The Right Way To Turn
by wizardtho
Chapter 07:
After ten minutes, Major and Captain were still working over Demitri. I was steadily feeling more drained, so I sent Major the feeling of me needing him. Within seconds, the screams got worse, then they abruptly cut off as purple smoke curled up into the air.
Major and Captain were to me by the time I noticed the smoke. They knelt beside me as Char and Aaron moved to the chairs nearby. I whispered, “I'm okay, but we need to go over a few things before I rest, and I'm steadily becoming weaker.”
He nodded, then looked quickly at Char.
Char was gone and back in just seconds, it seemed. Major suggested as he held a warm delicious-smelling bag to my lips, “Try to feed for me, Sweet Girl. See if it helps. You were moving on your own for too long, using powers you aren't used to having.”
I nodded as I carefully bit into the bag he was holding, then drew deeply. Major hummed while caressing my throat. He got situated behind me on the lounge chair, then stroked my stomach under my shirt as I fed. It was soothing, which caused the tension melt out of me.
Ten minutes later, the crew had all slowly gathered, sitting silently while I finished feeding. When I was done, I kissed the palm Major had been holding the blood in, turned to kiss his lips, then whispered against them, “Thank you, My Love. That did help a bit.”
I leaned back against him again as I asked, “Is everyone here? No one is patrolling?”
He confirmed that everyone was gathered, so I said, “Demitri might not have said anything aloud, but the use of Edward's gift proved valuable. The Volturi want me as their ultimate power source. Apparently there hasn't ever been what he called a 'siphon' as strong as me before. Edward and Alice were working for the Volturi, but under cover in the Cullen house. I guess Aro believed if a power duplicator would show up in the open, it would have been to 'humane' vampires. They must not have known that it was me yet, when I went to Volterra to supposedly rescue Edward, because I would have never been able to leave there.”
I thought for a second, then said, “Major, I remembered something. The last time you tried to make them see... when you found me curled up in the corner... Edward stopped in the middle of his protest about me not wanting to see any of them and going home. He stopped mid-sentence, then inhaled. I think that's when he realised. Either way, we just took out the Volturi's prized tracker. We don't know when the last time he checked in was, or who he was even tracking to find us. I didn’t think to find that out.”
Major chuckled, “He gave that up when we got a hold of him, Darlin'. He was tracking me, and he hadn't checked in for over a day. He wasn't supposed to until he found me and had me subdued. He wasn't expecting me to have back up, let alone this amount of it. He was never told about me being the God Of War. I was just the coven member that you went underground with.”
I nodded, having already figured that out. I yawned suddenly as my temperature started rising, making me curl further into Major. Captain kissed my nose, saying in a whisper as he stroked my cheek, “Time for you to rest, Kitten.”
I nodded, but asked, “Can I rest while you both hold me in the tub? I'm starting to get warm again.”
Major kissed my shoulder, “Of course, Isabella. You just rest against me, and Char will get our bath ready.”
I closed my eyes as I nodded, then heard Dom ask, “I don't mean to pry, but... how is she in transition, Sir? I mean, I can see her tolerating the blood she drank, but...”
Major gave them the short version of what happened, then said, “We haven't had a chance to talk about her research, or about how the setback with the energy loss would affect her transition period. As you can see, she is extremely weak, so she may need to feed again at any given time. I'd like to keep her feeding and resting, to get her back to where she was before the incident. She was weak then, but it was nowhere near this extreme. I'm sure she'll want to speak to everyone at some point, and I can feel her gratefulness for all of you being here.”
I yawned softly, then whispered, “Crew is family... Major... better family than the ones... who wouldn't listen... wouldn't believe. They helped... even though they... didn't know me...”
Major ghosted his fingers up and down my spine as he cooed, “Hush now, Sweet Girl... you just rest. The crew isn't going anywhere. You can talk to them when you have more energy.”
The last of the tension melted out of me, so I barely registered when Char came out to tell them that our bath was ready.
I slept straight through my bath, my mates drying me off, and them getting us settled in bed. I don't know how long it was after that that I finally woke, but when I did, Jasper and Peter were surrounding me from the front and back, with me laying on my side. I hummed at the feeling of being surrounded, then whispered, “God, do I love this feeling.”
