Sadly, I am not Stephenie Meyer and, sadly, I do not own Twilight, Bella, Edward, Alice, Jasper, or any of them. Please R and R!! That would make me happy!

Chapter 4 - Realization - Bella's POV

They sat there in silence, until the sun had fully risen, enjoying one another's company. After a while though, Bella heard Edward sigh. She glanced up at him and he smiled down at her.

"You must be thirsty," he said, a bitter edge in his voice, despite his smile.

"Not really," she said, shrugging. "I ate last night."

She felt him stiffen and she realized, a second too late, how it must have sounded to him.

"Don't worry," she said soothingly. "I didn't kill anyone. There was a bear in the woods and the scent rolling off of it…" Bella sighed as she remembered the sweet odor that had emanated from the bear's fur. She was so lost in the memory that it was a second before she realized that Edward wasn't breathing.

"What?" she asked, frowning up at him. He didn't answer immediately, but looked down at her, searching her face. After a while, it was obvious that he didn't find what he was looking for and his eyes narrowed.

"A bear?" he asked finally, disbelief etched on his face.

"Yea," Bella said, shrugging again. "I had a bear for dinner. So what? You do it all the time."

"But…you thought it smelled good?"

"Yes."

"Bella…" Edward took a deep breath and stared down at her, his voice troubled. "Bears don't smell good, not even a little bit."

Bella's brow furrowed in confusion. "But it did."

Edward took another deep breath and it seemed that he was trying to steady himself. Bella frowned up at him wondering why he was having such a hard time believing that a bear smelled good. The silence stretched on as Edward continued to take deep steadying breaths and Bella watched him. Finally, Bella could take it no more.

"Is there something wrong, Edward?" she asked, her voice troubled.

He stared at her for a moment and then abruptly stood up.

"We need to go talk to Carlisle," he said, eying Bella carefully. "Climb on," he added, crouching down a bit so she could get on his back.

"I can run at your speed now," she said, her eyes suddenly lighting up at the prospect and a brilliant smile gracing her flawless lips.

Edward smiled briefly, though his eyes remained troubled, and straightened up and held out his hand. Together, they took off running.

Bella felt a great sense of happiness and accomplishment as she ran alongside Edward, her hair flying out behind her. This, more than anything else that had happened since her transformation, made her realize that she was finally on level ground with him. She finally felt that she was worthy to stand next to Edward as his love and his equal. Her heart sang with joy at the thought.

It didn't take them long to reach the house as they had not gone far to begin with. They slowed to a reasonably paced walk as they neared the front door and Edward held the door open for Bella, just like the gentleman he was. As Bella stepped across the threshold, she smiled. She had been a vampire less than a week and, already, the Cullen house felt like home. Edward stepped through the door behind her and grabbed her hand, heading for Carlisle's office. When they knocked, they were immediately told to come in.

Bella had only been in Carlisle's office once before and she was struck again by how much it resembled what she thought a college dean's office would look like. Carlisle was seated behind his desk, going over a large medical textbook. He looked up as she and Edward entered and smiled warmly.

"Lovely morning," he said, smiling brightly. It was, indeed, a lovely morning, one of those rare days in Forks where the sun was not obscured by clouds. Bella smiled and nodded. Edward did not respond, but gazed intently at Carlisle.

"Bella told me something interesting just a bit ago," Edward began, watching Carlisle carefully.

Carlisle glanced at Bella, his eyebrows raised slightly. Edward nodded at her, indicating that she should tell the story.

"I was out in the woods last night," she began, her brow furrowed. "I was just out there thinking, trying to work through some stuff, when all of the sudden this…amazing scent slammed into me. I was on my feet immediately and I chased after the scent, but I was surprised when I found the source of it. I was expecting a human, but…it was a grizzly bear. A big black one. It growled at me, so I growled back and it started to back away. I flew at it and bit its neck and then…well…you know the rest." Bella waved her hand flippantly as if she routinely described biting an angry grizzly bear and then drinking its blood. Her hand froze in mid-air when she saw the look on Carlisle's face.

"What?" she asked, afraid for the first time since she had told Edward about the bear. She looked over at Edward and found him staring at her in disbelief again. Carlisle shook his head, as if trying to clear it and then seemed to recover himself enough to speak.

