Author's Note: This idea has been in my head for well over a year now! Finally decided to get off of my ass and write it:) Hope you enjoy it and pretty please review:D Oh and as a side note, currently this story is rated T, but in the future, that could change to M:)

Disclaimer: I do not own twilight nor the characters affiliated with it. I do however own my original characters and the right to toy with their world :)

New Horizons

Chapter 1: A New Life

Don't tell me if I'm dying cause I don't want to know

If I can't see the sun, maybe I should go

Don't wake me cause I'm dreaming of angels on the moon

Where everyone you know, never leaves too soon.

~Angels on the Moon-Thriving Ivory

Moonlight spilled through the trees and into the clearing. A gentle breeze blew my golden hair slightly, causing the gossamer tips to skim across the freshly dewed grass. My bare feet hung in the crystal waters of the river that flowed by me.

I knew this was coming. It would have to happen sometime. I took a deep breath and turned my gaze to the reflection staring at me through the water. I had avoided all mirrors and reflective surfaces to elude seeing myself for the past month and a half. I was no longer the Gabby I used to be. The energetic, carefree girl was gone. All that is left of me is an empty shell of the person I used to be. The hair I used to be so proud of has grown a few inches and is now mangled and dull. My green eyes are glassy and hollow and my expression is one I don't recognize. It's one of hatred and bitterness.

No longer was I the naïve girl who believed there was good in everyone. I knew now that trust was a luxury I couldn't afford to give. I had to make things right by myself. Stand on my own two feet and solve my own problems.

Pulling my feet out of the river, I wrapped my arms around my legs and pulled them close to my chest. I was my only comfort now. My mom and brother would never be with me again.

A tear forced its way out of my eye and down my cheek. I quickly tried to wipe it away with the sleeve of my flannel shirt, but they continued to flow relentlessly. At least I was alone and could cry in peace.

All of the tears I had been holding back exploded from me. The emotions I had pent up inside were spilling out like water from a broken dam. My family was gone. My old life was over. Things would never be the same.

I quickly reached inside of the duffel bag filled with things I had managed to hastily grab from my old home before I left for good. I dug around through the sweatshirts and jeans until I reached my sketchbook.

I flipped through the worn pages of charcoals, paintings, and sketches until I settled on the piece of canvas that I was looking for.

My mother was frozen in one of her beautiful smiles with my brother and me embracing her from either side. Our cheeks were pressed together and our identical blonde hair intertwined with each others'. I meant to give it to her as a Mother's Day present, but now, it was the only picture I had of her and Roman.

The tears were really coming now. One slid off my cheek and onto the thick paper, staining one of the corners, spreading slowly, like champagne on a white carpet.

My body was shaking now, raked with sorrow and grief that had taken almost two months to finally hit me.

I didn't know what I was doing out here in the middle of a forest. I didn't know where I was going. The only thing I was certain of was that I needed to get away. I had to escape the vampires that murdered my family.

I laid my head onto my duffel bag, using it as a make-shift pillow. My eye lids grew heavier the longer I tried to keep them open. Slowly, they shut, and with my cheeks still wet from my tears, I fell into a dreamless sleep.

"Gabriella."

I shot upwards at the sound of my name floating through the woods. I spun my head wildly in all directions, searching for the speaker.

"Gabriella," it repeated. The sound was barely a whisper, but with my hybrid senses, it might as well have been a scream. The voice was masculine, and was surrounding me. I felt the fine hairs on my body begin to rise, and my bird-like heart beat thudded wildly in my ear.

Quickly, I grabbed my bag and the worn pair of converse shoes still sitting by the river and stood upward.

A twig snapped in the forest behind me.

I let my defensive instincts kick in. I took a bounding leap forward and flung myself across the wide river, landing on the muddy bank with a thud. As soon as my feet hit the ground, I was running. Fleeing my pursuer as fast as my body would allow. The branches tore at my jeans and flannel shirt as I flew by, but barely left a blemish on my skin.