Peter chuckled as he kissed my shoulder, “Good morning, Kitten. How do you feel?”
I nodded then stretched while saying, “Pretty good. Thirsty, but good. I think I needed to sleep because I used so many powers.”
Jasper kissed my forehead, “I'd like you to rest today. I won't ask you to stay in bed, Sug, but I don't want you doing things alone, alright?”
I nodded, stretched again, then replied, “Perfectly acceptable. Now, if one of you would like to carry me to the bathroom, I need a moment. I will make sure to call you when I'm done. In the meantime, can you get my clothes out for the day? I'd like the charcoal peasant top with the ruching under the bust, the crochet waist skirt with the charcoal butterflies, a nude thong, and the black braided wedge heels.”
Jasper kissed my lips lightly, then Peter kissed my shoulder. Peter hummed, “I'll gather her clothes, you can help her with her necessities, Jazz. Once you're back in the bedroom, we can assess how she's really doin'.”
I took care of my bathroom needs, brushed my teeth with Jasper holding me from behind, then had him run his fingers through my hair. I noticed while he was doing that, that some significant changes had taken place while I slept.
My hair was now down to my tailbone in its natural curl, my facial features were fluid and smooth, my breasts had filled out considerably, my waist had slimmed and toned, plus my hips were wider. In fact, all of my muscles seemed to have toned up. I had the perfect balance between femininity and strength. I smiled at Jasper in the mirror, making him chuckle, “Is the self-assessment to your liking?”
I giggled with a nod, then asked cheekily, “Does my new form please you, Mr. Whitlock?”
He turned me in his arms, then whispered, “You were stunning before, Isabella. I'm certainly eager to get acquainted with all of your delicious new curves... but I love you every bit as much now as I did before. Please don't doubt that.”
I kissed softly over his heart before whispering, “I love you, too, Jazz.”
Once I was done dressing and my condition assessed by both of my mates, Peter carried me down to the lounge room on the basement level. They sat on either side of me in the center of the u-shaped couch, then I asked, “Is everyone here, or are some patrolling?”
Jasper smiled as he curled a stray hair around my ear, “I have hourly checks going, but they're all staying close to the house otherwise. Would you like to speak to them?”
I nodded, so Jasper said in a normal tone, “Fall in, crew.”
Within seconds, everyone was lined up with their eyes down and hands clasped behind their backs. “At ease. As you can see, Isabella is awake and almost fully recuperated from the other day's ordeal. She would like to speak to you all, but I want to get introductions out of the way first.”
I smiled up at him, so he explained, “From left to right, we have Coop, Ang, Dom, Stefan, and of course, Char. They were the ones who took turns bringing blood in for you. You might have heard their voices during that time. Then you know her mate, Aaron, and next to him we have Lexie and her mate Kendrick, Micha and his mate Adrianna, Nate and his mate Kota, and Jade and her mate Faith.”
I smiled at all of them, taking in their faces, then said, “I want to thank you all for coming so quickly. I don't remember a lot of what happened, but I do remember a couple of your voices. I need you to know that it means a lot that you would come here and help me when you don't even know me. It's nice to know that Major and Captain have the support of so many when they need it, whether you knew me or not.”
I saw many of them smile at me, so I continued, “Major was right when he said I may need to feed again at any time. It seems now that my body can accept blood, it needs it frequently, especially if I use any of the powers. We don't know what's ahead of us as far as the Volturi trying to take me. We could be looking at a war, if Aro wants me under his thumb bad enough, especially after taking out his hound. Those of you with powers will need to help me get used to how they work, so that if I draw the ability to use them again, they don't weaken me as they did with the tracker. It seems as though once I have a power, I can draw on it even if the person is no longer around... or alive, for that matter. I can feel Demitri's power, along with Alice's and Edward's. Since none of you came back with Edward, I must be right in assuming he was nowhere around.”
The ones who left to check all nodded, then Micha explained, “There was no intruder scent outside of the perimeter wall, other than Demitri's. We even scaled the trees, but were unable to catch a scent or sight of anyone.”