"This is…amazing," Carlisle said, his voice awed and slightly breathless. "You're attracted to animal blood."

Bella frowned at Carlisle, not quite understanding what was amazing about that. "Aren't all vampires?"

Edward snorted and Bella turned to glare at him.

"I'm sorry Bella," he said, fighting down a laugh. "But that was just too much. No, vampires are not attracted to animal blood, just the same way that most humans are not attracted to dirt. Vampires are meant to drink human blood. What we do, and what the clan in Denali does, is against our very nature, our very instincts. Animal blood will satisfy us enough to get by, but it will never be a natural and perfect food source."

Bella's mouth fell open as she grasped the implications of what he was saying. She turned to look at Carlisle.

"But then…why am I attracted to animal blood?"

Carlisle smiled. "I think you have a special ability, rather like Edward, Alice, and Jasper," he said, looking thoughtful.

Bella frowned. "My special ability is being attracted to animal blood?" she asked incredulously.

Edward shook his head, smiling the first true smile since she had first told him of the bear. "What Carlisle means is that you're attracted to animal blood, so therefore the next logical step is to assume that you might not be attracted to human blood. Do you have any idea what this may mean, Bella?"

Bella shook her head, feeling overwhelmed. Edward smiled again, his golden eyes shining.

"You may never have to avoid humans, Bella," he said softly, his eyes burning into hers. "You may be able to live as normal an existence as any vampire ever lived."

Bella's eyes widened as she finally understood. She looked at Carlisle, who smiled radiantly and nodded at her, confirming what Edward had said.

"Can we test this?" she asked Carlisle, wondering if it could possibly be true.

Carlisle's smiled faded a little and he looked thoughtful again. "Well," he said slowly. "If we take precautions, I don't see why we couldn't."

Edward walked to Bella's side and put his arm around her waist. "Why don't Jasper, Emmett, and I go with her? Even with the strength of a newborn she won't be able to fight off all three of us."

Carlisle nodded. "That sounds like a good plan. Where are you going to take her?"

Edward looked up thoughtfully, running his hand absentmindedly up Bella's side. She shivered and Edward smiled.

"I think the forest just outside the Newton's store. That ought to be close enough to smell the humans, but not close enough that we can't restrain her without attracting too much attention."

Carlisle smiled. "I have a feeling that that won't be necessary, but your plan is a good one."

Edward turned and strode from the room, pulling Bella with him. He called to Jasper and Emmett as he walked and they found them waiting in the living room, looking curious.

"Ready to go, Eddie?" Emmett asked, his eyes alight with humor. Bella stifled a laugh while Edward glared, looking like the vampire he really was.

"Don't call me Eddie," he said through clenched teeth. "Are you ready to go, Bella?" He asked, his eyes softening as he looked at her. She smiled back reassuringly and nodded. Taking her hand, Edward dashed out the door. Emmett and Jasper followed close behind.

It took them about ten minutes to reach the Newton's store. They slowed as they neared and took a position some ten yards into the woods near the front corner of the building. Edward put his arm tightly around Bella's waist and Jasper and Emmett took strategic positions around them, ready to spring the moment Bella lost control. They only had to wait for a moment before they heard a car pull up in front of the store. Edward's arm, already tight around Bella's waist, snaked farther around her, holding her tenderly and yet firmly at the same time. Jasper and Emmett tensed.

Bella only had to wait a few seconds before a scent reached her nose. Instinctively, she recoiled, scrunching up her nose in disgust. She felt Edward's iron arm around her waist and she could feel Emmett and Jasper holding her arms tightly. She was too disgusted to care though.

"What is that horrible smell?" she asked, feeling sick.

Emmett and Jasper let go of her suddenly and she felt Edward's arm loosen around her mid-section. Surprised, she looked up at Edward and found his angel's face written with shock.

"Impossible," he whispered. "Absolutely impossible."

A/N: So now you know what Bella's special ability it! I know it's been done before, but I really think this is a likely scenario, given her aversion to blood when she is human. Oh and stick around for the next chapter! I've got an explanation for why Bella's such an emotional rollercoaster. ;)

Oh and thank you all for reading! This has been one of my most successful stories ever, even if I am only four chapters in! I really and truly appreciate it! Please RR!!