Thank you RosabelleCrombwell for letting me adopt this story.

Thank you to RDoster2012 for being my Beta!

It is finally up! The first part of the rewrite for Cullens Adopt Bella is now up! I am so sorry for making you wait so long, but this took a lot of effort. I hope you enjoy it! Read and Review, please!

Bookwormlover1

Disclaimer- Twilight belongs to Stephenie Meyer. I am just using her characters, and I only own Ava.

In no way do I own any of Tennyson's works(you'll see why)

Word Count-7970

Prologue-Running and Burning

Ava POV:

June 15th, 1990

I had to get out of there. My family was in danger, and it was my fault. They didn't even know there was a threat. Dad might have been the Chief of Police, but he couldn't protect the family from the monsters that lurk in our world. The danger that came with knowing something I shouldn't was my problem to deal with.

Perhaps it was a good thing Dad and Mom were hardly home- Dad at the police station and Mom off doing whatever hobby she had found that week- because at least they weren't there to see the monsters that have haunted my dreams ever since the first attack when I was five.

Now, four years later, I was hurriedly stuffing two messenger bags with all of my essentials while I recalled what happened that gave me this urgent need to protect my family.

"Bella, what would you like me to read to you tonight?" I asked my baby sister since I was babysitting her while Mom was out with friends and Dad was working the night shift.

She smiled up at me sweetly before answering in her little voice, "The poems you said mommy used to read to you."

I smiled sadly back at her and said, "Okay, I'll go grab the book while you climb into bed."

The truth was, my mother didn't read me those poems as a child I did. Little four-year-old me decided that I would teach myself to read larger books with higher vocabulary since the books at school weren't advanced enough for me, and Mom and Dad were never around to help me appease my thirst for knowledge.

Tennyson's poems were my favorite, although Robert Frost was a close second, as his poems were the first I'd ever read. I grabbed the book of Tennyson's poems and rushed back up the stairs to our shared room, eager to read her my favorite poem.

"Ready?" I inquired as I crawled under the covers with her on the small twin bed. She nodded frantically, like she was on a sugar high.

"Okay, settle down!" I said, laughing.

"Now, this one is my favorite. It is called "There is Sweet Music Here".

Bella snuggled into my side, closing her eyes so she could fall asleep easier. I took a deep breath and began.

"There is sweet music here that softer falls

Than petals from blown roses on the grass,

Or night-dews on still waters between walls

Of shadowy granite, in a gleaming pass;

Music that gentler on the spirit lies,

Than tired eyelids upon tired eyes;

Music that brings sweet sleep down from blissful skies.

Here are cool mosses deep,

And thro' the moss the ivies creep,

And in the stream the long-leaved flowers weep,

And from the craggy ledge the poppy hangs in sleep."

I looked down at Bella and saw that her eyelids were halfway open, so I slowly got out of bed and stuck a compilation of Debussy's works in the stereo, putting "Claire de Lune" on repeat. I then crawled back into bed with Bella, humming the tune of my favorite song while I waited for her to fall asleep.

About half an hour later, I heard her breathing become even, and I knew she was in the land of dreams.

I quietly tip-toed across the floor, grabbing my pajamas from my small dresser before softly padding out of the room to change in the bathroom. When I finished my nightly routine, it was 9:30, but I still wasn't tired, so I decided to curl up on the couch and read "Romeo and Juliet" for the fun of it, since I'd already read it once just because it was mentioned that I'd be reading it in high school, and I was already well ahead of my class.

The familiar words soothed me, and I felt myself nodding off before even finishing Act 1. I closed my eyes; sure I'd be able to open them in a minute. I soon fell into a dreamless sleep.

The book fell off my chest when I was suddenly jolted awake by a tingling sensation in my gut, telling me there was some sort of danger. It felt like it was coming from my room… Oh no-BELLA!

I shot up off the couch, dashed to the stairwell, jumped over the stair that always creaked, and ran up the stairs as fast as I could.

'Please, please be okay Bella,' I thought.

I stopped in front of the door, slightly panting. I realized that if this was all because of my overactive imagination, I could possibly wake Bella up by storming in there. I slowly pushed the door open and was greeted by a horrific sight. There, standing at the foot of my baby sister's bed, was the creature that haunted my nightmares, the beast that was also beautiful, the monster that had tried to kill me when I was only five years old for seeing him for what he truly was- a vampire. Not the same man; he was long dead, but still, a vampire.

Not the Hollywood vampires that burn in the sunlight. No, this monster could walk in the sun and could simply stand there while he sparkled like a thousand diamonds. It's true-sparkle.

