Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or anything familiar you read here.
Rated: T.
Author: Paige Turner.
Pairing: Alice/Bella.
Summary: AU. A/B. I took her pain and the darkness that threatened to taint her, replacing it with all my happiness and my light. I became the monster so she wouldn't have to.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~'Give unto me your troubles~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~I'll endure your suffering~
~Place onto me your burden~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~I'll drink your deadly poison.'~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Biloxi, Mississippi. 1905
The raindrops on the window looked almost like twinkling little stars against the dark clouds up in the sky. She connected some of them in her mind, creating a tree, a chair, and a house, while she held her palm against the cool glass, feeling the raindrops pelt against it. If she closed her big brown eyes, the little vibrations felt like a pulse, as if her home had a heartbeat of its own. Maybe it did, and the only time you could feel it was when it rained? Perhaps they were living in a living thing, like the man who lived in the whale?
It would need a name then, because all living things had names, right?
Of course, trees didn't have names, and they were living things, too.
Why did people name their pets but not their trees?
"Isabella," The little girl's mother called from the kitchen.
The brunette's brown eyes snapped open, a smile forming on her face as she hopped off the window seat. "Yes, mamma?" Bella straightened her trousers and fixed the suspenders holding them up, racing off to find her mother in the other room. She wrapped her little arms around her mother's waist, looking up at her with a bright and eager smile.
Renee smiled back softly, tucking a lock of her daughter's long hair behind her ear. "I need a favour from you, sweetie. Do you think you can run this flyer over to Mrs. Cunningham's house? I need to go to the market and I won't have time to do both before your father is home."
"Sure," Bella chimed excitedly. "I can help." She took the flyer from her mother, flipping it over and over as she inspected it before heading to the front door.
Her mother followed behind, grabbing her daughter's little coat from the closet and held it open for her to slip her arms through. "You remember where her house is, right? Way down at the end of the road, so hurry, I don't want you catching a cold in the rain." She said with a frown, taking down Charlie's old newsboy cap. It was a little big on Bella, but at least it would keep the rain out of her face. "Don't run though, either. I don't want you to trip and hurt yourself."
The girl couldn't even wear dresses for goodness' sake, not without falling every other step and tripping on the material. She had to wear hand-me-down trousers, whose waist was taken in by Renee, and suspenders to hold them up. Her daughter was a terrible klutz.
"I know," Bella pouted. She had just turned eight last month, a big girl now, but her mother was still treating her like a baby. "Am I ready?" She asked, clutching the flyer between her pale little fingers, standing in front of the front door.
Renee sighed deeply, smiling feebly. She thanked whoever listened that Bella had such soft, elegant features, with long, wavy hair, otherwise people might confuse her for a boy all the time. She decided that her and Bella would go take dance lessons, something to help with the girl's balance so she could wear more girly clothing. "Yes, honey, you're ready."
The little brunette grinned brightly, turning and swinging the door open. "Bye, momma!" She skipped down the front porch and into the rain, focusing to keep her feet underneath her as she waved to her mother.
"Be careful, Isabella!" Renee called out into the rain one last time.
Biloxi was a nice place to live and grow up, the community was small enough where everyone knew everyone else, and all the parents and grandparents grew up together. Bella knew the layout of most of it, all by heart, but she always found places were somehow different in the rain. It was the same…but not. Like how the bright backyard could look like a dark, scary place in the dark. This was almost like that, but different. It wasn't scary.
There weren't nearly as many people out when it rained, in fact, Bella couldn't see anyone outside on the sidewalks with her. She looked back down at the flyer in her hands, wondering just what it was and why Mrs. Cunningham needed it, but her mother didn't. Was it a mistake? Had the delivery boy accidentally given it to the wrong person?
The brunette's brows furrowed as she stared at it, frowning absently.
If he made mistakes like that, they'd need a new delivery boy. She was good at giving things to people. Right now was a fine example of that.
Maybe she should be the delivery girl? She could make money and buy treats and toys and stuff!
Bella gasped, falling forward, and stumbled enough to catch her footing. She whirled around and glared at the raised edge of the sidewalk she had tripped on, the outrage in her eyes almost comical. The nerve of that sidewalk to just trip her like that!
She was already a little wound up as she turned back around, continuing on her way to Mrs. Cunningham's house. She stormed down the rest of the way, nearly at the end of the road when she saw it.
A group of little boys around her age, it looked like.
The girl wasn't exactly known for being very social. She was a very polite and friendly little girl, and people did like her, but…she didn't really have any friends. The other little girls in town treated her like a boy, and the boys treated her like a girl, and at that age, both had cooties to their other, neither wanting to be friends with each other. So Bella skirted around the edges, talking to kids sometimes, but usually kept to herself and stuffed her face in a book or played alone.
Another trait that Renee had spent hours at night worrying about.
She was perfectly content to just duck her face and walk past these little boys playing in the rain, in the middle of the road, and hurry along her way up to Mrs. Cunningham's door. In fact, that's what she was doing, quickening her pace as the kids wrestled around, and she was almost completely past them when she heard a tiny little voice that sounded like wind chimes.
"Stop!"
Bella's muscles all locked in place, her body freezing, as if she walked into an invisible wall.
And she was the only one as the rest of the little boys continued to wrestle.
Her eyebrow rose curiously as she turned around, looking back to the group in the middle of the road. She examined the scuffle going on, trying to find the source of the voice, and her eyes widened in horror at what she saw.
There, in the middle of the group of boys, was a little girl. She was much smaller than the boys, smaller than Bella herself, in a little blue dress with her long black hair plastered against her in the rain. She looked near tears and scared out of her wits as she tried to protect herself, ended up falling to the ground on her hands and knees, letting out a wail of pain.
Before she could even blink at her thoughts, Bella was running out into the road and pushing through the group of boys to stand in front of the little girl.
These kids were being mean and she wouldn't just stand by and let this little girl get hurt. It wasn't right, and Charlie taught her right from wrong at a very young age.
"Stop it," she yelled at them, pushing one away from them. "You leave her alone right now!"
One of the boys frowned. "Look out," he demanded. This was another girl and he wasn't going to let her tell him what to do. "We don't want to play with you."
"This isn't playing." Bella said, shaking her head furiously.
Another little boy laughed with his friends, lightly patting Bella's shoulder. "We're just having fun. It's only Mary Alice."
The brunette looked down at the little girl who wouldn't meet her eye, and then back up at the boys. "No more."
"Stop telling us what to do! You're a girl and we don't have to listen to you!" The first little boy pushed Bella roughly, sending her to the ground next to Mary Alice.
Bella gasped again, looking up with wide eyes. She slowly got to her feet, more of that outrage returning, and did what Charlie showed her.
