"Oh, Rosie," Vera said. "In a week you're going to be married!"
"I know," Rosalie said, much more restrained than her best friend. "It is going to be so grand. Mrs. King wanted to be responsible for the church. She ordered so many flowers, roses and violets of course, just like Royce always sends me."
"And what about your dress?" Vera asked excitedly. "Is it grand?"
"The grandest!" Rosalie enthused.
Vera listened intently as Rosalie spoke of the dress her Papa had ordered for her. The pristine white silk was the finest that could be bought and it trailed to the ground, a fact that made Vera gasp. Rosalie went on to describe the pearls that had been hand-stitched into the fabric of both the dress and the veil, which trailed behind the dress for ten feet.
"It sounds dreamy," Vera said, thinking of her own wedding. She had been only seventeen, at the time of her wedding, but she was in love. There was not a lot of money in her family so she wore a cream colored dress her mother had made at home and flowers that were picked from her mother's prized rose garden.
It certainly was a far cry from the festivities that awaited her dear friend Rosalie, what with the guests that were expected. Of course Rosalie was marrying Royce King II, and one would expect nothing less. Both girls sat in silence, imagining all the wonders that awaited them a week later. The silence was broken by a small cry coming from the next room.
"Oh," Vera said, standing from her chair and making her way to her son's room. "Henry is awake."
"I haven't seen him in so long," Rosalie said following her friend.
The small room was sparsely decorated with a crib that had been handed down from Vera's family and other mixed pieces of furniture that the young couple had acquired. Rosalie tried her best to keep the look of disdain from her face as she looked about the mismatched room. Once her eyes landed on the crying baby, the rest of the nursery was forgotten and a smile crossed her beautiful face.
"He is just darling," Rosalie said as Vera scooped her son up in her arms.
"He is sitting on his own now," she said to Rosalie before turning and lavishing her attention on her small son. "Aren't you? Such a clever boy."
The smile on young Henry's face could have lit the room as he listened to his mother's soft cooing voice. Rosalie looked at the dark haired infant, and imagined what her own child would look like. He would be blonde of course, as both she and Royce had very fair hair and she wondered if he or she would have Royce's ice blue eyes or her own violet eyes.
"Did you hear me, Rosalie?" Vera asked.
"No, sorry," Rosalie said with a slight blush.
"I said that by this time next year you may have a baby of your own," Vera said with a laugh as she laid her son down to change his soiled nappy.
Rosalie flinched a little at the smell, thanking her lucky stars that she would have a nanny to do that part of parenting. Actually Rosalie would have many helpers; a cook to prepare all meals, a housekeeper to keep the house clean, a gardener to maintain the lawn and of course the nanny for any children that she and Royce would be blessed with.
"Shall we show Rosalie how clever you are?" Vera asked her son as she pulled down his gown over the fresh diaper. She set the baby on the floor, making sure he was well balanced. As soon as he was steady, she moved her hands away leaving her son to sit unassisted. She clapped and marvelled like he had just been elected president, a feat unlikely to be reached by the son of a factory worker, in Rosalie opinion. Rosalie smiled at her friend who was so obviously smitten with the dimpled child.
"Vera," a male voice called through the tiny house.
"In here, Darling," Vera called back, scooping her son up in her arms, smiling excitedly. "Daddy's home. Yes he is."
Rosalie noted the excitement that Vera was feeling and assumed that her husband must have been bringing her a gift, for the simple joy of seeing someone had never brought Rosalie that sort of excitement. Vera very nearly forgot that Rosalie was even there in her excitement to greet her love, he had been gone all day and she knew how happy it made him to see her and their son waiting for him to return. It was a daily routine that both the young lovers looked forward to.
Vera's husband was a tall man, and very well muscled from his work in the factory. In his delight to see his pretty wife and their infant son, he didn't even note Rosalie's presence, as he scooped them up in his arms and spun them around before planting a kiss on her lips. As he placed her back on the ground, he pulled their son gently from her arms and greeted him with a kiss on the head. Vera, giddily watched her two favorite men's greeting, before she remembered her friend's presence.
"Darling," she said to him. "Rosalie came by for a visit today."
He looked over to Rosalie who stood speechlessly, not uncomfortable with the affection that the couple displayed, only puzzled, as it was something completely foreign to her. Royce's kisses were always proper and never caused her to flush with excitement as Vera had.
"It's very nice to see you, Miss Hale," he said to her formally.
"It is good to see you again," Rosalie said.
"I didn't realize it was so late," Vera said. "I haven't even started supper."
"No worries," he said, smiling at his wife. "Are you joining us this evening, Miss Hale?"
"No, thank you," Rosalie said politely, knowing that she should be returning home before her mother began to worry. They were planning on packing Rosalie's trunks that evening in preparation of the honeymoon that Royce had planned. They were to spend seven weeks touring Europe, in the highest style of course, traveling first class all the way on the finest ship from New York to England.
They all left the small nursery, heading towards the front door. As Rosalie slipped on her coat she watched her friend as she scooped her son back from his father, who only protested for a moment, before he simply pulled her into his arm so he could hold both of them.
"Are you certain you don't need an escort for your journey home?" he asked her.
"It's only a few blocks," Rosalie said.
"I could go fetch a taxi for you," he offered.
