The waxing moon hangs low in the ominously black sky, without a single star to grace it's perfect darkness. Below the moon lie many rolling hills. Atop one of these hills sits a girl, underneath an ancient oak tree. The girls young, sad face gazes thoughtfully at the moon, wondering if it feels as lonesome as she does at this very moment.
She looks at the tree she sits against, It's bare branches stretched to the sky, as if trying to comfort the moon. As if to tell him he's not alone.
The girl wonders where the stars have gone. She wonders many things. But most of all, she wonders how she got to this place.
She faintly remembers a life. She can almost remember her name. Almost in her picture it in her mind's eye.
So the girl sits there for a while, It could be minutes or hours, as she pieces together her broken life. It seems as if time is as insignificant as she feels.
Emma…
The wind whispers through the old tree and the girls face lights up, that's her name!
Emma!
She cannot tell if it is, in fact, the wind that whispers to her or if someone is calling for her. So Emma leans forward, listening intently, patiently.
Finally, in the distance! Something is moving towards her, weaving a path through the tall grass. She feels almost alarmed, but she feels that no harm can come to her here, not in this place.
The woman that moves gracefully towards her is beautiful, Emma thinks. It only takes her a moment to realize who this wonderful being is.
Mother!
She calls out, but she notices that she has not even opened her mouth, but the woman hears her, a smile breaking over her delicate face.
Her beautiful green eyes speak to her, the way that Emma had just spoken.
My beautiful girl, I wondered when you would come back to me…
Emma smiles happily, standing to greet her with an embrace.
They sit silently underneath the oak tree, gazing up at the sky.
I saved some stars, for you.
She tells her daughter, and with a gentle wave of her hand, a few twinkling stars appear next to the moon.
I promise I'll bring more next time.
Emma tells her, and leans her head on the woman's shoulder.
You will have to leave soon. You can't stay here.
Her mother looks down at her, sadness in her eyes.
I can feel them pulling you back already.
Emma is confused. Where was she going? She belonged here, with her mother.
Be cautious, the next while will be very difficult for you , I think. Be wary of the red eyes. I will be with you, I will try to show you the way.
Emma grasps her mother's hand tightly in her own. She feels dizzy, and so cold. Trying to fight it, she tightens her grip on her mother, holding her gaze with stubborn tenacity.
Remember, a certain darkness is needed to see the stars.
Emma smiles softly at this, looking up at the sky, she closed her eyes and let go.
…..
The first things that Emma notices when she comes to, is the softness of the sheets beneath her, and the sick feeling that something is very wrong. The kind of feeling that sits in the pit of your stomach, threatening to consume you.
With that thought, her eyes fly open and she knows in that moment that she is going to be sick.
Emma's eyes darted around the room in panic. Where was she? How had she gotten here?
She noticed two doors, one that was closed, and the other that was ajar with a sink in view. In three seconds flat she was in front of that sink, her stomach heaving desperately. But she knew there was nothing for her to expel.
"No , no , no…" she moans, laying her forehead on the cool tiled floor. Emma closes her eyes, just for a minute she promises herself, but that minute turned into a few and the darkness surrounded her once more.
It was different this time. She knew she was asleep, but she could hear everything around her, Soft voices and rustling of sheets.
"How could you bring her here?" A woman snapped.
"Calm down Rose, You know Alice and Jasper did the right thing." A man's voice replied.
Emma could feel herself fading in and out of consciousness, so many voices. Arguing voices.
"…Should have taken her to the hospital…"
"….Saw something , I'm almost positive it was…."
"….mess, her family will surely be…."
Emma struggled, pushing herself to wake up, regaining control of her body had never been this difficult before.
"What's… what's happening?" Emma managed to whisper.
Suddenly everything was dead silent. Struggling, Emma opened her eyes. It took nearly all of her strength to pry them open, they felt so heavy.
At first, the room was a blur, two figures stood at the foot of the giant bed she lay in. At the door stood two more figures, quite larger than the first two.
Slowly, the room came into focus
"Emma? How are you feeling?"
A blonde man stood beside her now, Where had he come from? He seemed strangely familiar to her.
"Emma, can you hear me? Jasper and Alice found you; you must have collapsed on your way home. They brought you here knowing it was closer than the hospital."
Emma was confused, She didn't remember leaving the school… She remembered….
She tried to sit up, only to be held down by the blonde man.
"It's probably best you take it slow. I'm Doctor Cullen, You're okay now, you don't need to be afraid."
Emma glanced around, taking in her surroundings. The room was large, but strangely bare. With only a king size bed and a nightstand, the room was practically empty. Her eyes widened when she noticed the far wall, or lack thereof. The entire side of the room was a window looking outside, where rain was pouring down in sheets.
Emma felt heat crawl up her neck when she realized they were not alone. She recognized the four of them from school.
Alice, Rosalie, Edward… And Jasper.
All four of them had a different expression gracing their perfect faces.
"You scared us to death you know." Alice grinned at her from her perch on the end of the bed. She looked far too happy to be scared, in Emma's opinion.
Edward stood beside her, a curious gaze locked onto her. Emma looked away uncomfortably, her eyes falling to the blonde by the window.
Rosalie stood by the window, a deep scowl contorted her face that actually made her look… almost ugly.
Edward laughed, startling Emma out of her thoughts.
"I need to go home." Emma said awkwardly, noticing how dark it was outside and suddenly realizing how panicked her foster mother would be.
"We've called Cathryn to let her know what happened." Edward informed her.
"Unfortunately, you hit your head pretty hard on your way down, Carlisle thinks you have a concussion and we should keep an eye on you… doctor's orders." Alice smiled kindly.
Emma could feel the nausea creep up on her again. Something was wrong, her head pounded, she felt so disoriented. She looked at the door on the other side of the room, the only escape route. Leaning against the doorway was Jasper, his eyes fixed on the hardwood floor.
Carlisle nodded to Alice, who stood gracefully and shooed the others from the room. One glance, That's all it took. Jasper looked up for only a moment, locking eyes with her for only a split second as he turned to go.
Emma threw herself from the bed, bolting for the bathroom and falling to her knees in front of the toilet, heaving and gasping for air. When her stomach finally got the message that there was nothing for her to throw up, she laid her head on the seat of the toilet, uncaring of how pathetic and totally unsanitary this whole situation was.
She fought back the dizziness and the tears that threatened to consume her. She sat completely still.
A cold hand rubbed her back and shoulders, startling her at first, but it felt good, the small hands were so cold.
"I'm so sorry Emma." A soft voice said beside her.
Emma opened her eye slowly, Alice sat next to her on the cold tile floor. Her golden eyes were wide and sad.
Alice continued to rub her back, Emma leaned into the tiny girl, resting her head on her shoulder. The girls cool skin felt so good on her hot head.
"I'm so tired." Emma whispered.
"I know." She answered. "Come, let's get you back to bed."
Emma nodded pathetically, accepting the hand up when Alice gave it. She managed to make it back to the bed, where Alice pulled back the covers so Emma could climb in.
"Carlisle said you should take these, They will help you sleep." She said, handing Emma three small white pills and a glass of water that had been sitting on the night table.
Without question, Emma slammed them back and lay down, curling into a ball.
That night, she dreamt.