"Boys can be mean, honey, and you need to know how to stick up for yourself."
She balled up her fist as tight as she could, holding it back behind her, and then swung it forward with as much might as she could muster up. The boy cried out, his hands coming up to his nose as he fell onto his back. He moaned, fighting back tears as his shoulders started to shake, unable to even try to get up. Bella glared at the rest of them. "That's a 'mean right hook' and there's plenty more where it came from," she recited her father's words in that scary way he showed her.
The rest of the little boys quickly picked up their friend and ran off, some of them threatening to tattle on her as they raced away.
"Thank you," That little voice from before said.
Bella turned and looked down at Mary Alice, her face smoothing back out again as her eyes softened. She crouched down in front of her, ducking to try and look at her eyes. "Hey, are you okay?"
Mary Alice hesitated before looking up and down the street. "They…they took my coat and I hurt my knee." She said quietly.
In the blink of an eye, Bella was shrugging out of her own coat, and crouching back down to wrap it around the little girl. "Can you walk on it?" She asked, grabbing those small hands and helping her up. Mary Alice gasped at the burning in her knee, falling forwards into Bella's arms, and the two collapsed back to the ground. "Alright, no walking!" Bella laughed.
"I'm sorry," Mary Alice mumbled, looking away.
Bella frowned. "Hey now, don't worry. I've got an idea. Just scoot over to the sidewalk and off the road, it's dangerous. I'll be right back, I promise."
She waited for Mary Alice to hesitantly nod before she ran off back towards her house, the flyer tucked in the waist line of her trousers. She was careful not to trip, running as fast as she could in case those boys came back. It only took a few minutes until Bella reached her own yard, and ran around the side of the house to the back yard where a bunch of her toys were. Her dark eyes scoured the lawn until they came to rest on a bright red wagon, and she smiled brightly, racing over to grab it and started wheeling it back to the sidewalk.
Her clothes were soaking wet, dripping, as she ran all the way back down to the end of the road again, not quite as fast this time. The wagon was a lot heavier than it looked, her father made it seem so easy when he pulled her around in it. Still, she went as fast as she could, and eventually returned, spotting a little form on the side of the road. She stopped right behind Mary Alice, huffing and puffing, her cheeks bright red as she went to catch her breath.
Mary Alice's eyes widened as she looked at the fancy wagon with the white letters on the side. Her electric blue eyes slowly traveled over to this strange older girl that was helping her for no reason at all, and she bit her lip. Why was she helping her? Why was she being so nice? Did she want something?
Bella straightened back out, taking one last deep breath, and smiled. "Okay, I just need to put this flyer in Mrs. Cunningham's mail box." She said, trotting off to the right yard and shoved the flyer into the little blue box at the end of the driveway. She turned back and returned to Mary Alice, crouching back down. "I'll help you onto the wagon and then pull you, that way you don't have to walk."
She was rather proud of her plan.
The younger girl looked back to the wagon, then to her bleeding knee, and finally to those big brown eyes that were starting to make her feel better. She slowly smiled. "Okay."
The brunette grinned and grabbed those hands again, carefully helping Mary Alice back up, and held most of her weight as the little girl lowered herself onto the wagon. Bella stuck her tongue out the corner of her mouth, concentrating on being gentle as she lifted Mary Alice's hurt leg, and turned the girl to rest her legs along the inside of the wagon.
"Hold on tight or you'll topple off the back," She warned. Her mind flashed back to the first time Charlie pulled her in the wagon, and the big goose egg she had on the back of her head for the rest of the day. It was not a fun time. "Ready?"
Mary Alice nodded eagerly, wanting to get out of this rain. Her fingers were starting to get numb. "Yes!"
With a huff, Bella pulled and silently thanked Mary Alice for being so light as she turned around, dragging the wagon behind her as she went. She made sure not to go too fast; she didn't want to hit a crack or edge and tip the wagon, nor did she want to jostle the girl's hurt knee, but a slightly faster pace because she was starting to shiver uncontrollably. She would look over her shoulder and make sure Mary Alice was doing all right every now and then, smiling reassuringly when she caught a blue gaze.
The fourth and final time she went down the road, all the way back to her house again, was definitely the longest. She was tired, she was cold, she was soaking, and her hand was starting to hurt her. Still, Bella closed her eyes tight, visualized her nice, warm house, and soldiered on, making sure to never let her grip slip from the wagon handle. By the time they finally reached her yard, she was exhausted, letting the wagon handle drop on the first step of the porch.
"This is your house?" Mary Alice asked as she looked up at the building. She never knew that this girl lived on her street, before, though she just started walking to school.
Bella nodded, looking up at her home. "Yup!" She turned and helped Alice back out of the wagon, her brows furrowing again as she glanced at the steps of her porch. "Is your knee feeling better? Can you take the stairs?"
Mary Alice took a test step, nodding hesitantly. "I think so, yes."
Just to be careful, Bella wrapped her arm around the tiny girl's waist as they approached the steps. "Hold onto me in case you fall."
The two climbed up the steps of the porch, through the front door, and dripped their way to the washroom in the back of the house. Bella sat Mary Alice down on the toilet seat and told her to wait there for a second while she dashed off into the house. Mary Alice curiously looked around the small room, the mirror, the hair brush on the counter with long, brown hair in it, and smiled to herself. It was nice, even just the washroom.
When Bella returned with a few towels, she peeled her coat off of Alice and replaced it with a fluffy towel, wrapping one around herself and patted it down until she stopped dripping. "There, that's better already." She said with a smile.
"What's your name?" Mary Alice asked, shivering in her own towel. She watched the brunette pull a step-stool over in front of the counter, and open up the mirror.
Bella bit her lip, trying to read the long names of the bottles inside the mirror. She had fallen and tripped and cut herself enough times to know that the wound needed to be clean. Her eyes lit up when she spotted the familiar bottle, and reached on her very tip toes for it. "Isabella Swan," she replied. "But you can call me Bella." She pulled the bottle down with a triumphant noise. "What's yours?"
"Mary Alice Brandon," was the immediate response. "But you can call me Alice," she smiled.
Grabbing the bag of cotton balls, Bella hummed her acknowledgment, kneeling back down in front of Alice. "Okay. This is going to hurt some, Alice. I'm sorry." She said as she tipped the bottle over with the cotton ball on the opening. She set it down, looking up at Alice's bright blue eyes.
The little girl quickly grabbed Bella's free hand. "Okay," she whispered, squeezing her eyes shut tight and bracing herself. She hissed at the pain in her knee, jumping slightly, but tried to be still. "Is it over?" She asked after a minute, once Bella had finished.