Again, Rosalie politely declined and finished buttoning the large brass buttons on her heavy wool overcoat that Royce had gifted her with shortly after their February engagement. Once her coat was in place, she put her hat on, fastening it with hairpins. A gale force wind couldn't have knocked it from her head. She knew she looked smart in her outdoor attire, as a future King, or Queen as Royce had said, she had to have the best of everything.
After a brief goodbye with her friend, she stepped out into the cold April night and began her walk home. As she walked quickly along the almost deserted streets, Rosalie contemplated all that she'd seen in her friend's small home. It was obvious that the couple was very much in love, and that confounded Rosalie. Was that what love was supposed to be? Was the passion and desire that she'd seen between the couple normal? Was that what she should feel for Royce?
As quickly as those thoughts entered her head, she dismissed them. Royce had everything she ever wanted. Was everything she wanted, she corrected herself as she moved quickly through the darkened streets. Her thoughts moved quickly to the wedding, obsessing about every detail. It better warm up by then, she figured the reception was being held outdoors in a tent that had been erected on the King's large property.
She was barely a block from home when she first heard another voice. It was a man's voice and it sounded very familiar to her. She hurried her pace and as she turned onto the final street before her house, she saw them. A group of five men huddled together under a broken streetlamp, laughing loudly. Drunk. She had never been in a situation like this, where she feared for her safety, and she was pondering her options. Should she continue on, past the drunk men, and make her way home or should she turn around and return to Vera's where she was certain that she would be safe. Safety won out and just as she was about to turn around, to have Vera's husband call a taxi, she heard her name being called.
"Rose," the man yelled, as the other men all laughed.
She looked at the group, truly noting for the first time that they were all well dressed. It was her fiance Royce, with a few of the other sons of influential families. She breathed a little easier, certain that she'd be safe, after all, she was about to become his wife.
"Royce," she greeted, relief coloring her tone.
"Here's my Rose!" he shouted, laughing along with the men. "You're late. We're cold, you've kept us waiting so long."
Poor Rose really didn't have a clue what was so funny, realizing that this was the first time she had seen him drinking, much less drunk. He had had a few sips of champagne at the various functions that they attended but let her know of his distaste for the stuff. She wondered how she could be late when she had not expected to see him at all. She was about to ask him when he turned to the fifth man, a man that Rose had never met before.
"What did I tell you, John," Royce said, pulling Rosalie roughly against his chest. "Isn't she lovelier than all your Georgia peaches?"
John scanned Rosalie up and down, like he was appraising a horse at auction. Rosalie didn't like the way that John was looking at her, and tried to flinch against Royce, feeling the need to hide herself for the first time in all of her eighteen years. This was not the sort of attention that she was used to.
When he finally decided to speak, Rosalie was quite taken aback by his thick southern accent. "It's hard to tell. She's all covered up," he drawled, slurring his words some due to his inebriated state.
Rosalie didn't even have time to process his words when she felt herself being tugged roughly away from Royce's side by his own hands. She didn't even open her mouth before she felt his hands ripping her coat away, sending the buttons flying into the street. The brass buttons tinkled as they landed on the cold ground.
"Show him what you look like, Rose!" Royce laughed as he ripped the hat off her head, taking large clumps of Roses immaculately styled hair with it, causing her to yelp in pain.
"Royce, you're hurting me," Rosalie cried, trying to clutch at the ripped remnants of her coat that hung loosely from her back.
"Now, now, Rosie," Royce cooed. "We can't be sure that John has seen enough of you. He is a fine judge of what kind of woman a man of my stature deserves."
Rosalie trembled in the cold as Royce pulled the last pieces of her coat from her body, leaving her in a thin red dress that offered her no protection from the frigid air.
"I need to go home," she said in a small feeble voice, feeling the wind whip at her skirt and her hair which hung messily from her head.
"Not yet, Rosie," Royce said. "We're waiting for John's opinion. Do a little spin for him. Show him how beautiful you are."
Rosalie listened to her fiance, not knowing she had any other option. She was completely surrounded by five men who were all much larger and stronger than she. She turned slowly, tears streaming down her face as she did.
"I can't tell for sure," John said. "That dress is hiding far too much."
Rosalie held her breath and stared at the man who had spoken these words that she knew somehow held her fate. She could not even contemplate what those words meant. Not that she had long to contemplate, for as soon as they were spoken, Royce moved his hands to the neckline of Rosalie's dress, and ripped the fabric away. Rosalie was speechless then, feeling every vestige of strength leave her body. The man who was supposed to protect her, love and cherish her above all others, was now the one treating her with such disregard.
He laughed and jeered with the rest of the men as she stood on the darkened street in just her thin lacy slip. She didn't move to try to cover herself, she simply looked at the ground, refusing to meet the eyes of the men who had stripped her of more than just her clothing. She didn't even hear their words anymore, they simply blended together as the men began to poke and prod her. Her lack of response was spoiling their fun.
"Definitely need to see more of this delicate little flower," John's voice said, cutting into her stream of consciousness.
"May I do the honors?" asked one of the other men.
"Of course not," Royce said, sounding horrified. "I've paid for her. She's mine first. When I'm done you'll get what's left. Maybe I'll auction my leftovers off to the highest bidder."
