For many years, there was a child who wandered amongst the land of men, searching for something that had been missing for a very long time. The child was desperate in her search as she walked day by day among the living. She was shunned and feared, no one was brave enough to confront this strange child. Humans fear what they do not understand and because of this, the child suffered immensely. With no one to shelter her from the cruelty of the world around her, she began to feel numb to any pain inflicted upon her. The once bright child who was always happy had succumbed to a numbness so thick that nothing would ever return her smile. She began to understand that she was meant to be alone, the rumors spread about the child had begun to ring true to her ears. She now believed that she was abandoned by the people who gave life to her, they never wanted her in the first place, she was far too odd.

People claimed she was a monster, others said she was sent by the devil to terrorize and corrupt the human race and yet the child hung in the balance only wanting someone to confide in. She never intended to cause any trouble, but she wasn't like everyone else. She was much different, the child grew at an alarming rate, was quicker, stronger and smarter than the rest. Her senses were far more acute than the best hunters in the towns she was sent to and she was very beautiful but never aged. She discovered she had weird cravings for things a normal person would never have, her questions were answered when she first saw the sight of blood. Her throat burned achingly, as she restrained herself from doing the unthinkable. She tested this theory by preying on animals instead and realized she was able to eat both human food and drink blood from either humans or animals.

Her eyes would sometimes darken when hungry or angry, and shone either a bright gold or frightening red when she drank blood. But, her natural eye color was that of the rarest violet with silver irises and porcelain white skin which only added on to the fact that the child was not of this world. For many years she wondered what was wrong with her, why was she so different from everyone else and why was she even brought into the world. Children would never approach her and adults glared hatefully towards her. Over time, she began to resent humans and even her so called parents. She succumbed to her hatred and nearly killed an entire town, she ran away from what she had done and never returned. The child stuck to the forests and lived there with the animals.

The child had not realized how fast time had past and when she departed the forest she was fully grown. But, in reality she was only ten and stopped aging but only appeared to be sixteen because of her rapid growth. She continued her aimless wanderings, trying to find someplace to call her own, somewhere she would be accepted. She had given up on the idea of her parents even being alive. And still she continued to walk on the earth, traveling from many countries as the world evolved around her, but she remained unchanged, never aging. Humans began to ignore her altogether, but were still cautious when she drew near. The child still did not understand what she was but no longer cared to find any answers.

Because of the pain inflicted on her as an infant, she had developed strange abilities that she could not yet understand. By a single touch she was able to see into a persons past or future, that is why she never touched anyone even by accident. She could manipulate the emotions of others, that resulted in the change of the premonitions she saw and the last of her abilities was a shield which protected her from any type of pain. All she had to do was pierce her skin to trigger the shield. She kept these things hidden and avoided using them at all cost. She already felt like a monster but this only made things worse.

Finally the child settled down in a rainy town known as Forks to live out her boring existence. That wandering child who was labeled as a monster from such an early age was me, Isabella with no last name. The only memories I have are of a strange couple who I assume to be my parents, but I can not see their faces just the outline of their silhouettes. Strangely I remember my birth and what my mother had said to me. She was pale and weak, her lips parched and her bones broken. Even though she was in pain she still managed to whisper these words to me.

"Precious."

Anytime I felt lonely, I would remember these words and the pain would subside a little. When I was found by the orphanage, I had an amethyst necklace draped around my neck that could have belonged to my mother along with a pin that belonged in the confederate army which I had concluded belonged to my father. These were the small momentous that once belonged to my parents and I treasured them dearly, always keeping them with me. Even if I felt betrayed by them for abandoning me, I could not bring myself to completely hate them.

Forks is a small town with an even smaller population, I don't interact with the any of the people here because I find it unnecessary, we would never become friends. I can't remember the last time I even had someone to talk to nevertheless befriend. I don't attend the high school either, I find it easier to avoid people this way, I have gone to high school many times before as well and technically already graduated. I only ever went to lessen suspicion, I did not want to be tormented for being different like all those times many years ago. To pass the time, I practiced sparring and running just to stay fit. I had saved up money through the years until I had enough to buy a three story house located deep in the many forests located in Forks that was away from town and its people.