"Yes," Bella chirped, throwing out the cotton ball and placing everything up on the counter. She grabbed her own make-shift tourniquet and tied it around Alice's knee, wrapping herself up in her towel and sat back against the bathroom wall to wait while they both dried off. She stared at Alice's black locks of hair that were starting to curl at the end, then her little button nose, and up to big blue eyes that were watching her curiously. She blushed and looked away quickly, causing Alice to giggle. "Why were those boys picking on you?"
Alice sobered up, looking down at her feet. She pulled the towel around her tighter, suddenly feeling cold again. "I don't know."
"It's not nice. It's wrong and they should stop," she huffed, glaring at the door to the washroom. Alice was so tiny! How was she supposed to fight them off?
The younger girl shrugged. "Kids always bully me."
"Then I will protect you," Bella replied determinedly. She caught Alice's skeptical look and the sadness in her eyes, a look she had never seen before, and fiercely stuck out her pinky finger. "I promise, Alice."
Blue eyes blinked a few times and Alice studied the face in front of her. Her dark eyes screamed sincerity and Alice found herself opening up a little bit, something in her telling her to take the chance. She curled her own, smaller pinky finger around Bella's, smiling brilliantly as she nodded.
"I trust you."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~'Give unto me your troubles~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~I'll endure your suffering~
~Place onto me your burden~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~I'll drink your deadly poison.'~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Biloxi, Mississippi. 1906
The front door of the Swans' house swung open and closed quickly, the sound of small feet padding down the hallway and another lighter door swinging open as well.
Charlie looked up from his paper in the living room, glancing at his watch and smiled. School was finished for the day. He set the paper down and stood from the couch, stretching his long limbs and meandered down to his daughter's room.
He knocked once before opening the door, seeing his daughter already changed out of her nice school clothes and into trousers, suspenders, and a shirt again. "Afternoon, Bella," he greeted warmly.
She looked up at her dad, smiling brightly. "Hi, daddy."
Charlie watching his daughter put her books and clothes away, scurrying around the room with endless amounts of energy. He chuckled, following her to the kitchen where she grabbed two cookies from the plate on the counter, jumping back down from the chair and headed back to the front door. "Off to see Alice?" He asked, already knowing the answer.
"Yup!" She smiled as she tied up her shoes, careful to balance the cookies on her knee. "We'll be back soon, for supper."
He nodded, sliding his hands into his pockets. "You be sure to ask Mrs. Brandon first this time."
"I will," Bella mumbled, ducking her face.
Charlie grinned, grabbing the newsboy cap from the closet. He placed it on her head, to block the sun, but mostly because he found it adorable to see her in his old hat. "Be sure to have fun too, kiddo."
She brightened up. "We will!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~'Give unto me your troubles~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~I'll endure your suffering~
~Place onto me your burden~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~I'll drink your deadly poison.'~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Biloxi, Mississippi. 1907
"This is unacceptable, young lady."
Renee paced her daughter's bedroom, Bella curled up on her bed, staring at her mother with wide eyes. It wasn't often that she got yelled at, or in trouble for that matter. The woman huffed, running her hands through her hair as she walked back and forth, back and forth. "What makes you think you can just go around punching people, Isabella? We use our words, not violence. You're a girl, you don't hit people. I don't understand."
The brunette watched her mother continue to rant on about proper behaviour for little girls such as herself. She nervously played with the blankets on her bed, nodding every now and then when her mother stopped to look at her.
She wasn't a fan of this whole scolding thing.
Not at all.
"Stacey Jones is walking around with a black eye now, Isabella. And people have actually started talking about 'Bella's Right Hook', like it's a-a thing. Like it's your thing. Absolutely unacceptable," Renee fumed. She whirled on her daughter, staring at her with hard eyes so she knew this was big trouble. "We don't hit, Bella. Why are you hitting?"
Little shoulders rose and fell. "They're mean to Alice." She said matter-of-factly, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. Like it made sense, made it acceptable.
"Then Alice can talk to her parents, or to me, and I will speak with these children's parents. Alright?" Renee was a little less angry now, knowing Alice was being picked on. It didn't make it right, but…maybe it made it less wrong.
"Okay," Bella nodded with a smile.
Her mother sighed in relief. "Okay," she agreed. "No more hitting."
The smile slipped from Bella's face. "Unless they're mean again."
"Bella-"
"I'll stop hurting them if they stop hurting Alice." Bella said firmly.
She looked so serious, so mature in that second, it left Renee speechless. She could do nothing but nod and silently curse Charlie for teaching Bella how to properly punch in the first place.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~'Give unto me your troubles~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~I'll endure your suffering~
~Place onto me your burden~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~I'll drink your deadly poison.'~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Biloxi, Mississippi. 1907
Alice didn't like the night.
She didn't like how it got dark and scary out, didn't like how even the shadows had shadows, or that every little sound turned into a monster clawing at the window or a ghoul whispering in the corner. She didn't like that things which shouldn't move, would move, or her eyes tricking her into believing things she knew couldn't be.
Mostly, she didn't like sleeping, though. Alice was cursed with nightmares every time she drifted from reality and into the realm of dreams, without fail every night. They were so vivid, so real, and such…grown up dreams, that they often seemed real and were hard to argue against.
Men breaking into houses, murder, earthquakes that levelled cities, tornados tearing others apart, just horrifying events that no little child should be forced to witness.
That night was their very first sleepover, the first of many to come. They had played together all day, running around outside, climbing around their tree fort, and then came in for dinner. They ate and laughed, then went to Bella's room to play some more, all until it was time for bed. Everything had been going great, going fine, and both girls were having an awesome time with each other, as usual.
The second Renee mentioned bed, Alice froze up. She smiled on, but dragged her feet while she got ready, managing to get Bella to fool around with her some more, much to the annoyance of her parents. Finally Charlie managed to herd them into the bedroom, tucked them both in, and closed the door behind him as he left.
Alice shuddered as the darkness engulfed the two, pulling the covers up under her chin. She blinked furiously, willing her eyes to adjust until she could see shapes at least, her body stiff as a board.
She really, really, hated the dark.
"Bella," she whispered quietly into the silence.
The brunette's voice came back just as low, just as quiet. "Yes?"
"Are you afraid of the dark?" Alice asked, staring out the window she was facing. Anything could come in through there. Anything. It was just one thin little window, it didn't even have a lock. Why wouldn't they build a lock on it? Why wouldn't Charlie get one installed? His daughter slept in here every night, susceptible to whatever could come crawling through there.
Why?
Bella turned onto her side, facing Alice's back, and stared at those dark braids. Alice always had really long hair. "It's scary and frightening. I don't like it or the way it changes things." She paused. "But… it's still there, even if I don't like it, so I deal with it. I don't have much of a choice."
The younger girl nodded, gulping at the shadows reaching out from the darkness. "Yeah, I guess so…"
Shortly after that, Bella fell asleep. She slept soundly, dreaming of electric blue eyes and twinkling smiles.
