10. Newborn

Bella POV

What seemed like a thousand years and a million involuntary screams later, I drifted back into my senses.

My sense of taste came first, there was a bitterness in my mouth—I couldn't pin point exactly what it tasted like. Next came my sense of smell, there was a poignant smell of a combination of honey, lilac, and sun, but I still couldn't recognize it. Then came my sense of touch, I could feel a softness, cradling my body and a steady breath on my head. Finally came my sense of hearing. I could hear the breath on my head, the thumping of a heavy heart in the same room, and the shuffling of two pairs of feet downstairs, but there was no speaking.

At last came my sight. Once I realized I had regained it, my eyes flew open. The light shining above me was enough to blind a human, but I knew that I was much more than a mere human. That the beating heart in the room was not mine.

In one swift movement, I was out of the cradling arms and standing up, facing my savior.

"Jacob, go tell Alice and Jasper the news." Edward ordered with a crooked smile being flashed at me. Jacob growled and left the room.

I threw myself onto him, gripping him in a tight hug. He was soft now, and warm. Not the cold, marble skin I'd grown so used to.

"Love, calm down. Just take everything in, you're moving awfully fast. Learn to think your actions through." He chuckled.

I squeezed him tighter.

"Um, Bella," He cleared his throat, "You're kind of…er, hurting me."

I pulled away quickly. That was something I would definitely need to get my mind wrapped around. Hurting Edward. Bah!

"Oh! Sorry." I bit my lip.

He chuckled.

"Bella…" He pressed his lips together, but not in a bad way like he had bad news or anything.

Right then, Alice burst through the door with Jasper, Jacob was nowhere to be seen. I couldn't imagine why he wasn't there though.

"You're beautiful, Bella!"

"That's putting it in the lightest form, Alice." Edward said turning back to me.

"They're right, Bella." Jasper smiled.

They all stood there smiling at me until I asked the question that had been on my mind for the past thirty seconds, "Where's Jacob?"

Their smiles faded. Edward stepped up to answer, "He's left."

"What? Why?"

"It's not safe for him to be around you, love."

"Why?"

"Bella, you're a newborn vampire." Jasper chimed in, "Aren't you thirsty beyond all reason?"

Now that he brought it up, there was a fire burning in my throat that was killer.

"I wasn't until you mentioned it," I said through my teeth.

Jasper held his hands up, palms out, and stepped back.

"Well, since you're thirsty now, let's go hunt." Alice clapped, "It's been a few days for us."

The thought of little, pixie-like Alice hunting was a picture that my imagination could not scrounge up.

"Do I have to?" I whined.

"Do you want to see Jacob again?" Alice folded her arms over her chest.

"Fine. Let's eat some freaking animals."

***

Hunting was easier—and more disgusting—than any of the Cullens had described it as. And let's just say it's a good thing I wasn't a real vegetarian in my human life.

Edward stepped away from the carcass of a deer that he had fed on. He licked his lips and wiped the corner of his mouth with his thumb. He started walking back towards me, seeing as I was just standing there with my arms wrapped around myself, but he stopped a few feet short.

"What's wrong?" I asked him, but Alice answered.

"Jacob's coming." She said flatly.

"So? Why is that a bad thing? I mean, I'm full. I swear."

"That's not what we're worried about, love." Edward replied.

"Then what?"

"The whole pack is coming." Alice informed us, not answering my question.

"They just want to talk right now, but they'll be back, so we'll have to get the others before the pack's second visit," Edward continued on Alice's information.

"How are they coming?" Jasper asked.

"Jacob and Sam are in human form and the other four are in wolf form," Edward answered him. How come I was the only one not getting my questions answered?

I'd never met the rest of the pack. Just Jacob. But what would they be coming to talk to?

I opened my mouth to ask Edward, but was cut off by the sight of four giant wolves and two tall humans walking into the forest.

The smell of them all made my throat burn like fire, but I resisted. This was Jacob, and I cannot hurt him.

Once the six of them reached a twenty-foot distance between our two groups, they stopped. Sam and Jacob stepped another five feet forward.

"Hello Jacob, Sam." Edward bowed his head as he greeted them.

"Edward." Sam replied politely, but harshly.

"What brings you here?"

"Oh, like you don't already know, bloodsucker." Jacob growled and glanced at me.

"Hush, Jacob. We can do this politely for now." Sam instructed then turned back to Edward, "We understand there has been a treaty violation."

"Yes." Edward said sounding indifferent.

"I see that it was necessary, but yet was still a violation."

"Is there any way that we can reconstitute the treaty?"

"I'm afraid not."

"Then let there be war."

"Let there be war." Sam repeated Edward's words.

What did they mean, "Let there be war?" What war? Was it about me, because the Cullens changed me into a vampire? Is that what this is about? Who was fighting? The werewolves verses the Cullens?

"Best of luck to you and your pack," Edward bowed his head once again.

"Thank you." Sam said and turned around. Jacob growled once more at us and walked away with the rest of the pack. While they bolted away, Jacob and Sam morphed into wolf form. It was the most magnificent, indescribable thing I have ever seen. The chocolate brown wolf howled as the six of them left our sight.

"Edward…" I started.

"Alice, Jasper, go call the others. Get them here as soon as possible to prepare." He instructed.

Alice and Jasper nodded then ran towards the house.

"Edward, what's this all about?" I demanded.

"Come on," Edward grabbed my hand, intertwining our fingers, and led me further into the forest.

A/N:I'm probably not going to be posting for a few days because of my birthday and my best friends birthday, so I figured I'd give you all two chapters in one day. =]

Sorry that I didn't get into more detail about the hunt. It's just that I'm not really a meat kind of person. I mean, I'll eat it, but just don't make me think about it. And with the vampires hunting...*Shudders*