1917
With a sigh, Carlisle Cullen, vampire of two hundred and fifty-four years lifted the unconscious girl onto the dock, jumping the great distance with the ease of his race. The girl, not breathing, was soon laid out in front of him, and he proceeded to gently pump her chest, feeling the cad*, though he knew it was necessary and hence within the lines of propriety, he still felt the gentleman in him protest at the action. He breathed air into her as well, noting faintly that her plump lips were still warm, a good sign in drowned individual, and oddly enough, tasted like salt water. She gave no response, and he fought to keep his movements gentle enough to not injure the girl with his great strength in his slight nervous movements. She had only gone under for brief second, maybe at the most a second or two, but it was enough to render her unconscious via a wooden pillar that held the dock up. Damn human structures at the moment he thought, trying and failing to hear the girl's breathe.
"Come on Miss..." he whispered, golden eyes frantic.
As he proceeded to try and revive the girl, he noted something else. Her garments. She was not wearing a form of dress he was used to seeing, on this side of the pond or the other. Instead of the dresses he was so used to seeing the girl wore pantaloons, made of denim, scandalously tight on her slim legs and hips, as well as a evergreen woolen sweater that reached almost to her knees, it was large and an enormous contrast to the tightness of her pantaloons. It was visually pleasing, yet somehow not provocative as such clothing should be, no, it was just odd to him. Her small feet were clad in what seemed to be black canvas and rubber. He wondered just who was this oddly dressed human girl, with the scent of rich flowers and summer storms on her skin, or least under the smell of river, and (strangely enough) ocean water.
Her face, slightly gaunt to his doctoral taste, was relaxed, her slightly arched brows darker than her endless, unbound hair that framed her delicate face. She was a pretty one, young, most likely in her late adolescent years. Odd for a girl her age to be wondering around unescorted this late at night,(really to be out at all in this area) and felt grateful he had heard her in the water as he walked past. The street the dock was on was empty save for himself, and he heard not a heartbeat within the vicinity, other than her's and he knew the weakened girl would have been in much trouble... Not that she wasn't in any trouble, considering she was not breathing at all.
"Come on Miss." he whispered again, going again to breath air into her.
She finally breathed with a gasp, and he pulled back quickly, knowing that if his body was able his cheeks would have been warm and scarlet as the girl's eyes fluttered, and as she coughed out water from her pale lips. Soft, caramel brown eyes looked out at the world, blinking rapidly. It was startling shade of brown he noted, as most brown was dark, near black and completely flat in its darkness. Her's was deep and rich, vibrant and so very alive. Bright as honey, yet not that yellow shade like his own. Her pale, petite hand came swiftly to touch the back of her head, and she moaned in pain, swiftly closing her strange eyes.
"Fuck."said the girl, voice raspy and husky (most likely due to the drowning)and his brows raised at the vulgar word coming from such a young looking lady.
Repeating the word, the girl gingerly sat up, with the grace and gait of an old woman, her trembling limbs stiff and her mouth pinched painfully into a tight grimace. Her large doe like eyes looked around her swiftly, and came to rest on him. A sort of tension lifted from her body the second she saw his face, a smile appearing on her youthful face. Then her light eyes locked on his body, and his brows furrowed as her eyes skimmed his form repeatedly, and he was about to politely protest her ogling(something he was used to from receiving from both sexes) when she spoke again;
"Carlisle, what are you wearing?!" she said in that same husky voice, most likely water logged from her recent drowning spell.
Carlisle felt as if the ground beneath him was suddenly gone, and his eyes widen at the girl. How in the earth did she know his name?
"...Excuse me?" he asked, feeling confusion and wariness flood him.
The girl blinked at him rapidly.
"Why is your hair longer?" she said softly, brows furrowing, her small hand, reached out and touche his slightly shorter than shoulder length locks for a moment, as if she had every right to do so.
She then quickly with drew her hand, and he felt a flood of relief, but noticed that girl clenched and unclenched her small fist. Carlisle felt he could come up with no response as the girl tired to stand. Tried was the key word, since the girl's knees buckled, and she fell forward. Almost unconsciously he reached out to catch her, too quickly too be considered humanistic, and he flinched when he held her steady. He noted, even at the rapid movement the girl had hardly reacted. Maybe a blink at the blur he had made, or a slightly twitch of her hands. He let her go as soon as he was able, ignoring the blazing warmth of her flesh (compared to his own) with a twinge of remorse.