Her bed partner wasn't as lucky, however. Alice was awake for a long while after that, fighting off fatigue so she could watched the window and make sure no one snuck in. She blinked away sleep, and every time she started to drift, she'd shake her head.
It was hard to fight sleep, though.
Eventually, it always wins.
As it had that night.
Whimpers and the sound of someone thrashing around, filled the room. Gasps and quiet crying, not loud enough to wake Charlie and Renee, but loud enough to stir Bella from her sleep.
She groggily blinked her eyes, lifting up onto her elbow to look around. She yawned and reached up, rubbing her tired brown eyes, and looked down at Alice, frowning as she did so. Her little friend's head whipped to the side, her eyes squeezed shut tightly, her fists clenched. Quiet whimpers escaped her lips every few moments, and she turned back onto her side. Her breathing was short and shaky, and Bella could see her pulse beating wildly in her neck.
More than a little alarmed, Bella began shaking Alice. "Hey…Alice…Alice! Wake up…hey!"
"Nuh," Alice gasped, springing up in the bed and almost knocking her forehead against Bella's. Her wide, terrified eyes flickered around the room, her arms flailing out, and Bella had to hug the girl tightly to her so she wouldn't fall right out of the bed. She shushed her, holding her firmly until she calmed down, breathing deeply. "I'm sorry, Bella."
"What's wrong, Alice? Did you have a nightmare?" Bella asked, concern seeping from her voice. Alice nodded weakly. "It…It was just a dream, Alice. Don't worry. I'm here. It's okay."
Alice nodded again, rubbing her eyes and the tears she could feel forming. "I know. I'm sorry."
"You apologize too much, Ali," Bella laughed quietly. "Come on, lay back down." The girl wouldn't budge. "Alice?"
She fiddled with the blanket, looking back up to the window. "I can't sleep again. I…the window, Bella. Someone could come in through it. I see it all the time. People always come in through the window. They wait until everyone is sleeping, so no one sees them, so they're not prepared. They strike them in their sleep, Bella."
The brunette looked to the window, the window that wouldn't open even when Charlie tried, and then back to Alice. She could see the bags under her friend's eyes, how tired she was, and then back to the window. "You need to sleep, Alice. It's not good if you don't."
"I can't-"
"I'll keep watch," Bella cut in. Alice looked over at her curiously. "I'll watch the window and make sure no one comes in through it. If they do, I'll be awake, and I'll scream for Charlie."
Alice watched the older girl crawl over to the side of the bed and hop off, searching for something in the darkness of her room. "But…Bella, you need to sleep, too! You can't watch all night, that's not fair."
She waved Alice's concerns off, slipping out of her bedroom door. Alice barely had time to smother her frightened yelp and was pulling back the blankets to run after her friend, when Bella returned with something long in her hands. "Don't worry, Alice. I'll keep first watch, and then you can get the next one. That way we both can sleep."
The younger girl slowly settled back into the bed apprehensively. It was a good solution, as long as Bella did wake her up. "Okay…you better wake me up though, Bella. I mean it, it's not fair otherwise."
Bella nodded again, already sitting down on the ground beneath Alice's side of the bed, the window on the wall across the room in front of her. "Yeah, yeah. Now relax and sleep, Ali. I have this."
Alice closed her eyes, feeling better this time, and soon drifted off to sleep again.
The brunette sighed deeply, shaking off her sleepiness, and looked back up out the window. She spent the night going over everything she had learned in class the day before, struggling to stay awake as the hours ticked by.
When the sun rose the next day, its light spilled in through the window and bathed the room in its warmth and glow. Alice was nestled in the blankets, her little head and dark hair peeking out the top as she quietly snoozed.
Sitting on the floor, leaning back against the bed beneath her was Bella, still perched there 'on duty'. Her knees were up under her chin, Renee's broom laying across them, clenched in her hands tightly. Her forehead rested against the broom, her chocolate locks cascading down over her shoulders, her eyes closed and breathing deeply as she lightly slept.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~'Give unto me your troubles~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~I'll endure your suffering~
~Place onto me your burden~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~I'll drink your deadly poison.'~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Biloxi, Mississippi. 1910
People across Biloxi were buzzing with excitement the year that the carnival came to town.
Everyone, it seemed, but Bella.
It was exceptionally warm that day, the sun shining high in the sky, peeking out through the grey clouds. The brunette had spent the day turning down various kids -mostly boys- inviting her to go to the carnival with them, or their group of friends, she had just barely passed her math test, and had skinned her knee -ripping her new trousers in the process- at lunch. Bella was hot, injured, impatient, and overall irritable.
The girl was ready to let loose her infamous right hook at the next person who so much as blinked at her.
As the fates would have it, however, the next person she came across did much more than just blink at her. Her tiny friend came skipping down the sidewalk towards her, smile beaming, crystal clear blue eyes full to the brim with more of that excitement and happiness, her dress swinging as she went. Like clockwork, the crease in Bella's forehead smoothed out, a small smile pulling at her own lips while her chocolate eyes softened.
"Bella," Alice sang in her high voice. She reached her friend and wrapped her arms around the grumpy brunette. Alice hadn't missed the scowl before Bella had noticed her, and wondered what had the girl upset. "What happened here?" She asked, pulling back to look down at the tear in her trousers.
Scowling lightly again, Bella crossed her arms over her chest. "I tripped," she muttered.
"On?"
"…My own feet."
"Oh, Bella," Alice laughed, shaking her head as she erupted in a fit of giggles.
She got a deeper scowl in return. "Alice," Bella whined. "Stop laughing at me. It's not nice."
The dark haired girl latched onto one of Bella's suspenders as she rolled her eyes, the two continuing down the sidewalk to Bella's house. "I'm sorry," She wasn't really, but then again, Bella really wasn't upset. "So… you know what's happening this evening, right?"
"If you ask me to go to the carnival, I'm going to trip you." Bella's reply was instant as she glanced down beside her suspiciously. The look she got in return had her whipping her head away and squeezing her eyes shut tight. "Don't pout," she gasped, trying to quickly erase it from her mind before her resolve shattered.
"Bella…"
It was too late. Wide, watery, blue eyes were burned on the backs of her eyelids. She furiously shook her head, her eyes still closed.
"Pleeeease?"
The sheer power one little face could have over someone was astonishing, it blew her mind and left her reeling. Renee had been susceptible to it, even Charlie couldn't resist. How on earth was Bella supposed to?
"For me?"
She wasn't, that's how. Bella always gave in, always broke down, and always ended up agreeing with Alice. She had no resolve when it came to the girl's whims, and both of them knew it.
"Fine," she growled, huffing and grumbling the entire way back to her house.
