

“Trust me, it will be.”

They spent the entire day, kissing and snuggling in bed together, wondering why everyday couldn’t be like this.

---

At the same time, in another part of the country, in a luxurious, five-star hotel room, Edward Cullen sunk his teeth into his mate’s artery as he came to another roaring climax. The past couple of months had been sheer bliss for him. After he left Forks and the delightfully scented human girl, he met his mate. He ran into her in Seattle while he was trying on a new pair of Gucci loafers. She, too, was in the store, but was looking to steal a new pair. They had accidentally touched, and it was at that moment, they had discovered they were mates. The churning electricity between them had been proof enough.

Edward ended up purchasing his loafers and an entire new wardrobe for her. He couldn’t have his mate looking homeless. After that, they left for his house in Chicago. She had been the making of him. He encouraged him to embrace his natural vampiric side, which he had been suppressing because of Carlisle Cullen’s stupid humanitarian mandates.

There would be no more playing nice to humans, though. As a vampire, he was at the top of the food chain; moreover, he was gifted with the ability to read minds. As far as he was concerned, his superiority, even as a vampire, entitled him to dominate those less worthy than he was-humans and vampires alike. This was definitely the life.

He took a look at the pathetic human couple, who were tied up in the corner shaking in fear, and smiled.

“Please, please! What do you want from us? You can take our money, our belongings, whatever you want-just let us go!” the male cried out in desperation.

“Really? We can have whatever we want?” his mate questioned, in a sexy purr that elicited a growl from Edward.

“Anything! Take anything, please!” he called out in desperation.

“Oh, Edward, he’s so polite. He said, ‘please.’” His mate turned to the man’s wife. “But what about you? Do you want to be freed, too?”

Edward traced his finger down the woman’s tear-streaked face, ending at her soft lips. He turned to his mate and ordered her to kiss the woman. “Mmm…” she moaned. “Tastes like cherries.”

Edward crooked his finger at his mate, beckoning her to come to him. She obediently did as she was told, and then kissed him. They mated over and over again, while the couple watched in fear.

At dawn, Edward said, “I think they have enough fear in their veins.”

“Fear makes humans more delicious. Shall we untie them, then?”

“Of course. I’m kind of hungry myself.”

“Please! Please, let us go! We’ll give you anything you want! Anything!” the woman begged this time.

“Anything,” the man whimpered.

“Well, it’s your lucky day because all we want is some dinner.”

“Is that all you want? Go ahead and take our money. Buy yourselves a nice dinner.”

“I think we’ll take you up on your offer. Won’t we, darling?” Edward asked his mate.

“Absolutely, how can we say no to such generosity,” his mate cooed with a smile as she went straight for the male’s jugular.

His wife screamed in agony as she watched the blood being drained from her husband.

“Don’t be afraid,” Edward assured as he looked into her eyes, drawing her in with his allure. An aroused woman was even more delicious than a frightened one.

“No, I’m not afraid,” the woman murmured. He laughed. Humans were so easy to control.

“May I see your neck?” he asked.

The woman tilted her head and exposed her artery to him.

“I’m going to make you feel good,” he promised with a smile as he ran his hands over the woman’s body, and watched in satisfaction as the human girl’s arousal heightened. When a smile of ecstasy crossed her face, he sunk his teeth into her soft flesh to feed from her. And oh, how delicious her human blood tasted as it flowed through his veins to heat them.