I nodded, “Thank you. Now I don't know any of your scents, but my nose is definitely noticing a lot of them, and it's making me a bit edgy. I would like to, if you all agree, take in your scents individually so that I can recognize friend from foe. Please don't feel that you have to say yes. I won't be upset. It's just a way to help calm my nerves a bit.”
Char stepped forward with Aaron, hand-in-hand, saying together, “We agree.”
Dom immediately stepped forward to agree, “I am willing, Little One.”
Ang, Coop, and Stefan all jumped forward, too, so I smiled, “Thank you.”
After everyone else agreed, too, Jasper called them forward one at a time. Once I was done taking in their scents by smelling their wrists, I looked to everyone to say, “I seem to gravitate to one or two elements in each of your scents. That will help me distinguish who is who from now on. Thank you again. As for right now, my mates are smelling extremely appealing, plus I haven't fed since I woke. I do hope to have the chance to get to know every one of you, so please don't feel as if you need to walk on eggshells around me.”
Jasper kissed my shoulder, then looked up to the crew, “After Isabella is fed, we will get the tour of the house and the rooming situation settled. Until then, the bar is stocked, the game areas are open. The selection that's separate from the rest behind the bar is Isabella's, so keep your mitts off.”
They nodded before fanning out, then Jasper asked, “Would you like to feed here or in private?”
My throat burned horribly, so I bent my head to nuzzle his neck, “I'm sorry... I waited too long. Here, please.”
Jasper whipped his shirt over his head so I didn't get blood on it, then leaned back against the cushions in invitation. I crawled into his lap, with Peter tenderly stroking my back as Jasper offered me the bag that Aaron was handing him. It smelled delicious, so I immediately took it, biting gently on the top corner.
His hands massaged my hips soothingly while I fed, causing a new sound to bubble up out of me. Peter hummed and kissed the mark on my neck, making the sound more prominent, then smiled against me as he whispered, “Our mate's purr is the most beautiful sound in the world, Jazz.”
Jasper hummed in response, “It sure is, Pete... it sure is.”
I was done with that bag after around ten minutes, pacing myself, then lapped at the couple of stray drops that had landed on Jasper's chest. My purr cut off as I looked up to Char, so she said sheepishly, “Sorry. I didn't mean to disturb you, Sweets. I just know you're worried about everyone staying in top form, so I brought Peter and Jasper both a bag of blood, along with another for you.”
I smiled up at her, “Thanks Char. I was going to suggest it to them after I was done.”
She smiled as she handed Jasper his blood, then set Peter's on the coffee table, since I was climbing into his lap.
As I was feeding and nuzzling Peter, I noticed Dom watching me. I gave him a questioning look, but he just smiled sheepishly. After a second of my unwavering gaze, he bowed his head to say, “You're extremely beautiful, Little One. Anyone in this room, mated or not, would eagerly jump at the chance to be intimate with you... if that were offered. Watching you feed... it's an intimate experience, even though I know it's only innocent. It's hard to explain, but feeding is an erotic act for vampires, which in turn means feeding and sex go together flawlessly for us.”
I looked at Peter and Jasper, who both nodded. The words sunk like a rock to the pit of my stomach, then I suddenly felt like I had betrayed my mates.
Jasper registered the change in my emotions immediately, so he lifted my chin to look into my eyes. Tears swam in my eyes, almost blocking me from seeing his, causing him to growl, “No. Don't you ever think that you betrayed us, Isabella. You haven't. Yes, you fed in front of others. It's a sensual act for vampires to watch each other feeding, but Peter and I were in the room with you the whole time. We knew that would happen before you fed, Darlin'. Even if vampires didn't invite others to their beds once in a while, you still wouldn't have betrayed us, because we allowed it while having full knowledge of others watching.”
My tears fell, then I registered what he said. “Wait... mated vampires aren't monogamous?”
Jasper shook his head, “It's not what you're thinking, but we haven't really had the opportunity to tell you everything about mating yet. I promise we will explain it to you, in private, but I'd like to make sure you finish feeding first.”
I nodded slowly as I returned to straddle Peter's lap, then nuzzled into his neck before continuing to feed until my second bag was gone.
