Thanks to Gothic Girl 3000, La Belle Morte, LiTlTe BeLlA sWaN, DropDeadGorgeous, Anima Bella, and Willow for reviewing.
My beta-reader is out of service due to a personal reason, so I hope this document is fine, as I didn't get to send it to her...

9. Fragile

I told my family that Alex was coming over for dinner; unsurprisingly, they were thrilled. Alex had never come to our house before for dinner, and Bella and Edward wanted to get to know him a little better, which was the part that I was terrified of. My parents may be seventeen and eighteen, but they could be as strict as any parents with teenage daughters. Bella also wanted to help me cook, having learned to make gourmet foods, so I agreed and went to my room to put my bags on the desk, knocking over a few of my perfumes. I reached down to pick them up and came across a bottle I didn't recognise; it was a hematite color with a crystal stopper. I froze, glancing around anxiously.

Someone…had been in my room.

No guesses to whom it had been.

Hesitantly, I unscrewed the cap and sniffed the contents. It was odourless. I shook few droplets of the clear liquid onto my hand; the reaction was instantaneous as I crumpled onto the floor in a stupor. One though flashed into my mind before I gained unconsciousness: I really had to stay away from things in bottles.

It was different from last time: last time I had been tied down, but this time I was huddled against the door, my eyes fixed on the vampire walking rapidly closer, his heels tapping on the linoleum. I blinked, my vision shifting. It seemed one minute he was Jesse, and then he became the vampire who was stalking me. Both were hideous, with their crimson eyes and lips pulled back in a snarl as he neared.

"Nice to see you again." He laughed, and then he was Jesse. He motioned someone forward with his hand, and the person stepped out from behind him so I could see him or her more clearly.

I gasped when I saw who it was.

Marianne.

But not the Marianne I know; this Marianne had a vampire's visage, with her crimson eyes and the translucent fangs slipping past her bottom lip, and was as lovely as ever, dressed in a long bloodred gown, her sharp crimson fingernails scraping along her granite forehead as she neared, fear plain in her eyes. I was too horrified to laugh at the absurd situation; the powerful cat afraid of the little cowering mouse. My best friend had been turned, and my vision turned red as I sprang at Jesse. But he twisted his hand and I fell back along the wall, my breath coming in short agonising bursts.

"Be a good little girl and stay put – I have to show you something." He drew Marianne to the side and pointed at the wall behind me. Flames sprang up, licking along the paper as it crackled dryly. I stumbled back, the heat warming my skin. A spark flew onto my face, singeing my cheek. I screamed, reaching up as it burst into flame, and looked ahead at Jesse. He was smiling cruelly, his fingers curled up as the flames spread over my body, the fire eating away agonisingly at me. I squeezed my eyes shut, knowing this was a dream – no, a nightmare - but unable to do anything.

And then everything shifted; I was still crouched against the wall, but the flames had gone and there was no Marianne, though Jesse was sitting calmly in front of me, legs crossed, smiling.

"How do you feel?" He asked.

What? "What are you talking about?" I hissed.

He indicated a small knife lying next to me. "That. You took quite a blow when you cut yourself."

Panicked, I glanced down, and then feeling something warm on my neck, I touched my fingers gingerly on my throat, coming away with blood.

I had slashed my own throat.

Jesse laughed as he saw my sudden comprehension.

"And I want you to pick up that knife and slash yourself again." He was smiling openly.

My body obeyed though I was screaming inside my mind. As I picked up the knife, my fingers trembling, Jesse's smile widened as if he was a child receiving a wanted gift on Christmas morning. I had a suspicion he was playing with me, and my heart started beating loudly as my fingers, steady now as his will dominated my mind and body, came swiftly up towards my throat.

The pain was like nothing I had ever imagined.

As my blood gushed over my fingers, the knife slipping onto the floor as my hand sought a way to stop the flood of crimson, I started to blacken out.

The last thing I heard was a voice, so lovely not even the loveliest vampire in the world could rival it, as I went under.

"Enough!"

I was lying in someone's lap as their hand closed over my throat gently, the blood staining their fingers. I dimly registered Rosalie approaching me and quickly applying bandages on my wound, her face agonised as dry, tearless sobs came from her throat. I could only look above me, and the musky scent of pine tress forest could only be Alex, whom I realised was the one whose lap my head was leaning on.