I had been up in a tree reading "Sense and Sensibility" because it was one of those rare sunny days in Forks my fifth birthday, actually, a nice treat. I had been pretty deep in the woods, kind of close to where I'd seen some hikers walk by.

All of a sudden, an extremely pale man with midnight black hair had appeared out of nowhere, and his skin started to sparkle. He was barefooted and wore black slacks and a blood red button up shirt, and his sleeves were rolled up.

I'd then heard the crunching of leaves before I could continue my study of the person in front of me; the sound was coming from my right, so I knew it wasn't the sparkling man that was before me. I turned and saw a greasy-haired hiker who was covered in sweat and dirt making his way towards my tree.

The sparkly man had suddenly vanished before reappearing behind the hiker. He'd placed one hand over the hiker's mouth, and one across his stomach, effectively restraining the greasy-haired man. He had placed his lips over the other man's neck when he started thrashing, and after a few moments, he had gone limp.

The black-haired man dropped the dead hiker and looked up making me gasp, for his eyes were a bright, crimson red. I had covered my mouth and prayed 'Don't see me, don't see me,' in my head when the sparkly man scanned the area. It had seemed to work at first because his eyes glanced over my spot in the tree, but they suddenly snapped back to where I was.

His grin was feral and I then saw the blood dripping down his chin, and I'd realized what he was. I'd read about the the cold one, the blood drinker in the Quileute legends, but I never thought a vampire actually existed. He'd started walking lazily toward me, confident I wouldn't be able to get away when a huge horse-sized wolf had abruptly come barreling out of the trees. It had immediately launched itself at the vampire, tearing him to shreds using its huge teeth.

The sound was the most horrific one I'd ever heard; a great screeching noise came from the area the vampire and wolf were fighting, like nails scraping down a chalkboard. When the vampire was completely torn to shreds, the wolf went behind a tree and then came out as a man holding a lighter and wearing nothing but shorts.

'Oh great, now there's werewolves too?' I had sarcastically thought.

The werewolf had tossed the lighter on the pile of limbs, watching as they turned into a choking purple cloud of smoke. When the vampire had finally been turned into ash, the werewolf had turned away and shifted back into the huge wolf. As soon as the werewolf had been out of sight, I streaked down the tree and ran full speed back to the house.

Vampires had haunted my nightmares from then on, and now here was another one of those monsters, standing at the foot of Bella's bed. The vampire was tall, about 6'1, with chocolate brown hair, although he did have the signature pale skin and crimson eyes of a vampire.

"You were quite hard to find," he stated softly.

"W-what?" I managed to stutter out. "Why would you want to find me?"

"You know about our existence," he murmured, "and therefore, you must either be changed or be killed. You are much too young to be changed, so I suppose I will have to kill you."

I sucked in a sharp breath at that. "P-p-please," I stuttered, "I won't tell a-anybody. I rather f-fancy not being locked up in a padded cell. And then my baby sister, she'll be all alone, with no-"

"Ahh, yes your sister is what made it so hard to find you." He turned to look at Bella while she slept. "She has a physical shield, made it very hard to catch your scent indeed. But I was wandering by the town when I caught it by the school. You and your sister both have a remarkable scent, very mouthwatering. Although hers is more like freesias, yours is a rose field in full bloom," he sighed wispily.

"H-h-how did you even know my scent?" I asked.

"Well, when you saw Bernard, the vampire you saw-" he said when he saw my confused look, "his mate, Theresa, was close by. You were of course long gone by the time she found his remains, but your scent was all over one tree, and there was one book hanging on the branches." He then pulled out my old copy of 'Sense and Sensibility' from his coat. "Very good story, I must say," he said. "I'm rather surprised a four-year-old was reading it."

"I was five," I huffed. "I'm nine now." I get that I'm short, but seriously!

"Five," he chuckled. "In any event, that was how I knew your scent. Bernard, Theresa, and I were very close friends, so she knew me to be a decent tracker. She immediately brought me the book, assuming you were somehow apart of Bernard's death, although that is obviously not the case."

"Most definitely," I muttered.

"So, let's get on with it then," he said, appearing in front of my small frame.

I had to at least try to live. "C-can we at least do it outside. I-in the woods. I-I don't want her," I gestured to my sleeping sister, "to see me dead and bloody when she wakes up."

His eyes seemed to cloud over before he grinned, seeming happy to know I was accepting my fate. "That seems reasonable," he allowed. "Meet me in the woods."

He then proceeded to jump out my window; I guess that's the way he came in.

