A/N: Three thousand words, you should be very happy readers... Well...i hope you like this chapter, it took me forever to write.

I don't own anything.

~Jen

The Bruises Need an Explanation

(EPOV)

Bella was the most beautiful bride I had ever seen in my life. She walked with such a grace that made her dress sway around her. She walked with the pride and dignity of a king. Her brown eyes twinkled like no other eyes I had seen. She was exquisite, inside and out… How did I get lucky enough to defeat Phoenix? To have this woman?

That was a question I knew wouldn't be answered any time soon.

888

I was in her room now… It felt odd to be in a lady's room, especially when I was raised to be a complete gentleman. I was nervous and I could see that Bella was as well. Well, I couldn't see her at the moment, she was with Angela, who shocked me when she knocked on the door. She looked almost exactly like Bella, the two of them could have been twins. As I got to see more of Angela though, I knew they were different. Angela walked with less grace, with less pride.

I could hear whispers, but I didn't intrude… I didn't dare listen in, Bella might stab me if I did.

888

(BPOV)

"I don't envy you." Angela stated quietly as she began to undo the corset.

"Thanks for the unwavering support." I said sarcastically.

"He's going to see the bruises, he will ask questions." Angela stated, taking the corset off of me.

"He will won't he… Thanks for bringing up that worry in my head." I shivered at all of the implications and the problems I would have to face tonight.

"Well, I apologize… We had this discussion earlier about being accepted for who you are… I don't think you can balance many things for much longer." Angela stated.

"You will be there for me though… Even if…" I ran off…hoping she understood.

"You are my closest friend, Bella… I will never turn my back on you… If he finds out and you have to kill him, I'll even help you hide the body and make it look like it was an accident." Angela smiled.

"I can do that on my own, honey…you don't have to worry about that." I told her as she slipped a nightgown over my head. She kissed my cheek gently after she tied the back…

"Good luck, darling." Angela grabbed my arm and led me into my room. I led her to the door and she froze there, looking at Edward and I. She hugged me tightly. "I'm so sorry you are in this position…especially when the one that gives you the most trouble came from him…" She pulled away from me. "I will leave now, rest well princess." I noticed a hint of sarcasm as she bowed to Edward and left the room, taking the torch that lit it with her.

(EPOV)

I saw Angela whisper something in Bella's ear that made her muscles visibly tense…it was odd, she had more defined muscles than most women did. I wiped the thought from my mind as Bella pulled away from Angela. "I will leave now, rest well princess." Angela said, was that sarcasm I heard? She bowed to me and left the room, taking away the fire that lit the room. The only light left in the room came from the embers in the fireplace and the large bay window that let in light from the moon. Bella closed the door slowly and stayed completely still for a long time.

I began to realize that she couldn't move on her own, so I walked up behind her and wrapped my arms around her, trying to comfort her. Her hand moved to the skirt of her night dress reflexively, grasping nothing, but she soon relaxed. "You're nervous."

"Why wouldn't I be?" Bella asked, her voice wasn't strong as it normally was. I slowly turned her and cupped her face in my hand. Her eyes slowly met mine. I didn't know how to reassure her…how to make her feel better…but I hated to see her nervous.

"I'll be gentle." I promised her quietly.

"I know that." She stated quietly.

"What has you so worried then?" I wondered. She merely closed her eyes and looked away.

(BPOV)

He had questioned what was wrong. But what was I going to say? 'I am worried that you are going to freak out when you see the welts on my skin, then you are going to ask where they came from and I am going to have to tell you that you gave a majority of them…' Yup, that would go over great, Bella…

Thankfully he didn't press me…at least he knew me well enough to know that I wouldn't talk when I didn't want to. If he respected my stubbornness, this might actually end up alright. Thankfully his hands slid off of my sides and he held me by the small of my back. I would be a liar if I said his embrace didn't comfort me. He pressed his lips to mine gently, lovingly. I don't know how I already had feelings for this man…why I was already falling for him…why my frozen heart decided to melt now of all times…but I knew better than to try and stop it.

My usual, overly-observant mind went out the window… I didn't even know I had lost my mind until I found that I was laying on my back in the center of my bed without any recollection of how I got there. I was in deep trouble if all this man had done was kiss me and he owned me… I was going to have to develop some sort of backbone or this man could potentially use all of his wiles to manipulate me and I was not going to let that happen, no matter how taken with him I became, I always wanted to be in control of myself.

To contradict everything my thoughts had just said to me in such an insistent manner, my hands were out of my control, and currently taking the shirt off of the man in question. Ha! So much for a backbone…but I suppose I had time to create that later. I was falling in love with this man, and I had no logical reasons as to why it was happening so fast. But one glance into his burning green eyes and logic was wiped clear out of my mind.