After ten minutes, Major and Captain were still working over Demitri. I was steadily feeling more drained, so I sent Major the feeling of me needing him. Within seconds, the screams got worse, then they abruptly cut off as purple smoke curled up into the air.
Major and Captain were to me by the time I noticed the smoke. They knelt beside me as Char and Aaron moved to the chairs nearby. I whispered, “I'm okay, but we need to go over a few things before I rest, and I'm steadily becoming weaker.”
He nodded, then looked quickly at Char.
Char was gone and back in just seconds, it seemed. Major suggested as he held a warm delicious-smelling bag to my lips, “Try to feed for me, Sweet Girl. See if it helps. You were moving on your own for too long, using powers you aren't used to having.”
I nodded as I carefully bit into the bag he was holding, then drew deeply. Major hummed while caressing my throat. He got situated behind me on the lounge chair, then stroked my stomach under my shirt as I fed. It was soothing, which caused the tension melt out of me.
Ten minutes later, the crew had all slowly gathered, sitting silently while I finished feeding. When I was done, I kissed the palm Major had been holding the blood in, turned to kiss his lips, then whispered against them, “Thank you, My Love. That did help a bit.”
I leaned back against him again as I asked, “Is everyone here? No one is patrolling?”
He confirmed that everyone was gathered, so I said, “Demitri might not have said anything aloud, but the use of Edward's gift proved valuable. The Volturi want me as their ultimate power source. Apparently there hasn't ever been what he called a 'siphon' as strong as me before. Edward and Alice were working for the Volturi, but under cover in the Cullen house. I guess Aro believed if a power duplicator would show up in the open, it would have been to 'humane' vampires. They must not have known that it was me yet, when I went to Volterra to supposedly rescue Edward, because I would have never been able to leave there.”
I thought for a second, then said, “Major, I remembered something. The last time you tried to make them see... when you found me curled up in the corner... Edward stopped in the middle of his protest about me not wanting to see any of them and going home. He stopped mid-sentence, then inhaled. I think that's when he realised. Either way, we just took out the Volturi's prized tracker. We don't know when the last time he checked in was, or who he was even tracking to find us. I didn’t think to find that out.”
Major chuckled, “He gave that up when we got a hold of him, Darlin'. He was tracking me, and he hadn't checked in for over a day. He wasn't supposed to until he found me and had me subdued. He wasn't expecting me to have back up, let alone this amount of it. He was never told about me being the God Of War. I was just the coven member that you went underground with.”
I nodded, having already figured that out. I yawned suddenly as my temperature started rising, making me curl further into Major. Captain kissed my nose, saying in a whisper as he stroked my cheek, “Time for you to rest, Kitten.”
I nodded, but asked, “Can I rest while you both hold me in the tub? I'm starting to get warm again.”
Major kissed my shoulder, “Of course, Isabella. You just rest against me, and Char will get our bath ready.”
I closed my eyes as I nodded, then heard Dom ask, “I don't mean to pry, but... how is she in transition, Sir? I mean, I can see her tolerating the blood she drank, but...”
Major gave them the short version of what happened, then said, “We haven't had a chance to talk about her research, or about how the setback with the energy loss would affect her transition period. As you can see, she is extremely weak, so she may need to feed again at any given time. I'd like to keep her feeding and resting, to get her back to where she was before the incident. She was weak then, but it was nowhere near this extreme. I'm sure she'll want to speak to everyone at some point, and I can feel her gratefulness for all of you being here.”
I yawned softly, then whispered, “Crew is family... Major... better family than the ones... who wouldn't listen... wouldn't believe. They helped... even though they... didn't know me...”
Major ghosted his fingers up and down my spine as he cooed, “Hush now, Sweet Girl... you just rest. The crew isn't going anywhere. You can talk to them when you have more energy.”
The last of the tension melted out of me, so I barely registered when Char came out to tell them that our bath was ready.
I slept straight through my bath, my mates drying me off, and them getting us settled in bed. I don't know how long it was after that that I finally woke, but when I did, Jasper and Peter were surrounding me from the front and back, with me laying on my side. I hummed at the feeling of being surrounded, then whispered, “God, do I love this feeling.”
