The Peace Keeper

“Victor! Victor!” I shouted repeatedly, calling for my brother even after I heard his rushing footsteps approaching. Shaky hands clasped over my mouth, and tears streaming down my face as my entire body quaked.

Before me, was Benjamin, slouched to the ground; broken, bloodied, burned, and severely bruised. His normally pristine clothes were torn in places, smudged with dirt. In his arms was a dirty bundle, which had also taken some abuse from his ordeal.

The fire demon gazed up at me with orange-tinted eyes, a sure sign that he’s been using his demonic powers recently. “Emma…” He croaked, “Take...” He meekly held out the bundle.

Confused, I peered over, obeying him, and retrieving the filthy blankets from his arms. The bunch was made of a soft white terrycloth, like a blanket. Whatever the blanket covered was solid, unmoving. I moved the first layer of the white cloth, only to gasp, now falling back onto my back side, knees bent awkwardly before me, holding onto the object in the bundle for dear life.

Victor, by now, arrived by my side. His eyes matched mine perfectly, the whites that surrounded our green-brown hues extended.

“Oh my god…” He breathed upon seeing the scene. His reaction didn’t assure me at all that the scene wasn’t as bad a it appeared. Victor bent down, grasping Benjamin by the shoulders, hoisting him up from under one arm. After securing Benjamin, he ushered for me to follow into the living room.

He laid Benjamin down on the couch, successfully blotting my cushions with the few excess streams of blood from the wounds that had still not scabbed over.

Victor sighed when he saw Benjamin was out cold, turning to me with an suffering gaze, before noticing the object cradled into my chest, along with my choking sobs.

“Emma-Kate…” My brother addressed me by my full name. “What’s that?” I knew in my heart that he already knew exactly what it was. He just didn’t want to say it.

My throat was sore from the screams and basic initial shock, so I could only stifle out a small cry. Victor approached me with a swiftness. He quickly, but gently threw back the first layer of the blanket, just as I did at the door, standing close to be able to see what was under it. The small, delicate face of an infant with reddish, curly hair, tied with a scarlet blow was revealed.

“Robyn…”

~~~

We couldn’t summon Dr. Carlisle fast enough. He sensed the urgency, using his vampire speed to get to our house in just a few minutes, carrying what looked to be a first-aid kit with some extra, more high-tech equipment.

It was only him, which was a bit unusual for one of the Cullens to come alone. Immediately upon seeing Benjamin’s injured figure on the couch, Carlisle rushed over, beginning a through examination.

Dr. Cullen hooked Benjamin up to an IV drip, bandaging most of his wounds after cleaning them, and injecting a low dose pain killer to ease the sting of his burns.

I still had yet to let go of Robyn. At one point, I had removed the tattered, white blanket that had covered her before, replacing it with the polyester patterned blanket I kept thrown over the loveseat. She stayed embraced in my chest, a steady breathing through her small mouth indicated that she was just sleeping soundly, not particularly hurt in any visible way.

It was a bizarre feeling, having my daughter in my arms again. I had held her only a few times before, the longest being right after she was born. When she opened her eyes, her first sight being my beaming face. I distinctly remember the first time she cried, in my arms, after she heard a loud noise from outside. Regrettably, that all happened in one day. The day she was born. The day before I gave her away.

I buried my nose on the top of her head, supporting her neck with one hand, the other holding her close to my side. I rocked my baby gently, inhaling her clean scent, murmuring little “shushes” mostly to calm my own nerves.

Carlisle was finishing up with Benjamin. He turned to me, seeing the blanket in my arms. The doctor came up next to me, carefully holding his own arms out. I had trusted this doctor with my own life, but was still tentative in giving him my child, not matter for how brief a time. Reluctantly, though, I knew it was for her own good, and begrudgingly passed her into Carlisle’s sturdy, marble limbs.

“She seems fine…” He muttered to himself, laying her flat on the love seat, “No obvious injuries…” Carlisle pulled out his stethoscope, and commenced running simple tests. I watched anxiously over his shoulder as he did so.

Finally, after a few, long, agonizing minutes, lifted Robyn up, passing her back into my arms. Once again, I held her close.

“The baby’s absolutely fine,” Carlisle informed me. “But your friend on the couch is in pretty bad shape… He’ll make a full recovery, it’s just going to take a while.”

I nodded in understanding. “How long until he wakes up?”

Carlisle shrugged with a sigh, locking eyes onto the fire demon, “Hard to say. But, the sedative I gave him was mild, so no more than a few hours.”

