Author Note: This is my first attempt at fan fiction and I wanted to try to do something I have yet to see. Vamp Bella has been relatively on her own for a while, although having her adventures along the way. However she finally meets up with the Cullens when a common acquaintance pulls them together. Will she be happy to see them? Are the Cullens even happy to see her? Let me know what you think, but please be constructive. Yet again, I've never done this before!
Kay Maria
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - - -
I stood on my back porch and watched the sun sink under the horizon. Another day had come and gone. Another day in this eternal existence, in which nothing really seemed to matter anymore. I remember when I once wanted this life more than anything. I begged for it. If there is a God I have to admire his sense of irony. He did grant my wish and I was granted my eternal life, but I was doomed to live it relatively alone.
Don't get me wrong. I've seen the world, made connections with humans, with vampires, hell even with werewolves, but I never really belonged to any of them. You never truly belong when you are other, not normal, not like them.
I tucked in my pessimistic feelings deep down in my mind and tried to brighten my outlook. Things could be worse, but things just could be better. Maybe my solitary existence that I had been reveling in for the past decade needed to be broken. Maybe it was time to immerse myself in the real world again. So what does an 18-year-old vampire girl do when she has to enter the real world again? She goes back to school.
It was this train of thought that landed me in the North East again. Although I've traveled the world several times over, nothing really felt like home more than the US. Northern US to be more exact. Yet, I still couldn't bring myself to move West though. Too much had happened there in my long life. Too many memories that I shouldn't have clouded my mind that could think too many thoughts at once.
This time I decided to go to Columbia. I had already graduated from practically all of the universities in the northeast besides Columbia, and the thought of high school again made a shiver creep down my spine. A hundred years had not changed the ridiculousness that is the high school student; I don't think any amount of time ever will.
I returned from the porch and went to pack the final boxes that were needed. I admit that I will miss the sunlight. My reprieve from humanity led me to a thousand acre retreat in the middle of Arizona. I needed to be away from everything for a while after almost a century of constant movement in the human or supernatural world, and what better way to do that where you could go out in the sun whenever you wanted?
As I shipped the last of my boxes my intuition was going haywire. I could tell it was trying to tell me something. Something big was going to happen in New York, something that would change my existence. I could feel it in my entire core. I was excited about a change of pace after my decade of monotony, but as I exited my house for a final time I couldn't shake the feeling like I was walking off the plank to my uncertain doom.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
I looked out of my loft's window and gazed down at central park. It truly was amazing compared to the vast emptiness of Southern Arizona's terrain. I thought it would be difficult to be around humans again. Terrified that after no exposure the scent of human blood would pull me into a frenzy, I took several precautions that proved unnecessary. I was no more attracted to them now as I was then, which was pretty much not at all.
"Will that be all Ms. Black?" the concierge asked.
I turned away from my view and walked over to the young man at the door. "Yes, thank you. And please, call me Isabella." I replied while handing him a tip.
He took the tip and blushed slightly at my words. "Of course Isabella. Please let me know if you need anything else," he replied as he left the room and closed the door behind him.
I turned back toward the room and looked at my belongings. I didn't bother to ship my previous furniture. I hardly ever did when I moved. Only a few specific pieces I kept that obviously showed their lack of coordination in the décor. One of which is Charlie's old recliner that always adorned some place in my living room. The old chair had been all over and it would never feel like home without it. When he passed away years ago I made sure that it came into my possession, although his step son couldn't believe anyone would be willing to pay so much for such an 'old piece of junk as he put it'.
Other than the recliner the other pieces were the highest of fashion possible. After all, I had to look the part of the average Columbia attendee I guess, although I couldn't think of a reason anyone would ever be up here.
I spent the rest of the weekend getting adjusted to the human world again. I went out and shopped, talked to my neighbors, even chatted up the doorman, Ryan.