Just behind me, I could make out the even breathing of someone. He made no other noises. The breathing became louder until I could almost feel it on the back of my head. A sense of terror flooded my body.

I pumped my legs harder, urging my body to go faster. My heels were digging deep into the ground as I attempted to escape.

"Gabriella," the man said. His voice was at my ear and I let a shriek escape my lips. His body crashed into mine with the sound of two boulders colliding, and I hit the ground, smacking the side of my head on a rock. I moaned loudly as the pain seeped through my skull.

A pair of blaringly white hands flipped me onto my back. I closed my eyes tight. I didn't want to see the face of the man who was going to kill me.

"Look at me, Gabby," he said. His tone of voice was even and collected, but I knew that would be changing in a matter of seconds.

I did nothing.

He sighed loudly. "Just like your brother then, are we?" Before his words registered in my brain, his fist smacked my face, on my left cheekbone. My head violently flew to the side, and I bit my lip hard to keep myself from crying. I tasted blood trickling inside my mouth.

One of his hands grabbed my face, lifting my body up until I was sitting. "Open. Your. Eyes," he spat.

Reluctantly, I did what he said. Not out of obedience, but because I wanted to see the monster who could hurt innocent people for no reason.

He had cropped black hair that was slicked back against his skull. Some of his bangs had become loosened in our encounter, and hung down his forehead. But the thing that held my attention was his eyes. They glistened bright red against the whiteness of his skin and the blackness of the night around us. There was no mercy in them. Only the intent of killing his prey was present.

"Finally. I've caught you," he muttered, almost to himself. "It's been a month and a half. You sure put up a fight."

I didn't say anything. I didn't need to. By my heavy breathing and flared nostrils, he knew that I hated him with my whole being.

"It really is a pity," he said quietly. Two of his frozen fingers moved down the length of my cheek. "Such a waste of beauty."

How dare he talk to me like that. After what he did to my family? I spit in his face, getting my message across.

He released his grip on my face and I fell back to the ground. He wiped my saliva off of his chin and stood up.

I knew the end was near. Death was at my feet. I tried to push myself up and run, but he grabbed my right ankle and yanked me back toward him, almost pulling it out of socket.

"Somebody help me!" I shrieked into the night. I knew the chances of someone hearing me were slim, but I didn't care. I just wanted him away from me.

"No body's coming," he scoffed coldly. "It's just me and you in this forest." He straightened my right leg out. I tried yanking it out of his grasp, but he tightened his grip around my ankle.

"This might hurt a bit." A smile played around his snowy lips.

He reeled his foot back and stomped down onto my outstretched leg in less than a second. I didn't have to hear the deafening crack to know that my leg was broken.

I screamed. My fingers dug into the ground as if it would make the pain go away. The stinging in my leg worsened, and I could see red liquid pooling around my ankle.

The man froze when he saw my blood on the forest floor. His fingers slowly dipped into the pool, crimson red on pure white. He stared at his bloody hands for only half a second before he was licking the blood off of them desperately. But that small amount of time gave me a glimpse of the desire and lust he had for my blood. A hybrid's blood.

Within a matter of seconds, he had devoured all of my blood off of his hands. He turned his head toward mine in a quick snapping gesture. His eyes were a vibrant hue of scarlet that I had never before seen on a vampire. Like rubies against snow.

Before I could protest, his arms were holding me up. I fought with all the strength in my muscles, but he was stronger than before. More determined. It was as if my blood supplied him with all the energy in the world, enough to take down the Volturi himself. His hand clenched around my upper arms, securing me in an upright position like iron clasps.

I squirmed and tried to wiggle out of his grasp, but I couldn't move an inch.

"You should be grateful, Gabriella." His voice drifted into the woods, a soft, almost lyrical sound that reverberated through my skull. "I'm giving you a proper death. This was the purpose of your kind."Blood was smeared across his chin. He had the appearance of a ravaging animal.

