A/N: hehe... sorry for how late this is. I was seriously planning on getting it out yesterday but I was running late on finishing my character analysis of Alice in Alice in Wonderland for English class...so I was working on that instead. This chapter was kinda odd to write. I had all sorts of random things I know will happen, but stringing them together took the longest time ever :o. I have a feeling I probably over did some of the parts between Edward and Bella... forgive me on those. I'm planning on next chapter to be some sort of a fluff chapter... but I'll see how good I am at writing fluff suited for Bella's personality (thinks thoughtfully).


Chapter 7

The next morning, I was up bright and early, praying to avoid Leon for the rest of the day should he ask what had happened last night. Slipping on a loosely tucked blouse and a skirt, I sneaked my way to the door. Opening it and closing it, I sighed with relief as Leon didn't notice me. I looked up. Or…maybe not. There stood Leon with his hands on his hips staring at my behavior.

"I would guess that you don't want to talk about last night and why that man 'escorted' you home," he said.

"You don't miss many guesses," I replied.

He tapped his feet, obviously waiting for me to elaborate. Sighing, I answered his unspoken question. "On the way back, I met six of those bullies you told me about. Edward helped me defeat them."

His eyebrows rose. "And if he hadn't been there?"

I swore. Leon could be so picky about information. "If he hadn't been there, I'd probably have been dead and am now bleeding on the streets." I sighed. "Fine. He saved me, happy?"

To my complete surprise, he chuckled. "Sometimes I worry if you're ever going to find yourself a husband." I stared at him.

"I'm not amused by that."

"Ha! If Charlie's here, he'd have been worried sick about your lack of relationships." He snorted at his own joke. Men.

"If you're done with your enjoyment, I've work to do."

"Be careful, Bells. I wouldn't know what to tell yer father if you somehow landed in heaven before me," he called. I waved.

--

The streets were sunny and busy, unlike the previous night. I fingered the hidden pocket in my skirt, cursing my clothes again. I'd personally rather wear 'Key's' clothing, but I knew Leon would disapprove. I only had one coin stashed away. Looks like I'm going to take a trip to the gamble hut.

There was only one way one can enter a gambling place with only one coin and leave with as many as one wants without the owners kicking one out for suspicious cheating even when you didn't….and that was, to make it seem like one was loosing more than gaining. No one kicks out the losers…that'd mean bad business.

"What's a wench like you doing in a gambling alley?" sneered a man.

"Gambling. Is there something else to do here other than gamble?" The man snorted in reply. I only smiled. "I've only one coin, you see. If you can win it from me, you will never see me again." I flipped my coin. It was one of the rare golden ones. I knew it was wrong of me to just assume he wanted me gone, but I rarely miss my predictions.

"I'll bet your triple," he answered. I smirked, putting down my coin. And here he thought he could actually win and keep this place girl-free.

The cards were dealt and five minutes later, I laid down a royal flush. I reached to take his coins but he snatched it away. "I will add nine coins to my bet for another game," he said angrily. I just shrugged. The dealer shuffled and dealt the cards again. I had another flush. His eyes widened in disbelief. "Last game!" he sneered. I was cautious, however. Men like this never lost. I win this game I will be entitled to all he presented…as well as a fight.

True enough, when I laid down yet another flush and won again, he stood up over me menacingly. "This here's a cheater!"

"And this here can't accept the fact that he just lost three times to a lady," I snorted. I knew I was provoking him, but no one ever called me a cheater with impunity. I had intuition and that was that. I visibly saw his face swell, instinctively ducking as his fist flew at me. I remembered all those times I dodged Leon and learned those tricks. My foot shot out as I twisted around and before he even knew what happened, he was on the ground with my foot pressed tightly against his chest. "And you just lost again," I whispered to him softly.

The man growled low in his throat. With a wrench, he escaped from my foothold, leapt up and came at me with full charge. I shifted, getting ready to dodge when someone roughly pushed me away. I fell hard on the floor, watching as that 'someone' took my blow for me. He grunted at the impact, but his hand came down in a chopping motion on the other man's neck. The frenzied man slumped to the floor.

My savior came to me, pulling me up to my feet, as if unaware that I didn't need help. That was when I noticed his hair. Oh God! He looked up at that moment. His eyes widened.

We stared at each other for a moment, both surprised. Our mouths opened and shut, unable to form the words. I broke out of it first. "It's you again!" I said, shocked. Edward Cullen. Why does he seem to be stalking me?

"Yes, it's me again," he replied, almost as if he wanted to be anywhere but here. "And I just saved you again. Shouldn't I have some sort of appreciation for my effort this time?"