"Carlisle, what is going on?" she asked softly, brown eyes wide.
He said nothing, looking down at the girl, and he found that he could say nothing. It was obvious that the girl knew him, how he had no clue, but the familiarity in which he said his first name could indicate nothing else. Unless the girl simply mistook him for someone else? He frowned. He doubted there was many people with his name in this modern day and age, especially with his particular physical characteristics. Unless he had a doppelganger vampire running around, Carlisle knew that this girl knew him, from the way she looked up at him, as if he held the keys of life in his strong hands. He shifted uncomfortably, as was his habit as he answered the girl;
"Miss... I do not have the faintest idea..." he said at last, shrugging slightly.
The girl's delicate brows furrowed. Her lips pulled into a frown, bringing out the fact that her top was slightly too full to fit the bottom one, and she looked up at him. Her eyes squinted in faint suspicion.
"Why are you calling me Miss?" she asked it with clear confusion in her voice.
Carlisle gave her a raised brow and a wry smile.
"Because I do not know your name, despite the fact that you seem to know my own."
The girl froze, stiff as a board as she weakly pushed away from him. Her wide eyes grew impossibly larger, and her breathing seemed to stop all together. For one frantic second, he thought he heard her heart stop as well, and he wondered if the girl had suffered cardiac arrest with a jolt of panic. It nearly scared him to death(humorous considering he was already dead), and he let out a breathe of relief when her heart seemed to started again, this time at a frantic rate that thundered in his sensitive ears.
"You... You don't know who I am?" she asked it softly, almost to softly for him to hear and with a wide eyed look to her face.
He shifted uncomfortably at the gathering tears that hovered on the edge of her short lashes. He felt a bit like a crumb* as the girl's face contorted at his silence. She looked away from him, biting her lower lip and swallowing thickly. He felt horrible, and he touched her shoulder gently.
"No... I am sorry... Believe me, I have an excellent memory, and would-"
"Remember me... Yeah, I believe it comes with being a vampire." she said bluntly.
For that second time that day Carlisle felt the world beneath him fall away.
"I... What?" he asked, sharply this time.
The girl gasped, and slapped her small hands over her mouth. She looked over to him with wide eyes, the whites showing in her dismay.
"Shit."she said hoarsely.
"What ever do you mean?" he asked again, trying to keep himself composed.
The girl sighed, and gave him a timid smile.
"You know exactly what I mean Carlisle Cullen. You were turned after you chased a real pack of vampires, in London, and hid beneath decaying potato skins, and fled away from humans to save them, and ... I believe you were born either after or before Cromwell's rule... I can never remember which..." she said, furrowing her brows.
Carlisle sighed... All those were facts that no one knew, save himself, and to here it come from a stranger? Fascinating and troubling at the same time.
"Before."he said simply.
The girl managed a smile.
"Since you don't know who I am, and seem... To be dressed strangely, I can assume you aren't the Carlisle I know. Yet? Where am I and what year is it?" she said weakly, looking around, focusing on his clothing and the buildings around the Chicago river.
Carlisle blinked.
"Chicago, 1917."
The girl breathed in sharply.
"Oh. Oh."she said, then she looked at him through her short lashes.
It was a brief, look, full of emotions he could not read completely. Agony. Lost. Hope. Fear... So many things flickered through her caramel eyes, and he felt himself feel very sorry for everything the girl must be going through. Her tone when he said his name was an intimate sort of one, familiarity, and most painfully there, trust etched in there that he felt humbled, wondering just what kind of man that she knew him to be to bring forth this tone. He did not know this girl that seemed to know so much of him, and he felt like a cad because of it... Carlisle felt alarmed as the girl swayed, her eyes rolling slightly backwards. He reached out to steady her, and wished he could help the girl that claimed to know him.
"Please, don't leave me alone again... Please be there when I wake up..." she said it softly, like a prayer.
"I give you my word that I will be there." he heard his voice say distinctly.
She smiled, tears once again hovering in the corners of her expressive eyes, touching on her lashes. It was a lovely, almost angelic smile that looked off on her slightly thin face. But it was, what it was, lovely, and completely her's. And then the strange girl promptly collapsed in his arms.