The men laughed and cheered as Royce ripped the thin lacy slip away from Rosalie's body, leaving her in just her bra, panties, garter belt and stockings. He didn't stop at all, continuing to rip the bra from her body. The cold air caused her nipples to harden.
"I am thinking she might just be sweeter than any gal I've ever seen," John cheered. Rosalie moved her hands to try to cover herself, both from the cold and from the prying eyes of the men that surrounded her. They were yelling and saying the most horrible and degrading things that Rosalie had ever heard.
"Hold her," said one of the men. "We need to see all the goods King."
She felt her hands being grabbed and pulled away from her chest and she found her voice, crying out and pleading with them to stop. They simply laughed harder and jeered more as she felt hands grabbing onto her legs, at her ankles. Royce got in front of her and pulled her face up to look at him.
"I've paid more for you than I have for any whore," he said to her. "It's time I get what I've paid for."
He dropped to his knees in front of her and ripped the garter belt from her body, tearing it away from her stockings which just began to slip from her legs.
"Please no," she begged in a whisper as she felt Royce's hands reach her last piece of clothing. "Please!"
If he heard her, he didn't show it as his hands tore away her silky underwear, exposing her completely. Rosalie felt herself begin to panic as the hands on her ankles began prying her legs apart.
"I can't wait to have my turn with her," one of the men said. "I'm sure she's worth five hundred."
"I'll wait until you guys loosen her up," one of the men said.
Rosalie fought against the darkness that fought to overwhelm her, praying for something, anything to save her. All at once, she felt herself go limp, and at the same time as she dropped to the ground, all hands released her, allowing her to crumple to the ground. She heard the laughter and finally another voice, this one not slurring words.
"What do you think you are doing to this young lady?" the velvety voice asked, drawing her back from the darkness.
"Mind your own business, Buddy, and be on your way. There is no lady here," Royce said.
Please don't leave, she thought to herself. Please.
"I'm not leaving you Rosalie," the velvet voice promised. "I'll make sure you are safe."
She didn't know why she believed the voice, but she was certain that she did. She opened her eyes and watched as the new man moved around at blinding speed and one by one, all of her attackers hit the ground with sickening thuds. Not one word was spoken, nor was one scream heard, until finally the velvet voiced man spoke again.
"Mr. King," he said.
His words were met with nothing but silence.
"As you can see, each of your friends is dead," the voice said, as Rosalie tried to move to see his face. Pain radiated from every fiber of her being as she trembled as much from shock and fear, as from the cold. "I would love to take my time and kill you the way you deserve, slowly and excruciatingly painfully, but I have a young lady who is in need of my assistance."
Rosalie's eyes finally focused on the man as he grabbed Royce's head and snapped his neck. That was the last conscious thought she had. Edward turned to see the young blonde woman gasp and collapse into unconsciousness again. He hurriedly removed his own coat and bundled her naked body inside it. He knew that he'd need to do something with the five bodies as he couldn't leave the five men lying in the street and not cause a lot of questions to be asked. It only took him a brief moment to decide what to do. He had seen the glint of metal in Royce's belt buckle and he pulled the weapon free. Then he took the gun, holding his breath and firing as quickly as possible into each of Royce's four friends' bodies, before he dropped the weapon and hauled up Royce's body and tossing it over his shoulder, then bending down to pick up the injured girl that was bundled in his coat. By the blue tint to her lips, he knew he had to hurry.
He took off into the bushes at a fast run, not slowed at all by the weight of the dead body on his shoulder, nor the unconscious girl in his arms. He moved quickly through the woods towards the Irondequoit Bay, prepared to dispose of the despicable man whose thoughts had been so violent in the moments before his death. He laid the girl down at the river's edge and tossed the man's body in, watching as the current grabbed him and dragged him down. Edward had studied enough to know that he would be floating again by morning, and that the current would drag him close to the shores of Lake Ontario. Then he returned to the girl, picking up her limp body and moving through the woods towards his home. The reddish tinge in his eyes had calmed considerably in the five months that he'd been back with his family and he knew that his father and mother would be none to pleased with his activities today. At least he did not partake of any part of those men, a thought which should make his father happy at least.
As he neared the house he slowed down, not wanting to alarm his parents too much. The speed didn't matter, it was the simple fact that as soon as they were able to smell their son, they also got a whiff of the bloodied human that he carried with him. Carlisle and Esme were on the front porch of their home before Edward even stepped into view. Carlisle was bolstered by the fact that he could still hear the girl's heartbeat but concerned s to why his son would bring the human girl here.
"What's happened?" he asked, flipping into doctor mode as soon as he say the nearly naked, obviously hypothermic girl.
"She was attacked by a group of men," Edward replied as both his parents moved from the porch to look at the unconscious girl in his arms. Esme brushed some of the girls long blonde hair away from her face, in a very mother-like way.
"This is Rosalie Hale," Esme gasped as she got a look at the girl's battered face. "She was supposed to be married on Saturday to the King's only son."
"He won't be marrying anyone," Edward growled. Esme didn't wait to hear anymore , taking the girl from his arms and rushing her inside.
"What do you mean?" Carlisle asked, looking into Edward's eyes. He was instantly relieved to see that the golden hue that had been returning steadily since Edward's sabbatical was still there. Then he felt guilty, knowing that his son would know exactly where his thoughts had gone.
