ps. I don't own any of these characters.
Slowly, I became aware of my surroundings. I was in my bed, at Edward's house. My future home. I could smell the delightful scent of my fiancé on the pillow. He had obviously spent most of the night lying beside me, as he did every night. I slowly opened my eyes, and began searching for him. Usually he noticed I was awake by this point, and was telling me all about the things I had said while I was sleeping. That was one thing I was looking forward to in the new life I was about to start, with Edward; if I didn't need sleep, I wouldn't spend half the night talking about everything that I was worried about.
I scanned the room quickly, then once again more carefully when I didn't see Edward. Sometimes he hid in the shadows, and I didn't notice him right away. After raking over the entire room 3 times, I stumbled out of bed, and slid into a clean pair of jeans and threw on a t-shirt, with the intention of searching the house for Edward. Before I had gone three steps, Alice slid into the room. Her excitement was almost tangible.
"Morning. I would have woken you up hours ago, but Edward made me wait," Alice sang quickly. She took a quick look at my clothes, and raised her eyebrows. "Bella, what are you wearing?"
"What do you mean?" I asked. Then, slowly, I realized what day it was. Today was the day of the wedding. I could feel my heart accelerating as I started to think about what was planned for the rest of the day. I closed my eyes, and took a deep breath. I opened my eyes, and looked at Alice. She was still looking at me incredulously.
"Bella, you should be getting ready! You have to shower, then it'll probably take an hour or two to do your hair, and--" she spoke quickly, running down a mental list of things that had to be done before we started the wedding. I cut her off before she got too far down the list.
"I'm going, I'm going! But first, I just want to see--"
"No! Bella, you know it's bad luck for the groom to see the bride the day of the wedding!"
"Alice, I think it's just bad luck for him to see the dress, not the actual person."
"Same difference. You'll see him in a bit – when you're walking down the aisle, in fact."
I swallowed, hard. Was I ready? Alice guessed what I was thinking.
"Apparently, everyone gets cold feet. I wouldn't know, because I've always known Jasper was the one..." she trailed off, but quickly started again, "You can do this. I know you can. Trust me, I know everything is going to go off without a hitch. And I'm not just saying that, I actually know."
I wasn't going to bet against Alice. I took another deep breath, and headed towards the shower. I showered quickly, but thoroughly, and left the conditioner in my hair extra long. Maybe that would make it even shinier. As soon as I was out of the shower, Alice started fussing with my hair. She had an armful of different hair products, and within minutes had started pinning my hair into elaborate and elegant knots at the top of my head. She was excited, because she finished my hair in record time – within 15 minutes, she had most of it finished. She decided to take a break from my hair, and started fussing with my skin.
"So we'll just put a little bit of makeup on, nothing major. I know Edward likes you best when you don't have any makeup on, but where's the fun in that? We'll just put some of this on..." And she was off, choosing decisively out of the hundreds of beauty products strewn all over the countertop. Fifteen minutes later, I was finished.
"Alright, now you look presentable. I'll go get your dress," she said, as she disappeared. She was certainly impatient this morning, because she had returned before I could exhale. That was another thing I was looking forward to; when you could move at vampire velocity, you could get so much more done, so much more quickly.
"Here we go. Get rid of those jeans. And that t-shirt. You know what? Just get rid of your whole wardrobe. In a few days, we'll go shopping, and get you a whole new wardrobe. We'll get you more suitable clothes. You're going to be a Cullen, so you're going to have to dress like one. Jeans won't cut it anymore. Sorry!" she smiled playfully, and I couldn't help but smile back. As much as I loved lounging around in a comfy pair of jeans and an old worn t-shirt, I was looking forward to having clothes that would match my new look, and my new family.
A few minutes later, I was in the dress. I looked in the mirror for the first time this morning, and my jaw dropped. I gasped.
"Alice, it's... it's... wow! I look incredible!" I said, glancing away from my reflection for a moment to look at her. She was smirking.
"Of course you do! It was me, after all, who picked out the dress! And did your makeup! Did you expect anything less?"
I was at a loss for words. The dress fit perfectly, and I knew Edward would love it. Of course it was perfect. Of course I looked perfect. Alice was very good at that.
"Okay, Bella. Time to go. Everything is set up, people are just being seated, and Edward is getting ready to walk up to the altar. You ready?"