~()~
When Bella woke, one thing came to her hazy, aching and throbbing brain;
Drowning? Sucks.
Her limbs felt as if they had been filled with lead, and she could hardly make the effort to breathe, let alone even attempt to move in any shape or form. Her throat felt raw, as if someone had taken sandpaper and rubbed it repeatedly inside, with the force only a vampire could have. She even couldn't seem to open her eyes at first, for they felt like they weighed tons. When she finally did, she noticed it was dark, no light lingering at the corners of the heavy curtains to her left. She noticed she was in a fairly small sized room, slightly bigger than her own room, sparsely furnished with nothing but the bed, a wardrobe, and a small end table with an old fashioned porcelain wash bowl, a glass, and a ceramic pitcher. It was chipped she noticed with a blink.
There was a faintly unlived air to the room. It was clean, no dust marred any surface, but it had distinct stale quality to the air, and Bella knew that not many people came into the room, or at least no one did very often. She moved to sit up, ignoring the ache to her ribs as she carefully moved herself to a shaky sitting position. She felt odd, as if her head was not connected right to her body, and her head, aching and all felt as if it was suspended in the air. She coughed, once, twice, her whole body heaving with the movement. With a desperate lung, she went for the chipped pitcher and the clear glass, and thanked whatever power to be as the clear, magical liquid called H2O soothed her raw throat.
It was a after a few glasses, when Bella found herself marveling that drowning made you incredibly thirsty. She inspected the dark room with caution, wondering where the hell she was. She understood she had almost drowned, the vague memories with green and dark water could lead to nothing else. She had enough experience with near death experiences involving water. She recognized the symptoms in her tired body. She sighed slightly glancing around the room again. Nothing struck her as personal, the curtains were plain and heavy, the bed comforter she sat on was a simple green. A single pillow had cushioned her head. It was a very cold room, not in temperature(though she did feel a soft coolness), but in personality. With unsteady limbs, she stood up.
She felt for second that maybe her limbs would not hold her weight(as little as it was now) but somehow she stood, steady by another miracle. It was then she noticed the rather unflattering, voluminous dressing gown she was wearing, that was definitely not her own. She frowned down at the unshapely fabric, which dragged on the floor and she somehow had not tripped over. She shook that thought away, and with another glance around the room, Bella felt an eagerness to explore flood her and see if this impersonal room had any feature that showed life. But something held her back, she was not the owner of where ever the hell she was. Rudeness for whoever pulled her from the water was not what she to do, so she refrained.
She blinked slightly in the gloom. It really was dark here... With caution, Bella felt that it was not rude to glance out the window. So with care, she pulled back the curtains. It was dark outside as well, and Bella could see just the faintest hints of dawn upon the horizon, or, at least what little she could see from it, since most of it was blocked scattered brownstone buildings that looked to be from the eastern side of the United States, covered in snow and crusted over with ice. Bit like Brooklyn or something of the sort, only cleaner, yet still as dark and tough in attitude. A winding river was to the side, dark as ink and made her shiver slightly. Maybe she had been caught in some sort of insane current and brought inland somewhere. It made sense, considering she remembered faintly being at First Beach...
She turned away, and looked into the dark room again. It was then that she noticed the door at the other end of the room. It was slightly ajar. She walked to it, and found herself met with a bathroom, reaching blindingly, she reached for the light switch, noting that it was darker in here than the room. She could barely make the shape of the tub. She found it, and flipped, blinking at the both the light and the time it took to fill the room, as well as the flickering quality to the bulb. Strange. What was even stranger still was the fact that the room was so... Odd. Old-faishoned to the tee, the tub struck her the most, claw-foot, and somehow, filled to the brim with warm inviting water, actually steaming in the slightly frigid air. Bella shifted, and then jumped as someone touched her shoulder.
She couldn't scream, but she turned swiftly as she was able to see a stout, middle-aged woman looking her with a firm glance. She was taller then Bella despite her slight hunch, and had such an air that she knew that she would not take much sass from anyone. This woman looked as if she ate nails for breakfast and was as tough as them. She was dressed in an apron, and a dress, and like the rest she had seen, old fashioned to the tee. Her graying hair was thick, and the vibrant scarlet hair was as bright as someone half her age. Then, she smiled, softly, making the hard lines soften a great degree, and make her look as gentle as a doe. A doe that held such a fierce air that would stave off any predator, and then eat them itself just simply because it was bothered.