"Don't feel too guilty," Edward said.
They moved into the house and shut the door, listening to Esme move around upstairs doing what she could to help the girl.
"So are you going to tell me about it?" Carlisle asked his son.
"I was coming back from Canada when I heard them, not their voices, but their thoughts," Edward said. "They were exactly the types I would have hunted before... then I heard her."
"And?" Carlisle asked.
"They had stripped her down to nothing and were holding her, while Royce King II, golden boy, prepared to rape her," Edward spat out. "I couldn't just stand by and let it happen. They were going to kill her when they were through with her."
"So you killed them?" Carlisle asked in a mix between a statement and a question.
"She wasn't the first woman that they attacked then killed, and she certainly wouldn't be the last," Edward said by way of confirmation.
"And you left them on the street?" Carlisle asked to clarify.
"Not exactly," Edward said. "Royce King had a gun in his belt. I shot them all and left the gun. I dropped Royce into the Irondequoit on the way here."
"So what do we do with her?" Carlisle asked.
"If she has no memory of my part in the attack, we say we found her in the woods," Edward said. "If she does... I guess that's your call."
Carlisle looked at his son and smiled. "I am very proud of you, Edward," he said.
"I just killed five people. Why are you proud of me?" Edward asked.
"While I don't approve of vigilantism, you did well today, saving an innocent life and freeing society from those animals," he said, moving to the stairs to help with the injured girl. "All this while still remembering who you were."
Edward stayed downstairs and made his way to his piano bench. The piano was something that always brought him peace and he needed a little of that now. Though he told his father exactly what had happened, he didn't tell him how hard it had been to refrain from drinking from them, especially after he shot them and the smell of all that fresh blood filled the air. He played a few scales as he always did growing up, more out of the routine of doing so rather than the warm up.
He played through the night , interspersed with conversations with his parents about what they'd do once she awoke. It was determined that is she remembered Edward at all, she would be told about vampire life, and be given two choices. Vampire life, or death.
She remembered.
After everything that had happened, she took the news of the family's vampirism very well. She didn't scream or faint, and simply asked to have some time to make the decision. They agreed, and that's how they found themselves, two years later, setting Rosalie up in a small cabin near Gatlinburg, Tennessee, while they went hunting for some big game.
"Now you have enough food and water for a few days," Esme said, taking care of the girl she considered her daughter.
"Of course, Mom," said Rosalie, who loved this vampire woman more deeply than she had ever loved her mother. Rosalie had had a little bit of a hard time with this choice, initially she was hoping that Edward would see her in a romantic way. She had been suffering from a small case of hero worship, and once that passed, she was extremely glad that he only ever saw her as a sister. It was taking her a long time to decide what she wanted for a few reasons. All of her life she had planned on growing up and having babies, lots of babies. If she accepted vampire life, it was a dream that she'd have to give up. Also, it wasn't like Edward had just found someone to love him in a romantic way. What if it took as long as it took Carlisle? She was fairly certain that she would hate to be alone for more than 250 years.
She had decided that she would have her choice made by the end of this trip, and, unfortunately for all, she was leaning towards death. Her twentieth birthday was around the corner and she didn't like the possibility of being alone. Her desire to be loved and cherished as she had seen with Vera's husband do with her and little Henry, was too much, and the thought of waiting so long for the chance, was too much. Her main argument against death was her love for the family that had basically adopted her as their own. She truly loved them and knew that it would be hard on all of them when she made her choice.
The second day in the cabin was a beautiful sunny day, and Rosalie decided to go for a short walk through the little field near the cabin. It was a beautiful spring day and the air was calling to her. She dressed simply, a white dress and her most favorite boots made just for her by a cobbler in Ontario, their last home. She was on the far side of the meadow when she first heard the sound. It was a voice, not smooth and silky like her vampire family, and in quite a bit more distressed than she'd ever heard. She couldn't help but to follow the sound, even after she heard the growling.
After a short trek in the woods, something she assured her family she wouldn't do, Rosalie came upon a clearing... and a large bear that had decided to take up residence there. She started to back away but the sight of the man in the bear's paws made her stop. She couldn't just leave him. She grabbed the biggest stick she could find and began to hit the bear. The bear turned to face the girl that was interrupting his lunch and the stick crashed down against his nose. The shock sent him running, and Rosalie was left in the clearing with the very injured man. She rushed to his side and tried to start tending to his wounds, ripping off pieces of her dress to serve as bandages. It seemed to be a lost cause but she wouldn't give up. Finally she knew her only chance was to call for her family. Maybe Carlisle could help him.
She called at the top of her lungs, begging for any of them to help her as she gave up her bandaging and just held the man's hand. He must have been delirious from the pain, she figured because he kept calling her an angel. What she didn't know was that from his point of view, she was. She had managed to chase off the bear he was certain was going to end his life and when she sat next to him, tending his wounds and comforting him, the sunlight had surrounded her and caused a halo-like effect. Add that to the white dress, and her beautiful features, and any man in his position would have been confused.
Carlisle, Esme and Edward all arrived to the clearing at the same time. Esme pulled her terrified daughter into her arms while Carlisle tried to tend to the young man. Rosalie was terrified. A full thirty minutes after they got there, Carlisle stood up from beside the man.