(EPOV)

I don't know how I managed it, considering the fact that she was laying down, but I pulled the nightgown she wore over her head, leaving my bride bare to me. I didn't look down at her, though I wanted to, badly. I bent down and kissed her gently, trying, as always, to make sure she was comfortable. That was my number one priority.

Though I didn't look at her, I couldn't stop my hands from wandering, slowly down the outline of her curves. Her skin felt like the finest silk to me…until I felt something strange, a flaw in her perfect skin. I touched it a little less gently, thinking it couldn't have belonged to her flawless skin and she wince, pulling away from me and breathing heavily, in pain. I look down at her body for the first time and realize that underneath my hand was the most ugly looking bruise I had ever seen in my life.

I looked up at her to see that she had a pained look on her face and her lip pinched by her teeth nervously. I looked away from her face, too furious to even begin to speak to her. I sat up straight and looked down at her body again. She had bruises all across her abdomen and all of the way up her sides bore bruises. I took a deep breath to try to calm myself, not that it worked. "Who did this to you?" I asked angrily. She pulled away from me and covered herself with a sheet, as if hiding the bruises from me would make me forget them. "Bella?" I asked angrily.

"Umm… You're not going to like the answer…" She bit her lip more fiercely, I was sure she would make it bleed if she didn't stop. I couldn't help but feel more angry when she hid things from me.

"Out with it! Who gave you those bruises?" I snapped.

"Mostly, you did." Bella stated softly.

What? She had to be lying. I have never hit a woman in all of my life. Except for Alice once when I was a child but I had never hurt a woman in my life! "I've never hit you, Bella. I couldn't have left these bruises on you. I could never and would never hit a woman. The thought wouldn't cross my mind." I told her fiercely. "Who did this to you?" I asked again.

"You did…the pommel of your sword…" Bella sighed heavily and averted her eyes. "I suppose you must know then…"

"Know what?"

"I have only told you half of my life… I should tell you the other half now, before you go insane with anger and hate…though you might hate me by the end of my tale…"

"I doubt that…" I muttered. I leaned back and stared at her intently as she rested against the headboard of the bed.

"I told you that I was trained to wield a sword, didn't I?" I didn't understand what this had to do with her bruises.

"Yes, but this doesn't have any relevancy—"

"Let me tell my story, don't interrupt." She stated in a quick voice. No woman in the history of the world had been that sharp tongued before—with the exception of Rose perhaps. I ignored the blatant disregard of propriety and let her speak. "I was sent off to a swordsmanship master when I was six. My father wanted his only daughter to be able to protect herself. I was sent to a man who lived out in the countryside. Everyone in the country knew what their princess looked like, so whenever I went to receive my lessons I dressed as a boy.

"I would spend months at a time at my master's house… He had a small padded bench next to the window that I would sleep on… By the time I was thirteen the bench was far too small for me, but I slept on it anyway, curled up in a small ball." She smiled slightly and then frowned again. "He taught me everything he knew, which was a lot, considering the fact that he was the best swordsman in the world." She looked up at me with her big doe eyes. "Do you know the master named Eleazar?" I was shocked that she had been taught by him.

"Yes…I know a lot about him." I answered, my voice not hiding my shock at all.

"Then you know just how good of a teacher he was. He taught me how to spar in the small arena he had built in the woods. He taught me how to fight multiple opponents at once. He taught me how to be deadly with just a dagger in my hands. He taught me how to physically fight… He even taught me how to shoot an arrow to perfection." She shook her head. "By the time I was thirteen, I could beat the old man occasionally. I was strong, stronger than society allowed women to become, but he didn't care. My father only wanted me to be able to take care of myself, but Eleazar wanted to be sure I could protect myself… I swear that man was a second father to me.

"He trained me, and I, adhering to his teachings, only used my sword when it was necessary. I was fourteen and I was walking from the palace towards the place Eleazar taught me. I was dressed so that no one would recognize me." She paused. "I had heard a scream in the woods on the way so I went to see what had caused it. I saw a man, attempting to rape a young girl. She was only twelve years old, Edward… She had no way to protect herself…" She had tears in her eyes at the memory. "I yelled at the man and told him to get away from her. He drew his sword, deciding to settle the disagreement with pure force.

"I fought him, and one, getting him to yield at the tip of my sword. I called the young lady to me and had her stand behind me. I slashed two cuts on his face, so he would remember not to harm a young woman again, and I took the little girl home. She asked me my name, but I didn't answer her, I didn't trust myself to be able to keep my voice as low as a boys should be…so I didn't speak. I went to Eleazar and learned a lesson from him…he didn't teach me anything about swordsmanship, nor archery…no he taught me about choices, and how everyone should be free to make their own choices…"

"That is why you hate having your choices taken away from you…" I stated in understanding. "You cared for your master's opinion."

"That and I have a strong personality." Bella shrugged in agreement. "He told me that I had finished my training, that he couldn't make me any better than what I had already become… He told me that he would trust me with his life… That night…while I slept…the man I had stopped in the woods snuck into my master's room and killed him."

