Chapter 9

Grace age update: 2 years

Jasper wrapped a woolly purple scarf around Grace's neck as she giggled at the tingly feeling. She wiggled her shoulders in protest to keep him from dressing her warmly.

"Gracie, you have to put on the scarf." he sighed, "You don't want to get sick, do you?"

She laughed, "No."

He tried again but this time she made a run for it out of the nursery. Jasper chuckled and shook his head before speeding off to catch her. She squealed as he lifted her up in vampire speed and twirled her around.

"It's cold, Gracie." he tried reasoning, "It's either the scarf or no playing outside."

"Marco. Felly." she said, but her 'r' came out as an 'l'.

"Uncle Marcus and Felix had to go home, sweetheart." he explained, feeling slightly mad because now they're being replaced with Caius and Jane for at least a year, "Seems like I won't get you in this scarf. Should we see if Demetri's up for the challenge?"

"Yes." came the short answer.

She couldn't say much by now, just the basic words like mama, daddy, and a few more easy ones. Everyone received short nicknames from her. Jasper became Jas, Alice became Ali, Emmett became Em, Rosalie became Lo (she couldn't pronounce the r yet), Edward became Ed, Bella became Ella and Renesmee became Ness.

Grace grew a few inches through the year. She had a head full of golden locks, her cheeks were still as puffy and all her teeth were finally out. Her crib was also getting a little small and Bella had to take Renesmee's old plush toys out so Grace could fit.

Jasper pushed open Demetri's door, not even bother knocking. The moment Grace saw him her arms shot out towards him, "Demepitee!"

Demetri smiled and took her from Jasper, tucking the hair behind her tiny ears, "Hello, princesses. Slept well?"

"She wants to play outside but hates the idea of wearing a scarf." Jasper explained and handed the tracker the purple scarf, "See if you can get her to wear it."

He sat Grace down on his bed and went down on his knees in front of her, looking deep into her crystal eyes as he spoke gently, "Listen, princess, Elsa decided to make it cold today. Anna still has to find her and bring her back to make it warm again. While we wait, you must wear warm clothes, otherwise the cold might bite you. What do you say? Will you wear the scarf for me?"

"And Olaf?" she asked.

"For me and Olaf." he nodded, "We both like warm clothes, and hugs."

She smiled and he took it as a yes. Demetri slowly wrapped the scarf around her small neck, careful not to hurt her or to knot it too tightly. After he finished he wrapped Grace in his arms as she gave him a warm hug. Jasper only shook his head in disbelief when he realized that all he needed was a touch of Disney - because everything makes sense with Disney - to get her dressed up.

"All I had to do was watch Frozen?" he muttered in disbelief as he walked out of the room.

"Come on." Demetri said and picked her up, "Let's go outside and build an Olaf."

The entire family was out in the cold when they arrived. They all seemed surprised to see Grace wearing a scarf since none of them could get her to wear it. Carlisle smiled as his daughter was put down and started playing with Renesmee and Jake. He started calling her his daughter when she first called him 'dada' a few months ago. He remembered it like it was yesterday.

After her small little word he was so stunned, he couldn't speak for an hour. All he could do was smile and keep kissing Grace's soft, puffy cheeks until she started choking from laughter. It was one of the best days of his life, although, since Grace came along every day was the best day of his and everyone's lives.

What kept him wondering, though, was why Alice didn't see it coming through one of her visions. She never had a vision of Grace before, which was highly unusual. When he asked her about it, she didn't know either but said it could be the fact that her visions are based on people's decisions. However, babies couldn’t make their own decisions. There were decided for them when to eat, when to get dressed, when to sleep, and so forth. That was Alice's theory to why she couldn't see Grace's future. She also added that they might start coming when Grace is a little older.

Back to the present situation. The whole actual reason why everyone was outside was that their new guests would arrive that day. Marcus and Felix were the easy ones. They weren't the type of vampires that would start a war over one wrongly spoken word, or because someone took their favourite chair. That was more like Caius.

A black car pulled up the driveway and the two Volturi members got out, dressed in black cloaks.

"Caius, Jane." Carlisle greeted them politely, "I hope you had a pleasant journey."

"Yes. Beats running." Caius sneered as he plastered the usual, permanent scowl on his face.

