ೃ⁀➷ ˗ˏˋ 'ˎ˗
oh merde
( twilight. eclipse )

chapter ten.
up to fate

     GEORGINE could only watch, stood frozen, feet rooted into the ground like she was a tree, herself, as someone she didn't recognise peered from around the array of trees, stalking in their direction. But, they appeared to have recognised them━━his blood-red eyes lit up with excitement as they landed on the trio, standing nervously fidgeting. The way he walked... it was like he was being forced to move his feet, controlled, his legs dangling at the sides of his body. As she watched him only walk closer and closer, Georgine and Bella hid further behind Edward, his arm coming out to shelter the girls.

     "Riley... listen to me." Edward attempted to console the vampire, evidently, Riley. Riley... the only one Alice had been able to see in her vision. Edward continued trying to talk him out of whatever was going to happen in the next few moments, but the words flew past his ears, straight over his head. He didn't care. "Victoria's just using you to distract me. She knows I'll kill you."

     Kill. Georgine didn't want to necessarily think about the outcome of the situation they were now entangled within, but, at some point, she guessed someone was going to have to die, in order for those 'more important' to live. She didn't like that━━weighing one life against the other, but, they had no other choice.

     Then, Victoria jumped down from the trees, where she had been hidden, listening in on their conversation, watching with eagle-eyes. It was quick, fast, the way she moved. Of course, she was going to be enhanced in everything; she was a vampire, and yet, it still scared Georgine each time. Victoria, Georgine could agree, after finally witnessing her appearance for the first time, was undeniably beautiful. Orange-like, strawberry-blonde hair flowed just past her taut shoulders, in waves like the sea, strong and prominent. Her features were sharp, too━━God-like. Most vampires are like that... When they turn their features enhance, taking shape and making them look more beautiful than they did originally. It was confusing, and, at the same time, extraordinary.

     Edward continued speaking, eyes gazing into Riley's, never once letting them leave his. "In fact, she'll be glad she doesn't have to deal with you anymore." For a split second, Georgine couldn't understand where he was getting all his information from, and then, remembered that Edward could read minds. So, Victoria really was using Riley as a distraction. Guilt only crept up her spine (for, what felt like, the millionth time that day)━━before, Riley was an innocent human being, and now, his death was almost inevitable, planned out by the stars, by fate.

     "Don't listen, Riley." Victoria's voice was silky, entrancing to the ear. "I told you about their mind tricks."

     Edward was quick to argue, his arm never once moving from in front of the two girls he was shielding. "I can read her mind. So, I know what she thinks of you."

     "He's lying."

     "She only created you and this army to avenge her true mate, James. That's the only thing she cares about. Not you."

     Time seemed to pause, as Riley's head slowly turned towards his creator, eyes questioning her honesty. Georgine only hoped Riley would believe them, that this would all blow over in just a few minutes.

     (But, of course, nothing was ever that simple...)

     Victoria seemed caught in a trap, cornered. She attempted to turn her expression sympathetic, but it didn't work. And, yet, Riley would still choose her. "There's only you━━you know that."

     "Think about it━━" Edward quickly rushed out, piecing everything together, hoping everything would make sense to the vampire, "━━you're from Forks. You know the area. That's the only reason she chose you. She doesn't love you."

     It was hard to watch their encounter. Admittedly, Georgine wanted them dead, like the rest of them did, if it meant she'd love, that's just her perspective... but, it was still difficult. Riley was torn with just the mere idea of Victoria using him so she could kill a human or two.

     "Riley... don't let him do this to us. You know I love you." This time, Victoria really did look sympathetic, like her words were the full truth. Her eyes were wide, gaze never once leaving Riley's figure, and, for a moment Georgine thought there were tears in her eyes... but, she was never that pitying.

     ...And, that's when time sped up.

     Riley's gaze hardened, jaw clicked into place. "You're dead."

     The vampire sped towards them, as Edward pushed Bella and Georgine back a few paces, prepared for the fight. But, out of nowhere, Seth, im his wolf form, jumped across one of the small hills to the side, mouth wide open, teeth snarling, growling. He landed on Riley, taking him down to the ground━━he had him by the shoulder, before his snout hardened, and ripped off half of one arm. It was certainly a sight Georgine had never seen before, and one she never wanted to see again. Half way down his arm, where she should have been able to see the vampire's hand, was what looked like ice. Shards, sparkling against the reflection of the sun, mixing into its surroundings of the snow, he gripped his arm in pain, screaming mostly out of anger, gritting his teeth.