"I can't save him. He has lost too much blood," he said to his daughter. She didn't flinch or cry as he expected. She simply stood up and looked at him in the eyes.
"Change him," she said.
"Rosalie, he'll be a newborn," Esme said. "It wouldn't be safe to have you around him."
"It would if you change me too," she said firmly.
"You want to be changed?" Carlisle asked.
"I do," she said firmly.
"But Edward..." Carlisle started to try to explain that Edward had told them that Rosalie was leaning more towards choosing her death rather than vampire life, so he was surprised that she was asking for the change.
"Why?" Esme asked her. "Why now?"
"I love him," Rosalie said, pointing to the man lying bandaged on the ground. "I want my forever with him."
"Are you sure?" Esme asked.
"I am. I know he's meant for me, and if this is the only way for it to happen, then so be it," Rosalie said.
After a brief discussion, it was determined that Carlisle would change the young couple deeper in the woods, where no humans ever ventured. Edward was sent ahead to make preparations, while Rosalie hopped on Esme's back. Carlisle set the camp that the large man had used up to look like the bear that had attacked him had dragged him away. Then he picked up the injured man and headed for the area they intended to use for their change.
Edward had brought the mattress from the cabin so that Rosalie would have a comfortable pyre for her change, trying to make things as easy as possible for the young human that he already considered his sister. Carlisle arrived in the clearing and laid the large man on one side of the mattress. Rosalie was at his side in an instant.
"It's not too late, is it?" she worried as she lifted his hand, touching the man for the first time.
"His pulse is much stronger than either Esme's or Edward's," Carlisle assured the young woman that he considered his daughter.
She nodded in response.
"Edward?" she said, directing her attention from the injured man she already considered her mate.
"What can I do for you Rose?" he asked.
"Can you see if you can find out anything about him. I want to at least know his real name... if he had any family... a wife..." she said.
"I will see what I can do," he said.
"Thank you," she said to him. "For everything. I don't think I've ever really said it before."
"You thought it, and that was enough for me," he said, squeezing the one hand that Rose offered gently.
"Be careful, Son," Carlisle said.
"I will," Edward promised.
As he left the clearing, Rosalie reclined against the mattress, laying next to her future mate. The man's breaths were shallow and his face was ashen, due to the blood loss.
"Promise me one thing," Rosalie said, as Carlisle came to kneel beside her.
"What is that?" Carlisle asked, his daughter, holding her hand gently.
"If he dies, kill me too," she said, looking him right in the eye.
"I won't let him die," he promised her.
She nodded her head in agreement.
"Ready?" he asked.
"Yes," she said, taking in a large calming breath. Her family had explained this process to her in great detail, and while she didn't relish the thought of the pain that she was about to experience, she was ready for a future, with a man that she knew would love and worship her like she had always dreamed.
Carlisle brushed her long golden hair away from her neck, and smiled at his daughter one final time. She moved her head to better expose her neck to her father and took a deep breath. Carlisle moved quickly, biting into her neck first, and then moving to each of her wrists, then her ankles, pushing as much venom as he could into her system. He sat back for a moment as he watched the effects of the venom take hold. Rosalie stiffened and screamed, as the fire started to consume her body. He moved to the large man next and followed the same path as he had with his daughter. His reaction wasn't as instantaneous as hers, but within twenty minutes, his agonized cries joined hers. Carlisle moved to stand with Esme as they watched the young couple writhe in agony.
"It will be okay," she whispered.
For two days the woods were filled with the young couple's cries as Esme and Carlisle did what they could to try to ease their suffering. Remarkably, the only time they seemed at ease at all was when they were touching and both parents prayed that Rosalie's dreams were to be realized. The morning of the third day, Edward returned with as much information as he could find on the young man, Emmett McCarty. He was twenty, two months older in physical age that Rosalie. He came from a large family, the oldest child with eleven younger siblings. His nickname was Bear, because that's what he wrestled like and when he was outside the ring he was described as a gentle soul with a heart of gold. Two of his brothers had found the camp and he was presumed dead. Even better for Rose, he had no wife or steady girlfriend and seemed to have a preference for blondes.
As their heartbeats sped up, racing to keep ahead of the venom, the family began to consider what the next year would be like.
"How are we going to deal with two newborns, Carlisle?" Edward asked.
"We'll have to keep them isolated. Maybe we should head up to Alaska as soon as they are able..." Carlisle answered his first son.
"With his size and newborn strength, we won't stand a chance of stopping him if he decides to go rogue," Edward said.
Carlisle and Esme quickly agreed and returned to watching the couple.
"What are they thinking?" Esme asked. "I mean, other than the pain."
"She is thinking of her first family, mostly her mother and little brothers, and of Emmett," he said. "She also keeps thinking of various memories from her time with us. Emmett, well, he is mostly thinking of the damned bear that landed him in this situation. He did see Rose and he thought she was an angel. He saw Carlisle too..." Edward stopped there and started laughing, not a chuckle or a guffaw, but a pure belly laugh.
"What's so funny?" Carlisle asked with a scowl.
It took Edward another moment, and a pain filled scream from Rosalie, to calm down.
"He thinks you're God," he said.
Carlisle did not find that amusing but Esme chuckled and tried to convince him that it was a little funny. He was not amused.
