chapter┊ ✦. :: thirty five
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Lydia had never seen so many people at the Cullen residence, but at least Esme knew most of them and was responsible for introducing them to Lydia.

With everyone, it was the same conversation, trying to explain what was happening, but in these cases, it was also a double-edged sword because all these people had to know that Lydia and Maven had angel blood, which meant they had to trust that they wouldn't harm them and that they wouldn't betray them.

They omitted the part where the whole family had consumed Lydia's blood to change. They didn't want to lie, but that would perhaps be the most dangerous.

Fortunately, the Denalis were a great support, as they had absolute faith in the Cullens' words because they had treated Lydia for a relatively long time, or at least longer than everyone else.

After the Denalis, the next to arrive were Benjamin, Tía, his mate, Amun, and Kebi. Benjamin was probably the friendliest of them all; he happily carried Maven around everywhere while showing off his skills. Maven, for his part, just laughed and watched with interest.

At the same time, Senna and Zafrina appeared. They were girls from the Amazon. At first, they were a bit scary, and Maven almost started crying when the two girls looked at him with absolute interest. They turned out to be very nice, though they didn't talk much and spent their time looking at Maven as if he were a strange creature... or perhaps it was fascination.

Edward would later explain to Lydia that it was because Maven had an extraordinary beauty in the eyes of those vampires. They were drawn to Maven; he was as beautiful as a vampire, but there was something more. Edward supposed it was because of the angel blood, but at the same time, just like Lydia, his scent was almost imperceptible. Lydia only partially understood. She was still getting used to her new abilities and actually felt the same as always.

A man named Garrett was the next to show up at the house. According to what Esme explained to Lydia, this man had been very close to Carlisle, and that was probably why he didn't hesitate for a second when he decided to help them.

But never in a million years had he imagined that his old friend was now a father. Literally. At first, he didn't believe it at all, but little by little, everything began to make sense. However, he didn't dare to get too close to Maven.

And so more and more people began to arrive. In the end, there were 18 vampires roaming around the Cullen house. However, Seth mentioned that there were also many Quileute boys who were beginning to transform into wolves. That was both good and bad. It meant that more wolves were involved in the cause, but the downside was that they still had to adapt to this new world, and that was no easy task.

So they spent a couple of days trying to adapt. They had promised not to hunt in the area, but sooner or later, they would get thirsty, and no one could do anything about it. It was something the wolves didn't agree with, but as long as the vampires didn't do anything in the vicinity, they couldn't interfere.

That day, Carlisle, Lydia, Edward, Senna, and Zafrina were outside the house, by the small river. Maven was nearby with Seth, who was probably the person who spent the most time with the baby. And Seth seemed to absolutely adore him.

Zafrina was showing her ability to Lydia and Carlisle, which basically consisted of making them see whatever she wanted. It was simply phenomenal, and Lydia was more than delighted.

"This is incredible," the girl murmured, looking around.

"It really is," Carlisle replied with a small smile, watching the illusion with interest.

"If it weren't for hearing Maven's laughter, I would really think this is real."

The illusion disappeared just as Eleazar approached with a smile.

"I hadn't realized before, but I've discovered what Maven and Lydia's abilities are."

Lydia looked at him curiously, at the same time glancing briefly at Carlisle. The man had explained a bit about the vampires' abilities, but she thought that being a hybrid, she wouldn't have any, and since Maven was still very young, maybe he hadn't developed any abilities yet.

"What do you mean?" Carlisle asked.

Eleazar laughed kindly.

"Remember how we couldn't smell Lydia when she was still human?" They both nodded. "She can... for lack of a better term, go unnoticed even in the middle of a crowd. Something like becoming invisible but not in the literal sense of the word."

She didn't really understand, but little by little, more people began to approach.

"I think what Eleazar says makes sense," Edward commented. "Even now, it's difficult for me to detect your scent."

"Look, I'll explain it with a little demonstration," Eleazar continued. "Alistair is an extraordinary tracker as long as his target isn't moving." Alistair jumped from a tree and smiled proudly. "I'm the best, in fact," he boasted.

"Lydia, I'll ask Alistair to try to find you while you hide anywhere you prefer. No vampire will see where you are, and we'll try to find you. When you hide, try to focus on not wanting to be found, as if you had disappeared from the face of the earth."

"Okay," nothing made sense to her, but it seemed fun.

"Alistair, you can smell her if you want," Eleazar said.

He snorted, but still approached Lydia and sniffed her a bit to catch her scent.

"I'm the best. Nothing and no one can hide from me," he said, looking at Lydia with a small smirk but seeming a bit confused. Perhaps because the girl's scent was barely perceptible.

She still frowned, but still began to walk among the forest leaves, not advancing much, maybe a couple of meters, and hiding behind a not very large tree. She did as Eleazar instructed and closed her eyes, trying to concentrate on not being there. A strange sensation ran through her body, and then she opened her eyes.

She saw Alistair pass by her side, a couple of steps away, but he seemed annoyed and hadn't even noticed her despite basically being right in front of him. She smiled to herself. Carlisle let out a low laugh; he was the only one of all the vampires present who could still see her and smell her very clearly. But no one else seemed to realize her whereabouts, probably not even needing to move from her place to hide.

"Okay, Lydia. You can come back," Eleazar told her.

She cleared her mind, and with a deep sigh, let that strange barrier that covered her disappear, and everyone turned to look at her. Alistair approached her with a frown and took her by the shoulders.

