Chapter One

(BPOV)

Years passed, seemingly meaningless. For the first few years, I thought Jacob had been kidding, of course I would die; old age would claim me. Then it became apparent I wasn't getting older. Wrinkles never appeared; sickness never came; blindness never overtook me. I was immortal. Jacob left me alone after he had bitten me, and when I had woken up, an unquenchable thirst overcame me. Water from a nearby stream tasted as if it were clay. The ale I had in a pouch tasted like dirt, nothing would work! Then…finally, I remembered what Jacob had said, 'Feed on the Blood of the Living'. I refused to let myself believe it; I would stay in the forest for the rest of my life – well existence, as Jacob had so rudely stated. I was doing good with my promise to myself, and with relief, I noticed that my eyes had changed color. Instead of a blood red, they were black.

My new lifestyle was strange, I was faster then anything I could remember, I was strong enough to rip trees out of the ground, my vision was clearer then it ever it had been, my hearing was super sensitive. Sometimes, I wondered if I truly just existed; it felt like I was alive. I could breathe, I could do things; I wasn't like the ghosts rumored to lurk in palaces.

Sadly, only a few short weeks had passed before a hunter strayed to far from his path. More thirsty then imaginable, I quickly hunted him down and fed on his blood – relishing in if for every minute. Afterwards, I felt awful; he could have had a family, a life, and a love. Maybe he had promised a woman he would return and marry her, maybe he had a sick son that needed the food he was going to bring back. The stories haunted me, and I mournfully returned to my oasis.

Life seemed pointless, why live only to take life? It made no sense; there had to be another solution! I furiously thought, and glanced into the nearby stream. My silent heart seemed to sink; my eyes were again blood red, they had returned. I threw a stone into the water, shattering my reflection into a million pieces. If Jacob truly had loved me, why did he change me and then leave me alone? Why did he kill Edward? Edward…my love…

Flashback

The nervous quietness of the palace seemed to echo throughout the town. I felt exactly the same. My first meeting with my betrothed – the Prince Edward Cullen, and I could already feel the blush starting to heat my face. The carriage arrived, and the servants came to help me out of my carriage.

"Dear Isabella!" Queen Esme laughed, and pulled me into a gentle hug.

"Hello Your Majesty," I curtseyed.

"Good gracious child! We're almost family! Call me Esme, my husband Carlisle." Esme smiled.

"Thank you Esme," I murmured.

"Isabella, it's nice to have you here," Carlisle said kindly. There was silence for a minute as I looked around for Edward.

"Oh, Edward's up in his room; he didn't want to come outside…he said he'd rather see you inside…heavens know why…" Esme explained.

"I think he's very nervous, which he should be. Isabella's a very pretty girl, and Edward is rather shy and reserved…" Carlisle whispered and then winked. I giggled, from what Mother and Father had said, that was very much like Edward.

"Please, call me Bella," I replied.

"Bella then, would you like to come dine?" Esme asked.

"Yes, thank you," I laughed.

A few hours later, after we had supper, I retired to my room. Still no sign of Edward, but that was all right, I'd see plenty of him for the rest of my life. I sat down in front of my vanity, and sighed.

"Milady?" A quiet, deep, velvet (A/N Ooh, guess who that is!), gentle voice asked. I turned towards it, and furrowed my brow.

"Who's there?" I asked. The speaker stepped forward and smiled,

"It's me, Edward," He said.

"Oh…" I said, and we slipped into an awkward silence.

"So…you decided to show yourself?" I asked. Edward nodded,

"Yes."

"In my room?" I continued.

"Yes."

"At night?" There was a slight pause.

"Yes," He finally said.

"Why?"

"Because that's when neither you nor I are surrounded by servants, parents, knights, ladies, and lords," Edward replied, and shrugged.

"Why does it matter if we're surrounded?" I asked, starting to get slightly suspicious.

"Because if we're surrounded, and I ask you your favorite color, you might reply differently then if it was just us. We'll get to know each other better if we talk while we're alone. That's why I didn't come to greet you, because if I did, my first impression would definitely be less then the one I just got," Edward explained.

"Um…" Was all I could seem to manage.

"Sorry, was that confusing?" He asked sheepishly, "I'm not good at analogies…"

"No…I think I got it. You want to get to know me better, so you want to talk to me alone, right?" I replied, slowly.

"Yes, that's the gist of it," Edward smiled.

"Okay…so…what now?" I asked.

"Now, you get to ask me any question you want to," He grinned.

"Oh, joy…um…" I thought of his analogy. "What's your favorite color?" I asked.

"What's yours?" He replied.

"I asked you first!" I laughed.

"Ladies first," Edward insisted.

"Fine…brown," I said.

"Brown?" He asked skeptically.

"Yes, brown. Now, what's yours?" I giggled.

"Brown," He replied, and flashed a smile.

"Oh! No fair! You copied my answer!" I laughed, and poked him playfully.

"I did not! That's really my favorite color!" Edward replied, also laughing, as he poked me back. The questions continued much in the same manner; he insisted that I went first, me complying and he gave a similar answer. Eventually, as the moon rose higher in the sky, I asked a question that would most certainly change the course of things.

"Do you think I'm beautiful?" I asked.

"Yes." I blushed, and looked away. "Well, you are," Edward said.

"Thank you," I replied, and glanced into his eyes. He was gazing at me, and I noticed for the first time his eyes were a vivid green. I laughed, and Edward stared at me bewildered. His eyes were such a dark evergreen; they reminded me of emeralds – which at that time of night seemed very funny. Edward chuckled, and shook his head, obviously still bewildered.

"Good night Bella," Edward laughed, and started to leave.

"Wait…" I said, and stood.

"What?" Edward asked, and eagerly turned around.

"Will you be coming to breakfast tomorrow?" I asked. Edward's face fell,

"Yes, I will be," He replied. I started to call my dresser in.

"Bella?" Edward asked.

"Yes?" I replied, and turned around.

"I know this sounds really abnormal, because if you're betrothed you're not supposed to actually love each other; it's just not accepted but…" He trailed off.

"Go on," I urged, and stepped closer to him.

"But…but…I…" He took a deep breath. "I love you," He said.

"I love you too!" I exclaimed. We embraced, as my dresser came in. She raised her eyebrows, but other then that, didn't seem to notice. "Your highness," She bowed towards us. "Princess Isabella, Carlisle sent me to dress you for bed…Prince Edward, I'm afraid you'll have to leave…" The dresser apologized. "Good night Bella," Edward smiled, and kissed my cheek softly. "Good night Edward!" I replied. Edward left quickly, and shut the door behind him. "Well, Miss, you're quite the pretty one aren't you. What I'd do for those eyes," The dresser smiled.

With a start, I realized I didn't have the same color eyes any more. My eyes were red now, not a chocolaty brown. I sighed, and heard twigs breaking, my head snapped up, looking for the cause of the sound. Two dark eyes appeared through the trees, and I suddenly got a new idea.

Yay! First Chapter done! So, what do you guys think? It's OOC, I know…but when it's over a hundred years in the past, it's hard to keep the same personalities. Like…if Bella were the same, she'd probably be a prostitute, not a Princess. If Edward were the same, he'd probably be in the same position…but…hey, give me some slack!

Thanks for the review Edwardmarryme, you're the best!

I'll update roughly once to twice a week, whenever I get the time…

And that's it. I think. For now.