"Get to hell," I spat back. I knew that my death was imminent, but a small flicker of hope still blazed inside of me, hoping for something to save me.

In less than a second, I felt his teeth clamp down on my neck.

A stinging pain filled me suddenly and was slowly replaced with a burning one. I could feel the flames slowly make their way through my body, searing away my last bit of humanity.

I bit my lip hard to stifle the scream that was threatening to escape my lips.

He guzzled my blood greedily, taking in huge amounts at a time. I was losing my warmth. Cold spread across my limbs. My vision was becoming hazy.

I let my eyelids droop shut. I didn't want to witness my own death.

My thoughts drifted back to my family. Roman and my mother would be waiting for me, on the other side. At least I would see my family again.

My heart beat was slowing. It's usual bird-like thrum was now almost non-existent.

I love you, I thought to my dead family. My mind was abruptly surrounded in a luminous light. It filled my senses; it was all I could think about.

A face began to come into focus. A blonde boy with green eyes.

It was Roman. My brother. My twin.

Am I dead? I thought.

He shook his head, a slight smile on his face.

Neither am I, Gabby. His mouth sounded so full of warmth. It almost hurt to hear his voice again. I knew it was a hallucination, but I still was amazed at the clarity that I was seeing him.

Roman, tell mom I'll be seeing you guys in a little bit. I knew it wouldn't be long before I crossed over.

His expression became worried. He was talking more frantically. Gabriella this is real. I need your help.

I thought for a moment. Then I remembered my brother's telepathy.

Hope surged through me. Roman was alive. He was alive and needed me to save him.

Suddenly, the vampire's teeth relinquished my throat. I fell to the ground with a thud, landing on my side. The burning sensation was still there. It lingered, even after his presence was gone.

"Carlisle!" a voice said in the distance.

I heard two bodies slamming into one another, the sound of thunder rolling through the sky. A thump followed soon after.

I opened my eyes and saw that my attacker was pinned to the ground by another vampire.

Then I remembered the pain filling my body. It had reached most parts of me. I felt like I was burning alive. A whimper escaped my lips and my hands clenched together, nails cutting through my skin.

The black-haired vampire was hissing hysterically now. He managed to throw the vampire that tackled him against a tree, but another one caught him by surprise.

This was my chance to escape. With blurry vision, I tried to push myself off of the ground, but quickly fell back down.

There was a screeching metallic sound. Then another, and another. The smell of burning metal filled my nostrils and an orange haze blazed upwards.

"Carlisle, help the girl. I can handle this."

A hazy figure with blonde hair was quickly by my side.

Fear filled me. This vampire may have saved my life, but he was still one of them.

"Edward," he called out. "She's lost a lot of blood. And she was bitten."

The red-haired vampire was soon at my side as well. "How is that possible?"

Carlisle shook his head. "I don't know. But we need to get the venom out of her as soon as possible. She's changing fast."

"I'll do it." The one called Edward's face was solemn. "Just like Bella," he almost whispered.

Cold fingers wrapped themselves gently around my own. "You're going to be okay," Carlisle said in a low voice. "You're safe now."

My eyes turned towards his. They burned a piercing topaz color. The color of honey.

"Safe?" I asked in a small voice, confused by his words and his eyes.

He nodded, keeping a grasp around my hand.

For the second time that night, I felt a vampire's mouth on my neck.

I started shaking. I tried screaming, but my throat was so coarse no sound escaped.

The sensation was different this time. His teeth weren't cutting through my skin.

But my blood was still filling his mouth.

"It's okay," Carlisle said, his hand still holding mine. "He's helping you."

The forest around me began to fade out of my sight. The world was becoming blurry. And I had nowhere to run.

Slowly, my surroundings faded out of sight, and I succumbed to the darkness that engulfed me.

Please read and review! Love to know what you guys think! also if you want to check out outfits of Gabby and what the characters look like, please go to .com/profile/PandoraBear12. The scroll down to albums and the things that have been introduced so far in the story should be there! :)