This Is How You Remind Me

Chapter 7; The deep breath before the plunge

  After a sweep of the buildings and grounds I returned to my room, adjunct to Carlisle's main room.
  The bed was heavenly, soft as a dream with smooth silk or santon sheets, i didn't care which, and fuzzy blankets.
  Esme and Alice must have had a hand in it's design.
  I tried to sleep in it, but it was to soft, like I was about to sink in and never come out.
  I ended up on the floor by the floor to ceiling windows, near the connecting door. With my head on a feather and memory foam pillow. Heavenly.
  Sleep would have been a welcome escape tonight, but Lissa's emotions dragged me in again.
...........................
  She was so worried. Jessie Zeklos had been aloud to come, against her wishes, and there was no telling what kinda havoc he would make. Plus, half their Guardians were already planning on the best attack methods to use against each and every other kind of Vampire attending. Also, Adrian and Sydney weren't aloud near the negations, they were coming only to prove Mori could be open minded, only that was a complete lie, over ninety percent of the Mori population still thought they were an abomination.
  Why can't everyone just get along? This is a peace negotiations, and we're at war with ourselves.
  Lissa rolled over in bed, landing herself on top of Christian, who groaned and buried his face into her hair. "Not now Liss. Our plane takes off in nine hours, please, let me spend two more hours at least in a comatosisic state."
  "Sorry, it's just, why are we taking warring families to a peace meeting?"
  "Because, this is monumental and everyone wants to say they were present at the start of a new era." 
  Christian was making it very hard to dislike him right now, why couldn't he be sarcastic and moody? I could dislike him so much more then. But as always, he was nothing but caring and kind with Lissa.
  "Your right, but Jill and Mia can't go but Jesse can? I mean, why?"
  "Because Jesse has connections and Jill is your throne's insurance policy, she can't be endangered. Mia, isn't royal." His last sentence came out extra bitter.
  "But she's the top Mori offensive fighter in the world." Christan snorted pointedly. "Fine, second best. Tasha is still on top."
  Back on my bedroom floor I ground my teeth. Natasha Ozera, the royal bitch, I knew she had been the one to kill Tatiana, but there was no proof, and I couldn't find motive.
  Meanwhile, Lissa just curled up close to Christian and closed her eyes as he stroked her hair.
"Hey, since we're awake..." He was using his puppy dog voice.
  "No." Lissa was using her Queen voice.
..............................
  I pulled out and stared out my window. Nine hours and they'd be in the air. Eleven and they'd land in the backyard. I pulled my blankets up over my face and tried to sleep, but couldn't anymore. The thought of living in the same building as Liss and Christian and Dimitri and the Princes and Princesses was making my skin crawl.
  I just laid there for hours before a knock on the door snapped me out of my own little world. "Yes?"
  "Mary? It's Rose. Can we talk?" Roselie, my closest friend at the moment. She understood me best and always knew when I needed her.
  "Sure, come on in." I sat up.
  Rose entered silently with an effortless grace, she was always gorgeous, but her beauty was amplified by the moonlight.
  "What's up?"
"Well, how much do you know about how, " she paused and gestured to her body. "this happened?"
  "Umm." Not the type of question I'd been anticipating. "Not much. You were alone at night, got attacked and Carlise found you."
  "Yeah, but how was i attacked? What did they do to me during the attack, Mary?" Rose asked, as she walked over to my nest on the floor.
  I didn't answer, I'd never thought about it, but Rose must have been beautiful as a human, she must have been a stunningly attractive woman. Just like me.
  "We're you...raped?" The word felt wrong in my mouth. Always falling short of the true horror.
  Rose met my eyes and knelt in front of me. "Yes. By my fiancée and his circle of buddies. I was on my way home from my best friend's home."
  I just stared. Rose was the strongest woman I knew. She wanted a family, I had known that much. She made due with her position as Ness's godmother, but she wanted to be a mother. She never would be, but that didn't phase her. This was her life now, she stood tall.
  Rose always took care of me in her own way. I'd noticed, but I'd just thought she'd been acting as a friend.
  "I don't pretend to know what exactly you went through, but I wanted you to know you aren't alone, Emmet knows about me and you. He'll give his life before that ever happens to either of us again. And he'll stand between you and anyone you can't handle. Mary, I just wanted you to know, before the chaos tomorrow, that I'm here forever. And so is Emmet, and Jasper, Alice and Esme, Carlise, Edward and Bella."
  I hugged her, but not because she cared for me. I hugged her because I saw the pain in her eyes and knew what that pain truly felt like, and now I knew someone felt it too.
  "Thank you." I murmmered into her hair. A weight I hadn't noticed in a long time flew off my chest. The weight of secrets and their loneliness.
  "No matter what happens with the Mori, I'll right behind you." With those words, I could finally sleep.
  It wasnt until lunch the next that I realized I'd slept in the arms of an Elder, and had had no nightmares or terrors.

  I woke at the crack of dawn, Strigio could only come out at night, but they weren't the only thing I had to fear.
  With a quick shower and breakfast I was ready to snoop. Alice was coming with, to help me know when the Mori plane would be arriving, bad weather had slowed it down, and where she went, Jasper went.
  The housing lodge was grand, marble floors, beamed ceilings and leather couches. A hunter's dream resort, minus the severed heads. But Alice complained about the smell of moth balls.
  Jasper and I smothered our laughter as Alice went on a tirade about how she would have done the interior design if the fools running this show had thought to ask.
   The only room she approved of was the training room. It had taken us an  hour to find it, but in the end it was worth it.
  Located in the sub-basement, it was not only a work out room, but also a bomb shelter. Don't ask, we didn't, so you shouldn't.
  High ceilings with dozens of catwalks and ropes hanging above everything, the floor divided into five sections, one along each wall filled with different work out machines, and one huge square in the center meant for sparing.
  Jasper and I spent two hours there, Alice wondered off after a little while, complaining that we were boring and cramping her style. With all the panic over the the gathering, I hadn't had the chance to fight in a week, and letting out the energy and fury at my almost uselessness compared to Elders was quite therapeutic.
  I would had continued all night, but we were cut off by Alice, who rudely barged in, freaking out and screaming that the Mori had arrived.
  It took twenty minutes for Jasper to calm her, and by then I was already back in my room, pacing like a caged animal.
  Rose made herself at home agaisnt sort frame. She didn't say a thing, just watched me.
  It was Ness, of course who broke the silence. As much as I loved my job, Ness was getting to be the biggest pain in my ass. A spoiled brat since day one, but man could she hide it when she wanted to, unfortunately for me, she didn't want to at that moment.
  "Did you see the Queen? Her dress is from the Paris boutique I tried taking you to last week. And that husband is gorgeous! And her hair-"
  "Hold Up! When did you see them?" I asked, frozen.
  "Like two minutes ago. She with her husband who is do hot, did you know he can control fire? And he works out, and like actually trains. With Guardians; how cool is that?"
I inturupped her babbling first chance I got. "WAIT! Are there Guardians with her?"
  "Of course silly. She can go anywhere without them!"
  "Neither CAN YOU! WHERE WAS I?"
  "Hiding in here like a poomp." He let loose a shrill giggle. "She wanted a meeting with Grandfather but he's busy and won't do meeting without daddy around. Isn't that smart?" She asked, flopping down on my bed. "Having a mind reader at all your REALLY big meetings. So you know if someone lying. Ya know?"
  I tune Ness out. Rose was staring at me, and me at her. The Mori were demanding meetings before the ball was well, ballsy.
  It was rude and proud, but let other know you didn't mess around.
  Lissa was in her element. I just hoped she didn't know I wasnt.