Peter chuckled as he kissed my shoulder, “Good morning, Kitten. How do you feel?”
I nodded then stretched while saying, “Pretty good. Thirsty, but good. I think I needed to sleep because I used so many powers.”
Jasper kissed my forehead, “I'd like you to rest today. I won't ask you to stay in bed, Sug, but I don't want you doing things alone, alright?”
I nodded, stretched again, then replied, “Perfectly acceptable. Now, if one of you would like to carry me to the bathroom, I need a moment. I will make sure to call you when I'm done. In the meantime, can you get my clothes out for the day? I'd like the charcoal peasant top with the ruching under the bust, the crochet waist skirt with the charcoal butterflies, a nude thong, and the black braided wedge heels.”
Jasper kissed my lips lightly, then Peter kissed my shoulder. Peter hummed, “I'll gather her clothes, you can help her with her necessities, Jazz. Once you're back in the bedroom, we can assess how she's really doin'.”
I took care of my bathroom needs, brushed my teeth with Jasper holding me from behind, then had him run his fingers through my hair. I noticed while he was doing that, that some significant changes had taken place while I slept.
My hair was now down to my tailbone in its natural curl, my facial features were fluid and smooth, my breasts had filled out considerably, my waist had slimmed and toned, plus my hips were wider. In fact, all of my muscles seemed to have toned up. I had the perfect balance between femininity and strength. I smiled at Jasper in the mirror, making him chuckle, “Is the self-assessment to your liking?”
I giggled with a nod, then asked cheekily, “Does my new form please you, Mr. Whitlock?”
He turned me in his arms, then whispered, “You were stunning before, Isabella. I'm certainly eager to get acquainted with all of your delicious new curves... but I love you every bit as much now as I did before. Please don't doubt that.”
I kissed softly over his heart before whispering, “I love you, too, Jazz.”
Once I was done dressing and my condition assessed by both of my mates, Peter carried me down to the lounge room on the basement level. They sat on either side of me in the center of the u-shaped couch, then I asked, “Is everyone here, or are some patrolling?”
Jasper smiled as he curled a stray hair around my ear, “I have hourly checks going, but they're all staying close to the house otherwise. Would you like to speak to them?”
I nodded, so Jasper said in a normal tone, “Fall in, crew.”
Within seconds, everyone was lined up with their eyes down and hands clasped behind their backs. “At ease. As you can see, Isabella is awake and almost fully recuperated from the other day's ordeal. She would like to speak to you all, but I want to get introductions out of the way first.”
I smiled up at him, so he explained, “From left to right, we have Coop, Ang, Dom, Stefan, and of course, Char. They were the ones who took turns bringing blood in for you. You might have heard their voices during that time. Then you know her mate, Aaron, and next to him we have Lexie and her mate Kendrick, Micha and his mate Adrianna, Nate and his mate Kota, and Jade and her mate Faith.”
I smiled at all of them, taking in their faces, then said, “I want to thank you all for coming so quickly. I don't remember a lot of what happened, but I do remember a couple of your voices. I need you to know that it means a lot that you would come here and help me when you don't even know me. It's nice to know that Major and Captain have the support of so many when they need it, whether you knew me or not.”
I saw many of them smile at me, so I continued, “Major was right when he said I may need to feed again at any time. It seems now that my body can accept blood, it needs it frequently, especially if I use any of the powers. We don't know what's ahead of us as far as the Volturi trying to take me. We could be looking at a war, if Aro wants me under his thumb bad enough, especially after taking out his hound. Those of you with powers will need to help me get used to how they work, so that if I draw the ability to use them again, they don't weaken me as they did with the tracker. It seems as though once I have a power, I can draw on it even if the person is no longer around... or alive, for that matter. I can feel Demitri's power, along with Alice's and Edward's. Since none of you came back with Edward, I must be right in assuming he was nowhere around.”
The ones who left to check all nodded, then Micha explained, “There was no intruder scent outside of the perimeter wall, other than Demitri's. We even scaled the trees, but were unable to catch a scent or sight of anyone.”