I snorted. "If you didn't intervene, he might not be quite so unconscious… but rather be fleeing down the street. Now you'll have to explain to the police that you knocked a man out."

He scratched his head. "Right," he muttered impishly.

"Now, if I were you, I'd be getting myself out of here. Speaking of which, I should get myself out of here." Taking the money I had won and scooping it all into a makeshift bag, I turned my heel to go.

"Wait!"

"What?" I kept on walking, realizing that he was chasing after me.

"I'm going to follow you." I was at the entrance now. At his words, I stopped dead and turned around to glare at him.

"If this is another form of your chivalry, save it for another girl." He caught up to me now.

"How do you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Seem to know what exactly I'm thinking." I snorted at that, turning to go again. He caught up with me easily. Curse my short height and the lack of ropes.

"I don't."

He sighed in frustration. "That's not what I meant!"

"I know," I said, smiling. As we left the small, cramped path that led to the gambling alley, the sun shone full force down on us. The streets were busy, filled with people. The tailors were getting the best of the business. Port festival was, after all, in only six days. The original purpose of the yearly festival was for the courtesans to loosen up their demeanor and actually feel the freedom to choose their own partners. As their class degraded to common prostitute levels, the festival became better known until everyone started participating. However, the legacy of the courtesans was left behind: everyone had to wear masks for the entire night. People were forbidden to tell their identities; couples who met for the first time during the dances rarely find each other again. Anonymous fun, the call it.

But even in the busy streets, I could spot the little buggers – troublemakers praying to play a joke. I always waved to them cheerily, even though they just frowned and left. Edward followed me, true to his words, never saying a word. He just raised an eyebrow at me whenever I waved to some 'nonexistent' person as if I was insane.

"I'm not hallucinating, you know?" I explained, surprising myself. I needn't have.

He raised an eyebrow in confusion. "You're telling me you aren't just waving to the air?"

I grabbed his hand, using his fingers to point to another street tramp. "That's who I was waving to. They disappear when they realize I see them, you see. I moved his finger around, pointing to yet another head that quickly disappeared. "And that one had been following us ever since we left the gambling alley. I think he wants to hit me with a water balloon." I chuckled.

"How do you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Know what people are thinking!"

"Didn't you just ask that question?" I raised my eyebrow. He was getting frustrated.

"And you didn't answer."

"It's called intuition. Heard that word before?" He glared in reply, looking over my shoulder instead of at me. The sun was shining directly at him. His bronze colored hair almost seemed to glow. I stepped away from him, as if unconsciously afraid of him. I owed him two 'lives' now, although the second technically didn't count, he still intervened on my behalf. I was in the middle of the street when he suddenly turned his head right.

That's when I heard it: the unmistakable screeching of wheels and horses that meant a horse cart was out of control. His eyes tensed, widening in obvious shock as he looked between me and the out-of-control-horse-cart. I knew I should run to the side of the street as soon as possible, but for once in my life, my dexterity failed me. I couldn't move, only to brace for the impact of the horse. Without even looking back, I knew it was coming straight at me and that it was already too late to run.

I closed my eyes, sending a silent prayer to the heavens that I'd die quickly. Seconds passed. It was as if time was playing tricks and made each second an hour.

And then I was airborne, encased in a cocoon of sudden warmth. Arms seemed to wrap around me, and my fall was cushioned by a body. There was a curse, and then a voice frantically talking to me. Oh why does that voice sound so familiar!

"Are you alright?" Hands pressed themselves against my forehead, my cheeks, sliding down my arms as if checking for bruises.

"You dare patting around me as if I'm a bruised apple, then I won't be alright," I groaned.

"Then, in that case, you'd better get off of me. I'm quite winded." The body beneath me shook, and I jumped up with a start. "Second time I saved you today. Don't I get some form of thank you this time?"

"You're the one that had to follow me around. If you hadn't, I wouldn't have been there at that time. I swear, you're my bad luck." He snorted at that.

"Very well," he admitted. "But I demand your name."

"Bella," I said, offering my hand to help him up. He took it, but he didn't help at all. "Fine!" I shouted at him, frustrated. "Thank you. Is that better?" He responded by leaping to his feet and began walking. I realized how big of a crowd I had attracted. My face burned in embarrassment. Bella of Port Sarijam never needed saving before. My reputation has been going down the drain ever since I got on the pirate ship, I sighed.

"I could get used to you knowing what I think," he laughed. I stuck my foot out in front of him. He stumbled forward a few steps, barely managing to keep from falling flat on his face. "What was that for?" he glared.