I dashed down the stairs and grabbed the lighter and the spare from the junk drawer,

stuffing them in my pocket before making my way out the front door.

I took only about ten steps into the dark forest before the chocolate-haired vampire grabbed me.

"You know," I wondered aloud, "I never caught your name."

"It's Grayson," he said, turning me around to face him. "Wanted to know your killer's name?" he asked as he bent down to put his mouth to my neck.

"Yeah," I said. "But it won't be you, Grayson."

He instantaneously paused. "Wha-" he started to say before screaming as he caught fire from the lighter I'd stuffed in his pocket while he wasn't paying attention.

I backed up against the tree, squeezing my eyes shut, as I did not want to see him burn alive… or dead, perhaps.

When his screams faded, I opened my eyes and saw that Grayson was no more than a pile of ash.

I suddenly realized that: what if another vampire came after me? What if Bella was conscious next time? What if Mom or Dad were there? I couldn't stay and leave them vulnerable to another attack when this was my problem to deal with. I hurried inside to pack my bags.

Tears stung my eyes as I finished packing, leaving my bags by the door. I grabbed a notepad and a pen and wrote a short, vague letter to try and explain my absence.

After the note was written, I folded it up and placed it on my parents' bed. I then made my way into mine and Bella's shared bedroom. I realized 'Claire de Lune' was still playing. I left it on, hoping the melody would somehow remind Bella of me when she heard it.

I made my way over to her bed and leant over her, wishing the peaceful look on her face would never have to be tarnished by a fear of vampires.

I finally closed the gap between us by fully bending down and kissing her forehead while stroking her soft, brown hair, the only feature she and I didn't share-I had wavy midnight black hair. Other than that, we both had the same pale skin and brown eyes.

One tear escaped and fell down on Bella's cheek before I could wipe it away.

I turned away from my almost three-year-old sister before more tears could fall and dashed out of the room. I continued running down the stairs, not stopping until I reached my two bags by the front door. I shouldered them, and then ran outside to my little bike. The bags were tossed in the basket of the bike while I locked the front door with the key under the eave.

I climbed on the bike and noticed that my watch said it was midnight. 'A new day,' I thought. 'Too bad it probably won't be a good one.'

Then I started pedaling away from the house.

Away from my family's life.

{{{{{{{{{{}}}}}}}}}}

August 28th, 1996

"I'm clocking out now, Edith," I said.

"Okay, dearie, see you tomorrow. Happy Birthday!" Edith, the owner of the restaurant I worked at, responded.

I smiled blandly at her before picking up my messenger bag and walking out of the friendly atmosphere of the warm restaurant, into the night air of Seattle.

I was 15-years-old today. 15 years I've walked on this earth. Six of those years I spent my birthday without my family. Six of those years I've spent my time running away from vampires. Six of those years I have been alone.

For most people, birthdays were a happy occasion, but that was if they got to spend it with their families. Me, I haven't celebrated my birthday in the six years I'd left my family behind to protect them from the creatures of the night.

Even if I did want to celebrate the survival of another year, vampires always invariably found me on my birthday.

Perhaps my scent was stronger on the day I was born?

In any event, there was no time for me to commemorate my birth before the vampires found me.

Ever since that night in the woods with Grayson, I always carried a few lighters on me and in my bag. There had been a few close calls over the years, but most of the monsters didn't think that a weak, little human would be able to fight back, so I was able to survive. I usually found out through talking with the vampire trying to kill me that he or she was most often sent by Theresa, who was still trying to avenge her mate's death.

There had only been two times that the vampire trying to kill me had just happened across my "intoxicating" scent and decided to grab a bite. Those were the close calls, because they had been too ravenous with thirst for me try and talk to them. I still didn't understand that ability I seemed to have.

I was so lost in thought that I didn't notice how close I was walking to the dark alley until I was snatched inside by pale, cold hands held over my mouth and stomach. I knew thrashing and kicking would not help me escape, so I willed my body to go limp. Unfortunately, my bag full of lighters fell out of my hands when I relaxed.

"Ahh, what a good little human. You know you're about to be tortured," a female voice whispered in my ear.

Hold up… tortured? Who was this… wait… Theresa?

I must have said that out loud because she chuckled before saying, "You know my name? Good, I want it to be the last thing that comes from your lips. And wasn't that your wish when you were with Grayson? That you know your killer's name?"

"H-how d-did you kn-know a-about that?" I stuttered. Was she there?

She chuckled again and said, "Oh, I have eyes and ears everywhere, little girl. Now, let's get on with your death, shall we? You are going to die on the same day as my beloved Bernard, and you are going to rot in hell for what you did."