I also didn't own a car and I preferred to walk or run depending on my mood. By staying away from civilization I was able to avoid displaying my gifts to people and suffered alone to wallow in my pathetic misery for the monster that I am. I didn't mind it though, when I took my nature walks I encountered many animals and explored the vasts forests of Forks. This town isn't as bad as it seems, even though it rains incessantly and had very few sunny days, the nature surrounding Forks is astounding. The vegetation is well taken care of because of the rain and the hunting grounds are incredible because of the coverage the trees give.

Not to mention you had abundant shady places to relax during the warmer days. I liked how the sun's rays would beat down on my face that faintly glittered into millions of diamonds. Another odd trait I observed over the years. It was a nice feeling, it made me feel human if not for the fact that my body temperature wasn't a few degrees colder than the average amount. I could feel the sun's warmth radiating throughout the forest providing nutrients to the plants and animals while awarding me the warmth I desperately craved.

This would be my fourth week in this town, but I have already become accustomed to a routine that I have set up for myself on a daily basis. Sometimes I would go into town to by food only on Monday's because it was less crowded in the small grocery store making it easier for me to get in and out undetected. Then for the remainder of the week, I would spend improving my skills in combat and continue to explore the forests of Forks from where I left off the previous day. I usually create trails for myself to follow, discovering new parts that I have not ventured in yet and jotted it down on a map that I brought. I would also leave markers on trees just as a reminder for where I left off, but I didn't need them for the majority of the time with my acute senses I could follow my scent easily enough.

It made the days go by a bit faster, along the way I would feast on a small animal or two but I preferred human blood. I never preyed on the innocent, but those who were malevolent humans, the odd couple of times I would hunt hikers that passed by my trails but that was far and few between. I caught wind of Forks during my wanderings on a brochure. I was trying to find a place to live for awhile, to avoid socializing with humans and when I read the brochure for Forks it tugged my interest. I was looking for someplace with a small population, dense forests and with a climate that was wet and cloudy. Forks fit that description perfectly.

Today, I was on my way to explore a fresh new trail I had started to explore yesterday. I locked the door of my house and made my way down the stairs. I veered left and disappeared into the thick underbrush of vegetation. I didn't like to wear hiking boots or any shoes at all for that matter during my walks. I liked to feel the earths soil squishing underneath my toes. I pulled out the map to see where I had marked human activity so I could avoid those areas. I kept jotted notes of whenever I smelt humans during my walks in the forests, so by marking it down I could avoid those spots. I usually wrote down my discoveries in a journal for something to do.

Thanks to my small size I was able to maneuver around any protruding branches and made quick haste because of my agility. I climbed a tree to get a better look at my surroundings. I stood on the tallest branch and peered out from its leaves. I sniffed the air and recognized my scent that was still fresh and leading in the direction of north. I faintly smelt something else, but ignored it because I couldn't identify the scent. I jumped from my vantage point by doing a back flip midair and landing softly on my feet. I began to run at a dead sprint, passing by an old marker I had made for myself the first day I arrived here and pushed on wanting to get as much exploring done as I could today.

I made it to the fresh new spot in record time and began to follow an imaginary trail that I spotted with my eyes. I began to walk for awhile, until I heard a sudden noise. I froze. And quietly hid behind a tree. I could hear running and the panicked breathing of a human, his heart was beating faster than normal as it worked into overdrive. I could smell blood, a lot of it. Then a scream pierced through the air silencing the frantic heartbeat I heard. I could hear grunts and moans from the attacker as he drank the blood of the human. Once whoever it was, was finished with the body, they fled. I waited for a couple more minutes, counting to one hundred and twenty before getting out from behind the tree.