As the sounds of the couple's heartbeats began to speed up, the last step before the change was complete, the atmosphere in the clearing got a little tense. Much to everyone's surprise, it was Emmett who awoke first. Carlisle, Esme and Edward all stood back, taking a defensive posture.
"Woah! Hey! Where is that damned bear?" he growled, jumping up from the bed.
"Emmett," Carlisle said.
"How do you know my name?" Emmett asked, looking at him. "Shit! You are God. Dammit that didn't come out right! Oh hell! I'm getting sent to hell for sure."
"I'm not God," Carlisle said, as Esme and Edward tried to keep from laughing.
Emmett checked himself over, noting that there were no injuries under the rips in his blood stained clothes.
"Yeah, right!" he huffed. "And you're telling me that the blonde angel over there is no angel, right?"
"I am not God. I am a vampire, as are you," Carlisle explained.
"I am never drinking again, Man. This shit is just too freaky," Emmett said.
"Watch, please," Carlisle said. He motioned for Edward to prove what he was saying. Edward ran around the clearing, jumped thirty feet into a tree, and then pulled that same tree from the ground.
Emmett looked impressed, but still doubted the blonde god's claims.
"Where are your fangs, Drac?" he asked.
At that moment, Rosalie's heartbeat began to stutter, and finally it stopped, causing all four of us to look at her expectantly. She sat up, looking disoriented.
"Rosalie," Esme called to her, looking nervously at her daughter.
"It's over," Rose said, looking at her hands and arms. "Thank God!"
"See, I told you he was God!" Emmett said.
"Emmett, I am not God!" Carlisle said firmly.
"Emmett," Rose said, her voice softening.
"Yes, Angel," the big man said, dropping to his knees at her side.
"You're okay," she said, smiling at him.
"I thought that bear was going to do me in... then I saw you and I knew I'd be alright," he said, reaching his hand out for hers. She took his hand a little tentatively at first but from that first moment that they touched, everyone could see the chemistry that burned within them.
Carlisle took that moment to tell the young couple everything, though Emmett didn't believe him until Rosalie confirmed his words. Once he was done, explaining the fact that they were indeed vampires, he explained the vegetarian diet. Then he insisted that the young couple needed to hunt.
"I think we should start off with some deer," Carlisle said. "They are plentiful in this area."
"Hell no!" Emmett said. "Point me in the direction of that damned bear!"
He would not be persuaded otherwise and even Rosalie was on his side, wanting her mate to have justice. Finally Edward was sent to make sure the area was free from all humans and Emmett was set free to take down his bear. Rosalie waited patiently, a product of her preparation, Carlisle was certain and once he was done, they hunted for deer together. In the days that followed, the couple were more and more inseparable and by the time they reached Alaska, Edward couldn't stand to be near them, the sexual thoughts emanating from them was too much for him.
Once the area was deemed to be clear of humans, Carlisle, Esme, and Edward told them they could hunt on their own. The couple was euphoric, and after they sated their most pressing desire, locating and decimating a small herd of caribou, they gave into their second most burning desire, each other.
Rosalie wanted to be shy, to be the prim and proper lady that she had been raised to be, but the way that Emmett looked at her sent shivers down her spine, and she wanted nothing more than to be with him in the most carnal fashion. Their lips met in a heated kiss as he used his monstrous arms to pull her close to him. She moved her arms around his neck and pulled him in even tighter.
"Is this what you want, Angel?" Emmett asked. "Are you sure?"
"I am," she insisted. "I want you, Emmett. I love you."
It was the first time that the L word had been used between the two and Rosalie took a sharp breath for having said it so easily. "What if Emmett hadn't felt the same way," she wondered momentarily, before she heard the words that fell from his lips.
"Me too, Angel," he said.
It was all she needed to hear. There were no more words for the next few minutes, as the two young lovers kept their lips busy. Since there was no need to breathe, they simply didn't relishing exploring each other's mouths completely. When they did finally break apart, Emmett moved his lips to Rosalie's neck, kissing and sucking all the skin he could reach.
"Emmett," Rosalie called as she attempted to pull his shirt from his body, succeeding only in tearing the shirt in too.
"So sexy," Emmett growled as he allowed the shirt to fall from his body.
Their lips crashed together again forcefully and Emmett's hands moved to Rosalie's shirt where he tried to be gentle. She wouldn't have that and she demanded that he just get rid of it. Emmett was not about to argue with his blonde angel and he tore the top away, baring the creamy white skin beneath. Since her body was so firm and toned, Rosalie had forgone the usual underclothes that most women of her time favored, choosing to be bare beneath the cotton shirt.
"So beautiful," Emmett crooned as he lowered his head to meet the skin he had just exposed. Rosalie hissed in excitement as his tongue reached out to touch the sensitive tip of her nipple, and nearly cried out as he took it into his mouth.
"Emmett," she cooed as he dropped to his knees in front of her to better enjoy the deliciousness that he had bared.
He laved both of her breasts with attention, both with his mouth, and his hands, before moving down to the flat plains of her stomach. He moved his hands to her pants, looking up to her eyes for permission, before tearing those away. Her small white panties were all that separated him from where he wanted to be so desperately.