I closed my eyes and whispered, "Just do it."

I felt my left arm being lifted up before it just hung in the air, only being held up by the cold hands of Theresa. 'Was she pausing for dramatic effect?' Suddenly, I felt her cool lips hovering over my veins before swiftly biting and sucking. She stopped after a few mouthfuls then moved on to the next wrist. Soon after she was done with both wrists, I felt a burning sensation; it was like my hands were on fire.

I started thrashing and screaming. "Please, stop! Make it stop!" I yelled.

Through my blurry vision, I saw Theresa smiling. When I felt her pick up my left wrist again, I started screeching, worried she was going to put even more fire in my blood. She just grinned sadistically and put her lips to the bite and once again started sucking, just not using her teeth. I stopped screeching and started moaning in pain. The fire had gone out in my right hand, but it was still raging up my left arm.

"Hey!" a male voice shouted. 'No,' I thought, 'Run before she gets you too.'

Theresa's head shot up from my wrist. She took one look at the newcomer and stiffened. She got up like she was preparing to run, but not before leaning down by my ear and whispering, "This isn't over." Then she vanished from my line of sight.

I closed my eyes, knowing I was about to die.

"Are you alright?" a concerned male voice asked.

"No," I grunted. What kind of stupid question was that? Couldn't whoever this person was leave me to die in peace? The fire would turn me to ash soon anyways.

"What hurts? I'm a doctor, I can help you," the voice said again.

Oh, what was the harm in telling him my arm was on fire? I grunted out, "My arm-is on- fire."

He sucked in a deep breath.

"Okay, I'm going to get you out of here; you're going to be just fine."

The last thing I remembered seeing through my hazy vision was a pale, blonde-haired man who bent down, bit my left wrist again, and picked me up before I closed my eyes as the fire took over completely.

{{{{{{{{{{}}}}}}}}}}

September 1st, 1996

The intense heat had finally left my body. Was I dead?

I know to expect this from the moment I ran away, but now that my heart had stopped beating, I was distressed over the fact that I would never see my baby sister again.

I suddenly heard a rustling noise along with the sound of steady breathing. Wait? Was I truly dead?

In a flash, I shot up off the table I was laying on, opening my eyes for the first time.

Everything was so clear. Sharp. Defined.

I studied the beautiful room, and when I turned my eyes upwards, the brilliant light overhead was still blindingly bright, yet I could plainly see the glowing strands of filaments inside the bulb. I could see each color of the rainbow in the white light, along with another color I had no name for. Behind the light, I could easily distinguish the grains in the light wood ceiling above. In front of it, I could see the dust motes in the air. They spun like little planets, moving around each other in a carefully choreographed dance.

The dust was so beautiful that I inhaled in shock, but it felt wrong, there was no need for the air. I soon realized that I hadn't been breathing while lying on the table, so my lungs obviously weren't waiting for the influx of air.

The clearing of a throat brought my attention to a pale, blonde-haired man standing by the window. I registered him as the man who had taken me away from the alley after scaring off Theresa.

Hold up. The only thing that could possibly scare a vampire was another vampire.

I immediately zeroed in on his eyes, but they were a shining gold color and not the crimson red that I associated with vampires… but still…

I sucked in another breath to speak and felt a slight burning sensation in the back of my throat. It wasn't that noticeable, though.

"Where am I?" I asked. My voice rang and shimmered like a bell, a distinct difference from what I was used to. I asked another question immediately after hearing my new voice. "What am I?"

I was pretty sure I knew, but I needed clarification.

"My name is Carlisle Cullen. You're in Denali, Alaska-" I don't even want to know how I got from Seattle to Denali "-and… you're a vampire."

No. No. No! I didn't want to be a monster!

Carlisle could probably see the distress on my face. "Hey, hey, calm down," he said in a soothing voice.

"I don't want to be a monster," I said.

His face relaxed into a smile. "That's good," he said. "No one in my family wants to be a monster either."

At my confused look, he smiled and said, "My family and I only drink from the blood of animals. That is why my eyes are gold."

"Huh," I blurted. "I've only met vampires with red eyes."

"What?" Carlisle questioned. "When have you met other vampires other than the one I saved you from?"

I didn't want to tell him my story just yet, so I said, "You said there are others? Your family? Perhaps it would be better for me to wait to tell my story with all of them present?"

He agreed to that plan.

"Now, I assume you are thirsty?" He asked, bringing the burning in the back of my throat to my full attention. I put my hand against my throat as if I could stifle it from the outside.

"Yes, you need to hunt," Carlisle said.