I followed the scent of the dead human and found him situated in the spot of one of my old markers. If this was a vampire attack, the attacker would definitely catch wind of my scent in an instant. I crouched down in front of the body and saw that his neck had two distinctive bite marks. The body lay limp and pale indicating that blood no longer flowed through his body. He was a hiker, one of many I encountered during my walks.

I sensed the vampire's presence before seeing him and immediately went into a fighting stance as I dodged his attack from behind.I expertly moved to the side and struck out with my right hand, grabbing a hold of the side of his face and attempted to push away the visions that flowed through me but before I could twist his head decapitating him, he escaped from my grasp releasing me from the images that had begun to fill my mind. He had long blonde hair that was tied into a ponytail. He wore a leather jacket with dirty ripped jeans and like me he was bare foot.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" He asked circling around me.

I stood frozen in place and relaxed waiting for him to strike first.

"You smell, delicious." He moaned nearing me and sniffing my hair.

"But", he stopped mid sniff "you do not smell fully human. Your scent, I have smelt it somewhere before. This enticing floral smell that I haven't come across in many years. One of the few prey that escaped from me." I remained unmoving.

"Don't you know how to speak, little one?" He asked stepping away from me.

"I do, but I won't talk to scum like you." I answered.

He titled his head eyeing me.

"Now, that isn't very nice." He scolded gently.

I faught the urge to roll my eyes, while he was eyeing me I observed him carefully, he was a nomadic vampire which explained his appearance.

"Your a tracker aren't you?" I asked emotionlessly recalling when he said he once hunted someone but they escaped. He called them his prey, which could mean that he was a tracker.

He looked taken aback. Narrowing his eyes he stared at me.

"How did yo-" This conversation was boring me and I had better things to do, so I lunged. My original target was his left side but I did a faint for his right.

Just as I expected he fell for it and attempted to parry off my attack, but at the last second I planted my left foot firmly on the ground and did a roundhouse kick to his left side. While he was mindlessly talking, I observed that he had sustained an injury on his left side, he tried not to put too much weight on it as he circled around me, he attempted to hide it but it only stuck out like a sore thumb. An injury this extensive could only mean he had engaged into battle with another vampire. Concluding that Forks was inhabited by multiple vampires. What an interesting discovery.

He yelped when my leg came in contact with his injury. He kneeled over and clutched his injured side. I towered over his body and did a front flip over his disheveled figure, I hovered both of my hands on either side of his neck, ready to twist. I did not touch him but put my hands close enough for him to feel their presence. He tensed as he realized the position he was in. He swore and made no attempts to flee or fight back.

"Your pretty good, for someone who doesn't fully smell like a vampire. Although your fighting style reminds me of someone quite famous." He breathed cringing in pain.

"It seems like I remind you of many vampires." I noted.

"But, there is something about you that is very familiar." He rasped.

"And what would that be?" I asked uninterested.

"Your honey blonde hair, your scent, your height, that fighting style along with your agility reminds me of two vampires I once encountered." He croaked.

He piqued my interest now. I was short for my age, but in human years I was technically frozen at ten years old but I appeared to be sixteen. As for my height it wasn't my fault that I was stuck at 5'0" foot. I had long dark honey blonde hair that looked almost brown cascading down to my lower back, my skin was a porcelain white and almost the same shade as this nomadic vampire. And my eyes were a light violet with silver irises.

"Who do I remind you of?" I pressed.

"Ah, ah, ah." He chided.

"For me to tell you that, you would have to release your hold from my neck" He purred.

I hardened my expression.

"Absolutely not, I will never strike a deal with a nomadic vampire." I seethed.

He shrugged his shoulders.

"Fine then, I won't tell you." He replied indifferently.

We stayed in silence as I debated my options. The logical more rational part of me believed that I shouldn't trust him, but he could know who my parents were. But, why did I care? They left me all alone to fend for myself. I didn't know what to do.

"Time is of the essence, if you don't make up your mind my comrades will arrive shortly." He sang.

I glared at him, even though he couldn't see it. Frustrated I growled and released him. I know I will regret this later.