I swallowed, then instantly regretted the action when an agonising flash of heat raced through my throat. My hand reached up to my throat as I choked, but then my hands were taken away as Bella laid her palms gently across my throat, the ice subduing the fire.

"Lizzie?" Edward asked hoarsely. His face was pale, his eyes burning brightly, feverish. Bella was unable to speak, her face just as pale. She was shaking, tears rolling down her cheeks.

I closed my eyes momentarily and forced myself to sit up. Alex's arms stayed around me as he supported me against him. I couldn't speak, not yet, as my throat, ever so slowly, began to knit and heal. I smiled at the three around me and motioned that I was unable to speak. Edward looked only partially reassured, his eyes still burning, as he translated to Alex what I was thinking.

"Lizzie, is it fine if I try something on you…?" Bella asked suddenly. Her voice was lower than I had ever heard before in my entire life.

I nodded, my throat hurting. Bella reached out as Alex and Edward looked on, unwrapping my bandages and laying her hands against my throat. I winced at the pain and she shuddered, and then stilled herself as she concentrated on my throat. The pain vanished and my hand flew to my neck, my eyes wide.

Oh, my god? I'm not hurting anymore?

"Her wound – it's gone?" Disbelief colored Alex's voice.

Bella nodded, smiling a little. "I have the power to heal."

I smiled. "That's great, Mom!" I was glad to have my voice back.

Edward's smile was dazzling as he saw that I was okay, thought I saw something dark and brooding in his gaze. "You can talk."

I laughed. I felt well enough again to joke like my usual self. "And I knew how to talk since I was a toddler?"

"Actually, not when you were a toddler, when you were exactly one year, six days, three hours, and a ninety-two of a second." Bella told me.

I blinked. "Wow."

"Are you sure you're okay?" Alex asked, worried.

I nodded, smiling at him. His answering smile made me melt. "I'm fine. But I'm sorry about-"

Alex clamped a hand over my mouth. "If you're going to say what I'm sure you're going to say, don't even think about it."

"-Not cooking your food!" I finished, triumphant. There, I had said it.

Alex chuckled. "Typical Cinderelli. You nearly died and you're sorry I can't come over to your house for dinner?"

Edward and Bella had left the room by then. "Wait – you're still coming, aren't you?"

"If you want." He stroked my hair softly.

I twisted around to face him. "I do want you to."

He smiled. "Okay, I'll come…but what's the purpose of a dinner without any food? Don't you still have to go to the grocery store?"

I rolled my eyes. "Hello? Food-eating vampire here?"

"Hmmm…you're not going to have me for dinner, are you?" He teased.

My throat ripped into flames. Alex saw something in my face and winced.

"Lizzie, I'm so sorry, I didn't realise -" he started to say, but I cut him off, my throat still burning.

"It's fine, it doesn't matter…really. Just…give me a minute." I disappeared out the room and ran to the bathroom, splashing my face with cold water. I sagged against the bathtub, closing my eyes.

Even after all this time, it was so hard to touch him, to kiss him, to even be near him. The burning desire to taste his blood was still there, but I had managed to ignore it.

Up until now.

I knew I was being a coward, but I couldn't go back. Only now did I realise how hard it must have been for Edward when he had told me tales of him and Bella when I had been a child. But, somehow, he had managed to get around it, even though her scent was still there as a vampire. I didn't know what he had done, but it must have been something significant. I wished he had told me, and then I could have applied it to Alex. I couldn't deal with it anymore. The thought that constantly plagued me every minute of my day was that one day, I would snap.

And I would kill Alex.

That in itself was something that kept the hunger under control. Just the thought alone of Alex being dead, killed by my own hands, was too unbearable; I would rather die.

I looked at my reflection in the mirror, surveying my pale face, my wide, slightly red-rimmed eyes, and steeled myself as I prepared to go back to my room.

Unconsciously, I fingered my neck. The wound had gone, and I felt no pain. My mother had really done a good job when she had healed my neck – there wasn't even a faint outline.

I shuddered as my thoughts turned darker, going to my dream.

Jesse…had been as scary as ever. But now I hated him even more, when he had pulled Marianne into it. Marianne, who hated Jesse. The man who had destroyed her sister.

But the one I was really concerned about was the woman.

The woman…her voice was so lovely; I remembered it clearly even now. Rose and Bella's voices, two of the loveliest voices I had ever heard in my life, could not compare. And that was saying something.

And where could the voice have come from? I hadn't seen her anywhere – even though I had been falling back into reality, I would have sensed her presence – which I hadn't.