I automatically leapt for the window, too thirsty to care about walking out the door.

I already knew how fast vampires were, so as soon as I hit the ground I was off and running. I could hear Carlisle keeping a steady pace with me, although he was a little further behind me.

He gradually gained enough speed to go in front of me and brought me to a screeching halt.

"Listen," Carlisle instructed. "What do you hear?"

I could have said, 'Everything.' From the beat of rap music coming from the road to the whisper of wind shaking the trees, I could hear it all. But I knew he meant something specific, so I let my ears range outward to the southwest, where I could hear the sound of paws softly thudding against the forest floor.

"To the southwest?" I said. "Mountain lion?"

"Yes," Carlisle responded. "Now go, I'll be right behind you."

I took off running, closing my eyes and letting myself become one with the hunt.

The breeze abruptly shifted, blowing stronger from the west. I didn't think; instinct was taking over, compelling me to race after a new fragrance that was even more attractive than that of the mountain lion.

The scent ruled completely. I was aware only of the thirst and the delicious smell that promised to quench it. The only thing that had any chance of snapping me out of my single-minded focus on the scent was an instinct even more powerful, more basic than the need to quench the fire, self-preservation.

I was suddenly alert to the fact that I was being followed. The pull of the irresistible fragrance warred with the impulse to turn and defend my hunt. My feet slowed, the need to protect my back struggling against the desire to extinguish my thirst.

I could then hear my pursuer gaining, and defense won. As I spun, a growl made its way out of my throat.

The feral snarl coming from my own mouth was enough to clear my head for a second.

The wind shifted once again, blowing the smell of damp earth and trees across my face, further freeing myself from the other scent's fiery grip- a scent so delicious it could only be human; I was horrified with myself.

Carlisle hesitated a few feet away. I realized that I had been about to attack the man that had shown me nothing but kindness. He could see the reason return to my face as I held my breath, and he took a step closer to me.

"I have to get out of here," I ground out, using the breath I had.

Surprise crossed his face. "Can you leave?"

I didn't have time to ask him what he meant by that, I just turned and ran in a dead sprint east, away from the mouthwatering taboo scent, concentrating solely on the uncomfortable feeling of scent deprivation that was my body's only response to the lack of air. When I was sure I was far enough away and the air was clean, I stopped.

Carlisle blew past me, surprised by my sudden freeze. He wheeled around and was in front of me in a second.

"How did you do that?" he demanded.

"Run away? I held my breath."

"But how did you stop hunting?"

"Self-preservation… I'm sorry about that."

"Why are you apologizing? I am the one who assumed no one would be this far from the trails," Carlisle said.

"But I growled at you!" I said indignantly.

"Of course you did; it's natural. I just don't understand how you ran away," he responded.

"What else could I do? That person has a life, how do I have any right to take it away from them?"

He stared at me in shock, shaking his head.

"What?" I hesitantly asked.

"You shouldn't be able to stand here and talk to me so calmly and coolly. In my experience, even mature vampires have difficulty breaking off mid-hunt with the scent of blood in the air, yet you just did that. You're acting like you're decades rather than a day old."

"Huh," was my intelligent response.

Carlisle chuckled then said, "Come on, let's go back to that mountain lion."

I once again ran through the forest, to the southwest, where I knew the lion to be. As soon as he was in my range, I leapt for his throat, instinct taking over as I growled back at the big cat snarling and clawing at my granite skin.

I pushed the lion away when it had been drained dry, still feeling a burn in the back of my throat.

"Why am I still thirsty?" I asked Carlisle.

"Because you are a newborn. Come, there are some elk to the north."

We ran north, and this time Carlisle hunted with me. My clothes were already in tatters; the fight with Theresa and non-existent battle with the mountain lion had shredded them. I watched as Carlisle cleanly and efficiently drained the elk without getting a drop of blood on his clothes so I could copy his movements. After he had made his first kill, I ran to the scattering herd and grabbed the biggest elk I could find and drained it in the same neat way Carlisle had. Not one drop of blood fell on my clothes again.

I soon had my fill of blood, feeling a little sloshy. I stood back and waited for him to finish draining the last elk.

"No longer thirsty?" He asked, his eyes burning gold now.

"Nope," I cheerfully stated, glad it was over. "I feel full."

"Good," he stated, smiling warmly at me. "Let's go home and get you cleaned up as soon as possible. My family… doesn't exactly know about you yet as they were on a vacation of sorts when I found you. I was unable to go as I was caught up with working at the hospital, but they should be arriving sometime today. Just so you are prepared, some of them don't take kindly to strangers, but they'll warm up to you eventually."