"My angel," he cooed as he started to lay kisses at the top of her panties, his hands caressing her hips, moving towards her firm behind.
"Please," she begged, though uncertain exactly what she was begging for. Her only sexual experience being the attack that had nearly ended her life, and that had been a far cry from what she was experiencing now. That had been fear and pain, this was joy and ecstasy.
He stood in front of her, moving quickly to create a space to properly love this angel that somehow was willing to love him. When she questioned what he was doing, he tried to tell her that he was wanting everything to be perfect for her.
"Emmett," she said softly, "as long as you are with me, it will be perfect."
He stopped fussing and looked into her bright red eyes, searching for any hint of doubt that she may have felt. There was none, simply desire and love. He gave up his quest and began to remove his pants, unable to be gentle, the jeans split in two as he yanked them from his body, leaving him in only his shorts. He moved to his angel, wrapping her in his arms, and gently laid her down in a soft snow bank, nothing that it didn't even feel all that cold. His lips returned to hers and they locked in a passionate embrace once more, each of them pressing their bodies together so that there was not even any air between them.
Now sex had been explained to Rosalie by her very prim and proper mother. But everything her mother taught her could have never prepared her for what she felt. It was supposed to be painful, and an overall unpleasant experience that a woman must do to meet her husbands needs. She never said anything about the feelings that coursed through Rosalie's body now. She never spoke of the burning desire to be one with another person. Rosalie let her mind wander for just a moment, questioning if her mother had been speaking of the same thing that Rosalie herself was experiencing now. Having no answer, she decided that it must be a vampire thing and to just go with it. She'd ask Esme later, maybe.
As the desire to be joined completely with Emmett overtook her, she decided that she wasn't going to fight the sensations, rather, let herself be free to experience and feel. She allowed herself to embrace the new sensations that Emmett was creating within her, and to let her love and adoration for the man pour out through her body.
They kissed and touched, moving their bodies against each other as their desire climbed higher and higher. Finally she could wait no longer, the desire to claim him, and be claimed by him was too much, and she moved her hands to the waistband of his shorts and tugged them away in one strong pull. His eyes went from red to pure black in an instant and he returned the favor, tearing her panties from her body.
"Are you certain, Angel?" he asked, gasping for unneeded air to try to calm the fire raging inside his body.
"Yes, Emmett, please," she responded, sounding as desperate as she felt.
Emmett had not been celibate in his human life. He had enjoyed the company of more than one woman in his day, but that was sex, not love. He leaned down and pressed his lips to hers, positioning himself at her entrance.
"I love you," he said as he pushed into her moist center in one long thrust.
She cried out at the foreign feeling, hardly aware of the slight pain that the action had cause. The feeling of him filling her so completely was intense and she lifted her hips to push against him, begging him with her body for more. Emmett looked down at his angel's eyes, trying to be certain she wanted this. The pure black that he found convinced him and he gladly obliged her body's demand, moving within her, bathing himself in the feelings that they created together.
It wasn't long before Rosalie felt herself losing control of her body as the pleasure she and Emmett created together threatened to overwhelm her. She moved from kissing his lips to moving down his neck and shoulder. Her lips busy pressing against his rock hard skin, when the thread she had been holding onto finally snapped and the pleasure overwhelmed her. Instinct took over and she sunk her teeth into the skin above the left pec, the exquisite joy and pain triggering Emmett's own release. He roared out her name into the night as he rolled, pulling her on top of him.
Though neither of them were tired, they lay together in blissed out satisfaction as their bodies recovered from the pleasure overload that they had just experienced. Emmett's hands roamed over Rosalie's curves and he decided to do what his human father had told him. "If you're ever lucky enough to find a woman who is way out of your league, marry her."
They lay entangled for hours, talking about their human memories and what they thought of this vampire life.
"I have no regrets," Emmett said, causing Rosalie to smile against his chest. "It certainly isn't where I expected my life to end up."
"What did you expect?" Rosalie said.
"No way," he said. "You have to tell me how you feel about vampire life first."
"I had a long time to think about it," she said, a little self-consciously. "I had actually determined that I didn't want it. I didn't want forever, if I didn't have someone beside me. I know I would have had Carlisle and Esme, and even Edward..."
Emmett's growl at the mention of Edward's name made Rosalie lift her head to look at him.
"You aren't jealous are you?" she asked.
He was silent, but the slight scowl that marred his features was the only answer that Rosalie needed.
"I love him," she said to Emmett, "but as a brother. He saved me, and for that I will be grateful for all eternity. Without him I would have been used and left for dead on the street. But you have to know, Emmett, I am not in love with him, nor is he in love with me. Actually the very thought of that is rather disgusting."
Emmett looked at her and smiled. "I'm sorry," he said. "I can be such a jealous oaf sometimes!"
"What about you?" she asked,
"I am not in love with Edward," he said.
"That's not what I'm asking and you know it," she said, smacking his arm.
"I won't lie and tell you I haven't been with anyone else," he said to her, making her cringe. "But they meant nothing to me. From the first moment I saw you, I knew you were my angel. I knew you were meant for me."
"So, where did you plan on your life going?" she asked, aware that he had tightened his arms around her after his last confession, worried that she would be unhappy about it.
"I was going to meet a girl that was way out of my league, fall in love with her, marry her, and spend the rest of my life worshipping her," he answered, causing her breath to hitch.
