Author's note: I do not own any of the characters below, this is purely fanfiction.
When Edward left me in those woods, I found myself overwhelmed with emotions. Yet, as I ponder all the events that have led up to this point, I found myself suddenly agreeing with him. Much to my dismay, of course.
At first, I was devastated. I could feel a bond with Edward, but something just didn't click. All the time I spent with him, I found myself denying that thought; sweeping it under the rug, if you will. His absence just made things so much clearer: it wasn't love, it was an obsession. I was obsessed with Edward Cullen.
Who wasn't? He was, to put it bluntly, sexy. All the girls knew it; hell, I think some of the guys thought that as well. I was just this socially awkward girl from Arizona. Edward was the only male to show the slightest interest in me. Sure, some guys at Forks High School showed an interest in me but, in reality, I was the newest girl who they've seen in a long time. Forks was a very small town, after all.
That is what fueled my obsession with him, I think. The fact that he was a vampire didn't help things either. I forced myself to love him-romantically. After spending time with him more and more, I could now admit I loved him like a sibling. Nothing more. It is amazing how much clarity time affords someone. It was like a weight was lifted off my shoulder.
I know that Edward didn't mean what he said about not loving me. His words said one thing, but his eyes said another. Like I said before, I agree with his true motives for leaving me. The close encounter with James was one thing, but the situation with Jasper made him realize how truly fragile I was. I may have told him repeatedly that I wanted immortality, but now I realize that was the obsession talking.
I've come to the conclusion that I wanted to live the American Dream. I wanted to be a good wife and, most importantly, a good mother. If Edward would've truly gave me my stupid wish for immortality, then I would not ever become any of those things. I'd be amonster. Edward truly was protecting me the only way he knew how: by leaving.
I still miss him and his family, but I realize that it was for the best. Now, I could truly live a normal human life. I've truly moved on. Back to the more mundane aspect of my life, Charlie asked me to go pick him up some things from the grocer. I've been trying to become more athletic, so I plugged in my iPod and began to jog towards the direction of the grocer. I chose to cut through the woods, in an attempt to get home quicker so I can go to the movies with Jake later tonight. Oh yeah, Jake and I have spent more and more time with one another as friends, of course.
"Bella?," a low melodic voice asked, bringing me out of my current train of thought. I knew I heard that voice somewhere before. Suddenly, it registered: Victoria.
"Victoria?"
"Yes, lovey. I've watched you for this past year, since Edward and his family left you."
"Please don't kill me! I'm sorry about James. Had I not been obsessed with Edward, then none of this would've happened."
A confused look swept across Victoria's face. She seemed to be collecting her thoughts, so I dared not to speak. I knew that my death would be coming now. Finally, she collected herself.
"Bella, I know that this wasn't your fault. Much like you, I've had time to think and come to conclusions. At first, James would've loved to devour you, including Laurent and myself. Your blood just smells...delicious."
My heartbeat started to increase. Millions of questions running through my mind. What did she mean it wasn't my fault? This woman is mad.
"I've finally come to terms with the death of James. I knew that James tried to turn you, but not for the reasons you think..."
"What do you mean?"
I was a train wreck now. I'd thought that James had tried to turn me to piss off Edward. This just makes absolutely no sense.
"I'm not sure if the Cullens explained this to you or not. Us vampires are ruled by an elite coven, known as the Volturi. The Volturi established laws to govern us, yet still giving us the autonomy that we deserve."
I raised an eyebrow for her to continue.
"As long as we obey their most sacred law of keeping our existence hidden, we may live in peace. If we do not obey that law, we will be put to death."
"I thought it was impossible for a vampire to die?"
"It is not impossible. There are many ways to kill one of us, and the Volturi can do it very easily."
"The Cullens have never told me about the Volturi, so why are you telling me?"
"James had always been a softy. A true hopeless romantic, but I loved him anyways. You see, despite what he said to the contrary, James had actually been trying to protect you and the Cullens from the Volturi, since they will kill anyone who knows about our kind, for good reason. He was a sucker for romance, and would often help others find it. Or, in your case, keep it."
I raised my eyebrow again for her to continue, so I can see where she was getting at.
"James had never been good with words, and liked to make jokes about everything, but deep down, he always did what he thought was right," she paused before continuing,"Bella I sincerely wanted to kill you to avenge James' death. But, I realize that he never would've wanted that. So I will not kill you."
Okay, I felt relieved inside knowing that Victoria wouldn't kill me. It offered some consolation, I suppose. Maybe she wasn't the evil bitch I made her out to be.
"Bella, I truly am sorry that the Cullens left you. You still, however, know too much about our kind," Victoria said as she held me to the ground. She took the wrist were James had bit me, and suddenly sunk her teeth into the depths of my flesh. I knew that her venom was inside of me; the excruciating pain that I had endured a year ago was back, only worse now.
"Please forgive me, Bella," Victoria whispered in my ear.
Everything suddenly went black. I couldn't open my eyes, nor could I open my mouth. I wanted to scream, yet I couldn't. My senses were cut off. I could only feel the venom moving agonizingly slow. Millions of cells, organs, and bones all ablaze simultaneously. I yearned for death, so I can stop this suffering, to no avail. This seemed to go on forever.
Victoria POV:
Life as a widower is certainly depressing. I miss James dearly. I wish he could hold me in his arms again, I wish he'd kiss me one last time. Every time he held me in his strong arms, he'd kiss my head and tell me that everything will be okay.
