Title: The Eternal Mother
Author: o0Alanna0o
Rating: T
Warnings: I don't want to spoil anything, but there will be vampires doing what vampires do…
Summary: A young mother's life gets changed by a vampire. How can she grow up her children with a life so different from theirs?
A/N: Again, this was written in just a few hours and I ask you to remember that I neither have a beta nor am I a native speaker, but other than that: Enjoy!
The world in which this story takes place and all the characters you recognize from the Twilight saga do not belong to me (but to Stephenie Meyer) and no profit (except for the fun of writing it) is being made with this story!
Prologue
With seemingly steady steps I followed the procession carrying the coffin, laying to rest the youngest of my children. A harsh wind blew into my face as I stood by the hole, watching as the black box was lowered into the dark. The circle of mourning family members and friends was small, just a few people wrapped tightly into their black coats, shielding themselves from the cold with high collars and low hats.
Maybe they thought I had lost my mind, facing the coming blizzard with nothing more than a simple dress, but I didn't really care. All I cared about was the strangest of feelings, cursing through my body. I had done my deed as a mother, I had survived all those years and they had too. Now they were dead and for a few minutes while I was standing at those graves, I wondered what I would do, now the task of my life was over. I felt like killing myself, but at the same time I knew I could never succeed in doing that.
I caught myself speaking words to the crowd, words of sorrow and words of gratefulness for the help they had provided me with during the hard times. When I had finished, they started to move back towards the church. No one felt like coming closer to me, comforting me with kind words and gestures. I knew why and I couldn't blame them. What they did was as natural for them as standing here in the cold was for me.
I heard someone calling for me and I realized that they must be worrying about me, staying in the cold that long. With a last look at the white marbled family crypt which I had established with my savings and with one last glance at the names and dates on the stones, I turned and walked slowly back to the others.
I had organized a small funeral feast in our community nearby. However, before entering the building, I went to my car and fetched the jacket I had brought to be on the safe side. I did not, after all, want all of my guests to worry about my well-being. As if there was anything to worry about these days. Eventually, I would have an easier afterlife if my family did not believe me being completely out of my mind. Maybe this time, I would be able to convince them that there was nothing interesting about me and that I was better left alone. Maybe this time, they would forget all about me, even that I eventually would have to die.
I stepped into the room and felt the warm air tingle on my skin. When everyone had noticed me, they got quiet to let me open the feast. I spoke the words they all wanted to hear. I spoke of the good times and the bad times and how everything always had come to a good end. I kept my words short, in the meantime already drifting off with my thoughts. When they had started to eat, the room was filled with murmured words. I strolled a bit, exchanging words with some of the guests, all the while picking up some food somewhere and depositing it somewhere else. They didn't seem to notice that I wasn't eating a single piece.
After some ten minutes I felt I could finally leave and exited the building through the back door. On the way to my car, I heard a small voice call out to me.
"Aunt Sophie?"
I slowly turned and saw one of my great-granddaughters sitting in front of the house.
"Aunt Sophie, why are you already leaving?" she asked with the innocent tone of a six year-old.
"Hey Sweety," I addressed her, "I am just very tired and sad. I need a little bit of rest today, not so many people."
"Yeah, I know what you mean," she said and mentioned to herself sitting there all alone, "When will we see you again, aunt Sophie?"
I smiled sadly.
"I don't know, Sweety, probably not at all for a long time."
"What a pity."
She waved her little hand and I went ahead.
When I started out to the main road I contemplated where to go. When an idea came to my mind I searched for my cell phone. Maybe my old friend Bella would be happy to see me again after all those years.
TBC
