A/N: Hi! So sorry I haven't posted in a while! Life just got in the way, and I finally had time to type up another chapter! I am posting two chapters this week. Hope you enjoy!

If you have followed, favorited, or reviewed my story, thank you! It really does inspire me.

Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or any of its characters. Unfortunately

Chapter 10 - Alec

Alec POV:

I sat next to Bella, holding her hand as she went through the change. It had been 38 hours since I first bit her. I hated that she was in this much pain. I almost couldn't finish initiating the change when I first heard her whimper. But I knew I had to. This pain was necessary and unavoidable, if she truly wanted to become like me.

My throat burned with thirst; making love to Bella and then biting her without draining her made my need for blood more urgent. I knew that I should hunt, but I couldn't. My gift only reached her when I was touching her. And even then, it only took the edge off; she still whimpered in pain at times. Still, if it helped her even a little, I was glad. I would gladly suffer from the burn in my throat if it helped her suffer the fires of the change less.

My mind drifted to when I made love to her. I was shocked when she asked me to make love to her. It saddened me when I realized that she didn't believe herself worthy of me. Hopefully, when she is a vampire like me, she will overcome her insecurities. If not, then I will just have to remind her again of how beautiful and amazing she is. And again. And again. Until she believes it herself.

I almost lost my control three times. She only caught on to it the first time. The second time was when I entered her, purging her of her virginity. I kissed her tears away to distract myself from the fact that she was bleeding, whispering apologies. The third time was when our orgasms hit; I nearly marked her right then and there. But I somehow I resisted the urge, and instead pulled out to lie beside her until she could form coherent thoughts again.

After she came back to me, I got up to run her a hot bath. She was sure to be sore after our activities. The hot water would help soothe some of the muscles that should be aching by now. I hated that I wasn't able to be gentler with her. I wish I could have refrained from being that rough with her. But the bleeding, the sound of her heart, and the fact that she was not yet a vampire officially marked as my mate, it all became too much and my urges to claim and mark her were too strong. I barely resisted them, and as a result, I was too rough with her.

When the bath was full, I picked her up and set her down gently before telling her I would be back. I used my speed to change the sheets and throw the other ones into a bin to throw out later before I joined her and opened my arms to her.

I was nervous of her reaction to me, after seeing me struggle to not mark her. After I grabbed her everywhere hard enough to leave bruises. She didn't show fear at the time, but I was afraid of a delayed reaction. Would she see only the monster inside of me, or would she still trust that I was in control of myself? The relief I felt when she let me hold her in the bath was overwhelming; she wasn't afraid of me.

I destroyed the evidence of our lovemaking right after I bit her, opening the windows to get rid of the scent and throwing the sheets into the fireplace to burn. If Demitri or even worse Felix had gotten a whiff at the smell of our union, they would tease both of us mercilessly. While I was used to it, I would not subject Bella to their teasing. I would not let them embarrass her if I could help it.

I hope that once she is like me, she won't be afraid of my sister anymore. She wouldn't admit it out loud, and might even be denying it to herself, but it was obvious to everyone that she feared Jane, if only a little. I couldn't blame her though, not after the display she witnessed months ago. She is warming up quickly to Dem and Felix, the oafs that they are, but she is still very hesitant to be alone with my sister. I hoped that would change soon.

I was brought out of my musings when I felt the hand that was holding hers was being pushed away from her slightly. I made to grab her hand up again, only to encounter an invisible barrier. Perplexed, I glanced up to look at the rest of her to see what looked like another barrier, this one a transparent blue in color slowly rising up her body, moving to cover every inch of her.

I panicked and yelled for Aro as I watched it encase her, and slowly sink into her until it appeared to be only a thin film of some substance. Once again I tried to grab her hand, to stroke her cheek, and then just to touch her somewhere. But the barrier held firmly in place, and would not allow it. What the hell?

Aro walked in swiftly, looking alarmed at my frantic shout for him, "What's wrong my son?"

I pointed to Bella, "I was holding her hand. And then suddenly I wasn't. When I tried to hold her hand again, there was a sort of invisible barrier preventing me from touching her. And then this transparent barrier encased her, and sank into her. That barrier is a transparent blue. And now I can't touch her at all."

Aro looked thoughtful for a minute, "I see. Were you using your gift on her?"

I nodded, "I was trying to. And I was able to, to an extent, but only when I was touching her. My gift only took the edge off, though. But I can't use my gift if I can't touch her. I don't want her to suffer more than she…"

A soft, melodic voice interrupted my worried rant, "Relax, Alec. Bella is and will be perfectly fine. Everything is happening as it is supposed to."