"What was what for?" I asked innocently. "You should be more careful," I tsked. "People would think you're a hazard to the streets!" His eyes narrowed but he said nothing. Sighing at his stubbornness, I continued. "You'd think that after this many put-downs, you'd try to save your pride and leave me alone. Any normal person would."

"You'd think that after handing out so many insults without results, you'd be tired of it. Any normal person would," he mocked. I glared at him.

"I'm not normal, then, am I?"

"Neither am I." I huffed at his reply. I sombered up quickly though, but I didn't know why.

"I'm sorry," I offered. He stumbled again.

"What?"

"I'm sorry. Thanks for saving me," I repeated. He stood there, stunned. "What?"

"Do you have a mental illness? Hallucinations? Fevers?" He started to feel my forehead for a fever. I swatted him off.

"I was rude and now I thank you and you think I have schizophrenia?"

"Yes!" he answered, throwing his hands up dramatically. "You were arguing about your independence one moment and thanking me the next? What else am I supposed to think?"

"You're impossible," I muttered. "But I still owe you my life twice over."

And with that, I left him standing, stunned, in the middle of the streets.

--

The next three days were surprisingly uneventful. Though Jessica and Angela tried to get me something 'fashionable' to wear, I was content in watching them fuss over pieces of cloth as long as they didn't bring said cloth anywhere near me.

The day of the Port Festival drew nearer and nearer. Often, I wandered aimlessly around the sprawling city, listening to gossip and old tales. One in particular caught my attention. The old women were saying that there was something not quite alive living in the rotten empty cabins outside of town. Two people frequently visit it, and these two people were asking the same question: Was there anyone named Swan in town.

Leon had warned me to never say my surname unless in a life-or-death situation that will save my life. And now there were people looking for that surname.

"Bells!" Angela hurried to me, giving me a great hug.

"Angela," I acknowledged.

"What brings you here?"

"There's some rumor that some people are trying to find a person named Swan. Do you know of that?" Angela chuckled.

"Someday, I shall teach you the proper way of showing patience." At my glare, she gulped, but continued. "They aren't sure if they're actually looking for a girl or boy…imagine that! They only know that he…or she… has a surname of Swan. Whoever these men are looking for, I think he or she will be in big trouble. Did you see those men? They are huge! Like elephants!"

I laughed at her antics. She was waving her arms about. "Oh! And they also say that they're looking for some sort of amulet. Blue in color; apparently heart-shaped, and that if we have any that fits the description, they will pay much for it. Can you believe it? Fifteen thousand! If I was a jeweler, I'd be making lots and lots of copies to get all that money." She continued to ramble on, but I stopped listening. My thoughts went to my own amulet. Was that the one they were looking for? But what's so special about it?

Lost in my thoughts again, I barely had time to dodge a well-aimed pan at my forehead. Jessica was holding said pan and glaring at me. "Are you even listening to what we're saying?"

I smiled sheepishly. "No…but I did listen to that pan. It would've hurt."

Jess sighed. "Port festival is tomorrow. We're expecting you to be here by noon at latest to help us help you get ready. Do I make myself clear?" I nodded absentmindedly, only to dodge another pan attack. "I'm being serious, Bella!"

"Yes, yes! I heard!" I sighed. "I'll be here by noon, don't worry." I ran away, afraid that if I zone off in front of them again, I will have to dodge more than one pot. I chuckled. They've learned that they could rarely hit me with anything, which is why they've resorted to pots. It was heavy enough that the last time I slipped in my defenses, it gave me a headache for three weeks straight and taught me to beware of their promises. I'm glad they hadn't used the knives yet. Now, that would be deadly.


You guys have no idea how much reviews helped me :D I would say now that if I didn't get 2-3 reviews for each chapter, this story would've never gotten so far (Average of 30-some reviews per chapter! :D)

So...next chapter, I'm hoping to write about the port festival. That's gonna be my fluff base... I'll see how I can do it. I did have a lot of fun writing this chapter... but as I said before, I may have made Bella a little more insolent than I should've. (sigh) oh well.

Tell me what you think of this :D Here's my little disclaimer that I still have my last 7-page paper of the year to write (which I only have 1/2 pages). I'm hoping to finish the next chapter by next weekend (after the paper is due but just before finals start) but don't quote me on that... hehe ... I'm known to miss my estimates by up to 800 percent before (blushes -- it was one of those science labs where you guess what is the weight of something...I stink at those) ... lol

Much thanks -- Cathy