The crowd gasped, they ooh'ed and ah'ed, laughed and cheered, applauding the show of fireworks in the dark sky. Families gathered in the park, sat on their blankets spread out in the grass, leaning back to stare up at the sky.
The Swans were perched underneath one of the grand trees, watching the fireworks off in the distance with fascinated faces. Charlie had wrapped an enormous blanket around himself and Renee, while Bella sat between the two, her head resting on her father's shoulder. Sitting in her lap was Alice, a smaller quilt over their legs, a stuffed animal tucked in her arms as she pointed to all the different colours, adamant on not letting her second-family miss a single explosion of lights.
The stuffed animal had been a prize that the mayor was offering, up on the small stage in the middle of the park. He had held a small little 'History Quiz' of the town's past, and the child who answered the most questions correctly, won the prize.
Renee managed to talk Bella into taking the quiz with the other kids up there, knowing that it was one of Bella's strong subjects. The girl couldn't exactly argue, not after getting a lecture about her math test and studying more.
Immediately after winning, she presented the prize to Alice, knowing how much her friend adored bunnies. This one especially, with matching blue eyes, snow white fur, and a big blue bow tie.
Bella didn't have much use for more toys anyways. She'd rather trade it for the giant smile Alice had given her afterwards.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~'Give unto me your troubles~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~I'll endure your suffering~
~Place onto me your burden~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~I'll drink your deadly poison.'~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Biloxi, Mississippi. 1912
Something had changed over the summer, something was different.
Alice knew things. She noticed things. Things no one else could see, or maybe would see; she had a very open mind to all things, to everything.
There was something different about Bella. She had changed. Alice could see it.
The boys started talking to her more, paying more attention to her. They were less offended every time she told them to bugger off and leave her and Alice alone, they would smile and laugh, and then come find them again later. Like it was a game.
As much as she ignored the boys, she started spending time with the other girls. She wouldn't spend less time with Alice, per say, but when the two would come across others, Bella would grin. She'd grin that smirk, that smile the boys gave her. She'd joke and laugh and tease the other girls in a way Alice hadn't ever seen before. Sometimes the girls would get upset, tell Bella she was being gross, sometimes they'd laugh and giggle. Sometimes they'd blush.
Alice asked Bella about it once.
All she got in return was a strange look, mutterings about how she would know when she was older. Impatient looks and grumbles under the breath, "Wish you were older."
The younger girl spent her nights wishing she were older too, if it meant getting Bella to pay more attention to her than the other girls.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~'Give unto me your troubles~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~I'll endure your suffering~
~Place onto me your burden~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~I'll drink your deadly poison.'~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Biloxi, Mississippi. 1913
"Why are you reading on such a beautiful day like today, Isabella?"
The brunette tuned out her mother's voice, her eyes scanning the words of her page. It was just at the good part, the climax, when everything that had built up to that point exploded, and her mother had to go and rip her out of the world of ink and pages. She didn't know why she was reading then either, with the two most interruptive people in the world. They were lucky she loved them as fiercely as she did...
She sighed, tucking a small piece of ribbon into her pages and set the book down on her lap gingerly. Big brown eyes flickered up, taking in her mother and her best friend dancing in the sprinkler's water raining down in her backyard. A soft smile pulled at her lips, Alice's dark braids bouncing as she danced around and through the water, giggling and sounding like wind chimes. Her bright blue eyes met Bella's and the brunette blushed, quickly looking away.
"You know very well that I burn too easily, mamma," she chided. Hesitantly, she stuck her pale hand out into the sun's light, away from her shadowy haven beneath the large tree she was leaning back against.
Renee shook her head, laughing. "You're a creature right out of one of your own books, child. Afraid of the sunlight."
"I think pale skin suits her," Alice giggled, flicking her second-mother with water droplets.
Hiding her pink face behind her book as two sets of eyes crinkled with mirth, Bella shrugged her shoulders. "Thank you."
Renee plopped down in the shade beside her daughter, taking a moment to rest and catch her breath. "The boys certainly think so, don't they," she commented, looking over at her daughter.
And just like that, Bella was up and in the sun, running away from anything her mother had to say about boys. Her tiny friend laughed at her, playfully nudging her shoulder and flicking more water around.
With a wolfish grin, Bella wrapped her arms around the tiny girl, cackling at the surprised look in those blue eyes. "No, Bella! No," Alice screamed out in a laugh as the brunette held her above the sprinkler, officially soaking both of them.
"Laugh at me, will you?" Bella chuckled, squirming to hold the girl as she tried to get away.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~'Give unto me your troubles~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~I'll endure your suffering~
~Place onto me your burden~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~I'll drink your deadly poison.'~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Biloxi, Mississippi. 1914
"You're lying to me."
Alice guffawed, her snort half amused and half indignant. "Let me get this straight," she began, leaning up on her elbow to look down at her older friend. She hesitated, trapped in those big brown eyes again as the familiar breathless sensation took over again. It had been happening more and more lately, she wasn't sure what it was, but she was…fairly certain that she liked it. "Because you can't see it, that means I am lying, and it isn't real."
"Seeing is believing, Alice," Bella chimed with a wicked grin. Her eyes traced over Alice's soft features, her little smirk that was slowly slipping into a pout, her pale skin that almost made her glow in the moonlight. She pulled her eyes back up to Alice's lighter ones. "And if I can't see it, then I don't believe it."
Sitting up out of the grass, Alice looked away, raising her chin and crossing her arms over her chest. "You mean you don't believe me." She said with a huff. "Even though you know that I will never-"
"-never lie to me," Bella finished with her, sitting up as well. "I know, I know, I was joking." She said with a laugh on her lips. She watched as Alice looked at her over her shoulder, raising a brow. She knew that look. She got that look a lot. Especially as Alice got older. The look that said 'so you're trying to annoy me'. Granted, she preferred the term 'tease' because that word was just so much friendlier.
The younger girl flicked her hair, sighing to herself. "You need better jokes, Bella."
"You wound me!" Bella gasped, pressing the back of her hand to her forehead in a dramatic fashion, the other clutching her chest.
Alice fought off her smile.
"You're mad at me now?" The brunette asked. She got silence in return. "Me and my bad jokes? Bad joke, you are a very bad joke. You've upset Alice now, how do you feel. Look at this face, what has this pretty face ever done to you? You should be ashamed of yourself, joke. Ashamed-"
"Okay! Okay, I forgive you and your joke. Just stop…scolding it." Alice said, eyeing her odd friend with a giggle.
The hopeful, lopsided grin the brunette flashed at her reminded Alice of a puppy, and she cooed, lying back down in the grass and resting her head on Bella's lap. Bella hummed, looking back up at the stars, giving one final shot at spotting the bear Alice insisted she could see. "Are you excited for school tomorrow? Been a while since we've been in the same building."