"So, our wee sleepin' beauty awakens?" said the woman with a surprisingly soft voice, musical with what seemed to be a an Irish ascent.
Bella gave no word to the intimidating woman, and found herself wondering if he strong and tanned arms had dragged her out of the water.
"Not a talkative wan, are yeh?" asked the woman, clever eyes as bright a as evergreen.
She herself couldn't help but smile at her words.
"No." she said it, wincing at the harsh note to her voice.
She sounded like a heavy chain smoker, and felt herself flush because of it.
"Aye. well, I wouldn't blame yer, fallin' into de river wud make anyone stay silent for a few days, especially a young lady such as yerself."she said it sternly, and touched her large ruddy hand to her face.
She looked at her with a soft, pitying expression.
"Cleaned yer best I cud, an' sent you're fierce quare clothin' ter de wash, dressed yer in me own sleepin' gown. Yer slept still as de grave al' noight ."said the woman.
"Thank you, it was very kind of you to do so." said Bella automatically, feeling herself foolish.
The woman wavered her off.
"Don't tank me wane, it wus al' on de Doctor's orders. Bless 'imself. Nigh, let's git yer out av dohs lorge rags, an' into dis, its a wee on de plain side mind yer, but it wus al' I cud git, it wus me youngest daughter's. It shud fit well enoof."she said with a slight smile.
With a slight push, the woman tore off the large dressing gown that Bella swam in, stripping her with the efficiency of a well trained governess. She all but threw her into the tub, and Bella blinked and covered herself properly. An embarrassed flush came around her cheeks.
"Ah, pardon miss, I'm used ter only me laddies an' grandchildren... I did not mean ter embarrass yer. I'll leave, soap dare... Call if you're nade me. "she left without another word, shutting the door behind her.
Bella hadn't even learned her name, and felt a little stupefied. With quickness and on autopilot, she bathed, and then swiftly looked at the dress that was left for her. It was not plain, in her opinion. Just simple, white and breezy with simple lace. Beautiful to her. Complex to put on for sure, as was the underclothing, which she put on with much hesitation. She only did so because it was old fashion to the tee, just like the woman and was making the back of her mind tingle, as if she had forgotten something and was desperately trying to remember. She noted that the dress reached the ground, and still dragged. The woman's daughter was fairly tall, and very curvy she thought absently, picking at the extra fabric that hung around her body.
Without thought word Bella left the bathroom, feet bare and painted blue toe nails(something Jake had done a few days ago to cheer her up with his sheer goofiness) padding on the floor, hair dripping slightly. She left the room as well, and peaked into the hallway, the old woman stood there, and looked her up and down. She whistled softy, another smile appearing on her face, though it was slightly wolfish.
"Well ain't yer as juicy as a flower in bloom! Sure didn't luk dat way before, but I suppose that's de part av bein' drowned!"said the woman with a hearty chuckle.
Bella felt herself laugh, somewhat weakly because of the pain it caused her throat.
"I wouldn't say that ma'am."she said, smiling brightly to make up for the lack of volume in either her voice or laughter.
This only made the woman smiled.
"Waaatever yer say lassy... Nigh, before we start anythin' else, let's make sum proper introducshuns. I'm Maggie O'Riley, an' dis is me apartment buildin'... Or, well, 'tis me 'usband's, but dat auld eejit never does a tin' ter care for it, or its inhabitants. De Doctor broot yer in, an' asked I care for yer, may I ask who yer are?" said the woman, all in one breath and so quickly that Bella could hardly understand her in her tired state.
"Isabella... I prefer Bella..Mrs. O'Riley." she said, blinking.
She hadn't said her last name, on propose, and Maggie O'Riley had noticed. But the older woman said nothing, only narrowed her eyes, and latched her large, calloused hand onto Bella's.
"Well den, Miss Bella, folly me so I can git yer warmed up." she said, smiling, evergreen eyes promising to let it slide for now, but to question it fully later.
Without another word, Mrs. O'Riley dragged her out the of the room, down a hallway with two or three doors, past a parlor and into a dinning room, where a covered bowl greeted her. She was shoved with force into the chair, but with a gentle hand.
