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Caiti

The fire had seemed to burn for eons before I could move my fingers and toes even slightly. It faded from my limbs eventually but the fire settled in my heart, which frightened me. My heart raced, attempting to outrun the wildfire, but it could not. It slowed and silenced with a final, feeble beat. I lay still for a moment until I heard something stirring in the grass, upon which point my eyes shot open and I lept to my feet before sinking into a crouch. In front of me stood a wary-looking girl, who looked to be anywhere from eighteen to maybe twenty-three, with shoulder-length blonde hair and large gold eyes. Her skin was pale and, in the sparse sunlight that shone through the cracks in the canopy, it shone like thousands of diamonds were imbedded into it. It took me milliseconds to observe her and realize she was no threat. I straightened up and said, "Uh, sorry."

My voice surprised me. Instead of the raspy, cracking noise it had been, it was flowing and bell-like. The girl blinked and uttered a single syllable, "Wow."

Her voice was gentle and lovely. I asked, "What?"

Again, the beautiful sound emerged from my mouth. The girl blinked again and said, "Nevermind. Just... I'm Cassandra North. But please... Call me Cassie."

I said, "I'm Isabella Swan, but call me Bella."

Cassie smiled, causing her large eyes to get sort of squinty, and said, "Bella, do you know what happened?"

I remembered the fire raging through me and the soft apology. I remembered not being able to breathe. I said, "You saved my life."

Cassie's bright expression had turned mournful and she said, "But, do you know what you are?"

I said simply, "I'm a vampire."

Cassie's eyes grew large and she said, "Well, that saves some time. Bella, since you know what you are... You have a few choices. You could, well you could hunt humans," at that her nose scrunched up like she smelled something bad. "Or, you could hunt animals like I do."

I knew my decision before she had finished her sentence. I said strongly, "I want to hunt animals."

'Like my family,' I thought but did not add aloud.

Cassie said, "Good. I can't stand the thought of anyone taking an innocent life."

We were silent for a few moments and I watched dust motes swirl in beams of sun. Cassie finally spoke, "Would you like to come back to my apartment? It's in Seattle."

I nodded and Cassie took my hand. I was expecting her hand to be like icy and hard, but it was simply mild and soft yet firm. Cassie chattered happily as she pulled me along with her. Without any warning, she broke into a jog and then a sprint. I easily kept pace, even though she was moving faster. Cassie pressed faster and we were soon moving at her fastest run. Within ten minutes, Cassie announced we were about halfway there. Nine minutes after that, Cassie and I slowed to a walk and we walked out of the woods to an apartment complex. Cassie dragged me up the rickety metal stairs and pulled me inside an apartment, that's door had peeling white paint. The apartment was painted white and there was a black loveseat and a gray bean bag. There was a nice metal and glass TV stand and a large TV. There was also a laptop sitting on a black trunk that was acting as a coffee table. Before I could comment on the place, Cassie pushed me into her bedroom and said, "Let's find you some clothes."

Cassie let me pick out my clothes, which consisted of a three-quarter sleeve shirt, a pair of jeans, and a pair of Cassie's Chuck Taylors. Cassie let me shower in peace and I dressed before coming out. Cassie was scribbling on a legal pad, eyes trained on her work. I could see she was just drawing. Cassie's eyes flitted to my face and she said, "Bella, ready to hunt?"
I suddenly felt my throat burst into flames. I nodded, wincing. Cassie grabbed my hand and-in seconds-we were running through the woods.