"Yes," I said confidently. I was ready. I had been ready for a long time. I was ready to walk up that aisle, and publicly commit to Edward.
Two and a half hours later, everything was over. The ceremony had been short, and rather fun. I had somehow managed to convince Alice to let Emmet get his marital license off of the internet, and he directed the ceremony. And he tried not to emphasize the bit where he said "'till death to you part". Both Alice and I had smirked when he said that, and Edward actually snickered. Edward, of course, looked perfect. His hair was perfect, as always, and his eyes were the perfect shade of topaz. His tux fit him perfectly, and the contrast of black on his white skin was haunting. I tried not to stare at him too much during the ceremony, but obviously I failed. Then we had said I do, and kissed. We might have stood up there for too long, though, because after half a minute of kissing Alice elbowed me gently in the ribs. Edward and I broke apart, and smiled at each other. Then we walked quickly back up the aisle, and I smiled at everyone who had come. Charlie was there, smiling widely. He had obviously accepted that Edward was a permanent part of my life. My Mom was there, tears of joy streaming down her face. She clapped the loudest. Phil was there with her, looking quite nice in a tux. Apparently he didn't have to wear his cast anymore. All of my friends from school were there, even Jessica. They all smiled at me as I walked past, clapping. The only person who wasn't there was – I didn't want to think his name. He was somewhere in Canada, running away from everything.
Edward and I got into his car, and he drove away from his house, where we had held the ceremony, and toward the place where we would spend our honeymoon. He had kept it a secret from me, of course, and I watched out the window, looking for a clue as to our destination.
"So, Edward. Where are you taking me?" I asked brightly.
"Well, I was thinking we could go to a lovely little island in South America. It's uninhabited, and we'd have the whole place to ourselves. There's a beautiful beach, and the weather is absolutely gorgeous this time of year." He smiled at me. I looked into his eyes, and they were smoldering again. "And, there's a summer home there, very big, and with a very large bedroom."
I smiled at his implications. He was obviously ready to try to fulfill my one demand before we made me a vampire. He had been a few weeks ago, but I had told him to wait until after the wedding. Suddenly, I thought of something.
"A summer home? On an uninhabited island? That doesn't really make sense."
"Well, actually, we bought the island. I had the house built a few months ago, because I know how you enjoy the sun and I thought that we could both enjoy it together, but of course it would have to be somewhere isolated--"
"You bought an island?" I asked, incredulous. Of course I knew the Cullens had outrageous sums of money at their disposal, but I didn't think they would actually buy a whole island.
"Not me, us. You and I. What's mine is yours, remember? Which reminds me, I meant to ask if you'd changed your mind regarding taking a semester of college."
"I can't believe you're still on this college deal. You know that by the time school starts I won't be in any position to be around people, and besides: I don't want to go to college. I've had enough human experiences. And a year of college would just mean that I'm even older—"
"Okay, okay," he laughed quietly, "I didn't think you had. I was just checking. So we'll spend a week on the island, then the rest is up to you. We can fly anywhere you like, and continue the honeymoon, or we can go back home and get started on your... transformation."
I knew right away that a week with Edward on an island would be great, and I would love to spend another week traveling the world with him, but I was too eager to become one of the family, for real. "Edward. My birthday is in just over a month, and I don't want to be nineteen. A week on the island, great. Then we'll go home and make me into a monster," I smiled at him brightly. He was used to my teasing, and he didn't get a dark expression when I mentioned my desire to become a vampire anymore. He smiled back at me, his eyes wide and bright and full of fire. I lost my train of thought. I focused on remembering how to breathe.
"So, uh... what's the island's name, anyways?" I asked.
"The island's name?" He repeated, looking towards the road.
"I mean, what's it called? You have to call it something. It can't just be 'Cullen island', or something like that. It has to mean something." I glanced out the window again, and we were almost into Port Angeles, drawing ever closer to the airport.
"I hadn't fully decided on a name, yet. I was going to let you name it." He looked towards me again, and his face turned into my favorite crooked smile.
"Uh... have you thought of any names at all? I mean, I don't know. I have no idea what to call it." I struggled to keep my thoughts straight, and I tried to think of a name that would suit Edward's perfection, and I would dedicate the island to him.
"Actually, I did have one name in mind. It's simple, but it's the best I could come up with," he looked at me closely before he continued, "I was thinking of calling it 'Bella's isle'. Because, obviously, I bought it for you."