Alice grabbed one of Bella's hands, playing with it as she avoided eye contact. "I guess."
"You guess? Since when has Alice not been excited about everything?"
The girl shrugged, mumbling under her breath.
Bella raised a slightly amused eyebrow, leaning down and tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. "I'm sorry, what was that?"
With a great sigh, Alice finally met her friend's gaze. "I said I'm…I'm scared."
All traces of humour left Bella's face, replaced with concern and seriousness. "Why? What's wrong? Have people been giving you a hard time again?" Her fist unconsciously clenched.
Alice rolled her eyes and scoffed at the protectiveness that always filled her with warmth and affection. She gently opened the fist again, massaging Bella's hand idly. "No, well…no. I'm fine with kids my age, they're used to me. And younger kids, well, they're always intimidated by the older ones, so I don't care about them either. But…but you guys, you're older and I'll be fresh meat."
"…Fresh…meat? Who is telling you this, Alice?" Bella's tone was angry now, angry with whoever scared Alice like this.
The younger girl was quick to calm her friend. "No one, Bella! No one. I swear. I'm just scared, is all. It's happened before; I've been bullied, a lot. You know that. So I'm just scared it'll happen again."
Bella took a deep breath, calming herself down as Alice stared at her lap. She reached out, lifting Alice's chin until their eyes met. "Then I will protect you again," she promised, holding out her pinky finger.
The corner of Alice's mouth curved up into a smirk and she curled her finger around Bella's.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~'Give unto me your troubles~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~I'll endure your suffering~
~Place onto me your burden~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~I'll drink your deadly poison.'~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Biloxi, Mississippi. 1915
"Bella,"
The brunette sighed, perched in her window seat. It was raining again that day, the raindrops pelting against the window, the vibrations in the palm. Everything was so similar to the day she met Alice, right down to the suspenders.
"Bella."
However, this time she wasn't a naive little girl. She was not living in a living thing.
"Bella!"
Her house did not need a name.
"Honestly, that girl's head is always in the clouds."
But she probably would be seeing Alice again later.
"If you don't answer me right this minute, young lady…"
A dreamy grin pulled at Bella's lips, her eyes fluttering shut so her mind could fill with electric blue eyes. The rain pelting against the window turned into chiming giggles, the empty space next to her filling with a warmth only Alice ever had. Bella hummed, feeling her heart pounding in her chest, the adrenaline running through her body until she felt dizzy with it.
"Bella!"
Pulled from her thoughts, Bella eagerly turned around with wide, hopeful eyes. "Alice?"
She was met with the irritated glare of her mother. "No, Bella. Not Alice; mom."
"Oh! Sorry, mamma. What can I do for you?" Bella hopped up from her window seat with a wide grin, hands shoved into her pockets.
Renee rolled her eyes. "You could pay more attention to the world and less to Alice, for starters."
The brunette ducked her head, smiling sheepishly. "I'll try, momma."
They both know it wouldn't work, though.
"Have you finished your chores?" Renee asked. Bella nodded. "And your homework?" Again, Bella nodded. "Is Alice staying for dinner tonight?"
"Um," Bella pursed her lips. "Probably?" She said with a shrug. "Is she here?"
Renee nodded, watching her daughter's face light up and smiled softly. "Yes, she's on the tire swing in the front yard."
Bella's brows furrowed as she looked back outside. "In the rain?"
Again, Renee nodded, looking less happy. "I couldn't see very well through the rain, but I think she's upset-"
"What!" Renee didn't have time to blink before her daughter was scrambling over the furniture and to the front door, whipping it open and racing out into the rain. Bella hesitated on the porch, her eyes searching her yard as if it were the first time she'd ever seen it before. It was taking entirely too long to locate the one tree in the front, but when she did, she was across the yard in seconds. Alice was on her feet a moment later, wrapping her sopping wet arms around Bella tightly and burying her face in the taller girl's shoulder as she cried. "What happened?"
The two stood there in the rain getting drenched while Alice cried, Bella holding her tightly and swaying back and forth while she waited patiently for Alice to calm down enough to speak. Finally when Alice began shivering, Bella managed to get them into the house where Renee found towels to wrap around them, standing across the room looking concerned while the two waited for Alice to gather herself.
"I w-wouldn't kiss him," she whispered, wiping her eyes.
Bella ignored the bitterness in her stomach at the mental image that sentence created.
Alice coughed, looking up at them with red, puffy eyes. "We were having a good time, like always. He took me to get a soda drink, we talked and went down to the park." Bella grimaced, furiously trying to shake the thoughts of Alice and John holding hands and walking through the park. "It was fun; we laughed, he told me jokes and pushed me on the swing. Everything was great until we parted ways."
Everything was great. Everything. Great. He was great. The brunette clenched her jaw, focusing back on Alice.
"He leaned in and I leaned back away." She said, sniffling. "I a-apologized when I saw how hurt he looked, but it didn't feel right. I told him. I d-didn't want to kiss him. It just wasn't…right." Blue eyes quickly flickered up to Bella and away again, unnoticed. "He got mad when I kept saying no and refused to kiss him. He threw his empty soda bottle at the slide and it smashed. I got scared and yelled at him, told him to go home."
Bella leaned forward, her eyes scanning over every inch of Alice she could see, looking for cuts or bruises.
The younger girl rolled her eyes at the obvious look. "He didn't hurt me, Bella. Not physically. He just yelled, really loud, started calling me names, saying I was his only chance at a family, a future, and I just ruined it. No one would ever be w-with a freak like me, and that he didn't ever want to see me again."
Renee sighed, sitting down on the couch on Alice's other side. "Oh, honey. I'm sorry. Boys can be mean sometimes, but I'm sure he didn't mean it. He was just hurt. His pride was damaged so he lashed out."
"You're defending him?" Bella asked, incredulous.
Her mother quickly shook her head. "No, of course not, but I'm just saying that boys require more patience and you should go talk to him-"
"I will," Bella growled, getting to her feet.
Renee's eyes narrowed. "Now, Bella, this isn't any-"
"Keep her company till I get back." Bella leaned down and wrapped her towel around Alice, smiling cheekily. "I'll be back soon, Ali."
The younger girl levelled a look at her friend, shaking her head. "Bella, you can't keep fighting all my battles for me."
The brunette raised her hands up as she backed away to the front door. "I'm not! I don't! Just this one! Bye-bye!"
Renee and Alice sat in the silent aftermath of what had just transpired, staring at the front door. The woman sighed, leaning back into the couch and Alice followed her action. "You know, if you sat down and really asked Bella to stop fighting, she would," the woman half grumbled.