"Thanks for the tip," I said. "And… thank you for saving my life that night. At the time I just wanted to die and be done with it, but when I woke up from the change thinking I was dead, I regretted not doing the things I could have done."

"It was my pleasure," Carlisle said.

We soon arrived at the house, and my newly enhanced hearing and sense of smell could tell that there were other vampires in the house now.

I guess Carlisle's family had gotten home early.

"After you," he said, opening the door to the foyer.

I took my time studying it since it was my first time seeing the foyer, seeing as I had unceremoniously jumped from the window earlier.

The floor was a light colored hardwood with a dark blue rug laying on top of it.

There was a gorgeous crystal chandelier above my head, and a large mirror was hanging on the wall to my left, which was painted a deep brown color. It kind of reminded me of my old eye color.

A chuckle brought me out of my perusal of the foyer, and Carlisle came to stand behind me.

"This is my family," he stated, pointing at each person as he rattled their names off.

"Rosalie and her mate, Emmett," he said, waving his hand over to a tall, statuesque blonde and a giant with black hair and dimples, "Jasper and his mate, Alice," Carlisle said, now pointing to a tall man of about 6'3 with honey blonde hair and a tiny girl-about 4'11-with black hair who resembled a pixie, "my mate, Esme," he said affectionately, moving away from me, toward a woman with caramel colored hair and a motherly smile, "and Edward," he finished, pointing to a bronze-haired male who looked to be the most boyish out of all of them.

I could tell I was receiving a wide range of reactions from all of the family, with Rosalie and Jasper giving off more hostile vibes, and I desperately wished I could hear what they were thinking. Out of the blue, I was bombarded by voices, yet no one's lips were moving.

'Who is she?'

'How does she know Carlisle?'

'Probably a newborn, by… '

'Oh the poor dear… '

'Yay, a new sister!'

I let out a short yelp in surprise, falling to the ground with my head in my hands, grasping at my head so tightly it was almost painful.

Carlisle was immediately by my side, along with Edward for some reason. "Are you alright?" Carlisle questioned.

"Carlisle," Edward spoke for the first time, "she couldn't hear thoughts, then she wished she could, and started reading minds."

Carlisle had a look of shock on his face. "You can read minds? How? You couldn't before now," he said, firing question after question at me.

Edward addressed Carlisle again. "Give her breathing space. I think the first thing we need to do is ask her what her name is, considering we can't keep calling 'Hey, you.'"

"Where are my manners? I really haven't asked you your name, in the two hours since you woke up?" Carlisle said, appearing bashful.

Esme ran to my side, helping me up even though I didn't need it, acting like a mother hen. She brushed imaginary lint off my torn clothes and asked, "What's your name, sweetheart?"

'Hello, my name is Ava,' seemed like a simple enough way to introduce myself, but a millisecond after opening my mouth, everyone gasped.

'What?' I thought.

Esme turned me to face the mirror, and I saw myself for the first time after being changed into a vampire. My skin was even paler than before, and my midnight black hair that fell to my waist had a new sheen to it, but my eyes were the most shocking: a swirling light purple color before they changed to the crimson red I'd seen on most vampires.

"Why are my eyes red?" I asked. "I thought hunting animals made them gold."

"They'll change to gold in about six months," Carlisle responded. "What we're most concerned about is the fact that you just introduced yourself by planting a thought in our minds, Ava."

What?

"Perhaps it has to do with the mind reading, Carlisle," Edward theorized. "Her gift could have a hypnotizing effect. To know which thoughts she should plant, she needs to be able to read minds. Therefore, Ava could steer an enemy in the wrong direction, or set a friend on the right path."

"Yes," he responded, "and the purple eyes could just be a side effect or an indication that she is using her powers."

I huffed. "Could you not talk about me as though I'm invisible? I am right here, and I can hear you. And what do you mean by 'gift'?" I said.

Emmett suddenly let out a boisterous laugh. "I like her," he stated. "She's got spunk."

Carlisle once again looked abashed and scratched the back of his neck. I had a feeling that if he were human he would be blushing.

"Sorry, Ava," he said. "Now, some vampires have gifts, but they are basically manifestations of our greatest talents in our human life. You seem to be able to plant thoughts in others minds, kind of like a hypnotizing effect."

I thought of all the times I was attacked on my birthday, being able to coerce my attacker into thinking they would win before killing them, bending the odds to my advantage. That certainly seemed plausible with the hypnotizing idea.

"There are three people in this family who have gifts beyond the norm of enhanced senses: Edward, Alice, and Jasper. Edward can read minds, Alice can see the future, and Jasper can control emotions."