Jane's eyes only scanned over the rest of the coven outside, nodding at Demetri in greeting before staring at the child. Grace seemed to notice the new guests too and immediately took an interest in them. She ran up to the two and stared up at Caius. When she didn't get a response from him, she looked up at Jane, who met her eyes.

"Carlisle, get that thing out of my way." Caius scowled.

Before Carlisle could do anything though, a single snowflake floated down between them. Grace saw it, too, and tried catching it. Another one fell on her head, followed by more. It was snowing.

Everyone watched as Grace danced in the snow and tried catching the falling flakes. If she did manage to catch one, she'd pop it in her mouth to see if each one tasted different. It was her very first snow and she loved it. Even Caius and Jane had to stare.

"Sorry, Caius." Carlisle smiled, "I'm a little busy watching my daughter experiencing her first snow. You can find your own rooms. Ancients in the North wing, second door to the left, guards in the East wing, second door to the left. And change your cloaks for something more comfortable. We're not running a funeral service."

The ancient was left fuming as Jane walked on to go search for her room. The rest of the family could only bite back their laughs as Carlisle showed him who was boss. He was the leader of this coven, after all.

Esme smiled proudly at her mate when he joined her on the porch again, "I'm so hot for you right now, you know that?"

He shrugged, "Been saving that up for more than 300 years."

"Come on, Jane!" Demetri begged as he sped on behind her, "Please, for me, your friend? Or at least I hope we're friends."

Jane snarled and nearly punched a tree out of the ground in frustration, "You're starting to annoy me, Demetri. How many times do I have to tell you, I'm not interested in meeting your infant blood singer!"

They arrived in London and sped into an alleyway, lurking in the shadows as they awaited their prey. Humans walked right past them without taking notice, too busy looking down at their phones or talking to other people. A few young women, probably in their early twenties, caught the tracker's eye. There were three of them, a blonde with a tight skirt, a brunette with lots of cleavage, and a ginger with a very revealing outfit. All three were beautiful, at least to the men who passed them. Demetri, however, was only after their blood. Jane, on the other hand, took an interest in a middle-aged woman that looked like the business type, dressed in a formal suit and also carried her own briefcase.

"I'll leave you writhing in pain for a week if you spoil my meal with talk of that child." she threatened and stomped off towards the woman.

Demetri sighed and punched the wall next to him in frustration. Grace managed to win over both Marcus and Felix. Why couldn't it be the same with Jane? Why wouldn't she just say hello to Grace? If Jane brought home someone special, he'd meet them without hesitation just because he considered her a friend. He grumbled another curse before plastering on his Casanova face and turning on his charm, ready to woo the three girls to their deaths.

Their eyes lit up as he approached them and their heads filled with naughty thoughts. The brunette slightly pulled her top further down, revealing even more of those hidden pastures.

"Good evening, ladies." he smirked and casually stuck both hands in his pockets, "Wonderful night for a walk, right?"

"Indeed, it is." the blonde bit her lip, "If that's what you're into. I'm Rachel, that's Tiana and Audrey."

"Xander," he lied when they expected his name, "Mind if I join you? I actually know a shortcut to this hotspot that serves the best cocktails. What do you ladies say? Drinks are on me."

They giggled and agreed. Demetri led them right through the alleyway towards the dark corners where they couldn't escape. However, just as he was about to grab one to feed, the blonde pushed him against the brick wall and hungrily smashed her lips to his. She didn't wait for his reaction and immediately ripped his shirt open, causing the buttons to fly everywhere while forcing her tongue into his mouth. Demetri would've enjoyed it and even 'pleasure' her more if it wasn't for the fact that he has found his Grace. Instead, he felt sick to the stomach and imagined her lips tasting like that horrid animal blood the Cullens call dinner.

This was so wrong.

He even lost his appetite for the three of them, but the burning in his throat reminded him that he needed the blood. Meanwhile, Rachel has removed her shirt and was standing half-naked in an alleyway. Demetri didn't tolerate it any longer and twisted her head before sinking his fangs mercilessly into her neck. She let out a shrill scream that turned into a horrifying cry as every drop of blood was sucked out of her. The other two cried and screamed as they ran away, but didn't make it far in their heels. Demetri caught up with them easily and quickly turned them into meals as well. After drinking the last one dry, he disposed of the bodies in a nearby river and went to find Jane.