"Oh," she said, pulling away from him. His answer was exactly what she would have wanted, except he made it clear by his use of the past tense that he didn't plan that now. Once she had removed herself from his arms, she busied herself trying to find any salvageable scrap of fabric, painfully aware of how naked she was.
"Stop," he said, wondering what he had said wrong. "Angel, please."
She didn't stop, she continued looking at the half torn clothes, painfully aware of his eyes on her naked body. He hadn't told her he loved her, and she stupidly took his "Me too" to mean that, but she had also said she wanted him... His comment could have been directed at that. She tried to calm her breathing, and was extremely thankful that she was no longer human, for the tears that currently stung her eyes would have been rolling down her cheeks and that was not the impression she wanted to make on the big man.
"Rosie," he said, reaching out to touch her, not pausing when his skin met hers, but continuing until he had his arms wrapped around her. It was the first time he had called her anything other than angel. She didn't fight his hold, she couldn't. She had never wanted anything as much as she wanted him, and she knew that her mother was wrong about so many things. "Please, tell me what I said, what I did."
She took more deep breaths, but allowed herself to relax into his hold.
"Tell me what you wanted me to say," he said against the skin of her neck. "You asked and I answered. What did I say wrong?"
"Nothing, Emmett," she said, softly.
"I can feel it," he said, pleading with his words. "I'm always getting in trouble for my big mouth, but I don't understand."
"Don't worry bout it," Rosalie said, pulling as much bravado into her words as she could.
"I am worried about it," he said, turning her around, so he could look her in the eyes. He could see the pain that she felt and he dropped to his knees, still holding on to her, so that he had to look up t her.
"Emmett, really," she said, trying to pull away. "We had a little fun. I'm fine." It tore her in half calling what they had shared a little fun, but she had to downplay it. Nonchalance was her best option, she figured as she tried to keep her non-beating heart intact.
"A little fun?" he asked. "But you said you loved me..."
"And I do," she replied. "I love all my family..."
"I thought I was special. I thought we meant something," he said.
"Did we?" she asked, letting her vulnerability sneak out in those two words.
"Angel, I'm not a man of many words. Most of the time, I speak before I think, and I get myself in trouble for it. I don't know what I did or what I said, but I want you, Angel."
He wanted her, of course, nothing more, and she fought against his hold once more.
"Please," Emmett said, begging the angel in his arms. "I thought this vampire thing was a blessing. No matter how much this shit burns, there was something I wanted more, needed more... I need you, Angel. I need to hold you, and love you. I need to spend the rest of my life worshipping you. I need to haul you in front of a church and a minister, as soon as we don't want to drink him dry, and make you my wife. Rosalie Lillian Hale, I want to spend my eternity with you."
"You want to marry me?" she asked.
"I do, more than anything," he said.
The resounding slap sent Emmett sprawling on his back a few feet away, and he looked at Rosalie in shock. Rosalie waited all of two seconds before she launched herself on top of him and kissed him passionately. He didn't question anything, how could he, his lips were very busy, and the love of his life was in his arms. He was going to take this opportunity to worship her. He kissed every inch of her body, letting her know with every kiss and every touch, exactly how he felt, and when he claimed her again, he used all of his limited vocabulary to tell her exactly how he felt about her.
"I love you, Emmie Bear," she said, as he pulled her into his arms as they lay basking in the after glow of their love.
Emmett was still confused but decided not to question it, just yet. "I love you, Angel," he said.
They lay together, completely content where they were until Emmett couldn't let the question go anymore. "Why'd you slap me?" he asked.
"Well," she admitted, slightly sheepishly. "When anyone asks how you proposed..."
He laughed a great big belly laugh, understanding her exact dilemma.
"You are worried about what to say?" he asked.
"No," she said, smiling up at him. "Not exactly, anyway... but Edward is going to see a whole lot more of either of us than I am comfortable with every time that comes up."
He laughed again and then stopped. Suddenly it was less than funny that Edward would be able to see her naked body.
"Only you, Emmett," she promised, putting her hand over his heart.
"Only you," he swore to her. "Until the sun no longer rises and sets. And even then. You are all I will ever want and need."
Emmett and Rosalie managed to make their way back to the Cullen cabin. There were two sets of clothes sitting on a stump right at the edge of the forest, surrounded by Edward's scent. When they asked him how he knew, he said he spent way too long with Esme and Carlisle when they first got together.
It was only a month later, while the girls were away on a hunting trip, that Emmett begged Carlisle to get ordained as a minister so he could marry Rosalie without waiting for the damned cravings to subside. He had already begged Edward to make a trip to buy her a ring, which he had agreed to, happily. Carlisle agreed as well.
Rosalie loved the ring, since it was the exact one she had always dreamed of, thanks to Edward's gift. Carlisle managed to find Emmett a tuxedo and Esme made her wedding dress and veil. Since Carlisle was officiating the wedding, Rosalie asked Edward to walk her down the short aisle. He agreed. On the day of the wedding, she looked at her brother and said, "One day, you will meet the woman that is meant for you. And when you do, I will be there cheering you on," she said.
She kept her word, and when he met Bella Swan in Forks Washington, seventy years later, she kept that promise, but that's another story.