"Were you here the whole time?"

"Yes," she sounded more like a question.

He seemed annoyed, but a small smile appeared on his lips. It was like a challenge for him.

"And can she make someone else disappear?" Garret asked.

Lydia shrugged.

"I'm not sure, but I could try," she approached Edward and took him by the arm. "Would you like to be my guinea pig?"

He laughed.

"Okay."

They both walked away from the others and

stopped not far away. Lydia took Edward's hand and focused again. It was as if a barrier was covering her again, but this time, she was also trying to cover her counterpart. It took longer, but she succeeded.

They saw Alistair pass by them and look in their direction, but in reality, he wasn't looking at them. He seemed to be searching desperately for something, and it was funny because they were literally in front of him.

Lydia squeezed Edward's hand and made him walk cautiously.

"Do you think if we talk, they'll notice?" Lydia asked mentally.

He shrugged.

"Kate," Edward called to the girl who was with Garret, but no one turned except Carlisle.

"Eleazar," Lydia called, "we're over here. Alistair?"

But it was as if they were invisible to the others. Seth approached carrying Maven and frowned.

"Where's Lydia? I think Maven is hungry."

It was quite funny, as Lydia and Edward were with Seth. However, the only one who noticed both of them was Maven, who extended his little arms towards his mother.

Lydia stopped making the barrier disappear and approached her son with a big smile. Everyone then turned to look at her. Seth almost jumped in surprise.

"Where the hell did you come from?"

"I've been here all along," she carried Maven in her arms.

"I consider that it's an ability that only works on supernatural beings. According to what you've told us, because of your angel blood, you're hidden from all beings outside the norm; they are unable to detect you. If it's a human, it probably won't work," Eleazar explained.

"Do you think that while she goes unnoticed, other gifts can affect her?" Kate asked, showing sparks coming out of her fingers.

Lydia frowned.

"It's not something I really care to find out," she muttered.

"I think so," Edward commented, "in the first attempt, I could still hear Lydia's thoughts quite clearly, but I couldn't see her or smell her anywhere, and I could also read her thoughts in the second attempt when I disappeared with her."

"Is that voltage really powerful?" Garret asked, looking at Kate with a smile.

She also smiled with some superiority as she watched him.

"I don't know, do you want to try it?" she raised her hand a bit and moved her fingers. "I don't think it's something suitable for the weak."

He smiled even more, accepting the challenge, and slowly approached with his hand extended.

"Garret, I don't think it's a good idea," Carlisle told him. But he completely ignored him.

Garret's index finger touched Kate's palm, and suddenly, he was on the ground, kneeling and looking at the blonde with extreme fascination.

"You're an amazing woman," he said with a big smile. He seemed even enchanted, as if he hadn't received a powerful electric shock.

Kate also smiled at him.

"Eleazar," Lydia spoke, "you mentioned that you discovered Maven's ability."

Everyone turned to look at the man.

"Oh, yes. It's somewhat similar to Jasper's ability, not exactly the same, but for you to understand what I mean," he explained. "Have you noticed that when you look into Maven's eyes, you feel calm? There's no negative emotion, it's just... calm. As if everything else disappears."

There were murmurs, but everyone drew their own conclusions. It was true. From the moment they saw the baby's intense blue eyes, it was as if an incredible peace invaded them. It was really nice, but they hadn't noticed it until Eleazar mentioned it.

"Let's see if that's true," Alistair said with some anger, "I'm very annoyed because I couldn't find Lydia."

He approached the baby, who immediately looked at him with some panic but then began to laugh.

Strangely, Alistair no longer seemed annoyed and smiled a bit. It was surprising. He stopped looking at him and furrowed his brow, cleared his throat, and immediately left.

The present laughed.

"Okay, I'll take Maven to eat something. I'll see you later," Lydia said goodbye and walked towards the house, where Esme had already prepared the bottle for the baby.

Lydia thanked her and headed to Carlisle's room to feed him and try to get him to sleep. But the baby had his eyes wide open and was staring at his mother. Almost as if trying to tell her that everything would be okay. Lydia hummed a song she couldn't remember where she had heard it while gently rocking her son in her arms.

She loved those little moments where nothing seemed more important. It would have been a perfect moment if Carlisle had been there with them, but she understood that he had to take care of the guests and plan their strategies.

At least for now, she would enjoy the moment with her son.

She couldn't help but think of her sister. Where would she be now? What had become of her and her nephew? She wanted not to care, but deep down, she felt a little sorry for her nephew; the poor child was not to blame for all the mistakes his mother had made. She hoped to see him at some point in the not too distant future. Even if it was from afar, but knowing that he was okay and that maybe he and Maven could meet and become good friends.

What had become of Bella's baby? It was another question that came to her mind. Jacob seemed very interested in the subject, and Lydia would bet that if it weren't for the situation, the boy would be very happy to be a father. Maybe he was too young, but that didn't seem to matter to Jacob at all. She felt a little sorry for him, and honestly hoped that his son or daughter was safe.

It was complete chaos right now, and she just hoped that things wouldn't get worse.

Fortunately, Maven fell asleep after a few minutes. Lydia tucked him into the big bed and lay down next to him, closing her eyes too. In the silence, she could hear the baby's heartbeat, and it was a sound she loved. Now she understood a little more about Carlisle; that little sound was like music to his ears.

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