Hi, everybody!! I'm proud to say that after a year of neglecting my Twilight fandom, I'm finally paying tribute once more. My first attempt at a Twilight fic wasn't properly prepared for so I had to discontinue it (at least for the time being. :D You never know what I'll do...). So, I'm trying again mostly because I want to pay tribute to some of the awesomest vampire books I've read (and partially because I'm on a New Moon high right now. I saw it today, but since I don't want to spoil it, I'll just say that I was blown away, especially at the end. My bro wasn't too impressed, but I don't care!!! He wouldn't know a good movie if it bit him in the- . . . Sorry 'bout that. ^-^)

Anyway, I hope you enjoy!! :) I know this is an unusual idea and it might not appeal to a lot of people, but I'm enjoying writing it. As long as I know that some people besides myself like it, I'll continue posting. I need a break for my other fanfic catagory. I've been writing for the anime Shugo Chara for like nine months; I need to take a breather ;^)

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight. It all belongs to the inventive mind of Stephanie Meyer… (This disclaimer counts for the whole fic, alright? It's so boring, making me repeat the same depressing info each and every time I begin a chapter. I guess that just means I have to write longer chapters, huh? TT)

Important (kinda) Notes:

1. I'm just going to give you some brief scientific background on the Astronomy used in the fic (yay...). Notice: I said BRIEF. This won't take long... hopefully. Plus, I'll probably mention some of this stuff later in the fic anyway... or I might not. So, it's just safer to read about it now I guess O.o
- The North Star (AKA Bella in this fic) is a bright star to the north that sailors use as a guide to stay on course when at sea. It is the star that lies closest to the point above the northern polar axis of the Earth. The Northern Star is also called Polaris (which you should know for this fic), Pole Star, Angel Stern and Star of Arcady. It's also called Heaven's Needle(which I refer to it as once during this chapter)/Taivaanneula because it was said to be a pillar that supported the heavens above the Earth.
- Sigma Octantis (South Star/Polaris Australis) is the current Southern Star. It is very dim compared to the North Star, Polaris.
- Gamma Cephei (Alrai) is a star that will be closer to the nothern polar axis of the Earth than Polaris around 3000 AD. So basically, it'll be the new Northern Star at the start of the next generation.

2. I'm using Edward's vampire age in the book version of Twilight (104 years old) rather than his movie age (108).

3. Unless you're still unaware, I'll announce this little facty-fact: This AN is too damn long!!! So, I'll shut up and you can read in peace. Enjoy!

Prologue

"Do you see that star, Edward?" Elizabeth Masen asked. She pointed her index finger northward.

"Which one?" and eight year old Edward inquired, following her finger with his lively green eyes.

"That really bright one, just up there," Elizabeth responded, adjusting her finger a little bit so it was more precise. "Do you see it?"

"I think so."

"That star is called the Northern Star. It's always high up in the sky. Well, as long as you're north of the equator; you can't see it to the south. Do you remember what the equator is, Edward?"

"It's that line that runs around the middle of the globe at home."

"What's it for?"

"It separates the Northern Hemisphere from the Southern Hemisphere."

"Correct," Elizabeth replied, turning her head to beam with pride at her young son. He twisted his neck to face her and smiled back.

Both mother and son were lying on their backs in the middle of a fertile, grassy field. The hustle and bustle of Chicago's night life was a very dull sound when it fell on the pair's ears. They were lost in their own world as they observed the starry night through wide eyes, trying to soak it all in. With their arms crossed underneath their heads, Elizabeth and Edward were on their backs with only the soft, green grass as a cushion against the hard earth. They'd gone outside for their weekly astronomy lesson. There was not a hint of a cloud among the stars on that peaceful, tranquil night.

"That star," Elizabeth began again, "is also called the North Star. It has other names as well like Heaven's Needle or Taivaanneula. But I just want you to know, my dear, that this star with help you find your way when you're lost."

"What do you mean, mama?"

"Well, you can always count on it to lead you north. If you lose your direction in these woods or in the city, Edward, just find the North Star in the sky and you'll know where to go to get back home. This star is always looking out for you."

Edward was silent as he studied the blazing point in the northern sky. It would always look out for him… It would help him find his way home…

"Can I always trust the North Star to lead me back home?"