God, why does this story sound familiar? I wondered. This story had felt so familiar that I felt obtuse for not knowing where I had heard it before.

"I woke to see the man fleeing the scene. I found my dead master and I took up his sword before hunting down the man who had murdered him." She took a deep breath, tears rolling down her cheeks. "It took me five days…but I hunted him through the woods, and when the time came that I faced him…I killed him…just as he killed my master…only he was awake." She wiped away her tears before she continued. "Someone saw what had happened and the authority came down on me, dragging me to the king to be judged. No one thought to remove my armor or clothes, so I remained looking like a boy.

"When my father asked my name… I answered with the first name that came to mind; Phoenix. It was simple, easy to remember. Even though I disguised my voice, he knew it was me he spoke to. The council voted and let me go free, without the charge of murder over my head, under a few conditions. I was to lead the army in battles, and I was to protect sweet princess Isabella. Which is when Angela came into play. She began to star as my double, so that when I was Phoenix, the princess didn't disappear mysteriously…

"Yesterday, I fought for my own freedom. I fought all of the princes the world had to offer. I sprained my ankle. I broke one of my fingers, and I gained several bruises." Bella finished. "So when I told you, that you were the one who bruised me, I wasn't lying. It was the truth. In fact, the worst of the bruises came from you. You did win after all." She shrugged.

"God…I did this to you… I'm sorry…had I known." I stated, appalled at what I had done. She grabbed my hand gently, I could sense forgiveness flowing from her.

"That was the whole point." She smiled at me, her brown eyes meeting my green ones. "No one was supposed to know who I was."

"You fight very well." I complimented her. Her eyes twinkled.

"I would have defeated you, had I not been so tired." She said in a taunting tone.

"I'm quite sure you would have…" I nodded.

"You do not seem to be as upset as I thought you would. I thought you would be angry, furious even…" She said, her eyes narrowing.

"Bella…surprised I am… Upset, perhaps at the fact that I hurt you… I am not angry with you."

"I just admitted to be a murderer." She stated. "I thought you might ship me away or killed for my unladylike conduct. I had thought that I might have to fight for my life tonight."

"I've killed men before, with less reasoning then you have." I stated truthfully. "It doesn't bother me what you have done, I have no right to judge you when I am just as guilty, on several more occasions than you. It does bother me that you had to become what you are…though I am relieved to know that you can handle yourself." She looked at me shocked.

"I thought you would see me as a monster." She whispered, tears in her eyes again.

"Oh, Bella." I leaned forward and kissed her lovingly. Her bare skin touched mine as the sheet covering her modesty fell away. I pulled her closer. Hearing more about this woman only made me love her more. She winced and nearly doubled over in pain. "Bella!" I called out worriedly, laying her back against the bed. "I'm so sorry."

"It's my own fault, I shouldn't have gotten hit in the first place." She grumbled. I chuckled and got off of the bed. I grabbed the canister I had given her off of her desk and walked back to her.

"At least let me help you heal… It is the least I can do after the pain I've inflicted." I offered, though I was going to help her heal whether she liked it or not. "May I?"

(BPOV)

"You may." I stated. He slowly lowered the covered off of me completely. I felt slightly insecure under the stare of the beautiful man before me, but his eyes looked ever so gentle. He gently rubbed the ointment onto my bruised and broken skin, insuring that tended to every bruise on my stomach with his gentle hands.

"Roll over?" He requested politely. I did, knowing that he would find plenty more bruises on my back. I heard him inhale sharply before running the cool salve over my skin. I felt like his hands were messaging away all of my past stress. His hands felt amazing against my skin. I felt his lips gently press between my shoulder blades before he rolled me over and pulled me into his arms before covering us both up. I lay my head against his chest, comfortably…but then I realize something.

"You aren't going to…to…" I didn't know how to word it. "Have me?" I wondered cautiously.

"Heavens no, love… I have already hurt you, I am not going to hurt you again. Those bruises look as though ley cause you much pain… I don't want to cause any more." He swore. My eyes went wide.

"They'll kill me…" Dear God…the church and my father would have my head…they would think that I hadn't been a virgin… I would be surely killed for this. Edward kissed my head.

"Don't worry, no one will dare touch my wife. No one will dare say a word against her." Edward promised.

"Yes they will." I insisted, panicking. He leaned down and kissed my lips.

"Relax… Don't you trust me? I am never going to let anyone hurt you. I promise you that." Edward swore. I trusted him…but I didn't trust the people outside who would kill me if they thought me impure. "Relax… I will take care of everything. Sleep…" He began to message my back again. Oh…he had found my weakness already, because I couldn't dare fight sleep with his hands touching me like that…so soothingly…

A/N: So, is Edward going to protect her somehow, or is he going to let the church think she was impure? Hmm...

Sorry, i'm in a question asking mood.

Review please!