She glared at him when seeing him approach her, "You took your time. Had fun with them?"

"Too desperate for my taste." he answered, "I actually have a challenge for you."

"If it has anything to do with me meeting that infant, then the answer's no."

"Hear me out first." he insisted, "Here's the deal. If I can live through five minutes of your pain, on maximum power of course, then you must meet Grace. If I give up before that, then I'll stop pestering you about her and I'll take all your tasks Aro give you for a decade."

Jane grinned, "Fool. No creature can resist pain on full power. You'll be dead in thirty seconds."

Demetri smirked, "Then there's no reason why you shouldn't take the bet."

"Two decades." she replied, "You do my tasks for two decades IF you live, then I'll accept."

"Deal." he shook her hand to seal it.

"This will be fun," Emmett said as they all gathered around Demetri and Jane in the forest to witness the challenge take place. All except Renesmee and Jacob, who watched over Grace at home, was present.

"Demetri, this is a terrible idea." Carlisle tried reasoning with him for the millionth time, "If you don't make it through, what will become of Grace? She'll grow up with a hollowness inside her. She'll never be truly happy and she won't understand why. Please, don't do this."

The tracker shook it off, "I won't stop until Jane has officially met her. I know she'll be won over like Marcus and Felix were."

Carlisle wanted to reason with him once again, but Jane was ready. She stood across from Demetri while Alice had to keep time. Five minutes, that's all it will take. How hard could it be? It doesn't seem that long until you're put in a situation where it's the only time you have left to accomplish one last thing, or in his case, to live.

"Ready..." Alice muttered, "Go!"

Jane squinted her eyes, "Pain."

Demetri POV

Knives, spears, blades... everything shot up through my feet to the rest of my body. It honestly felt like every atom of me was being stabbed multiple times by sharp objects, while fire was burning up what was left. I knew what Jane's power could do when she didn't hold back. It could devour you from the inside out, slowly or quickly, just as she pleased.

I felt it.

My insides were being consumed by pain, my body burning and aching inside and out. It felt like being bitten and becoming a vampire all over again, except this time, it was ten thousand times worse. I promised myself I wouldn't scream or cry, but I did when it all became too much. Finally, my knees gave in.

"Four minutes left." Alice's voice came from somewhere, but I couldn't determine where.

By now my cheeks started cracking, as well as my neck and parts of my legs. I clawed at the dirt under my hands for some leverage, to forget about the immense pain and agony. I'm burning. My body felt like fire.

"Three minutes left."

My fingers and toes curled excruciatingly. The cracks on my neck spread to my chest and torso and I knew, any longer and I might explode into shards. To prove myself right, I felt my cheeks crumble and saw shards of my own face falling to the ground. Somewhere I heard gasps, probably by the looks of my hollow, incomplete features. The end was near when my back snapped awkwardly and I was thrown on the ground in a cramped position. It was disgusting to look at.

Fire. Pain. Burning. Aching. Breaking. More screaming. More pain.

"Two minutes left!"

Fire. Pain. Burning. Breaking. More screaming. More pain. I can't take any more pain. I need Grace.

Grace.

She'll grow up with a hollowness inside of her. She'll never be truly happy ever again. She'll be alone.

Suddenly I felt a tiny spark of hope when thinking about her. Her crystal blue eyes when she wakes up in the mornings, her sleepy smile when I hold her, that addicting laugh when she tangles her fingers in my hair. I focused on it, on her. She smells like cherries and vanilla, her skin's as soft as silk, she's the definition of sunshine.

You can make it, Demetri. Do it for Grace.

"One minute left. Hold on, Demetri..."

Grace… Her crystal blue eyes.

My back snapped completely in half.

Grace… Her silky skin.

My forehead shattered.

Grace… Her addicting laugh.

Fire. Pain. Burning. Aching. Breaking.

"Time!" Alice called somewhere, however the burning and aching didn't end, "Jane, stop! STOP!"

I never heard Alice stop the clock, never caught Emmett and Jasper tackling Jane to the ground to end her wrath. My senses had already shut down, my vision turning hazy until eventually, I blacked out with Grace dancing through my final thoughts.