"I know," Alice chimed with a small smile. Renee raised an eyebrow, looking at the younger girl curiously. "It makes me feel good, though. Not the other kids being in pain or anything!" Her eyes were so wide as she quickly explained. "But she's like the chivalrous knight from the books you used to read to us. None of the boys around here will fight for anyone's honour, but Bella does for me. It's nice."
The older woman contemplated Alice's words as she studied the little girl sitting beside her. After a moment, a soft, warm smile pulled at her lips, and she tugged the soaking, shivering thing closer to her. "She gets it from Charlie."
Bella raced back down her porch and to the sidewalk at the end of her yard, veering to the right. John only lived three houses down from her, but it was enough time to officially soak her to the bones again. She was positively dripped as she knocked on his door, placing a big, friendly smile on her face.
Mrs. Armstrong opened the door, greeting her with a curious smile. "Oh, Bella! How lovely to see you, dear. My, but it is pouring out there, isn't it? How can I help you?"
Bella smiled wider, hearing heavy footsteps walking down a hall and closer towards them. "I'm here to see John, ma'am."
Mrs. Armstrong turned towards the hallway just as John stepped around the corner. "Johnny, look who's here to see you."
The boy looked up curiously, his face blank as he met Bella's eyes. He tilted his head to the side, movement catching his eye, and he looked down to see the girl's right hand clench into a fist. Realization hit him like a ton of bricks and a horrified look took purchase on his face. "Mom! No! Don't let her in!"
The brunette jerked forwards and into the house, hot on John's heels as he raced back down the hallway. Mrs. Armstrong was utterly confused and slightly worried as she heard a high pitched scream come from her son's room, somehow knowing it wasn't from Bella.
There were snickers and whispers all around the school the next day.
Uncharacteristically timid, John approached Alice and Bella at lunch, his face ducked and hidden in the shadow cast from his hat. He apologized to Alice, saying how wrong it was for him to have raised his voice at her and to have said such rude and untrue things.
Before he turned to leave, he pulled off his hat to run a hand through his sweaty hair, and everyone got a good look at the big black shiner he had. Bella watched him go, massaging her throbbing knuckles on her right hand.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~'Give unto me your troubles~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~I'll endure your suffering~
~Place onto me your burden~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~I'll drink your deadly poison.'~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Volterra, Italy. 1916
"I'm going to return as a giant lobster, mamma," Bella complained as the two walked through the incredibly sunny city. She glanced down at her pale skin that was slowly turning pink, and huffed, trudging along behind her mother who was nearly skipping down the street, looking and this and that and gushing about everything as they went.
Renee waved off her daughter's grumpiness. "You're not going to burn that bad, Isabella. Would you at least try to have fun? This is the last trip we get to have together. You're going to be moving out and getting married and starting a family of your own soon."
The pale teenager grumbled to herself, crossing her arms over her chest and trotted to catch up to her mother. All the women on the streets in their fancy red dresses and big hats, and painted up faces were giving her odd looks, like they had never seen a female in trousers before. "I wouldn't worry too much on that, momma," Bella muttered under her breath. "I wonder what Alice is up to right now? Should I go find something for her? Would she want a fancy dress? Or something else? Jewellery?"
"Honey," Renee laughed, turning to shake her head at her daughter. She grabbed a pale hand and began pulling the younger girl along to a group of people crowding around a tour line. "I know you love Alice, but if you don't get her off your mind then you're not going to enjoy this trip. You're not going to see half of the beautiful things in this city. Like the people - look at that woman!"
Apparently her mother was right about not seeing things, because all she could see was her front yard before they left for the trip, letting her mother pull her along with the group of people touring some sort of castle.
"Where's my hat trunk? Charlie? Charlie! Have you seen my hat trunk?"
Bella's father sighed deeply, rolling his eyes as he stepped back from the car parked in front of the house. "I just finished packing it, dear," he hollered back, winking at the two girls sitting in the front yard. "Ya all packed, Bells?"
"Yes, sir." The brunette nodded, looking to her one bag she and Alice were sitting on.
Her father grunted, heading back inside to help his wife finish getting ready, leaving the two girls to themselves. Bella looked up at the greyish sky, letting the silence fill her up. Alice was unusually quiet. Long, pale fingers began to idly tap out a tune on a trouser clad knee, and Bella finally grunted herself, looking over to Alice with a smile. "I'm gonna miss you."
"I have a bad feeling about this, Bella." Alice's voice was slightly panicked, repressed, as she quickly shot the words off at her friend. She watched confusion enter those big brown eyes and reached out to take Bella's hand. "I…I just have this horrible feeling, I don't know why, but it won't go away. I don't think this is a good idea, Bella. Please stay."
The brunette paused, staring intently at her smaller friend and the clear fright in her eyes. She slowly shook her head, her face full of regret. "I would, Alice, you know I would. But I promised my mom." Everyone knew the girl was as good as her word; she never said something she didn't mean and she never promised something she couldn't keep. "We'll be careful though. We won't split up, won't go out after dark, if that makes you feel better." She said hopefully.
Alice's gut churned. This was bad. This was very, very bad. Something was wrong, but she couldn't put her finger on it. "Something bad is going to happen. I'm scared, Bella." She whispered, closing her eyes and resting her forehead against the taller girl's shoulder.
Frowning, Bella looked up to the car, to her house, and then back to Alice. "I'll be okay, Alice." She shifted, lifting her hand and extending her pinky finger. "Hey, look….remember?"
The younger girl blinked away the sting of tears, slowly nodding. She curled her finger around Bella's, looking up into her warm face. "You come back to me."
"Always," Bella promised.
She couldn't help it. It was reflex. Subconscious. Her eyes flickered down to Alice's lips, her tongue peeking out to wet her own trembling ones nervously. And was it just her, or was Alice suddenly a lot closer? Were those electric blue eyes suddenly darker? Her eyes fluttered closed, feeling the shorter girl's breath fan out across her lips, right before soft petals brushed against hers-
"Is this the last bag, Renee? You're not going to be able to fit in the car after this!" Charlie came stalking out of the house, holding yet another bag in his arms.
The girls jerked backwards with wide eyes, looking up at the grumbling man loading the car up. With flushed cheeks, Bella got to her feet, holding out her hand for Alice. "I suppose I should get my bag in there too before there's no room for me either."
"This, ladies and gentlemen, is the throne room where the Volturi leaders ruled over their peons."
Bella was yanked from her memory, looking around in surprise. They were in a large room made of stone and marble, looking utterly old and utterly beautiful. Past her group of tourists, she could see Four thrones on a raised platform, as the woman implied, and was shocked to see people actually sitting in them.
Incredibly beautiful people.
Impossibly beautiful.
Inhumanly beautiful.