     "Oh my God." Georgine could only whisper, not having the courage to turn her stare away from the sight.

     But, suddenly, her head snapped to the right as she witnessed Victoria jump down, beginning to run away, before Edward called out to her. "You won't get another chance like this again."

     Georgine and Bella were stood back, much further back, hands still gripping onto one another out fear, more so than comfort, now. "What is he doing?" she angrily whispered to her best friend, teeth clamped together, worry, terror, laced within her tone. Why couldn't Edward have just let her go? Why did he have to taunt her, antagonise her?

     "'Get it out of the way...?"

     Her head turned to Bella, then, her expression strong. "Yeah, well, I'm pretty sure I can do without my life dangling on the edge of a piece of string, right now."

     Bella's other hand found its way to Georgine's, resting on top. "It'll be fine."

     It'll be fine.

     (Will it...?)

     In the corner, the girls could see as Seth and Riley continued their fight, the vampire screaming in complete agony. Edward resumed speaking, trailing after Victoria. "You want them. Both of them. You want us to feel the pain you felt when we killed James." Georgine's heart was picking up speed, now, her palms beginning to sweat, eyes nervously flittering between one pair and the next, as Victoria seethed in anger, ready to burst at any moment. "When I tore him to pieces. When I turned him into ash. When I turned him... into nothing."

     And then, she burst.

     Victoria's (no longer looking so beautiful, may she add) anger was boiling, now, teeth gritting to the point where Georgine wouldn't have been surprised if they'd shatter, shaking, convulsing. A growl escaped her lips, a roar-like scream, and she shot forward, revenge evident on her tongue, straight into Edward. They met the ground together, fighting to be the first one up━━Victoria made a grab towards the girls, not caring which one she caught, but Edward threw her back, flinging her away, landing in a tree.

     It'll be fine.

     It'll be fine.

     The vampire began to climb the tree, after menacingly look back to the trio, and, with his eyes trained on his moving figure, Edward guided the girls to different spot. Off in the corner, Georgine watched as Riley repeatedly kicked Seth in the snout, not having the strength (at that time) to use his one, given arm. The snow crunched underneath their feet as they ran, each person holding a hand, up a few rocks, Edward looking for Victoria. When he spotted her, he motioned for the pair to move back, to hide behind one the rocks, as he made to forcefully push down the tree Victoria resided in.

     It crashed to the ground, taking the vampire with it. She was pissed, that was for sure, for as she got to her feet again, her head immediately snapped in the direction of the girls, teeth bared, like a predator and its prey.

     Like a lion and two little lambs.

     But, Edward wouldn't let her get too close, as he flung himself across and landed on her body. He had the advantage; hands gripping tightly on her collar, forcefully keeping her dented into the ground, slamming her head against the harsh floor a few times. Georgine suddenly heard a wince, a cry, and looked over at where Seth was━━Riley had kicked him against the rock behind him, hard enough for it to have knocked him out. Oh, God... he was just a kid.

     It'll be fine.

     Now free from the restrains of a wolf, a bear-like beast, Riley moved fast, the speed of light, and grabbed onto Edward. It was two against one, now. Edward had Riley's head in his hands, grip compressed, unyielding, ready to rip it from his body at any second. But, that's when Victoria came in━━she mounted on his back, mirroring Edward's action, using all her strength to kill him.

     It seemed like all or nothing, to Bella.

     She grabbed onto one of the shards from a rock that was lay carelessly against the cold surface of the ground, ignoring Georgine's protests, her exclamations. Bella looked back at Georgine, and she suddenly realised what her idea was. Georgine's head shook frantically, begging her not to go through with, but, as her eyes met Edward's startled ones from across the way, it seemed as though she had already made up her mind.

     The sound of a slice was heard, and all heads turned to Bella, their eyes piercingly gravitating to the blood, as it began to rain down her arm, dripping onto the snowy ground. Riley and Victoria instantly sniffed the air, working out where it was coming from, and were momentarily distracted━━Edward using the time to ambush them. He slammed Riley against the rock behind them, angrily pushing Victoria in the other direction.