I was speechless. I could feel the tears starting to flow, and I couldn't seem to form a coherent sentence. "Edward, that's so... beautiful, I mean, I was thinking of naming it after you, and I love you, and you want to name it after me? Edward Cullen, I love you."
"I love you too, Isabella Cullen," he laughed, "I love the way that sounds."
I smiled, still crying lightly.
We were at the airport now, and I quickly wiped my cheeks dry. Edward pulled our baggage out of the back of his car, and put the four bags onto the ground before pulling me in to kiss me again. And, once again, I lost control. I was sweating, panting, with my fingers pulled into his hair, pushing myself as hard as I could against his body. My tongue was just beginning to trace around the inside of his lips when he began pulling away from me, reaching back to pull my hands out of his hair.
"Bella," he breathed, and I noticed that his breath was uneven, "please, please don't test my control right now. At least wait until we're on the island... then we can do whatever you want."
I scowled, and went up on to my toes to kiss him again. He gave me a quick kiss, and pulled away before I could lose control again. He put the baggage onto a cart, and pushed it ahead of us as we walked into the airport, one of his arms around my waist, keeping me close.
Edward gently nudged me awake several hours later. The plane was just landing in a small town in South America, and from there we would take a boat to our island. Suddenly, I was wide awake. I was excited. The plane touched down, and we got off the plane and gathered our baggage, still with his arm around my waist. We made our way onto the boat, a small vessel with just enough room for the four bags, the two of us, and the old man steering.
"Honeymooners?" he asked lightly, eyeing how closely we stood, arms wrapped around each other.
"Yes," Edward replied, then started up a conversation with the man about fishing in these parts of the ocean. Did Edward fish? I had never heard him mention it, but he seemed genuinely interested in the subject.
When we finally got off the boat, Edward paid the man and he sped off with a smile. I reached to grab one of my bags, but it was already gone. Edward had taken all four bags and piled them on one shoulder, and pulled me close to kiss me again. We walked like that, still kissing, for a few minutes along the beach. I hadn't even had a chance to look at the island. I was the one to break the kiss this time, wanting to see beach we walked on.
I gasped. The beach was very large, and obviously extended around most of the island, if not all of it. A few dozen yards from the water's edge, the grass started to grow. There were a few palm trees, but mostly grass and flowers. I stared at the lush vegetation. It was absolutely breathtaking, with a hundred different kinds of flowers growing wild all around. The island was mostly flat, and there were only a few small hills. I immediately spotted the house, about a hundred yards from where we stood. It was modern, with lots of windows.
"Edward, it's beautiful! You did all this for me?" I asked, already knowing the answer.
"I would do anything for you." he said simply.
We walked hand-in-hand towards the house, our baggage still resting on Edward's shoulder.
The house was absolutely beautiful on the inside, clean and white, much like the house back home. It was lit naturally from the sun outside, and I looked for the first time at Edward. He was once again the sparkling, beautiful creature that I so rarely got to see in rainy Forks.
Edward ran upstairs to put our baggage in the bedroom, and then raced back down to give me a tour of the house. He was only gone a second, but I missed him the whole while. He returned, and grabbed my hand and eagerly pulled me through the house, explaining how each room had been designed to catch as much sunlight as possible, while still offering some measure of privacy. There were two bathrooms, a guest bedroom, a kitchen, and a living room downstairs. Everything was fully furnished, and I was sure that the refrigerator was fully stocked, ready to supply my hunger for a week. I would enjoy cooking in this modern kitchen.
Then, we went upstairs. The only room upstairs was the bedroom, and it was large. It took up the whole upstairs of the house. There was a sitting area, a walk-in closet the size of Alice's closet back home, and a very large bathroom, complete with a jacuzzi tub large enough for two people to bathe comfortably. The rest of the space was taken up by a large bed, luscious rugs, a very large television, and a few shelves, already stocked with CDs.
I immediately went to the bed, and lied down. Edward was next to me in an instant, and he pulled me against him. I snuggled against his chest, enjoying the perfect moment. I soon fell asleep, exhausted from the hours of traveling.
The week passed by very quickly, and all too soon we were packing our bags and getting ready to go home. Edward had met my demand. Now it was time for me to become a vampire, time for me to start spending the rest of my life with him.