Her gut twisted, Alice's worries ringing in her ears. With her heart in her throat, Bella spun around to face her mother who was simply fascinated by everything. "Momma, we gotta go." She said quietly.
Even so, she could see men in brown cloaks standing by the door turn to look at them. She caught a flash of red underneath one of their hoods and her heart hammered harder.
"Right now, momma. We need to leave." She said, grabbing her mother's hand and began walking back to the doors she was sure they came through.
The enormous wooden doors swung closed with an echoing bang, freezing her and Renee to the spot. One of the men in the cloaks stood in front of the doors, crossing his arms over his broad chest. "Stay with the group." His voice was smooth, like velvet, flawless.
Bella saw her mother's shoulders relax, such a beautiful voice lulling her into a false sense of safety.
"We have to use the washroom," Bella insisted.
A flash of blonde blurred in front of the two women, earning gasps from multiple people in the room. The tour guide tilted her head to the side, smirking. "Do you? But we were just about to have lunch, it would be rude to leave in such a hurry."
Before either of them could blink, the blonde woman was on Bella, tackling her to the marble floor. The brunette's head smacked against the ground, pain shattering through her mind in white noise.
"Noooo!"
Alice jerked forward in her bed, screaming at the top of her lungs, with red, bloodshot eyes. "No! No, no, no, no! No," Her voice was animalistic, like a wolf howling in pain as she screamed and screamed and screamed, waking the entire street.
Her mother and her sister, Cynthia, desperately tried to calm her down while her father apologized to anyone who came over and phoned Chief Swan. All through the night, the gut-wrenching, heart-piercing screaming never ceased as Alice sobbed into her blankets.
When the sun rose and the screaming still didn't stop, Mr. Brandon had the men with the white coats come down to the house. They gave Alice a needle that eventually put her to sleep, and the conniving man's head filled with plans and ideas. Mr. Brandon took his daughter down to the Hospital of Higher Living and told the doctors about his daughter's alleged 'visions of the future', insisting that his 'princess' needed help desperately.
There was very little Charlie Swan could do to help, no matter how hard he tried, especially when the girl wailed and screamed like a dying animal every time she woke up. He prayed for a miracle, but all he could do was sit and wait until his wife and daughter returned home, knowing Bella could help.
Bella always helped Alice.
Brown eyes blearily opened, staring up at fuzzy designs painted on the marble ceiling. She could hear screaming, faint screaming, somewhere in the background of her mind, and she could swear she felt pain somewhere back there too.
She mostly felt heavy, though. Like her arms and legs and head were being weighted down with bricks, and she could hardly move. There was a fogginess in her mind that was slowly growing and growing, thickening until she could hardly think at all.
It was kind of nice.
"Then I will protect you. I promise, Alice."
She stirred again, not realizing her eyes had closed. Even the lids felt heavy. Things were so much quieter now, too. She felt like she was in a library or something.
"I trust you."
Not a library. It was too heavy for that.
Maybe she was under water. That's what it felt like.
Like she was drowning.
"Belllllllaaaaaaa. Pleeeeease? For me?"
Drowning in numbness. What a way to go. So peaceful. So nice. So enticing.
But…go? Go where? Where was she going? Why was her neck so sore?
Her head lolled to the side, her eyes fluttering shut again.
"I think pale skin suits her."
It was becoming more and more of a challenge every time she opened her eyes, but she knew she had to.
She wasn't supposed to go anywhere. Not yet.
Her eyes met a pair of blue ones, though not the pair she was thinking of. Not the ones she could see in her head. These were her mother's, staring, unseeing, back at her.
Why was that man hunched over her? What was he doing to her neck?
"Something bad is going to happen. I'm scared, Bella."
With more force, more power this time, her brown eyes shot back open.
The fog in her head was starting to clear, those electric blue eyes chasing it away.
Alice's blue eyes.
"Hey, look…remember?"
No. No, this was wrong. She needed to get back. Alice needed her. She needed to go back to Alice. She promised.
Her hands weakly grabbed the blonde hair, trying to pull the woman away from her neck, but it was no use. Like tugging on a statue.
"You come back to me."
Adrenaline, anger, hope, panic, whatever it was, it filled her stomach, white hot until she was burning with it. Burning.
She let out a whimper as the sensation built up until it felt like an ice pick in her head and she almost passed out from the pain.
"Always."
The blonde vampire let out a surprised yelp as she sailed back across the room and into the stone wall, falling to the floor as stone debris rained down on her. She shook the momentary dizziness from her head, looking up in astonishment.
Bella forced her limbs to move, forced herself to her unsteady feet and stood up. Bodies littered the floor of the entire room, all those people in the cloaks hunched over them. Like the man over her mother.
They all looked up at Bella with matching red eyes, vibrant, glowing.
The girl stumbled forward, catching herself as she shook her head, reaching up to hold her neck. "You…"
She almost toppled backwards, a wave of fire and blackness engulfing her. Everything she had was gone in the next second, the feeling in her legs, the clarity in her mind, everything replaced with fire. Burning again.
"Can't keep me from her," the words dribbled from her lips moments before she fell face first back into the marble floor.
...
"You come back to me."
"Always."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~'Give unto me your troubles~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~I'll endure your suffering~
~Place onto me your burden~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~I'll drink your deadly poison.'~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hello dear readers!
So, yes, this is the beginning of another story. The prologue, of sorts, but not really because it's really long and I don't think you can classify something this long as a "prologue" - over twenty thousand words, guys! So I took it and cut it up into two different chapters, the next one you're about to read. But basically this is just the set-things-up chapters. Because the real story hasn't even begun yet.
And it shan't begin yet, either. Not for a while, at least. I've got others to finish and a collab with another author to start soon, so the rest of this story will be on the back burner for a while. I'll work on it here and there, though, and hopefully have a number of chapters to post right after one another once I start.
Aaaanyways, here in this chapter we get to see the relationship between Alice and Bella. I'm not sure I'm entirely happy with how I've depicted Alice. I don't know if she seems…weaker in this than she usually is in stories. Although we must take into account that she's human here, plus she's a scared little girl who has to deal with visions of horrifying things at night, and the bullying that follows her since as long as she can remember. That tends to create meeker people, no?
For those of you who don't like that, you won't have to worry too much. We get to see bright, cheerful, confident and strong little Alice as a vampire in the rest of the story once she loses her memories of all that formed her into the frightened thing she is here.
This chapter was more about showing absolute, unwavering faith and trust Alice has in Bella, and the everlasting loyalty and devotion to Alice.
And if you guys like these splices of the two growing up together, let me know because there WILL be more of them throughout the story. Let me know if you DONT like it, too, and I'll try to cut back some of them.
Review this chapter before you read the next, because it's long and you'll forget what you wanted to say about this one!
-Paige