Fall of Alice

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Twilight, never have, and most likely never will.

I was curious about Edward's statement at the end of Twilight: "Alice had a little bit too much fun fabricating evidence." Here is my take on what happened.

Alice's POV

We ran through the streets at top speed, following the road. Edward hadn't wanted to take the car; no matter how fast it was, we were faster. Bella was even now cradled in his arms; unconscious, broken, and close to death; he ran faster at my thought, pulling ahead. The sun glinted off us all, but we moved so quickly that to the humans we passed, it would seem no more than a peripheral flash; perhaps a reflection off a passing car... nothing particularly unusual.

How would we explain this? Getting her to a hospital was imperative; but they would want an explanation. I still couldn't believe we hadn't seen what she had intended to do; looking back, it was obvious.

The hospital was in sight. Under his breath, Edward whispered: "She tripped and fell down the stairs of the hotel while going up to see us."

Well, it was one of the more cliché ideas I'd ever heard; but I didn't have a better one and admittedly it fit something that might happen to Bella.

We slowed to a human pace behind a hedge in the parking lot of the hospital, and Edward carried her in, Carlisle following. Emmett pulled out his cell phone and called Rosalie, talking rapidly to her in a low voice.

They would get her checked in; Jasper and I had best take care of our story. Motioning to Jasper, I waited just long enough to look ahead, verifying what Edward would tell the hospital personnel: "I was here with my father and sister; she was going to visit me in my hotel room. She tripped and fell down two flights of stairs and through a window."

Interesting. I swiped one of Bella's bloody bandages, holding my breath as the sweet scent sent a burning flash down my throat; and raced at top speed for the hotel Edward was checked into. Jasper followed silently; but his eyes flickered inquisitively, and he broadcasted curiosity... along with residual guilt, that I knew we both were feeling. There wasn't time to think about it, though... the quicker we had the evidence, the better it would hold up. "Stairs," I muttered, and his eyes flickered understanding. It wasn't too hard to guess.

Edward's room was on one of the top floors of the hotel, near one of the flights of stairs. That was good. The stairway went in a U-shape, down maybe fourteen steps, about-facing, and going down again. There happened to be a window two flights down... a stone, perhaps, bounced down the area? No...

Well... I was a stone, effectively. I could move quickly enough to 'fall' down the stairs without ever really being out of control of my 'fall', and while I was at it I could touch the bandage to the dents to leave Bella's blood there.

Looking ahead, to ensure no one would come upon me as I fabricated our evidence, I leaped down the stairs without further ado, turning it into a sort of dance. Jasper would ensure no one came near while I was being artistic. Step, hop, step, smash leg into wall, body-slam into the wall to bounce around the corner... hit the stairs with forearm, sit down hard on the next step down, and crash headfirst through the window at the bottom. It was a lot like dancing; I could make this a hobby... but not with Bella's life making it a necessity, for sure! I had to make sure not to hit the walls too hard; a soft human body would not crash completely through anything...

At the bottom, I carefully wiped the bloody bandage around on the floor and the glass shards of the window I'd gone through; it was... helpful that the bandage had been soaked through. There. Evidence completed... as far as anyone would need to look... and Jasper was radiating waves of amusement from above. I flitted back through the window and up the stairs to look at him. "What's funny?" I asked, without preamble.

"I must say," he chuckled, "you fall very gracefully... and very destructively. I almost believe Bella really did fall."

I turned to look back down the stairway, and laughed too. The dents and crushed parts were very clear, and it stood almost ludicrous contrast to my completely unwrinkled clothing. "It was fun."

"I'm sure it was," he spoke, still amused, snugging one arm around me. "Will Bella be all right?"

I glanced ahead. She would be out for a few days... Edward would be worried sick... but she would have no long-lasting ill effects. "Yes."

"She seems to have rather unfortunately bad luck," he mused.

"I don't know," I said thoughtfully. "It's true that she runs into things like this... the van in the parking lot, Edward's unusual attraction to her blood, James and his coven... but if you think about it, she has always come out of these situations without lasting harm."

"True," he amended. "I suppose it's hard to define, what is good and what is bad luck... and which she has."

I shrugged. "Depends on your perspective. I think she has some fairly extravagant instances on either end of the scale, averaging out in the end to your normal, everyday luck."

He smiled. Bella, normal, everyday? Those words didn't belong in the same sentence... and we both turned to go back to the hospital. Edward would like knowing that Bella would be all right.