We spent the last day running around the house, gathering all of the things that we had left around. Eventually we were both packed, and Edward grabbed the four bags and we started along the beach.
"Have a good week Mr. and Mrs. Cullen?" It was the same man driving the boat as last time. Obviously he had educated himself on who we were, because on the ride back to the mainland he asked us about Washington. We simply said that it was very rainy.
We got on a plane, and I closed my eyes. A few minutes later, I realized that I couldn't sleep. There were too many emotions going through me for me to decipher, but I knew that mostly I was just excited and anxious. I wanted to get the change over with. I wanted to be with Edward, for ever. I wanted to be able to stand next to him and feel like I belonged there. I wanted to truly be Bella Cullen.
Edward seemed to sense that I wasn't asleep, because he quietly leaned over and whispered in my ear, "Not very tired?"
"No," I mumbled, "I'm feeling excited. Are we doing this tonight, or tomorrow, or...?" I let my voice trail off, and Edward pursed his lips.
"It's up to you, of course. We'll arrive in Port Angeles just after noon, and we'll be in Forks by one o'clock. That's plenty of time to prepare yourself, unless you want to have a good night's rest and do it tomorrow."
"Tonight is good," I whispered, and I snuggled against his chest. I inhaled deeply, his scent intoxicating. He stroked my hair lightly, and we waited patiently, not saying a word, until the plane landed.
"Alice is here, she missed you." Edward said quietly as we walked toward baggage collection.
"Is she? I missed her too!" I replied, then a little more loudly, but still no louder than normal conversation, I called her name. She appeared beside me, as I knew she would.
"Hey Bella! Oh, I missed you! How was it?" she spoke quickly, and kissed my cheek.
"It was great. The wedding was beautiful, thank you! You're amazing!"
"Yes, thank you Alice. Everything was lovely. Anything interesting happen while we were away?" Edward looked at Alice meaningfully, then tensed. Alice and Edward stared at each other for a long moment, and I waited as patiently as I could. I counted to fifty as slowly as I could manage, then I lost my patience.
"What? What happened?"
"The Volturi decided to visit." Edward said slowly, and cursed under his breath.
"Who came?" I asked.
"Aro came, and he brought Jane with him. They stopped by the house, said they were there to ensure that you were becoming one of us." Alice said quietly.
"What did you tell them?" I whispered.
"We told them you were away on your honeymoon, and the date was set," she paused for a moment, eyeing Edward. He had turned to stone, his face totally void of emotion. "Aro said he was eager to see Bella as a vampire, and he assumed that she had already been changed. Jane suggested that they not waste the trip, so..."
I realized what she was getting at. "Wait, they're still here? Waiting?"
"Yes." she breathed.
"It'll have to be tonight, then," Edward said quietly, relaxing slightly. "Let's get home."
We drove home in silence, in Alice's porsche. The only sound was my slightly erratic breathing and the purr of the engine.
"Everything's going to be fine. We'll get you situated, then we'll..." Edward started.
"Bite me," I finished. He grimaced, and I smiled weakly. I wasn't worried about the transformation, or even the Volturi. I was worried about how I was going to turn out. "Edward, do you think you'll... I mean, do you think I'll be any different? Once I'm one of you, I mean?"
"Bella, we've been over this. You'll be the same, only less... breakable. But for the first few years, things might be a little difficult, but eventually everything will go back to normal, and--" Edward began.
"And then we can all be one big happy family." I finished lamely. I'd heard all of this before. Edward never went into the details about exactly how the first few years were going to be, he only said that they would be difficult or that I would mostly just be thirsty.
We were coming up the road towards the house now, I hadn't even realized how long we'd been in the car. Alice drove even faster than Edward. She pulled carefully (yet still way too quickly) into the garage, and parked the porsche expertly between the Mercedes and the Volvo. I noticed that the large bike Edward had bought was missing.
"Where's the bike? Did you give it to Jaser?" I asked.
"Yes. He left for tonight. He doesn't want to be around when... when I first bite you. He'll come back tomorrow, when you've already started the transformation."
"Alice?" I asked. I didn't have to finish my question, because she was already answering.
"I'll be staying here. I want to be here. I'll see him soon, and he knows that this is just a precaution, and everything is going to be fine."
I sighed, and climbed out of the car. "Let's do this."