And what she had said…

"Enough.'

What had she meant by that? It was strange, it had kind of seemed like Jesse had been playing with me. The thought was enough to freeze my blood. If that was playing…I found myself unconsciously fingering my wound. If that was playing, then what would happen…

…When he actually came to hunt me?

As if making me harm myself to the edge of death wasn't enough.

And then, there was my anonymous vampire stalker. Who was he?

All this I thought through in one long second – my vampire brain had enough room to process it all in. I decided – in my terms, anyway – that I had taken enough time, and went back to Alex.

He looked startled to see me; after all, it had been only two seconds. "Lizzie, are you okay?"

I nodded; I felt fine now. I had once again regained control of my hunger, and it was at the back of my mind, if not entirely banished. "Yeah, thanks. I'm – I'm so sorry about that."

The corner of his mouth quirked up into a smile. I felt relived; he was apparently over it. "If you say sorry one more time, I think I'll have to permanently tape your mouth shut."

I laughed. "Sorry, wolf boy. There's no tape in my room."

Alex laughed, hugging me from behind. "Want to bet?"

I smirked. "200 dollars."

"Fine." He reappeared, grinning triumphantly as he brandished a roll of duct tape.

I stared at the tape then back up at him, surprised. "You hid it before, didn't you?" I accused.

He looked hurt. "I can't believe you'd think I would cheat!"

I laughed. The laughter seemed to please him; a smile spread across his face as he looked at me, and then I walked over to him, planting my arms around his neck. "Kiss me?"

"Anything you wish, oh object-of-my-imprinting." His mouth closed on mine and I was carried away on a wave of bliss.

Sometime later, I pulled away reluctantly. Night had fallen, and Alex and I had to eat.

Alex laughed when he saw my woebegone expression. "Don't worry, there'll be more where that came from later," he promised.

I beamed. "Excellent."

We went downstairs and entered into the dining room; there was nothing on the table except for the basic food essentials on two of the places, and some of my family were in the room: Carlisle and Esme, their heads close together over a book, Rosalie and Emmett up in their room, Alice in the kitchen with Edward and Bella, and Jasper flipping through the channels on TV so rapidly no human eye could have detected the various channels he viewed briefly before moving on.

Alice was suddenly in the room, and she grabbed mine and Alex's hands and propelled us towards the table, seating us down on the chairs.

"You and you stay there, and the others -" she shot a meaningful glance at Carlisle and Esme and Jasper, raising her voice so that Rosalie and Emmett could hear – unless they were too occupied – up in their room, "I want you to all treat our guest nicely."

Carlisle chuckled. "Of course."

Alice glided out, and was back just as swiftly, Bella and Edward at her heels, smiling brightly as she set down some steaming dishes on the table.

I gulped, looking up at her. "Um, Alice, I'm not hungry…"

She growled. "Fine! At least Alex will eat it, won't he?" She turned her winning smile on him, but he barely noticed it, his eyes intent on my face.

"Sure."

"Go ahead, eat, and if Liz wants to eat as well, she can." Alice encouraged.

I caught Bella's eye; she was smiling, and the corner of Edward's mouth was turned up. As they read Alice's mind, they disappeared with an apologetic glance at me.

"Right, please may all of you clear out? Alex will find it uncomfortable if you all sit here and watch him eat." Alice shooed them all out and then disappeared herself, with a final smile at me.

Alex blinked when she had gone. "Well that was rather confusing."

I nodded. "Alice is like that."

"Want a bite?" He offered the spoon to me, but I shook my head. So fast I didn't notice, he wedged the spoon into my mouth. I choked, and swallowed quickly.

"Hey!" I protested. "That wasn't fair!"

"What do you think of the ravioli?" His eyes were gleaming.

"Nice," I admitted grudgingly, "but you shouldn't have done that!"

He grinned. "You can feed me, if you like?"

I dipped the spoon into the ravioli, and held it up. "Open up!"

He eyed the spoon. "You know it was just a joke -" he began, but I jammed the spoon into his mouth and he swallowed, his mouth working quickly.

"All's fair." I beamed at him.

He growled quietly. "You'll pay for that."

I laughed, brandishing the spoon at him. "Want some more? Here!" I jammed the spoon into his mouth and he swallowed, gritting his teeth. I laughed again, and he caught me off guard, getting some food onto my hair.

When all the dishes were cleared, I was sure most of the food had gone onto our clothes than into our mouths.