     It'll be fine.

     Whilst Edward focused solely on Victoria, stopping her from reaching anywhere near to Bella or Georgine, Bella's blood still pungent in their around them, no one saw Riley begin to move. Her heart was beating so fast, like it was about to explode, her feet subconsciously moving on their own accord, taking Georgine's figure further and further away from the fight, the terror filling up her veins, and nothing else.

     But, then, she felt two sharp points hovering over the joint between her left shoulder and her neck, before they delved deep into her skin. It was a feeling she'd find difficult to describe, later on in the future, but, it was excruciatingly painful, definitely. The sharp edges were puncturing against her fragile skin, ripping the tissues apart and gaining access. Some form of energy, still willed inside of Georgine, somewhere, forced herself to scream━━her lungs burned, her throat stung, but she kept on screaming, one filled with torment and torture. Hands were gripping her figure, rough, not caring if they broke her breakable body apart. She believed this was what death felt like... until, they ripped from her body.

     Seth had clearly healed, enough to grab Riley by the teeth, engraving dentures into his ice, fake skin, and dragged him away, over the hill. He screamed for Victoria, who no longer seemed to show any care, any remorse, towards Riley. Then, he was gone.

     Georgine's body fell limp to the floor, cascading around a mountain of snow, a gaggle of leaves crumpling underneath her. Her eyes stayed trained open, but it was difficult. Everything was blurry; it would be easier for her to shut her eyes... forever.

     Bella was crashing down at Georgine's side, hands clasping themselves firmly around her arms, shaking her. "George! George!" There was a limp in the girl's throat, one that was making it difficult for her speak properly, tears streaming down her face, unable to stop the uncontrollable flow. Bella continued to scream Georgine's name, in hopes of getting a response, but nothing came, only the sounds of rocking sobs, and then the thump of a body against the harsh ground behind them.

     Edward rushed over, kneeling beside Georgine, too. She couldn't see his expression, but she could hear his voice, and she could only imagine the guilt, the culpability, as it wormed its way into his face, the realisation that this was his doing. He should've been stronger, should've focused more on both girls, should've━━

     "I'm so sorry, Georgine," he whispered. His voice was probably the softest, the most pliant, Georgine had ever heard, and it only made her worry more. Her heart beat had begun to slow down, by this point, any worry or nerves or terror not having the ability to increase its speed, no more. There was nothing to the girl; the sound, no expression, it was just... Georgine, as she lay there, limply, lifelessly, this time letting fate do its work.

     Fate wasn't something she believed, ever, but now, she hoped, more than ever, that it had a plan for her. She couldn't die like this, she refused to. This wasn't the right way to go━━she had always imagined her death would be painful, and yet, this, was the most pain she knew she'd ever experience...

     ...because now her life had come to its end.

     It'll be fine.

     "I'm so sorry."

     Edward was crying, now━━they both were. It only pained Georgine, more.

     "No, no, no!" Bella refused, unhappy with the idea that there wasn't anything they could do for the girl. Now, it really was up to fate. "This can't be it━━it can't be! I won't let it, okay? Ed━━Edward," her voice was racked with sobs, barely audible words escaping her lips, "you have to do something. Please, please, do something."

     Said vampire didn't say anything for a short moment, eyes sympathetically staring at Georgine's figure, the two marks left against the neck, the redness of the blood seeping through. He came to his conclusion━━they wouldn't have enough time to save her, not like they had with Bella, before. It had been well-over a minute by the point he knew what had to happen━━there was no way he'd be able to get the venom out of her system, without killing her...

     "There's nothing I can do. If I try anything, it'll kill her... we can only wait."

     "Wait━━wait?! I'm not going to wait whilst my best friend could be dying right in front of me━━"

     But, Georgine didn't hear much of their conversation, after that. Everything became fuzzy, unable to decipher what was said, who was talking. Her eyes slowly began to close, and she felt two hands grip her, again, shaking her, willing her to open them back up. If she could, she would've told them that it was too much, she couldn't━━she no longer had the power to do such simple things.

     It'll be fine.

     In her last moments, she thought about the fight. Was everyone okay? Did they win?

     It'll be fine.