Edward scooped me up into his arms, and we walked from the garage to the house. He carried me across the threshold.
"Now we've done everything we're supposed to do, even the threshold thing." he whispered, smiling. He put me down gently, and I grabbed his hand. We walked towards the living room where everyone was waiting.
"Edward! Bella! Welcome home!" Carlisle said warmly, Esme at his side. Rosalie and Emmett were sitting on the couch. I looked at them, my new family, and smiled. Then I noticed Aro and Jane standing quietly in the corner, and my smile vanished.
"Hello, Bella. I see you're still... human," Aro said kindly, smiling. Jane stood beside him, and she looked at me with a less than kind expression. I grimaced. I wanted to reply, but I had lost my voice. "You see, Bella, this is a very interesting situation. Never in my lifetime have I ever heard of anyone ever volunteering for a lifestyle like this, and so I'm wondering if the change will be any different because of your willingness."
"And of course you're eager to see if Bella has any... abilities when this is all over." Edward said quietly, reading the true reason behind Aro's desire to stay behind during the transformation.
"Yes, that too." Aro agreed quickly, his eyes down. Then Jane spoke up:
"We'll stay here for the entire duration of the change. I presume you're doing it tonight," she looked towards Carlisle, and he nodded, "so we'll leave in three days time, just enough to see the new her."
"I ask you to please refrain from hunting in this immediate area during your stay," Carlisle said politely, "You understand that we must keep a low profile, and our current situation guarantees the safety of the people in Forks." He was referring to the treaty with the werewolves, obviously trying to give the wolves a reason not to start a war. He knew that by changing me they were breaking the treaty thoroughly, and the pack had every reason to start a war.
"Sure. I am interested in your current situation, Carlisle. Perhaps I will go hunting with you, and I will give your food source a try." Aro laughed. I was surprised; I knew that Aro was intrigued by the Cullen's dietary choice, but I didn't think he was willing to try it. I looked to Edward beside me, and he smirked.
"So let's get down to business. Where will you be doing it?" Aro asked quietly, looking to Edward and I.
"We'll do it upstairs, in my bedroom." Edward said decisively, and he looked towards me. I couldn't find my voice, so I merely nodded. I was fine with wherever it was done. I was sure that I wouldn't care once the venom was coursing through my veins.
"Okay. First, Bella, I'd like you to eat something. it's a long three days, and you won't be in any condition to eat a meal, let alone keep it down." Carlisle said calmly, slipping into his sure, authoritative voice I was sure he used when he was diagnosing patients at the hospital.
I nodded, and Esme went to the kitchen silently, and pulled a few different plates out of the refrigerator, offering me a choice. I didn't even look at them, I just grabbed the closest one and stuck it in the microwave. When it was warm, I grabbed a fork and ate quickly. Everyone was watching, and it made me self conscious. I downed a glass of water, then another. I finished off the plate, took another sip of water, then stood up.
"I'm ready."
Edward came towards me slowly and picked me up, carrying me upstairs to his bedroom. He lay me on the bed, and sat silently beside me. Everyone was there, even Rosalie. She smiled warmly at me. I knew that she had come to terms with my choice. Emmett grinned, positively ecstatic. He was obviously excited to have me as part of the family. Carlisle and Esme stood closest to the bed, smiling. Alice stood just behind them, her eyes far away. She was watching the future, making sure everything was going to work out, I'm sure. After a minute she came back to the present, and nodded pointedly at Edward. Only then did I notice Are and Jane, who had stalked off to the corner of the room, standing in the shadow. I saw their bright red eyes. They had just hunted before coming here, so that they could watch the transformation without needing to leave to go hunting.
I looked at Edward last. He looked... ready. He was ready to do this. His mouth was set in a hard line, and his eyes were flat and expressionless.
"Okay." That was all I said. That was all I could say. I got comfortable on the bed, rested my head on the pillow, and took a deep breath. Edward leaned in towards me.
"Where do you want me to do it? It'll leave a scar, so you can decide where you want it." he asked quietly.
Alice stepped right behind Edward then, and whispered to both of us, "Sorry, Bella. But it's better if you do it in a big vein. The transformation will go more quickly that way, since the venom hits the heart faster. It might not be your first choice, but the best place would be the neck."
"I understand. Let's do the stereotypical vampire bite, then. In the neck." I murmured.
"Are you sure?" Edward asked me.
