REUNION

Kate was running, with Bella right behind her. Bella was angry. They had gone hunting together, and Bella, in her dragon form, had been eating a deer when Kate squeezed blood from the deer in her face, turning Bella’s white fur red. Kate laughed and ran, while Bella, half-transformed, chased after her.

Kate broke through the forest, heading towards their house for refuge. Suddenly, a van hit her. The vehicle screeched to a halt as debris flew everywhere, the front completely crushed. Kate was thrown back a few yards. She hadn’t seen the van in time to brace herself.

Bella witnessed the accident and became furious. She immediately transformed into her full dragon form, ready to destroy whoever had harmed her mate.

The outcast Cullens emerged from the van, shocked and terrified as they saw a twelve-foot dragon glaring at them. Rosalie hadn’t seen Kate while driving; she’d been distracted for just a second by her mate kissing her cheek.

Bella let out an ear-piercing roar, recognizing the intruders. The pain she’d endured from the Cullens' betrayal returned, amplified by Kate being hurt.

Kate got up, cursing under her breath. She knew that the Cullens would meet their end if she didn’t act quickly. She flashed towards Bella as the remaining Denali coven emerged from the house to investigate. The three mates could all feel Bella’s anguish, fear, and hatred. They stood in front of Bella, trying to calm her down.

The Cullens, stunned, stood beside the damaged vehicle, too afraid to move as the white creature with wings, scales, claws, and a bloody face roared at them.

“Bella, it’s okay. I’m not hurt,” Kate said, waving her hand and stepping in front of the angry dragon to prove she was fine.

“Bella?” Rosalie said in disbelief, after hearing Kate call the dragon by name. The Cullens wondered if it was the same Bella they knew.

Tanya moved closer to Bella, resting her hand on one of Bella’s front feet, running her fingers through the thick fur while sending love and calming emotions through their bond. Kate and Irina did the same, while Carmen and Eleazar approached the stunned Cullens.

“What are you doing here?” Carmen asked in a tense voice.

Rosalie swallowed hard. She had never seen such a creature in her life. Tearing her eyes away from the hostile dragon, she turned to Carmen.

“We came to find Bella. We wanted to explain our side of things and to warn her, but…” Rosalie’s voice trailed off as she looked into the dragon’s eyes. She could feel the bond, the love, and the care there. She knew that her sister was the dragon. There was no doubt.

Bella stopped growling for a moment, staring at Rosalie. She felt the same bond and was confused by it. She let out a breath and turned to Kate, sniffing her for any signs of injury. Satisfied that Kate was unharmed, Bella licked her face.

“Ew, Bella!” Kate said in mock disgust, wiping her face. Bella licked her again, amused.

Their mates smiled, sensing Bella’s happiness, and relief washed over them as Bella finally calmed down.

Bella looked at the Cullens, still not letting her guard down. She would protect her new family.

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Rosalie turned to Carmen. “We found her,” Rosalie said. “The creature is Bella.”

“What?” Emmett shouted, incredulously. “That’s not Bella!”

“Are you okay now, love?” Irina asked Bella.

“Yes, but why are they here?” Bella replied, her strong voice stunning the Cullens even more as she spoke.

“We’ll find out,” Tanya said as she patted Bella’s foot and approached the Cullens.

“Esme, why are you all here?” Tanya asked.

Esme was still staring at Bella in disbelief, too shocked to answer. Tanya snapped her fingers to get her attention.

“Esme! Tanya tried again.

“What, What happened to her?” Esme asked.

“What happened to Bella is partly your family’s fault,” Tanya answered.

“What?” Esme finally looked at Tanya.

“Why are you here?” Tanya repeated.

Esme, still too stunned, couldn’t answer, so Rosalie answered.

“We came here hoping to find Bella,” she began.

“Why?” Kate interjected, she moved to stand beside Tanya. “You hurt her, then left her. What more are you going to do? Because of you, she almost got killed!” Kate glared at the Cullens, her anger barely restrained.

“Okay, Kate, that’s enough,” Tanya said, pulling Kate to her side as Kate hissed at them.

“No, that’s not true!” Alice said, her eyes brimming with tears.

“Then what’s your story?” Eleazar asked.

Rosalie took a deep breath and answered, “I assume Bella told you what happened because the three of you are mated to her.” From the moment Rosalie saw how the three blondes acted towards Bella she knew that they were mates.

“What!?” Emmett shouted again, but everyone ignored him.

Rosalie continued, “We hoped to explain to Bella that leaving her was a horrible mistake and that we’re sorry. We hope she can forgive us.”

“I won’t stop you from apologizing,” Tanya said. “But where are Carlisle and that asshole Edward?”

Bella, now sitting on all fours with Irina nestled between her front legs, watched the scene before her. Quite content to let her mates handle the Cullens.

Rosalie responded, “We left them. We’re not part of Carlisle’s coven anymore.”

“What!?” Kate said, shocked. “Even Esme?”

“Yes,” Esme answered, tearing her eyes away from Bella. “Carlisle isn’t my mate. He lied to me all this time. And Edward—well, we found out he lied about Bella being his mate. He had ulterior motives for us leaving her.”

“I see,” Tanya said thoughtfully.

“So Carlisle just let you all leave? I don’t believe it.” Carmen added.

“Please, you must understand—we never intended to hurt Bella. We love her, but what Edward did didn’t sit right with us. Rosalie even… well, she took Edward’s head off after we found out about his lies.” Esme said pleadingly.

“What!?” Kate shouted, looking at Rosalie proudly. “I wish that I was there.”

Rosalie held her head high. “I would have burned him to ashes, too, if Carlisle hadn’t run off with his body.”

“Okay, start from the top,” Tanya said, intrigued.

Rosalie explained everything up to the present.

“So, you think Carlisle will try to kill you for betraying him?” Irina asked.

“Yes,” Rosalie answered, “Even though he and Edward are the ones who betrayed us.”

“How could they accomplish that?” Kate asked. “Surely they can’t go up against all of you.”

“No,” Alice said. “I’ve seen Carlisle try to rally his friends to fight with him, but they refused. They know he’s at fault, and to be honest, they never really liked him. Going to the Volturi is out of the question because the truth will be revealed, and Carlisle will face execution for breaking so many laws, especially creating a false mate bond, which the Volturi takes very seriously.”

“Do you see them making any other decisions?” Tanya asked.

“No, it’s all fuzzy now, like they’re deliberately avoiding making decisions to throw me off,” Alice replied softly hating not knowing.

“I think Carlisle will create newborns for his new coven and feed them lies to fight us,” Rosalie said, she knew how Carlisle thinks. She had been observing him for years.

Everyone looked at her in stunned silence.

“What?” Rosalie asked. “Carlisle has always been power-hungry and controlling. It’s no surprise he’d do something like that.”

“I can’t believe it,” Esme said, sadly. The man she has loved for years has been different from the man she knew.

“Believe it,” Rosalie sighed. “I suggest you look into the past with both Carlisle and Edward. I’m sure certain things will come to light.”

Rosalie walked towards Bella, unable to stay away from her sister any longer.

Bella growled softly. While Irina, still sitting between Bella’s front legs, she ran her fingers through her fur on one of Bella’s legs to calm her.

Rosalie stopped a few inches away, without fear. “I know you feel the bond between us, and I understand it’s confusing. But please, give me a chance to explain everything.”

Bella looked at her for a moment, then replied, “Okay.”