     She hoped they had. Jasper would've took them to victory.

     It'll be fine.

     She wished she could see Jasper, one last time...

     It'll be fine.

     But, it was up to fate now...

     And, then, she saw black.

♡

( the next day )

     Jasper Hale was a mess.

     He wasn't functioning like he normally did (as normal as a vampire could function, anyway)━━he barely went along with his family to hunt, to the point where they had to force him to drink from the few supply bags they kept for safe-keeping, because he stayed rooted in one place for days on end, never leaving the spot, eyes never straying away, even for a glimpse of something else. He couldn't. Because Georgine Brodeur would wake up; he was sure of it, and he wanted to be there when she did.

     Days ago, when they had been declared victory from the fight, bliss had run through Jasper's still bloodstream, pride, too, for his family had done so well with the little knowledge he was able to give them concerning the newborns. He knew, now, that Bella and Georgine were able to live, their lives out of danger for as long as they could keep it that way.

     ...The fight was all worth it in the end.

     But, then, as Edward sped into the clearing with Bella mounted upon his back, he came to realise that his love was nowhere to be found, and that terrified him. His eyes raked over every spot throughout the trees, wondering, hoping, praying, that she would walk out, towards him, like everything was okay, like he was overreacting. But, he wasn't. Because when Jasper's eyes met his brother's, questioning the whereabouts of Georgine, a solemn expression took over his face, one of guilt and dread. Before Jasper could say anything, Edward had ran off, back in the direction they came from, and, this time, when he returned, Georgine Brodeur lay limply in his eyes.

     Immediately, Jasper went over to the girl, taking her lifelessly figure into his own embrace and cradled her like a baby. He didn't cry; he couldn't━━because she was fine, she had to be. This wasn't how it was supposed to go; this wasn't how their story was supposed to end.

     "What━━" Jasper swallowed down the lump that began to build up in his throat. "What happened?" He tried to keep his voice steady, no anger or repulsion imbedded within it━━he didn't want Edward to think he was blaming him, because he wasn't.

     "I turned━━for just one second━━and they... they got her." Edward was close to crying, it was easy to tell, as he grasped onto Bella's shaking figure, tucked under his arm, her own sobs reverberating through the clearing. "They bit her before Seth could get there... I don't know if it's━━you know."

     Oh, God, Jasper thought, was she going to turn?

     It wasn't as though he didn't want her to live; of course, he did, he would give his own life for her to live, if he could. But, the vampire life wasn't exactly something he would wish upon anyone. Whilst he would love to see Georgine again, full of life and radiance, eyes alight and glowing, expression full and beautiful, he didn't want her to go through the same pain he had, all those years ago. Starting off as a vampire for the first few months was difficult, and even though she wouldn't be on her own (she'd have seven other vampires who knew how to control it all helping her out constantly), it would still be hard to process. The hunger, the desire, for human blood would never shed━━sure, it could decrease as time flew by through draining the life of an animal, but it would always be their, lingering like an after-thought, unable to be rid of it.

     He didn't want that for Georgine.

     But, she had no other choice, now.

     Almost immediately, Jasper had taken Georgine's body back to the comfort of their hidden home, whilst the rest of his family stayed behind, dealing with the looming presence of the Volturi. He found a spare room, laying her down gently upon one of the surfaces, watching idly as no sign of life was clear upon the girl.

     That's how he stayed three days. He didn't move, not one muscle, not daring to incase she awoke. Bella came over that day, wishing to see Georgine, in hopes that there were signs of improvement (even just something small), signs that her best friend was still in there, buried somewhere deep inside her bones. But, there was no news. Nothing had happened for days, and it was eating everybody alive.

     No one had forgotten about Georgine's mother━━Sandra━━either. They had to come up with an excuse, quickly, before the mother would come storming into their home, demanding answers concerning her daughter's whereabouts. So, they simply told her that she had come down with something, had fallen ill suddenly, and she needed a few days of rest before she could come and visit (they also made sure to mention that there was a possibility of it being contagious, so Sandra definitely wouldn't be coming round any time soon). Sandra had believed their words, thanking them for letting her know, and asking them to keep her updated. They promised they would, but they didn't know how long they could keep the charade alive...