"The mind reader, the seer, and the empath," I mused aloud. "Rather talented. So, Carlisle, you were asking about my story earlier. Would you like to hear it now?"

"Why don't we move to the living room and you can tell us your story."

I followed everyone as they made their way to a large living room. Alice and Jasper claimed two identical chairs that were sitting next to each other while Emmett and Rosalie took one side of the black sectional couch. Esme and Carlisle decided to take a beige loveseat, I claimed the other side of the sectional, and Edward lowered himself to the floor in front of my seat, sitting cross-legged.

Everyone stared at me, imploring me to regale them with my tale. Edward snorted at that, and I felt a childish urge to kick the back of his head, but I suppressed it.

"So," I started, feeling a little nervous, "my story starts when I was five years old. I was an adventurous child, and my father was always at work while my mother was off doing whatever hobby she had found that week, so I was usually left to my own devices. I'd like to say that, for the record, I didn't mind spending my early childhood on my own. My parents married young and I don't think they were quite ready for the responsibility that came with a child. I became very self sufficient; this was a good thing, because I was always eager to learn and liked doing things on my own.

So I decided to take 'Sense and Sensibility', climb a tree, and spend the afternoon reading. All was well until a man I soon learned to be a vampire came out of the woods and stepped into the sunlight, he didn't know I was there. I witnessed him drain a hiker, and at my gasp, he finally discovered I was there. He started slinking toward my tree, and I was only saved by a huge, horse-sized wolf that barreled out of the trees and started attacking Bernard, the vampire. I'll tell you how I learned of his name later.

Anyway, the wolf ripped Bernard to shreds then went behind a tree to grab a pair of shorts with a lighter in them, if I had to guess. Basically, the wolf went out of sight and a man wearing only shorts took his place. The man tossed the lighter on the remains of Bernard and waited until there was nothing but ash before he shifted into the wolf. As soon as the wolf was out of sight, I hopped out of the tree and sprinted to the house, completely forgetting about my book." I sighed.

"Oh, you poor dear," Esme said, "to have to go through such a thing at such a young age."

I smiled sadly at her. "Yes, well, such is life, sometimes. That brings me to four years later, I had an almost three-year-old sister, and I was two months away from turning nine; June 10th, 1990, was the date, actually. Dad was working the night shift, and Mom was on vacation with friends, so I was left to babysit Bella, my sister. After she fell asleep at 9:30, I was not tired, so I decided to reread 'Romeo and Juliet'. When it was mentioned it would be taught in high school, I went ahead and got it and read through the story in two days. I didn't even make it through Act I before falling asleep, but I was awakened by this sense of dread that was coming from mine and Bella's shared room, so I immediately dashed up the stairs.

A horrific sight greeted me when I opened the door. At the foot of the bed was a vampire who said that I was very hard to find, insinuating that he had been looking for me for whatever reason. He then went off to explain that Bernard's mate, Theresa, had been nearby that day in the woods. My scent was all over the tree, near where she found his ashes, so she assumed that I had somehow killed him. She went to Grayson, the vampire in my bedroom, as he was a tracker, and gave him my copy of 'Sense and Sensibility' since it was covered in my scent.

He said that it was harder to find me than it should have been because Bella had a physical shield that shrouded the house and masked our scents, but he smelled mine when passing by the elementary school one night. That implored him to say that my scent was like a field of wild roses, and apparently rather appealing. He then said he should get on with the killing, so I quickly formulated a plan and asked to be killed in the woods so Bella wouldn't wake to see my corpse.

His eyes fogged over before saying it seemed reasonable. I think that was the first time I noticed my ability to bend the odds to my advantage. He told me to meet him in the woods. I dashed downstairs and grabbed two lighters from the junk drawer then walked outside, still playing the part of the scared human, although I was absolutely terrified while enacting my plan.

That plan was to get him close enough to me that I would be able to put the lighter in his pocket and let him burn; I closed my eyes for that part. When he was dead, I realized Theresa would keep coming for me. I had to protect my family, even if it meant leaving them. I packed two bags and got on my little bike and pedaled away at midnight."

I paused again, waiting to see their reactions to my killing Grayson.

Emmett finally said, "Badass," and Esme sped over to slap his forehead. "No cussing," she said. I giggled a little before continuing.

"For the next six years, I moved all over Washington State, running to a new city every time a vampire attacked me. The attack always came on my birthday, which was a strange occurrence, but at least it allowed me to be prepared. I always had a lighter on hand or in my bag so I could reenact the plan I used with Grayson. There were only two times the plan didn't work, and those attacks came from vampires who were insane with thirst. They didn't happen on my birthday, either, just days that I wasn't cautious enough.