"Nigh, eat. "said Mrs O'Riley simply.
Bella found herself doing so without pause, slowly consuming a heavy stew, rich with flavors and thick with vegetables. It was almost to heavy for her to eat, after months of near starving herself the food felt almost horrible enough to make her sick. But under the watchful eye of an stern, no nonsense Irish woman, Bella forced herself every last drop, and felt her underused stomach lurch slightly as she finished.
"Nigh-"started Mrs O'Riley.
She was interrupted by the dinning room door opening, and both females blinked as Carlisle Cullen walked in. Mrs O'Riley squeaked, Bella jumped, and her eyes widen. Suddenly, where and when she was struck home, and she felt as if the world had fallen from underneath her feet. She was in the past. She had freakn' time traveled. And she had even cross a reasonable distance as well, as she was in Chicago, Illinois, and worst of all, unlike every other supernatural thing that had happened, Bella had no logical reason for it to be so. She found, somewhere in the back of her mind, that he hadn't left her alone.
"Carlisle!" she exclaimed, just as Mrs O'Riley squeaked out a "Doctor!"
The older woman looked to the younger with a surprise glance, wondering how a the girl could say a man's name so causally... A relation perhaps, thought the woman? True, the girl did not look an ounce like the good Doctor, but no other thing could explain it. The Doctor himself had come to this conclusion, and so as not arose the suspicion of the astute woman, spoke;
"Mrs O'Riley I see that you have been kind to my cousin, who lost her luggage as she fell into the Chicago, getting off her passenger boat."said Carlisle smoothly, a smile to his face.
Bella blinked at the lie, but kept silent. He was lying to keep her close to him, and Bella found no fault in it at all. This meant that he meant to keep her near for a while, and meant that she wasn't completely alone in a foreign place and time. She gave a sigh of relief, and tried to thank Carlisle with her eyes.
"Ah! It wus nathin', Miss Cullen is such a well behaved lassy, made not a fuss! " said the woman, firmly, her tough as nails attitude coming back after the initial shock of seeing a vampire faded.
She gathered the dishes, winking to Bella.
"'Ill clap yer lay-ra dear, I 'av everyone else in de buildin' ter sprog. Enjoy your visit ter your cousin."she said it with amusement to her tone and with a bounce to her step as she left, bowing her head slightly to Carlisle as she did.
Bella looked after Maggie O'Riley, and felt a small smile reach her lips. She felt she was going to like that woman.
"So, dearest 'cousin', may I perhaps ask your name?"said a deep, familiar voice.
Bella looked up, and felt her smile fade. This was her second time she 'meeting' Carlisle Cullen, and the first time he had already known her name. But, as she looked on at the Carlisle younger by a ninety or so years, she found that she really did not 'know' him. Not yet, this man had something to his stance, to his youthful face that almost made him seem the year he was changed, yet at the same time she saw the years of being alone within his molten eyes. Years without a family yet to be had made him a near stranger, and it startled her.
"Well, my dearest 'cousin', my name is Isabella Swan."she said it softly, still seated on the small dining table, fingertips winding together so as not to fidget.
Carlisle's molten eyes were curious, just like they were in the future, and it reassured Bella that maybe he hadn't changed to much.
"Well Miss Isabella Swan, how do you know me?" he asked, softly, coming around to sit at the table across from her.
His hands wound together in front of him, and he looked at her with a serious gaze and a firm brow. She sighed, and looked away. How was one suppose to explain that?
"Carlisle... Um, Doctor Cullen, I'm sorry, but that's a little hard to explain, and I don't know where to begin." she said it softly, feeling her cheeks heat at the thought.
Ex-girlfriend of the man that was to be his son? Talk about awkward. Bella also refused to listen to the voice in the back of her head that told her that Edward was human now. She was not so ready, despite the fact that she was over him, to confront that thought.
"Try the beginning, and the talk towards the end. People tend to do that."he said, and part of Bella wondered at the fact that he had just made a joke.
The Carlisle she knew was too serious or above the pretense of jokes, or at least the ones that were to simple and blunt. It seems that the one seated in front of her had a bit of growing up to do. She snorted at the thought.
"Well, it all started when I met your son."she said it wryly, looking back at him to gauge his reaction.
He did not disappoint, he sat ram straight, eyes wide. She almost giggled at his expression, but restrained herself.
