This is a disclaimer, 'cause apparently you have to have one even though I obviously did not come up with any of the characters. Yet. (HINT HINT). Any way, it's my second fanfic, the first kinda sucked but whatev. First Chapter. Enjoy

Edward POV

"Hey, can you toss me up a drink, Em?" I tried not to use the word 'blood' in front of the humans because I knew it freaked them out, but from their squeamish thoughts, I could tell that they knew what I meant anyway.

It was a hot day, and though the heat didn't bother me one bit, it was nice to be able to drink blood whenever I felt like it or needed it. Besides, the humans needed to get used to it. Emmet nodded, turned around and hurled a metal (and completely opaque) canteen up to me. I caught it with ease, and gently pulled the top off, careful not to spill. The humans may need to get used to a life alongside vampires, but that didn't mean I was going to make it harder by dripping blood everywhere like they spill their sodas and sticky drinks. I mean, nowadays we were going out in the sun in front of them, and even as they looked in awe at our glittering bodies, I could hear the uneasy thoughts drift through their minds. I gently closed the canteen and placed it in my tool belt. Then I pulled out the hammer (I didn't really need it, but the humans seemed unnerved by our heightened senses) and got back to work.

We were building an apartment building in Detroit, MI, and I was up in the soon-to-be 12th floor. Emmet and I had joined a traveling construction crew after the word got out and vampires were (kind of) accepted. Or at least, they were if they were like us, vegetarians, or if they didn't kill humans and only drank human blood donated from the most understanding of humans. The vampires who swore they'd never give into the humans' demands, because vampires were the more superior race, and who kept murdering humans for blood were tracked by Jasper, Alice, my Bella, and the group of other approved vampires, and killed.

As for the 'accepted' vampires; some took on tough jobs that the humans had hard times with, but that we could easily accomplish, as Emmet and I had joined the construction crew. Others, like Rose, took to the performing arts. Still more took an advantage of our heightened senses and studied the sciences. If a vampire had a talent, he or she would do what they could to discreetly help the world with it. Nahuel, Renesmee and Jake were the leaders of the Vampire Acceptance Movement to Permanently Impose Rights for Everyone, or VAMPIRE (I find it amusing). We did all we could to become one with the humans, but there was one field they wouldn't let any of us go into; Medical.

And do you blame them? We'd be out of control. All of us except Carlisle. But even he wasn't allowed to practice medicine. And now he was lost. He had no idea what his purpose was in the world, so he started doing research on who-knows-what. Esme worked feverishly so the humans would let him be a doctor again, but to no avail.

So I was working hard (yet hardly working, physically) to gain the trust of these humans, and that was toughest of all. I had to pause to think about if what I just heard was a thought or if someone had actually spoken, I couldn't move too fast, and I had to drink blood craftily yet constantly to be able to spend so much time around them. Especially in this line of work, where humans were regularly falling, cutting or hammering themselves, zipping themselves with a measuring tape, ect. But we all did our best.

Ugh, these humans are sooooo slooooow! I could have this whole thing built in a week, just by myself! Hmmm, at night I could—

"No, Emmet," I interrupted his thoughts, too low and quiet for the humans to hear. "We are not trying to panic the humans with our brute strength. W are trying to prove—"

"Prove what?!" His head snapped up to glower at me, but he spoke quietly. None of the humans seemed to notice. "We don't need to prove anything! They should just say, 'hey, well I guess since they're not eating us I guess they're good.'"

Emmett was having the most trouble with the humans knowing, other than Carlisle. He thought that since they knew about us, we could go around being our awesomely fast, strong, ect selves. But I feared it would reverse all we've done.

"Please Em, just… don't," I continued softly, this time in empathy.

We continued working for another four hours, and when the sun set, we knew it was time to get home. Normally I couldn't wait, but Bella was in Europe tracking down some vampire with the extraordinary power of persuasion along with Jasper and Alice, Rose was off starring in a movie, Renesmee and Jacob were in LA doing whatever it is they do, Esme and Emmett hadn't been themselves lately. And Carlisle….

I sighed as I stepped into Bella's redone pickup. I hadn't understood why she had wanted to keep the old thing, but after we had some fancy work done on it by 'her mechanic' (and with the help of a little 'Cullen Cash') the thing looked pretty good. New paint, new radio, new engine, new, well everything. But that's not why I sighed. The truck smelled like my Bella. I breathed deeply through my nose. I hadn't seen her in what seemed like ages, but had really been only a couple weeks. I started it up, then zoomed away at about 85 until I got out of the city; then I accelerated to 120. Which reminded me of my Bella again. I chuckled as I recalled the time I'd driven her back from.… where had it been? Port Angeles, probably. All I remembered was her sweet scent and enjoying her company. And her freaking out because I was driving too fast. And how I had to save her from those men, I thought angrily. Not all humans deserved to live, and if anyone ever tried to hurt her again.... I ranted on darkly in my head.

Suddenly, my phone started chiming When I Grow Up. Alice must have changed my ring tone to fit her fancy again.

"Hello?"

"Edward…" by the tone of her voice I knew it was bad, and I knew it was about Bella. Again.

"What? Tell me Alice!" It was so frustrating not to be able to read her mind when she was being so slow.

"Calm down, and don't you dare rush over here and play hero," she continued slowly. "Stay where you are, Edward. You need to."

"Alice." Where was 'here'? And why would I even need to play hero? Not that I do. "What. Has. Happened." I paused. "Tell. Me. Now." I really was trying to stay calm, but I had no idea what was happening.

"Edward," it all came out in a rush now. "You know how the Volturi were driven away at the beginning?" She was referring to the beginning of vampires being known to the world, and how the Volturi fought back and kept killing humans so we were forced to chase them down. "We were in the Italian area, and, well, they're recruiting, and no is not an option. They're kinda kidnapping, well, 'vampire-napping'," she laughed nervously, "talented vampires, and, well, Bella and Benjamin were two from our group that they somehow managed to get, though I don't know how, and, and—"

"I'm coming," I interrupted. There was no way I was staying here when Bella needed me.

"Edward, you can't! I saw—"

"I don't care what you saw," I cut her off. She had probably seen the Volturi trying to get a hold of Alice and me, but I didn't care right now.

"I'm coming."

Please review and tune in for the next chapter, which I hope to write kinda soon. Do not be PO'd if I don't as I do in fact have a life.

Your pal,

SuperOeroMan