"Yes. Do it."
And so he leaned in slowly towards my neck, and I closed my eyes. My heart was beating furiously, trying to break free of my chest, but my breathing was even. He kissed the vein on my neck first, and then I felt his mouth tighten around my neck, and I felt his teeth pierce the skin of my neck.
At first, all I felt was the breaking of the skin. It hurt, but not that badly. Within a few seconds, however, I felt a tingling in my neck. Soon it changed from a tingling to an aching, and then my neck was on fire. I screamed. I writhed on the bed, clutching at the comforter. Edward was stroking my forehead, whispering soothingly into my ear.
"Everything's going to be okay. It's okay, love. Everything is all right. You're okay. It's okay. I love you. Forgive me."
I couldn't reply, and my voice was getting hoarse from screaming. The fire had spread from my neck down to my chest, and was quickly spreading throughout my entire body. It wasn't quite the most painful thing I'd ever experienced, but it came pretty close to when Edward had left. I stopped screaming. I remembered what Rosalie had said, about screaming not doing any good.
"Bella? I love you, so, so much. Please forgive me. I am so sorry for putting you through all of this, I'm sorry you're going through all of this pain. I'm so sorry. I love you." Edward continued to whisper to me.
I was sweating, still writhing on the bed. I opened my eyes, and the family was gone. Edward was there, and Aro and Jane were in the corner watching. At first I'd thought that everyone else had left, but then I noticed Alice sitting on the sofa, staring straight ahead, watching the future.
I couldn't concentrate on much. The pain had pretty much spread to my entire body now, and my head felt like it was about to explode. I whimpered. Edward held my face with his cool hands, and it felt a little better. He was still whispering, but I couldn't hear him. My head was pounding.
That was how it continued for the next three days. Every couple of hours Carlisle or Esme would come into the room, and ask how everything was doing. Edward didn't leave my side, and Alice left momentarily to welcome Jasper back when he returned. He came into the room, smiled at me, and left. Aro and Jane sometimes stood in the corner, sometimes they sat on the sofa. All the time they watched, never speaking.
Eventually, the pain began to subside. Had it already been three days? It hadn't been that bad. I hadn't screamed that much, and Edward had been by my side the whole time. I turned my head to look at the clock. It was just after 1 o'clock, which meant that if it had really been three days, my transformation was nearly complete. In fact, the fire had gone down to a dull ache. I didn't move.
"Bella? Are you okay?" Edward asked. His voice was apprehensive, like he wasn't sure if I could hear him. It was also laced with worry, and he sounded anxious at the same time.
I groaned, and turned to face him. "Edward," I murmured. Then I stopped. I didn't sound normal. My voice was... beautiful. It was smooth, and musical. I laughed at how shocked I was that my voice had changed.
"Bella!" Edward exclaimed, smiling. He gave me a hug. "How are you? How do you feel? I was so worried..." he murmured, kissing my hair.
"I feel fine. I feel great, actually. How do I... um... how do I look?" I asked, eager to see how much I had changed.
"You look absolutely stunning. You always did." He smiled at me warmly, and reached towards Alice, who had appeared beside him. She held out a hand mirror. Edward took the mirror, and handed it to me. I reached out, and stopped. The skin on my arm was bone white, and I wasn't used to it. I looked at it for another second, then grabbed the mirror from Edward. I brought it towards my face.
I looked at the reflection apprehensively. I hadn't changed all that much. My skin was whiter, and now it matched the skin of the rest of my family. My eyes were bright red, and it frightened me. My features were slightly more angular, but otherwise I looked the same. I frowned, disappointed. Wasn't I supposed to be beautiful?
Edward saw my frown, and guessed the reason behind it. "You were so beautiful before, there wasn't much to change."
I looked at him, and raised an eyebrow. Then I looked at Alice, and she nodded. She smiled brightly, and looked towards the door.
"Jasper! Carlisle, Esme, Rose, Emmett! It's... done!" she called. The rest of the Cullens – the rest of my family – walked in. They seemed to move slower than normal. Still lightning fast, but my eye was able to follow their movements, able to see them clearly as they moved. They all were smiling.
"Welcome to the family, Bella," Carlisle said, "We're glad to have you."