"Always," Elizabeth replied confidently, snaking her arm around her son's shoulders and pulling him close to her side. She tilted her head so that it rested on his soft hair. She planted a soft kiss to the strands before turning back to the sky. Edward burrowed further into her warmth, effectively keeping the night's chill at bay.

"I want you to remember, Edward," she murmured quietly to him, "that even if I'm not around to help you, this star will always be here with you, through thick and thin. It is a companion that will always be faithful to you despite what actions you take. The North Star is the most trustworthy guide you could ever have."

"Even more than you?" her son asked with a disbelieving squeak, eyes wide.

Elizabeth chuckled softly. "Yes, it sometimes is."

The young boy, with eyes as green as the leaves on the summer trees, gazed at the Northern Star with awe and respect, wondering how it could help him even more than the mother he had at his side.

"Remember, Edward, that even if this star is hidden behind clouds of smoke or if you just can't seem to spot it among all of the other stars, understand that it will be with you, whether you believe in it or not."

9 years later

Edward hastened along the filthy streets of Chicago, pulling his coat tighter around his muscular frame. The sidewalks were damp under his feet from a day of steady rain and mist enveloped his figure. It clung to the fabric of his coat as he took abnormally lengthy strides with his long legs. The sound of his feet slapping the pavement echoed off the brick walls of the alley he'd just turned into. It was a shortcut his friend William had mentioned earlier that day during their military drills. Edward was exhausted from a day devoted entirely to conditioning his body for the army and thought only of the nice, warm dinner waiting for him at home with his mother.

With no thoughts to truly focus on as he walked down the alleyway, seventeen year old Edward let his mind wander. The mysterious events from earlier in the week managed to escape from his pile of already pondered thoughts and presented itself to him in the most immodest fashion. Begrudgingly, he seized the memory and ran it through his brain yet another time. He hoped that perhaps he would reach some sort of deduction that would make the cause of the event clearer to him. But despite the numerous times he'd thought it through, it still made no more sense than it did when it was first introduced to his bored self.

A few days ago, he was sitting on the front steps of his mother's house. Elizabeth Masen sat beside him and they both gazed up at the star-speckled black sky. His mother was chatting about whatever her newest interesting star was while he thought only of the North Star. Even since his mother first told him about it when he was just eight years old, that star had been dear to his heart. On nights when the stress of everyday life overwhelmed him, he'd watch that star shine brightly in the sky without falter.

This night was just like any other that he'd spent with his mother. Everything was going exactly as they expected. Neither knew that what happened next would affect the life Edward would lead when he was over a century old and undead.

One second, Edward and Elizabeth were gazing up at the sky. In the next, they were cringing away from a sudden flash of white light. Its dazzling brightness stunned them for the moment it was there. Then it was gone just as quickly as it had come. Nothing had changed except for one thing: the Northern Star was no longer in the sky. It had simply vanished. One moment it was there, the next it wasn't. There was simply no logical or illogical explanation.

Still lost in his theories of what might have been the cause for that strange event, Edward didn't notice the shadows at the end of the alley moving, adjusting themselves so that they remained hidden from the light in the street. As Edward reached the end of the alley, standing right in front of the shadow, he felt the cold metal of a gun press his temple.

"Gimme yur money," a voice sneered maliciously. Edward tensed in fear and surprise before angrily reaching into his inside coat pocket for his leather wallet. There was really nothing he could do with a fully loaded gun to his head. Any wrong move could make the smelly, obese thief pull the trigger. Apparently, it seemed to the man that Edward was reaching in his coat pocket for his own weapon. Panicked, the man forced Edward to his knees and pressed the gun deeper into the flesh on his head.

"No games here, kid," he growled.

"I was just getting my wallet," Edward hissed through clenched teeth. The man's filthy hands were gripping his Edward's wrists with all the force they could muster.

"Oh…" the man trailed off, looking even more idiotic than before. Edward raised his newly freed hand again to try to get his wallet once more.

Suddenly, the man with the gun became the one on his knees and he no longer had his weapon. Instead, a girl with long, shining brown hair held the pistol in one hand while the other was keeping the man down. She rotated the gun so that the butt of the pistol could collide with the back of the man's head when she swung her arm. The would-be thief fell to the ground with a sickening thud.

Edward gazed at the mysterious girl in awe, overcome by the subtle beauty of her movements. She dragged the body back into the shadows and tossed the gun after it. She turned to face Edward, but remained hidden in shadow.

