Fear

Bella spent the day avoiding eye contact with Rosalie. She could not figure out why her shield had done that. In the last 100 years her shield had never reacted to anyone but her. Ever. Period.

With her thoughts safe, she silently contemplated all the possibilities. Which, to be honest, she couldn't think of any. The obvious answer would be to ask the eldest vampire in the coven but then the mind reader would know. If the mind reader knew, so would Rosalie, she was sure.

Bella had never felt so worried. Sure, there'd been things to be wary of. The Volturi, for one. Always desperate for her shield. Unlike others, however, she no longer had anything they could threaten her with to get her to join them.

Her creator had died decades ago, her family had long since passed, and she hadn't made any meaningful connections. She admired the Denalis, yes, but she wouldn't give up her freedom for them. For anyone. Her freedom was inportant.

Emmett dragged her out of her thoughts by handing her a plastic device of some sort. She looked at the foreign object from all directions, trying to place it. On its face were buttons of various colors and two movable sticks.

"What is this?" She raised an eyebrow at Emmett and he and Cass almost fainted.

"It's an XBOX controller, Bells." Emmett had stated simply before telling her how to use it.

With the controller, she could navigate a little man on the screen. With the colorful buttons she could make him crouch, stab, jump, and switch and reload the weapons he put only God knows where when they weren't in use. With the strange sticks she could make him look around and walk. With the triggers she could make him aim and shoot.

After just a few rounds, Bella was better than both Enmett and Cass. They were absolutely horrified that she started beating them. An old vampire with no idea when it came to modern technology beating them at a video game. The very idea.

Bella grinned victoriously as she sat the controller down on the table. She sat back into the couch, the grin still in place, and watched the family around her.

Edward played his piano with Victoria on the seat next to him, occasionally glancing over at her with a sly smile. She would lean into him with her long fingers wrapped around his bicep. When she would look up at him from underneath those long lashes, adoration would practically radiate from her.

Emmett and Cass continued to "destroy" each other. Every time one would kill the other, a look of love-filled play rage was exchanged. Every time Emmett died, he would lean over and gently kiss her cheek with a grin firmly in place. The love there was so real you could almost reach out and touch it.

Jasper sat on the armchair watching them with Alice in his lap. She had her head on his shoulder and her hand resting over his still heart. He had both arms wrapped around her and, despite his attention to the television, he was constantly showering her with affection. In truth, it was kind of sickening.

Carlisle and Esme sat side by side on the love seat. He was reading a book while she was sketching something out. Another house plan, maybe? Her feet were tucked underneath her and her calves were pressed against his thighs. They were each doing their own thing yet they seemed to be doing it together. When he turned the page he would flash her a smile that she wouldn't see and she would occasionally look up at him from under her lashes. It was beautiful to watch.

Rosalie was in the garage. Bella couldn't see what she was doing but she could hear her tinkering. Every once in a while from her vantage point, the one seat in the living room that looked straight at the garage door, she would see Rosalie's shadow pass the closed door. Everything in her yearned to see the beautiful blonde.

Her shield seemed to hum in Rosalie's direction. Another thing foreign to her about her best asset. She vaguely wondered what would happen if she allowed the shield to encompass Rosalie as it so obviously wanted to. Did her shield know something she didn't?

Not the literal shield, obviously. Her instincts, perhaps? Something primal inside of her leading her to the other female? But why?

She was brought out of her thoughts by the garage door opening. Rosalie stepped through it in coveralls with a stained towel between her hands. Grease coated her forearms up to the elbows and she had smudges on her cheeks, nose, and forehead. Her blonde locks were contained in a tight ponytail at the back of her head and she looked absolutely delicious.

Bella was glad she could no longer blush as she quickly looked back to the television. Where had that come from? She's been with this family for less than twenty four hours and already she's so vastly different.

This made her afraid. If she actually joined them, how much would she change? Was the social interaction worth it? What was it that was drawing her here?

"I'm going to head into the woods for a bit, I need to hunt." She said simply as she stood.

Everyone nodded to acknowledge they heard her and most smiled at her. Before she could make it to the back door, however, Rosalie stepped in her path. The blonde eyed her as she looked at the floor.

"Our hunt was interrupted and I didn't get my fill. So I'm going to be joining you." Well. Okay.

Bella simply gestured to the door and allowed Rosalie to lead the way. Once outside, Rosalie flitted to the forest and Bella was quick to catch up. She followed the blonde into the woods where suddenly she turned around and Bella crashed into her.

She took a step back and looked up into those haunted eyes. That was when she knew. The thing that had drawn her here. The same thing that kept her here. It had been this woman. Some force had thrown them together.

Whatever Rosalie had wanted to say seemed to be lost as they looked into each other's eyes. They were both unaware that were inching closer to each other. Bella had no control as her shield reached out to the blonde. Skin met skin as their fingertips brushed and then their fingers linked together.

Immediately, Rosalie was immersed in her shield with absolutely no effort.The thoughts and feelings swirling around her threatened to cripple her. She wanted to step back, away from the assault.

Why are you here? Anger. Who are you? Distrust. WHAT'S HAPPENING TO ME? Fear. I'm a monster. Self loathing.

Rosalie's intense emotions and thoughts were going to tear her inner being to shreds. Why did Rosalie feel this way? What had been done to her?

Bella focused on the feel of their fingers locked together and closed the distance between them. The second her lips met Rosalie's, silence. Beautiful, glorious silence. As if Rosalie needed the contact as much as she did.

She ran her tongue along Rosalie's bottom lip. She arched and moaned into Bella's mouth. She wrapped her arns around Rosalie's waist and pulled her tightly against her.

Then a man's face flashed in her mind. Fear and anger followed the face and Bella jumped away from Rosalie while her shield retracted. The movement was so sudden she jumped into a tree, knocking it to the ground.

"I'm sorry. God, I'm so-" Hands on her shoulders interrupted her and she refused to look into her eyes.

She didn't want either of them to be lost to the trance again. Her body was shaking from her own fear. Rosalie's grip on her shoulders was softening.

Bella knew if she could, she'd be weeping. She had her own faces to fear and she hoped Rosalie's weren't for the same reason. The blonde's sudden reaction had her reliving her own past.

Bright lights and metal tables. Dark rooms and silence. Hunger and unquenchable thirst. Straps to hold her in place.

The grip on her shoulders flooded her system with with terror and she tried to pull away. The grip hardened and arms went around her shoulders. Her reflex to run was powerful but the arms were too strong.

"Sh, Bella. Jesus. It's just me. Sh." Rosalie whispered in her ear with soothing tones.

At the beautiful voice in her ear, Bella relaxed. She used Rosalie's voice to battle her past back into submission. The battle she was constantly waging had lost momentum and she had to gain it back.

Some time later, maybe a few minutes, possibly a few hours, Bella took a step back. She knew Rosalie was concerned for her but she refused to look at her. No one had ever seen her like that. Shame coursed through her.

"I really need to hunt. Would you still like to join me?" She walked past Rosalie and further into their hunting ground without waiting for an answer.

She knew the blonde had followed her yet she carried her hunt out in silence. She tried not to let the other female's presence affect her. By the time she had her fill, Rosalie had finished and was waiting for her.

A whole new fear rooted itself into place while she followed Rosalie back to her home. What if all of this was dragging them together just for her to keep it from happening? What if her past was too much to overcome?