♡

( two days later )

     Jasper was waiting patiently beside Georgine, eyes only focusing in on the girl, ready, whist everyone else flitted in and out of the room. It was the first time Jasper had spoke, when he had. "What... what happened to him?"

     Everyone turned to Edward, the brother being the only one with the answer. "Seth got him; ripped him to pieces."

     He nodded, relief soothing through his bones that the one who had done this to the person he loved most was dead. Even if Seth hadn't had done what he had, Jasper would've gone through with it himself; following him to the ends of the earth until he got his moment, his opportunity, to rip the man, limb from limb, as he begged for his life in horror and terror and━━

     "I'm..." Edward's voice rung out, once more. Jasper looked up to his brother (probably one of the first times his eyes had moved since Georgine's body had been returned), and saw this his own gaze was trained solely on the girl, too. Jasper knew where this was going. "I'm really sorry, Jasper━━it's all my fault; I should have━━"

     "You keep saying that, even when I haven't blamed you once."

     "I know... but it is my fault. You trusted me to protect her, with my entire being, and I failed at that. I let one of them slip past me and do this to her, and now..." Edward trailed off, unable to finish his sentence, running a hand of his rugged face.

     Jasper didn't say anything, either, because he didn't know what to say. He didn't blame Edward for what had happened to Georgine, not one bit━━sure, the human was in his care, but he up against two other vampires, one of them being a newborn and incredibly stronger and more irritable than the rest. Jasper knew that his brother did all he could for the girls, and that's why he didn't blame him.

     Emmett spoke up next, this being his first time, too, trying to bring light to their dark situation. "Hey, at least you no longer have to feel like holding yourself back from killing her every time you're around her now."

     The other vampires present in the room took his words differently to how Jasper did; they all glared at him, eyes speaking words of why would you say something like that?!, disbelief at their family member. Emmett only put his hands up in surrender, not understanding why his family were sending him dirty looks. The one they were worried about was Jasper, and he seemed to take his brother's comment well, for he laughed. It was a subtle one, almost inaudible, but, it was a laugh, all the same.

     "Yeah," he breathed out, eyes raking back to Georgine, "yeah, you're right. Everything will be a lot easier, in the end. It's just the beginning I'm worried about..."

     Everyone shared expressions of sympathy, half-hearted looks...

     They hoped it would end well...

♡

( now )

     Georgine's mind was racing, eyes flittering from one direction to another, but she couldn't open them, she she didn't understand why. She felt as though her heart was racing, from feeling like she was trapped within her own body, unable to escape━━

     Wait, was her heart even beating?

     Everything started to come back to Georgine, then━━the fight, the mountain, Victoria and Riley, screaming and terror, and then, nothing. Nothing was coming to mind when she tried to think further than that.

     And, that's when life started coming back to her.

     Tissues started to piece together, one by one, mending her broken body back to one, beautiful being. Her blood was there, but it was still; brittle bones repairing, changing themselves to become stronger; air filled up her, but she could tell that she didn't need it, not anymore. It was like a ritual, like someone was raising the dead, because that's what she was, before... dead.

     (She still was.)

     Georgine had never thought about death before━━no one important had ever really died, so she never knew what it was like to lose someone, to think about their dead body and wonder if they were now in a better place━━but, now, it seemed it was all around her. She imagined her death to be peaceful (like dying at an old age, going tranquilly in your sleep, soul floating off and into the afterlife), but she never would've pictured it to be continuous. 

     She would be dead, forever, now.

     And, that's when she shot up, eyes wide, like she just had a bad dream. Maybe it was a bad dream...? But, as her eyes landed on Jasper, his smile bright but eyes concerned, reaching forward to catch her, hold her, steady in his arms, she knew it wasn't.

THIS IS NOT THE END

     A second chance to start a new life wasn't something Georgine imagined she'd have to take.

     But, it was guaranteed, either way...

NOTE.
soo :)))) i don't really know what else to say,, other than ur welcome for not killing georgine off 🥴,,, next act to come!! (also,, i will be publishing the chapter for act ii pretty soon after this one, but whether updates are going to resume or not i haven't decided yet. i do have up to chapter 15 pre-written, but idk whether to just pause for a vv short while, simply bc inspiration hasn't been with me atm 🤔🤔) LET ME KNOW <33