I looked over to see Alice Cullen standing in my doorway, Jasper slightly behind her, both of them smiling at me. "What do you mean? What have you seen?" I winced as Jasper glared at my sharp tone, "I'm sorry. That was rude. I'm just worried."

Alice merely grinned even bigger, "I always have to be careful of what I reveal and when. If I reveal too much… then one might be tempted to change the outcomes by changing their decisions, and nine times out of ten, it always results in disaster and angst. If I reveal too little… then one might not take the correct path. It's a precarious balance to keep."

"Alice dear, what can you tell us about this?" Aro asked. He too was worried about his niece.

"Well…" she paused, smiling to herself, "I can tell you that Bella will be different from most of our kind. She will be VERY powerful. She will have more than one power, although I cannot reveal all of them. We are witnessing her shields now. I know that she has both a mental shield and a physical shield, which is what we are witnessing right now. Alec, look at her. I mean, really look at her."

I did as she said, staring into her face, and it took me a moment to see what I needed to: she looked peaceful. She wasn't scrunching up her face in pain anymore. It was then that I realized that she had stopped whimpering too. "She's not in pain. Yet I know she is still changing from her heartbeat."

Alice grinned at me once more, "Exactly. She is enough like us right now that her shields have gotten stronger and started working at a fuller capacity. They are protecting her from the pain. They will be able to do more than that once she learns to control them."

"Fascinating!" Aro exclaimed right next to me, "Alec, your mate is simply fantastic! I can't wait to see what else she can do. Of course, we must wait until she is able to control her thirst and emotions before we learn to control her gifts."

"Can you reveal anything else?" I was desperate for as much information as I could get.

She shook her head, "Only that you should get everyone in here soon. She will wake in a few hours."

"But it hasn't even been two days!" I was flabbergasted.

The pixie merely winked at me, before skipping out of the room shouting, "Different from most of our kind, remember?"

I did remember. Once again I sat beside her, and Aro, the man I've come to look up to as my father, sat on her other side as we awaited the final signs of her change. Soon enough the others started trickling in, intent on being here when she woke up. Felix and Demitri were the first to show with their mates, Heidi and Chelsea. Marcus and Caius followed not long after, with my sister trailing in their wake. To my surprise Jasper and Alice came in with two unfamiliar faces, one grinning like a maniac and the other…looked happy enough I guess. From their golden eyes I could only assume that they too were a part of the Cullen family. I couldn't help but wonder if I needed to keep an extra eye on them. Aro seemed to think so too, since he subtly read their minds under the guise of shaking their hands and introducing himself.

Her heartbeat increased, going faster and faster, signaling that the end of her change was almost here. I quickly moved off of the bed to stand with my family. As a newborn, she would be disoriented, and at first, view everything as a threat. We would approach her slowly.

We stood in silence, listening to her heart beat faster, increasing in speed as the minutes crept by, before suddenly stopping with one last thump. We watched as she took a deep breath in, freezing as she detected our scent. She sat up quickly, eyes wide open, taking in everything, staring at all of us. We gave her a few moments before Aro spoke, "Isabella, my dear, welcome to the family. You are one of our kind now. You are simply stunning. Do you remember who we are?"

Slowly, she nodded, "I… think so…"

"Can you tell us who we are? Do you remember who is who?"

I stared at her, mesmerized as she looked around the room, naming people as her eyes landed on them, earning a few chuckles. My world stopped as her eyes landed on mine, and instead of my name spilling from her lips, she emitted a low, predatory growl before uttering one word, "Mine".

I smiled at her slightly, holding out my hand to her, "That's right Isabella. Just as you are mine, I am yours. Come to me?" I waited for her to approach, for her hand to grasp mine. I pulled her into my arms, and nuzzled her neck as she nuzzled into mine.

The others began attempting to approach her, intent on officially welcoming her in to our family. As they did, her demeanor changed, and she turned feral, growling at anyone who came too close, especially the females. She was staking her claim; I couldn't help feeling smug.

I tried to warn Jane, who kept inching closer, to stop. She was worried for me, I knew. She was not mated yet; she had no idea why Isabella was growling and acting like she was. She would never understand until she found her own mate.

Jasper stopped her, a hand on her shoulder, "Darlin' I wouldn't if I were you. Bella is feeling the full power of her mating instincts right now. On top of that, she is a newborn. She won't recognize that you are only Alec's sister, and therefore not a threat. We need to give them space. Your brother will be perfectly safe."

My sister merely nodded before fleeing the room. I felt bad for her. She was jealous, and not used to not approaching me whenever she wanted. The others left silently, and Alice was the last out the door, sending me a wink before shutting it with finality.

Bella looked up at me, "Mate."