I nodded, “Thank you. Now I don't know any of your scents, but my nose is definitely noticing a lot of them, and it's making me a bit edgy. I would like to, if you all agree, take in your scents individually so that I can recognize friend from foe. Please don't feel that you have to say yes. I won't be upset. It's just a way to help calm my nerves a bit.”
Char stepped forward with Aaron, hand-in-hand, saying together, “We agree.”
Dom immediately stepped forward to agree, “I am willing, Little One.”
Ang, Coop, and Stefan all jumped forward, too, so I smiled, “Thank you.”
After everyone else agreed, too, Jasper called them forward one at a time. Once I was done taking in their scents by smelling their wrists, I looked to everyone to say, “I seem to gravitate to one or two elements in each of your scents. That will help me distinguish who is who from now on. Thank you again. As for right now, my mates are smelling extremely appealing, plus I haven't fed since I woke. I do hope to have the chance to get to know every one of you, so please don't feel as if you need to walk on eggshells around me.”
Jasper kissed my shoulder, then looked up to the crew, “After Isabella is fed, we will get the tour of the house and the rooming situation settled. Until then, the bar is stocked, the game areas are open. The selection that's separate from the rest behind the bar is Isabella's, so keep your mitts off.”
They nodded before fanning out, then Jasper asked, “Would you like to feed here or in private?”
My throat burned horribly, so I bent my head to nuzzle his neck, “I'm sorry... I waited too long. Here, please.”
Jasper whipped his shirt over his head so I didn't get blood on it, then leaned back against the cushions in invitation. I crawled into his lap, with Peter tenderly stroking my back as Jasper offered me the bag that Aaron was handing him. It smelled delicious, so I immediately took it, biting gently on the top corner.
His hands massaged my hips soothingly while I fed, causing a new sound to bubble up out of me. Peter hummed and kissed the mark on my neck, making the sound more prominent, then smiled against me as he whispered, “Our mate's purr is the most beautiful sound in the world, Jazz.”
Jasper hummed in response, “It sure is, Pete... it sure is.”
I was done with that bag after around ten minutes, pacing myself, then lapped at the couple of stray drops that had landed on Jasper's chest. My purr cut off as I looked up to Char, so she said sheepishly, “Sorry. I didn't mean to disturb you, Sweets. I just know you're worried about everyone staying in top form, so I brought Peter and Jasper both a bag of blood, along with another for you.”
I smiled up at her, “Thanks Char. I was going to suggest it to them after I was done.”
She smiled as she handed Jasper his blood, then set Peter's on the coffee table, since I was climbing into his lap.
As I was feeding and nuzzling Peter, I noticed Dom watching me. I gave him a questioning look, but he just smiled sheepishly. After a second of my unwavering gaze, he bowed his head to say, “You're extremely beautiful, Little One. Anyone in this room, mated or not, would eagerly jump at the chance to be intimate with you... if that were offered. Watching you feed... it's an intimate experience, even though I know it's only innocent. It's hard to explain, but feeding is an erotic act for vampires, which in turn means feeding and sex go together flawlessly for us.”
I looked at Peter and Jasper, who both nodded. The words sunk like a rock to the pit of my stomach, then I suddenly felt like I had betrayed my mates.
Jasper registered the change in my emotions immediately, so he lifted my chin to look into my eyes. Tears swam in my eyes, almost blocking me from seeing his, causing him to growl, “No. Don't you ever think that you betrayed us, Isabella. You haven't. Yes, you fed in front of others. It's a sensual act for vampires to watch each other feeding, but Peter and I were in the room with you the whole time. We knew that would happen before you fed, Darlin'. Even if vampires didn't invite others to their beds once in a while, you still wouldn't have betrayed us, because we allowed it while having full knowledge of others watching.”
My tears fell, then I registered what he said. “Wait... mated vampires aren't monogamous?”
Jasper shook his head, “It's not what you're thinking, but we haven't really had the opportunity to tell you everything about mating yet. I promise we will explain it to you, in private, but I'd like to make sure you finish feeding first.”
I nodded slowly as I returned to straddle Peter's lap, then nuzzled into his neck before continuing to feed until my second bag was gone.