I sat up, and turned to get off of the bed. Edward kissed me lightly on the lips, and grabbed my hand. We climbed off the bed, and walked straight past Aro and Jane, who were standing in the corner once again, to the bathroom. I dropped Edward's hand, and walked to the full-length mirror, and admired myself for a moment. Not much had changed, but I looked better standing next to Edward. I almost looked like I belonged there.
I turned, and walked back into the bedroom. The family was waiting there expectantly. I smiled at them, and turned to Emmett.
"Hey Emmett. Let's arm wrestle." I challenged. Emmett grinned, overconfident in himself. I could feel my strength. I could feel it every time I moved. I was invincible.
Suddenly, I realized something. "Um, Edward... aren't I supposed to be, you know... thirsty? A mindless creature, searching for blood?"
Edward looked at me, perplexed, then at Carlisle. I looked towards the whole family, they all looked astonished.
"You're not thirsty?" Carlisle asked calmly.
"Not at all. Should I be? I mean, isn't the reason newborns are so strong that there is so much of their blood still inside them?" I replied.
"Yes, you should be thirsty. The blood inside you serves your strength, not your thirst. You should be very thirsty, it should be one of the only things you're able to think about." Carlisle looked totally stunned.
I didn't respond. I wasn't thirsty. Not at all. I didn't want any blood right now. The only thing I wanted was to test the boundaries of my new strength.
"Emmett. You up for the arm wrestling match or not?" I asked slyly.
"Uh... sure." He was shaken by my lack of thirst, but still willing to take the challenge. As a group, we all went downstairs into the living room. I sat at the table, and Emmett sat directly across from me. Then, we arm wrestled. It wasn't difficult. I beat him, ten out of ten times. He was upset.
"We'll do this again in a year. When you're not crazy strong," he said quickly, glancing at everyone around him. Edward laughed, then Alice giggled. Soon the whole family was laughing at Emmett, looking thoroughly embarrassed. Then, Aro spoke up, effectively ending all of the laughter.
"We'll be leaving now. It was nice to see you Carlisle, Esme, Jasper, Alice, Rosalie, Emmett, Edward, and Bella. Do come and visit us soon." and without another word, Aro and Jane stalked out the door.
Over the next few days, I confirmed that I was indeed still immune to Edward's mind-reading. Apparently I still had that glitch in my brain that kept those supernatural mind tricks from affecting me. That was good. I also confirmed to everyone that I was still not thirsty, even though they asked me every two seconds. That was kind of annoying, but I knew that they just wanted to know why.
After a few days, Alice came up to me and explained what was troubling her.
"Bella... you know that my sight is especially sensitive to our kind. That, and I'm especially attuned to your future, having watched it for so long. I can see very far into the future for you, Bella, much farther than anyone else. And while I don't trust the events that are happening, because they could obviously change with the slightest action, you're still not thirsty. Even after a year, you're not thirsty. Your eyes change from red to scarlet to black. Eventually you grow very weak, but still you aren't thirsty. So we force you to drink, we take you hunting with us. Your eyes go from black to a light honey, the same as ours. But you aren't thirsty.
"I don't think you're able to be thirsty. I think that you still have to drink blood, like the rest of us, and everything else is the same, but you just don't get thirsty. It's the strangest thing I've ever seen."
She sighed, annoyed that she couldn't figure out the problem.
"That's a good thing, though, isn't it? Doesn't that mean that I'd be able to go out in public, around humans, and I wouldn't be craving their blood?"
"I suppose so. We'll try it out one day, maybe once your eyes aren't so red. It tends to scare humans."
I laughed, and she laughed with me.
"So. Do you see me having a superpower?" I asked lightly, but my question was serious.
"Actually, yes. I think it may have to do with your lack of thirst. I think you repressed your thirst, I think you've done it since the beginning. And I think you can repress other things, too."
"What kinds of things?"
"Other vampires' powers. I once saw you going to the Volturi, and you were somehow able to stop the entire family from using any of their powers. Aro was delighted, he wanted so badly to know what your power was. The rest of them were annoyed, and Jane was furious. They asked you to leave immediately, and never to return."
"Whoa. That's big. So I could do this to any vampire? Even... you know..."
"Yes, even Edward, Jasper, and I. I don't think you'll be able to do it just yet, though. At least, not consciously. I don't think you'll be able to control it for a while. Of course, all of this is just theory, just a guess from what I can see. I guess in a few months we'll really see. Until then, who knows?"