By the time Monday came around it was already the first day of school. Seeing as I had been to college several times over I had to come up with something different to do. I had several PhD's some of which including English, Biology, hell even engineering in a particularly boring period of time several years ago. This time I thought I would go with Psychology. What better way to reconnect with the human race than by studying people who study them?
My first class started at 8:00 in the morning so by 7:00 I was ready and heading out of the building.
"Have a good day Ms. Black. If any of those stuck up Ivy League types gives you any trouble, you send them to me okay?" Ryan said to me as I walked out of the large double doors.
Ryan was the doorman for the daytime shift for most of the week. I had chatted him up a few days ago and we struck an instant bond. In his mid 30's, Ryan was working as a doorman while trying to pay of his wife's school loan debt. I loved his honesty, his distaste for pretentiousness, and above all his protectiveness. I was nice to have someone semi look out for me since I couldn't remember the last time anyone really did.
"You got it Ryan. Tell Melanie I said hi, and for the love of all that is holy, please call me Isabella," I replied back popping open my umbrella. It was nice to be out in the rain again. In fact it had been so long since I've actually seen a decent downpour that I was becoming oddly nostalgic.
"Not a chance Ms. Black. Ladies deserve respect, don't you ever forget that. Now head on out before you get drenched in this rain," Ryan countered back while shooing me down the street.
I bid him goodbye and made the short walk down to campus. Due to drastic technological advances I probably should have just taken the recently renovated subway or one of the new fancy taxicabs that peppered the city, but sometimes you just want to enjoy the walk.
As I got closer to the school my senses started to pick up again, telling me that this was big. I tried to ignore the nagging feeling in the pit of my stomach as I reached the door of my first class. I took a deep unnecessary breath and pulled open the door. Here goes nothing.
- -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
My first class of the day had come and gone. Child psychology looked like a promising subject and the professor seemed generally excited about teaching the course. Not one of those who just want the paycheck and all of the time off.
After my class I had a break until my 11:00 History of Psychology course. One of the best advances over the past century is basic coursework handled in high school so you can just delve right into your major work if desired. Not that it really mattered, but if I had to go through another Into to English Literature class again I was going to bang my head into submission.
I took my time off to wander around campus and take in the scenery. Urban life changed so much, but at the same time looked remarkably similar. Most of the changes involved improvements in emissions that were revolutionized about twenty years ago.
As I wandered about I slowly started to get the sinking suspicion of someone watching me. My stomach contracted as my vampire senses were begging me to get into a defensive position. However crouching and snarling in the middle of campus didn't exactly seem like the best way to make friends.
I slowly turned around to look for the face of my stalker, however I saw nothing out of the ordinary. As I began to continue my walk I was immediately met with the face of someone I didn't think I would ever see again.
"Felix?" I asked my voice betraying how excited I was to see him. He looked exactly the same since the last time that I saw him in Volturi, except for the distinct difference in eye color, which were now a beautiful golden hue.
He smiled my favorite smile as his whole 6'6" frame took me in. Felix was by all means a very attractive man. Muscles that the average human would have to kill themselves in the gym for, the most perfect teeth stars pay thousands of dollars to replicate, and of course there was just the essence that Felix had that could not be duplicated. He just was, and I was so happy to see him.
"Oh I thought it was you my beautiful Marie," he spoke in his deliriously sexy voice as he began to walk towards me. "Last time I saw you, you were heading to Australia to live among the marsupials. Tell me, what does a Kangaroo taste like?"
"I wouldn't know, I mainly just stuck to dingos. And it's Isabella now," I replied as I went to hug him. It really had been too long since I had seen a happy face and touched his godly form.
"But of course. You can't just be simple like the rest of us and keep the same name now can you. How will I ever find you if the next time I see you your name is Claire, or Justina, or heaven forbid Gertrude?" he teased as he release me from his grasp.
"I have my reasons, as you very well know," I paused to stare at him again. "Felix, what are you doing here? Thirty years ago you were a faithful member of the Volturi guard and a card-carrying member of the human blood drinking clan. Now here you are in New York of all places, at a University, and obviously with different tastes. How the hell did this happen?" I truly was shocked. As vampire we hardly change, and Felix had obviously done a lot of changing in the past few decades.