"Pardon?"he asked, voice raising an octave.
Isabella Swan's eyes sparkled, her uneven lips pulling into another smile, a true smile. Carlisle found that it suited her slightly gaunt face.
"I told you it was hard to explain. Now please don't interrupt me!" she said it with a laugh.
He scowled.
"Go on, Miss." he said stiffly, trying to suppress his curiosity, what did she mean by son?
Her smile faded, and she looked past him. Her caramel eyes were a hundred miles away.
"I met your son, your family... And I fell in love with the thought of forever and unity that you all represented. I never really had that growing up... But seeing your family made me hope. Especially your son, he made me feel so much that I thought he would be the one to bring me forever and happiness. Love is what I felt for him, and I thought he had felt the same for me as well... But it seems that is not the case."she said it matter-of-factually.
Their was some pain, lingering in her voice, but there was something in her sudden, rueful smile that told him she was over... His son.
"In short, a girl meets boy vampire, girl falls, and boy vampire leaves. Girl grieves for the lost of boy vampire and the promise of a family she could never have on her own... Only that was intertwined with the fact that I had attracted the attention of three other vampires. The first was killed by your family, the second by a pack of werewolves, and the third... Well, the third is why I'm here."she finished.
"A third vampire? Werewolves? My family?" he asked, fascinated.
She bit her bottom lip.
"Yes... A nomad that tried to kill me today? Later? The werewolves are someone you eventually will met as well, or at least their ancestors... And the family is the one you will have one day."
"What family? Vampires cannot have any offspring, and I don't see that being changed. Why do you know my son, if he doesn't exists then?Why would the nomads wish to kill you in the first place?"he asked firmly, eyes surly bright with his curiosity.
Bella huffed. She never knew him to ask so many questions, or at least directed towards her! It was as if he had already known...
"The family forged by venom and choice, you will change them over the next ninety or so years, or at least your wife, fist son, first daughter, and second son. Then your oldest son, and third, who is also a vampire now, will come with your second daughter by their own free will... And technically your first son does exist right now, Edward is simply human at the moment." she said, rolling her eyes.
"Not Edward, the Mason boy?" he asked, visibly startled.
Bella felt herself start. He already knew him? She had been under the impression that he had met him at the hospital, the day of his change... She frowned, and wondered what the human Edward would think of her, with them on the same footing? Distraction she hoped, would not in his words to describe her now...
"When are you from Miss Swan?" asked Carlisle suddenly.
She sighed, breaking free from her thoughts. Human Edward would be dealt with soon enough, and though she felt the urge to find him, he was not what mattered anymore... Not yet, what matter was the fact that she was ninety years in the past. She smiled at Carlisle, applauding his intelligence.
"2006, and I am grateful that you read between the lines to see that I'm a time traveler. Most wouldn't make that leap." she said, biting her lips.
"I should be called mad for even asking, but then again, I am a vampire, something such as time travel should not be so surprising... Let me ask, how did you come to this time?"he asked, excitement in his familiar voice.
Bella simply shrugged.
"I haven't got the faintest idea, all I know was that I was going to drown in the Pacific Ocean, and the only way to survive was to travel through the strange rip in reality that I half thought I imagined. Then, BAM! I'm in Chicago, 1917, talking to someone who I already met, saved my life numerous times, and has no idea who I am."she said with a faint not of frustration in her voice.
He cocked his head to the side.
"A rip in reality?"
"Something like that, I can't really describe it any other way, it was about a foot long, and well, when I pulled, it grew bigger, and bigger, then I went through. Strange tunnel like that in Willy Wonka, and next thing I know I'm in the Chicago river. And Lord and behold, there you are, saving my life again..."she said, babbling, she knew.
His eyes, so curious it almost made him look juvenile, sparkled with delight and faint humor.
"You seem to be distressed." he said it simply and without pretext.
Bella, despite herself, let out a very loud, and unladylike snort.
"Wouldn't you? I mean, if you suddenly were thrust with the Denalis without them knowing you, in the past no less... You'd be freaking out as well Doctor Cullen. Or terribly excited at the scientific prospect." she said it dryly and without real restraint.
Carlisle cocked his head to the side, and Bella wonder if it was a habit he had picked up to appear more human.
"The Denalis? Who are they?" he asked brightly.