~~~

It wasn’t long until the rest of the Cullens showed up on my door step. Honestly, it was so predictable, that I was practically expecting them.

Alice was the first to barge through the door, eyes on her delicate face darting rapidly until they landed on the small girl, still wrapped in blankets in my arms. I put two and two together, and guessed that she “saw” Robyn’s arrival.

“Is that it?” Emmett came up behind her, craning his neck to peer past the blankets.

Even in this serious situation, I found myself raising an eyebrow at the teenage vampires.

Rosalie stood next to Emmett, giving him a quick jab in the ribs with a “shut-up” glare.

All of the Cullens: Edward, Alice, Jasper, Rosalie, Emmett, and Esme, all stood in a semi-circle in front of me. Each of their golden eyes held a serious curiosity. It seems they were too polite to ask the pending questions that ran through their minds, but their stretched necks and searching eyes gave it away. They weren’t looking at me. They were looking at the baby.

Robyn had woken up sometime after Dr. Carlisle’s examination. She cried when she noticed the new surroundings and potential strangers, but a few soft words from her mother lulled her into a content state where she just stared at the world around her with big, yellow-green eyes, mouth agape.

And so they stared… And stared… And stared…

“What?” I finally snapped in a harsh tone. What? It had been a long day, I was annoyed.

“We wanna see it.” Alice’s bell-like voice answered bluntly.

A tad offended, I quoted “’It?’” With a incredulous look.

“Her.” Edward corrected for his sister politely.

With a sigh, I unwrapped my little Robyn, letting the blanket drop down to the couch. I shifted her, so that she sat more upright in my arms.

Each of the vampires peered at her with amazing curiosity and… confusion?

They drew back, glancing at each other, silently communicating.

“What is it?” I asked, re-bundling my child, “You all look… disappointed.”

“Well…” Esme spoke softly, “We were expecting something… Different.”

“What do you mean--”

“We didn’t expect the baby to look normal,” Stated Emmett. “It’s supposed to be half demon, right? Then why isn’t it… You know, demon-ish?”

I stood, absolutely immobile, a dumbfounded look on my face.

“So… You all thought…” I couldn’t quite find the right words. “That she… Like, had tentacles or something?”

Emmett shrugged, “Yeah, basically.”

“What on Earth had given you that notion?”

“Carlisle told us that you needed a C-Section by a doctor outside of a hospital…” Rosalie explained, “Because the baby wasn’t supposed to be seen by a normal person.”

Realization struck me, my mouth forming into an “Oh,” shape. I began to laugh, my shoulders shaking with my chuckles.

“That was just a precaution!” I giggled, “The reason Robyn couldn’t have a normal doctor has nothing to do with her appearance.”

Emmett huffed, pursing his lips in disappointment of not meeting a “freak baby.”

“Then why?” He asked in exasperation, “What’s wrong with her?”

With a mischievous smile, I beckoned Emmett forward. Carefully, I shifted Robyn again, hooking her in my one arm, so her head was supported by my shoulder. “Poke her in the stomach.” I commanded.

“What?”

“Just do it. Poke her in the stomach.” Then I added, “Just be gentle.”

Emmett looked back to his family, whom of which gave him confused, but encouraging looks.

With a shrug, he did as I told.

Robyn, who had a plastered daze on her face, now giggled cutely. There wasn’t even a pause from her laughter when a stream of fire spewed from her mouth, igniting Emmett’s shirt sleeve.

He gave a surprised shout, jumping back a bit.

“Yeah, that’s pretty much a reenactment of her first breath,” I pulled Robyn back into my cradled arms.

Now, Emmett’s sleeve was put out, leaving a bit of smoldered fabric on the hem.

Robyn continued to giggle, as if knowing the comedic damage she had caused.

The rest of the Cullens laughed a long with her. I noticed the air had changed with them around, becoming easier, less tense then it had when Ben had first shown up.

“So…” Jasper spoke now, his voice laced with concern, but gentle confidence, “Why are they here?”

And with his words, the overwrought feeling returned in a gust of air that filled my lungs as I breathed the words, “I don’t know… We’ll find out when Benjamin wakes up.”