"Come out here so I can see you," Edward whispered, beckoning her towards the pool of light he stood in. He saw her silhouette hesitate for a moment before taking a few cautious steps forward. She came to a halt a few feet in front of a now stiff-backed Edward. She'd revealed herself to him in the dim streetlights.

And she was the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen. Her long brown hair bounced with life even when she was still, causing the light to glitter off on its surface. Her heart shaped face was tainted pink on her cheeks while everywhere else remained a smooth ivory. The two orbs that rested perfectly in her head had warm brown irises with the purest white flashing through them, giving her an exotic, unearthly feel that raised your hair on end.

She gazed softly at Edward for a moment before extending her hand towards his face. His breath caught in his throat as she gently stroked his cheek. He felt his skin burn where she touched it. He wasn't sure if it was a reaction to her touch or just him blushing. His body froze under the sincerity of the abrupt gesture. She gave him a wide smile, approving of his healthy, unharmed condition. He warily returned the grin with his own crooked one. Her pale hand slipped from his face as she took a few steps back, her strange eyes never leaving his. She turned away from him with obvious reluctance. He felt a similar emotion manifest within him. He never wanted to see her go.

Edward reached out a hand to stop her from disappearing. Everything felt like an illusion, as though he were moving underwater. She turned back to face him before his hand reached her and placed one of her long, slender fingers to her lips.

"It's best if you didn't know," she whispered, her bell-like voice slicing through the thick Chicago atmosphere.

"Why?" he asked, desperate for some sort of information about this strange girl.

"It just is," she replied simply with a shrug of her shoulders. Edward tried not to make his disappointment apparent, but must have failed since she continued in a lighter tone on a different subject, "And watch out for yourself more carefully." She gestured towards the unconscious thief. "One of these times, I might not reach you before the damage is done." She giggled slightly at the end, momentarily curing him of his melancholy mood. Her voice was like a soothing lullaby to him; it rained down on his soul and calmed his frayed nerves.

"May I at least know your name?" he asked, remembering his manners.

She shook her head with an apologetic smile.

The girl turned away from him once more and took a few more steps into the alley before crouching down as if preparing to jump. Edward watched curiously as her knees bent and her upper body leaned forward, muscles coiling before whatever her next action would be. She sprang up like any normal being, but the moment her feet left the ground, she burst into a blinding white light, similar to the one he had seen earlier when the North Star had disappeared. But Edward was too disoriented to make that correlation in those few brief seconds. Before he could regain his rational thought, the girl had already shot off into the distance. Over a few rooftops she flew before escaping out of the immobilized Edward's line of vision.

He stood in that dark alley for a moment before quickly shaking himself out of his stupor and continuing his journey back home. His mother would be worried if he was late for dinner and he didn't want to give her any more unnecessary stress. She was beginning to become frail with some sort of illness that left all of the doctors confused. But for the entire walk home, all of dinner, and most of the night, that mysterious girl with welcoming brown eyes dominated every single thought that ran around inside his jumbled human head.

He knew nothing about this girl. He didn't even know her name. But he did know that she was no human. He knew that he shouldn't be thinking about her. Instead, he should concentrate on forgetting that mysterious brown eyed beauty. But Edward couldn't bring himself to let her go. He'd only known her for a few minutes, but that was more than enough time to thoroughly affect his heart.

In the short time he knew her, if you could even call it that, Edward's heart began to beat double time at the little memories she left him with. And it was her face, along with his mother's, that he constantly saw when he was resting on his deathbed a week later.

Without realizing it, he had fallen in love with her. But it was too late. Or perhaps their meeting came a little too early. It didn't really matter.

All that did matter was that when Edward Masen awoke as Edward Cullen weeks later, Carlisle's venom had spread to his brain and caused the memory of the sweet girl to fade and fade and fade until it was as if their meeting had never happened.

*ducks barage of random Edward plushies* Don't worry, I'll fix this!!! It's just a . . . minor complication. But wow, Edward just forgot her during his transformation. I'm evil, right? Well, don't worry; he'll meet up with Bella properly as a vampire in the next chapter. And she still remembers him. So, review, my dears, review!!! I would like to know that I'm not completely crazy and that this idea appeals to more Twilight fans than just me... Oh, c'mon!!!! Bella's a fallen star, people!! That's gotta be interesting to some people, right? Right?!? O.o