"If you try anything, I will kill you." I growled darkly.

He put both hands in the air.

"Don't worry, I will keep my end of the deal." He replied innocently.

I narrowed my eyes at him, realizing he wasn't telling the truth, I could feel deceit rolling off him in waves, he would kill me the first chance he got. Realizing this too he shot towards me, anticipating this I appeared from behind him as he charged, he swiftly turned around and grabbed my wrist.

"NO!" I shouted, but it was too late. Images of his past and future transferred into my brain, playing like a movie. So many vivid pictures past by as we both stood still eyes glazed over.

James fell limply to the ground while I sunk down with him. Through the many images I saw a red headed women who was very evasive and an excellent manipulator along with a dark skinned man with long dreadlocks. In the next image I saw a short girl with short dark hair in a white gown along with a man who was protected by the shadows, they were in a room. The girl had eyes like mine and she was talking to the man in the shadows. Suddenly the girl turned to face the direction I was in, her eyes went wide as she alerted the man in the shadows. I felt my body begin to flee. Abruptly I was thrown into yet another vision, this time with a man with pale skin and red eyes in an old confederate uniform and he had honey blonde hair like mine. He was staring at the short young girl who seemed to be the same height as me and appeared to be a vampire.

I didn't want to see anymore, there were too many images, I was getting too many at once. A headache began to form and throb in my skull. I could hear distant screaming as I tried to pull out of the visions. The screaming became louder as the vision began to fade. I sucked in a deep breath, gobbling in air as I was finally freed from the visions. I realized I had been the one screaming. I looked around disoriented, I saw James lying beside me, eyes glazed over, the whites of his eyes showing as his eyes rolled back into his head. Disgusted with myself I stood. There was no way I could stop it from happening this time. I crawled away from his body and stood up. I used a nearby tree for support until I regained my balance.

Quickened footsteps were approaching my location, my head snapped in the direction of the noise. These must be his comrades. Immediately I pushed any signs of drowsiness to the side and fled. I ran faster than I ever have before, following an old trail and using an alternate route for my way home. Mid way I quickly rolled around in the soil and vegetation to mask my scent, so they wouldn't follow me and continued to run. I saw my house poking out from the thick underbrush and ran even faster pushing myself to its limits. I ran up the stairs, opened the door quickly locking it and closing all the curtains. I panted heavily as I lay on the floor.

That was far too close, I should have just killed him when I had the chance. I knew I would regret this later. But, even so I would have ended up making contact with his skin either way. I closed my eyes needing rest. What awful gifts, I didn't even know how to control them. The only useful one was my shield, the other two proved useless to me and only gave me a headache. Manipulating emotions as well as sensing them and seeing someone's past and future with only a single touch were frightening gifts. Sometimes I saw things I never wanted to, even by accident when I walked down the street and my hand brushed past someone I would see every dirty little secret of theirs and who they would become later on in life. Often times those people were rapists or murderers and I witnessed all of their killings and heinous acts and how they felt during those moments.

If only there was some way to stop this. I thought tiredly.

Yawning, I slowly got up and trudged upstairs to go and take a shower. My daily walk was cut short because of that stupid nomadic vampire. I would have to start fresh somewhere else, farther away from my home so I wouldn't run into him or his comrades. I didn't want to have to fight them, I would risk seeing things I didn't want to see. After my shower I went into my room and fell lazily onto my bed. The only disadvantage of being what I was, was that the more energy I burned off the more tired I would become meaning I had to replenish with food or blood. Blood was more preferable because I would regain energy quicker and it wouldn't burn so quickly. I would feed when I woke up. If I even had enough strength by that time.

I slowly drifted off into a deep sleep as thoughts of the short women and confederate soldier haunted my dreams.

This is my newest story that I have been working on for a couple of days. Since I have a lot of time I have been investing in creating more stories and continuing ones that I have yet to finish. Please tell me what you think when you review! Please check out my other story Duaghter of the Count and Countess if you haven't already!

~Mariam