Bella let her head fall onto the table, enjoying the loud SMACK! that was produced because of it. She sighed. He didn't even know the Denalis? Granted, she didn't know them herself, but they were someone who could be some sort of connection to her memories. She wondered faintly when he met them.
"Never mind."he said, gently.
Silence ruled the dinning room. Bella found no fault in silence, she had once lived for moments like these when she had lived with her mother, and she kept her breathing steady as she stared at the grains of the wooden table. She felt tired, exhausted really, exhausted of all the maelstrom of paranormal events. Granted, Bella had never been a normal human being to begin with, but it was still a sort of strange turn events for someone who had been ever the skeptic when it first had happened. Now, if she could count off her fingers, from what she remembered, she fallen in love with a vampire and befriended and come to love his family, nearly killed and turned into a vampire, left by said vampire like a piece of meat(though that could happen to anyone, not just people with paranormal relationships), hunted by two other vampires, protected and befriended by werewolves, and then promptly thrust into the past and over a hundred miles to her current location and time. She sighed, and promptly lifted her head, and looked at Carlisle Cullen of the past with a critical gaze.
"Your hair is longer."she said it softly, curious in her observation of him.
It really was, his hair in his time was cropped much shorter than it was now, neat and just long enough to curl slightly around his ears. Now his golden locks were almost, but not quite to his shoulders, lovely and bright even in the dim light. His hand whipped up, vampire speed to run through his hair. It struck her as a movement that Edward had done very often, in nervousness or stress. It seemed to be a learned trait she thought.
"Perhaps I cut it by the time I met you."he said.
"Yeah... It curled around your ears... It made you look older, but not by much."she said with a faint chuckle.
He chuckled as well.
"Its hard to appear older with a face like my own."he said good naturedly.
"I bet."she said with a small grin, still looking up at him, cheek against the table.
His eyes sparkled, and Bella supposed he was taking all this fairly well. But at the same time, she could see the slightly wary shape of his shoulders, the slight narrowing of his eyes. His eyes in her time were wide with trust, and his shoulders relaxed, almost lazy around her. He didn't trust her completely, she could see the difference between his future and present self. She was a stranger that knew him, and it made him both wary and curious enough to keep her close. She was under no delusion that he liked her at the moment.
"May I stay here Doctor Cullen?With you? Forgive my forwardness, but you are the only soul I will know for another ninety years."she asked, feeling odd for saying his name so formally,(or speaking this formally and old schooled) yet saying so felt made her feel a tad bit better about her current situation.
He looked at her with dark eyes, no longer the the bright blazing color of melted honey or molten gold. It was a dark butterscotch, and she knew that his absence from here that Ms. O'Riley had spoken about must have been his shift at the hospital. This strange yet familiar man was looking at her with almost no expression, his body went entirely still, like a strange statue with eyes that were very much alive.
"Why my dear Isabella, are you my cousin or are you not?" he responded softly.
Bella smiled.
"Bella."she said softly.
"Pardon?"he asked.
"Bella. I always thought Isabella was such a plain, old fashioned name. I've protested that name since I was little. My mother finally gave up one day, when I got hurt because I hadn't responded to my name and said that I was Bella then. The name has stuck ever since."she said it softly, telling a story she hardly ever told anyone.
Not even Edward knew why she had insisted to be called as such(For he had never asked). It was a tribute to the love and affection her mother had had for her... And telling Carlisle was a form of trust he hoped she would respond to.
"Well, Miss Bella 'Cullen', welcome to Chicago, 1917. And welcome to my home,cousin." he said.
And Bella nervously smiled at his words, wondering how the hell, with a jolt of panic, was she going to get her home?
AN: I do not own Twilight, it belongs to its respected publishers and authoress, Stephanie Meyer.
*Cad is a reference to man who is behaving inappropriately toward women.
*Crumb is a mean, despicable person.
So yeah, chapter two is done! Just to say, there will be a total of ten chapters(Not including prologue and epilogue). But it will be lengthy nonetheless. And it will hopefully take me a short time to write this story, but I'm a little slow when it comes to updating, and I'd like to forewarn people reading this. Thank you for those who do, and I hope that it will continue to do so, and review as well. Reviews keep us authors going!
Next Chapter; Glass Bones
~Peace,
Moon Witch
