Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or its beautiful characters. I do, however, own Mrs. Ryland. She is all mine! (that sounded unnecessarily creepy...)
Full Summary: I got the idea while re-reading Eclipse, when Edward was telling Bella about why he wanted to marry her. Edward Masen is 17, ready to fight in the Great War because he doesn't have anything left to live for. Or so he thought before a beautiful new tenant showed up at his Boarding House. Will his ideas on the war be changed by this mysterious stranger?
I had heard the speech several times before. But that didn't make its affect that much different. It made me want to join the fighting right then and there; to hop on the next ship and sail across the sea to fight against the Central powers. It was June 1918, I was soon to be 17 years old and anxious to join the fight. I had lost my mother and father to an earlier outbreak of the Spanish Influenza, but I had miraculously survived. Part of my mind realized that me surviving this terrible epidemic had given me an immortality complex that made me anxious to fight, but at the same time, I had nothing left in this world. Why shouldn't I put my life on the line to fight for my country?
I had lied about my age when my parents had died, telling them I was 18 so that I wouldn't become a ward of the state and could go on my own. That was how I had wound up renting a room at the Ryland Boarding House in the cheap side of Chicago. The Masen's may have been well off when my mother and father had died, but I had never been one for flashy uptown addresses. I preferred to save my money in case I ever really needed it. As I entered the house, I ran my hand through my tossled, bronze hair, trying to make myself look presentable. I was met by the warm gaze of Mrs. Ryland, a stout woman of about 60, who greeted me with a warm smile as she bustled around the dining room table, setting it for dinner.
"You need my help, Mrs. Ryland?" I asked, flashing my crooked smile at her, which I sensed made her day every time.
"No, no, no, Edward," she in reply, blushing ever so slightly, "You just go ahead and get washed up. Dinner will be ready in about 20 minutes. You'll get to meet our new tenant, fresh out from Arizona."
"Well, Mrs. Ryland, since you won't let me help you set the table, how about you let me help you with the dishes? I don't like the idea of you working so hard when there are other people here to help you."
She smiled at me. "That would be very kind of you, Edward. Thank you."
Mrs. Ryland was a dear creature to me. I felt very bad for her and empathized with her. The Influenza had taken her husband and only daughter, while the war had taken her twin sons. She was as alone in this world as I was.
I popped my head in the parlor before I headed up the stairs to my room.
"Good Evening, Major Whitlock. Any good news today?" I asked the only resident of the room.
He looked over his newspaper at me. "Not much, Masen," he addressed me in his southern drawl, "jJust more gruesome news from the European Front. We are finally beating them, but at a loss of men. I tell you what, if the South had won That War, we would have whooped these men in no time at all. Mark my words, my boy, THE SOUTH WILL RISE AGAIN."
"Yes, sir, Major Whitlock." I saluted him once his paper was safely back in front of his face and he couldn't see me. Major Jasper Whitlock had to be at least 60 years old and an old Confederate soldier from the Civil War. He firmly believed that the South would rise back up against us "poor, defenseless Yanks" when we least expected it and that the Southern Gentlemen were simply biding their time. We put up with his crazy rants for the pure entertainment they brought all of us in the house.
I took the steps two at a time, heading for my room. I didn't know why, but I had a good feeling about today.
I came down to dinner 30 minutes later, tying my tie as I headed down the stairs. As I entered the dining room , I noticed I was the last resident to do so.
That was the first time I saw her. Sitting on the left side of the table, next to the seat where Mrs. Ryland sat at the head of the table, was the most beautiful creature I had ever beheld. Part of me thought she must have fallen from heaven, not Arizona. This must be the new tenant Mrs. Ryland had told me about. She smiled, knowingly at me, when she saw the direction of my gaze. How could she have known that this beautiful woman would catch my eye? I thought I was particularly gifted at reading people. Mrs. Ryland, apparently, was better.
"Ah! Mr. Masen!" She exclaimed, rising from her seat as I came in. "I am afraid the only seat we have left is next to our new tenant, Mrs. Newton. Isabella Newton, I would like you to meet Mr. Edward Masen."
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