Felix motioned for me to sit down at a nearby bench and I complied. "What is the reason why we ever doing anything my beautiful Marie? I fell in love. My now wife just whisked into Volturi stole my heart and set my world on fire. We quickly left Italy, worked on my diet, and now we are studying here. We've actually only been here for a few weeks. You are now witnessing my first day as a college student." He beamed at me proudly.
I couldn't help but smile at his story. Before Felix was rather unhappy with his station in life but refused to go with me on my travels. He told me all he knew was Italy and that he would live out his destiny with dignity. Now he just looked happy, so so happy.
"Well I think I must meet this wonderful wife of yours that could actually convince the dutiful Felix to give up his 'destiny' and seek a real life," I replied while rubbing soothing circles on his back.
"That you must my beautiful Marie. I am sure she would adore you. I often tell her and our family stories about our time in Italy together. I'm sure they would all love to meet the enchanting goddess, Marie Black, that dumbfounded Aro, put Marcus in his place, and eluded the Volturi all together," he smile while pulling one of my hands into his large ones.
"Wow, I haven't thought about that in a long time," I said while starring off into space. "I think I forgot how much fun I could have."
Felix leveled his stare at me and seemed pensive for a moment. "What has happened my beautiful Marie? Are you still a woman of such few words? You know for someone that I consider one of my dearest friends I still know nothing about you."
I laughed a humorless laugh. "As to what has happened there is not much to say. I moved, I worked, I studied, and I above all existed. As to my past, you have tried much harder in the past with less result. What makes you think that you would have better luck now?"
Felix looked at my hands as they intertwined with him. "I think one day I will know your story Marie but it is obvious that now is not the time. However it is hard to fill my wife with stories when most of his questions I do not know the answer. 'Where is she from Felix? How old is she? What is her real name? Why did she come to Volterra?'" Felix intonated with an oddly familiar high-pitched bell like voice. "But alas all my answers were the same. 'I do not know my love, Marie is a woman of mystery. However I feel it is extreme sadness that has clouded her past and thus her reason for not disclosing it.'"
I looked into his beautiful golden eyes and smiled a sad smile. "Ah Felix for someone who says he knows so little, you seem to know me so well."
"Well that my dear is because I do know you, just now what you have seen in your long yet short life. Now my dear, I must leave because class calls, but I must see you tonight. My family would be so happy to meet you and I don't think I can keep you away even for a day."
I checked my watch and realized that we had spent a significant amount of time talking and I too needed to get to class. However, the thought of meeting up with the woman who had changed Felix so completely had brought me more excitement than I had seen in a long time. "Sure Felix, here is my address. Come pick me up at sunset and I'll meet your new family. I could not pass up the chance to meet the harlot who stole your heart," I teased as I stood up and threw my bag over my shoulder while handing Felix a piece of paper with my address on it.
"But of course my beautiful Marie. I will see you tonight. But for now, Biology awaits!," he shouted excitedly. It must be rather refreshing studying after centuries cooped up in Italy.
We said out goodbyes and I went to my following class. The rest of the day went by in a blur as I kept replaying every moment I had with Felix. It was weird seeing Felix so happy with another woman, when once long ago I was the one who adorned his bed. Yet I couldn't bring myself to feel any sort of jealousy. Although we had been lovers, most importantly we were friends. He knew he would never fill that part of me, just as I knew that I would never fill his.
When I left Volterra on my quest for my adventures, we knew we were parting for good. Now that he had a wife, I did feel guilty about the rather salacious thoughts I had been replaying in my mind. But it had been a long time, a decade in fact, and apparently I needed to get laid.
There were the thoughts that consumed me as I went through the rest of my day, waiting for seven to roll around.
- - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - -
So what did you think? There is lots more still to come.