"Anyways, three days ago, August 28th, was my 15th birthday. I had just clocked out from my shift at the restaurant I worked at, and was so lost in thought that I didn't realize how close to the alley I was, until I was pulled in by two cold, pale hands. I knew that there was no escaping, that my luck had finally run out, so I willed my body to go limp.

A female's voice then whispered in my ear, and, I quote, 'Ahh, what a good little human. You know you're about to be tortured.'

It took me a few seconds to understand that it was Theresa. I must have uttered her name out loud when I did figure it out because she said, 'You know my name? Good, I want it to be the last thing that comes from your lips. And wasn't that your dying wish when you were with Grayson? That you know your killer's name?' I couldn't have been more shocked than I did then. How did Theresa know about that? When I asked how she knew, she responded by saying, 'Oh, I have eyes and ears everywhere, little girl. Now, let's get on with your death, shall we? You are going to die on the same day as my beloved Bernard, and you are going to rot in hell for what you did.' I told her to just do it.

"She lifted my left wrist to her mouth and waited for a minute, building suspense, before biting and sucking in a few mouthfuls. She quickly moved to my other wrist and did the same thing. A few seconds later, I felt the burning fire build in my hands. I begged her to make it stop, and she did put out the fire in my left wrist by sucking out the venom, but the fire was still raging up my right arm. She started to lift that arm but we heard a male voice yell 'Hey!' She stiffened, like she was afraid of something, I just didn't know what. She moved to run, but before she did, Theresa leaned down by my ear and whispered, 'This isn't over.' Then she ran.

"That's when Carlisle comes into the story, and he asked me if I was alright, and I remember thinking what a stupid question that was, couldn't I just be left to die in peace? But what was the harm in telling this supposed doctor that my arm was on fire? The last thing I heard before succumbing to the fire was, 'Okay, I'm going to get you out of here; you're going to be just fine.'"

I turned to face Carlisle directly. "What were you doing in Seattle, anyways?" I asked him.

"Alice called and told me to go to Seattle, that something big was going to happen, she just wasn't sure what."

Everyone turned to Alice. "I'm sorry for not telling you about Ava," she said. "I didn't want to get your hopes up of getting a new sibling only for her to die in the end."

"Well, you did have a hand in saving my life, so thank you," I told her. At their confused looks, I said, "When the fire finally died down, I was upset because I believed myself to be dead, and I was distressed over the fact that I would never see Bella again. Then when I realized I was a vampire, I was upset because I did not want to be a monster, but that was before I heard of the vegetarian lifestyle."

Everyone smiled and Carlisle said, "Ava, while you seem to have exceptional self-control, we would like to help you, through your newborn year at least. Would you like to stay and be apart of this family?"

I played around with the name 'Ava Cullen' in my head for a little bit. There really was no need for deliberation; I already knew what the answer was.

I smiled at them all.

"Yes."

{{{{{{{{{{}}}}}}}}}}

August 28th, 1997

I was supposed to be 16-years-old today. 16 years I have walked on this earth. Nine of those years I spent with the family that gave birth to me, the family I shared blood with. Six of those years I spent my birthday without my family, spending my time running away from vampires. Six of those years I was alone. This past year I have stayed with my adopted family, the family connected by venom rather than blood. I've had wrestling matches with my older brothers, shopping trips with my sisters and surrogate mom, and vacations spent with the entire family. I had learned how to properly use my gift, which frequently helped when pranking Emmett. Everyone had learned of my exceptional self-control through the story of that first hunting trip, all of them having a good laugh at my expense.

But now that I had a great relationship with my adopted family, I wanted to see how my human family was faring.

"Carlisle," I said, alerting him to my presence.

"Ava, what is it you need?" he asked.

I started making my case. "Well, you have all been very good to me this past year, and I thank you for that, but I want to go see how my human family is doing. I'll try and be quick, and I promise I'll come back."

He smiled warmly at me. "I understand. You have your phone if you need to contact us. Have a safe trip."

"Thank you," I said, then ran to the garage. I hopped in my car and drove speedily down to Forks. If my research was correct, Mom, Dad, and Bella still lived in our old house.

I stored my car in the garage at the house Carlisle had said the Cullen's had in Forks for if they came down for a few years. As soon as I was out of the car, I was off and running towards the house I hadn't seen in seven years.

A smile made its way onto my face as I stopped at the tree line and spotted the house. I started walking at human speed towards the window so I could look inside, but something stopped me: a scream.