I have a gift, which I never let anyone know about, including James. Much like Alice Cullen, I'd get visions. In fact, all I had to do was simply think of a person in my mind, and soon their past, present, and future are revealed to me in great detail. The difference between Alice Cullen and myself, however, was that my visions weren't as subjective and, nine times out of ten, they always came to fruition. I thought of at as more of a curse, really. Since I'd often find myself learning too much about a person for comfort.
So, I knew why James attempted to turn Bella: so her and Edward could live a happy life. A life without fear of the Volturi. James genuinely thought that the reason Edward wouldn't turn her himself was out of fear, so James thought he'd be doing Edward a favor. And Edward killed him. It wasn't Bella's fault, so I'm not angry with her.
Bella certaintly knows too much already and, should the Cullens find themselves in Volterra, Aro most certainly would have Bella killed for knowing too much. If James wanted Bella immortal, then I would carry out his mission. I just hope that Bella would find love one day, for Jame's sake.
"Please forgive me, Bella," I whispered before her eyes closed shut.
I didn't want Bella to be mad at me for turning her, so I left.
Bella POV:
After what seemed like centuries, the fire began to slowly freeze away. The pain was slowly vanishing. My senses were coming back to me. My sense of sound came first-I was overwhelmed by the crystal clear forest sounds. The sound of the insects, from the annoying fly to the cicadas moving about deep within the earth; to steps of the dear across the grass, as his heart beats melodically; to the birds chirping above, as they fly in unison; to the cars zooming by on the freeway, which was at least a three miles away. The sound of everything was overwhelming.
Soon, my sense of smell returned. I could smell the forest, for lack of better words, which was finally accompanied by my eyes finally opening. Everything was so much clearer, so much sharper and much more magnified. Soon, I stood fully erect. My skin looked much paler now, and felt like cold marble. I was immortal; I was a vampire. Victoria changed me, but why? Where was she? What was I going to do now? I'll never be able to have kids. She said it herself, she was watching me. She turned me to torment me.
I was interrupted from my train of thought by two human hikers. A middle-aged man and woman. My throat began to burn. My god! They smell so delicious. I couldn't control myself; I attacked to quench my thirst. The rush of their warm blood down my throat was incredible, and their screams encouraged me even more. Soon, they were done. I felt slightly guilty, but I couldn't help myself.
I felt powerful, yet helpless at the same time. I did not know where the Cullens were and the Victoria had left me. I knew if I could find Edward, he'd gladly take me under his wings and help me adjust. Then it dawned on me: Victoria mentioned that the Volturi ruled over vampires, so they would know where the Cullens are. I had to go to Volterra.
I couldn't trust myself on an airplane, since I would need to feed. If I fed off those hikers without thinking, then I could only imagine what would occur on an airplane. I could expose the secret of our kind, and most certainly would die. If I remember correctly, the Cullens were friends with a lawyer, J. Jenks, in Seattle, who owned a private jet, or so Edward said. I had to wait until Charlie was working to go get my truck, since I didn't want to risk possibly feeding on him. I'd never live it down, so waiting until he left for work was the safest bet. Once, it felt like midday, I ran to my house. As I approached my house, I heard low growls. I thought it was rather strange.
I brushed that thought aside, then hopped in my truck and made my way to Seattle. I asked a "thug" looking man coming out of an alleyway where the law office of J. Jenks was located, before luring him into my car and feeding off of him. I didn't feel bad, since I'd recognized him from the news-a suspected murderer. Poetic Justice, as far as I'm concerned. After getting myself lost, I finally found Mr. Jenks office, and hurriedly went inside.
"Can I help you?," asked a rather short plum woman, whom I assumed was Mr. Jenks secretary.
I hesitated before responding, "Yes, my name is Isabella..Cullen, and I'm here to speak with Mr. Jenks."
"Right away, Mrs. Cullen."
Before I knew it, an older gentleman of African descent came out.
"Mrs. Cullen, please step into my office."
As I stepped into his office, his entire demeanor changed.
"I thought you and your family finally left," Jay spat out.
"Tell me, Jay, where was it we finally left to?"
"You never tell me; I just give y'all the documents."
"Hmph. I don't need documents. I need a flight to Volterra, Tuscany in your jet," I spat back at him.
"Never, I know what you are."
Before he could say another word, I pinned him up against the corner and whispered very quietly in his ear "You know what I am, huh? What am I?"
"Vampire," he answered.
I cold hear the fear in his voice, and his increased heart beat. The human thought he was superior to me, so I quickly put him in his place.
"Unlike my fellow family members, I feed off of humans. You so much as speak a word of this encounter, then I will personally torture you and your family and, when I get bored, make you my meal," I hissed
His poor face looked even more terrified; I finally got him right where I want him
"You will fly me to Volterra immediately."
With that we were off. I do not know why I could anger so easily, it truly was confusing. Perhaps all vampires were like that. Reality set in: I knew what I had to do once Jay landed in Volterra, he knew too much. If Aro could read people, then he'd kill me for allowing Jay to live.
After taking care of Jay, I tried to find where the Volturi resided, to no avail. Just when I was about to give up, I saw another vampire, so I followed her. She disappeared into this immaculate, renaissance era castle. I assumed this is where the Volturi lived. If the Volturi ruled over us vampires, why not reside in a castle? They certainly are very old, so they probably would live in a castle. I pushed my thoughts back and knocked on the castle door.
One large man-who reminded me of Emmet-opened the doors and gazed at me for a moment or two with his piercing red eyes.
"What do you want?"
"Is that a proper way to greet someone?"
That drew a chuckle from him.
"My apologies, dear. How may I help you?"
"Is this the..Volturi?"
"Yes, dear."
"May I speak with King Aro?"
"Certainly," was all the large man said, as he motioned for me to follow.