Okay so a couple of people guessed correctly; I did say I left hints.
Sorry for the wait; things have been a little hectic lately and I have a major headache, but oh well, that's not really a valid excuse.
But here is the next chapter! Edward wakes up in this one. I tried to write the changing but I can't bear the thought of Edward in too much pain; it's too heartbreaking. He's too cute to hurt. :P
Okay so on with the show!
x
Edward's Take
"I'll love him back."
With those four small words, my heart soared. It was amazing, even through all this pain, that I could feel so happy. Bella loved me. This simple realization was enough for me to bear the fire, in hopes of hearing her voice again, of seeing her angelic face smiling at me.
I have no idea how long the fire lasted; it could have been minutes or centuries. Every passing second was a burning host of agony, but the conviction that someone was waiting for me on the other side strengthened me; gave me the power to continue on.
When the fire finally began to recede I noticed things happening outside of my own body. I heard the soft creaking of trees, and the crackling of a small fire. I tensed at the sound, afraid of it for some unknown reason.
I opened my eyes. Everything came sharply into focus as I found bright light illuminating a large wooden cabin, like the kind hunters use high up in forests. There was indeed a small fireplace where a flame was burning merrily, and I unconsciously shied away from the place. I heard sounds outside of the cabin. Looking out of the window I saw that the cabin I was in was situated in the mountains, in a small clearing surrounded by trees that swayed gently in the breeze outside. I could hear the entire forest; everything that moved and breathed and lived. I could hear it all. It was frightening.
I pushed myself away from the window, disturbed, and took a moment to survey the room. It was large and was dominated by a giant couch – which I had woken up on – opposite the fireplace. The room opened into a dining area beyond some sliding double doors, and one wall merged into the hallway which had a large flight of wooden stairs. Everything had the heady smell of the forest in it, and was oddly pleasant. I frowned as I tried to remember how I had gotten here; what had happened. I couldn't remember anything beyond when I had woken up.
I took a deep breath, and froze. There was a scent in here that cut through all of the rest of them. It was sweet and incredibly tempting. I searched the room to find the source as my lungs burned with the desire to smell it once more. I finally found the source of it; a small red stain on one of the couch's cushions. I sat on the couch, leaning down to inhale next to the fabric. Yes, that was it.
It was delightful. It smelled divine and heavenly; like honey and cinnamon. I breathed it in again, and then heard hurried light footsteps on the stairs.
"Edward?"
The voice was soft and incredibly beautiful. I found that I recognized it. Looking up, I saw a young woman of about nineteen with long brown hair and golden eyes staring at me with a mixture of wariness and relief.
"Bella." I couldn't find the voice to express anything other than her name. My angel's name. I leapt up joyfully from the couch and, running to her, wrapped my arms around her frame, crushing her to my chest. I felt her arms encircle me in a mimic of my actions, and I breathed in the floral scent coming off of her hair.
"Edward." She sighed and my breath hitched in my throat as I caught the honey scent again. It was so unbelievably appetizing…I leaned down to inhale, next to her mouth. I felt a pooling sensation behind my eyes, and watched as they darkened in the reflection her eyes provided. I breathed in the scent again.
She watched me with wide orbs, dark golden. I could see fear and confusion in them, but I couldn't figure out the source. She had nothing to fear from me and as far as I was concerned, I was simply acting in a natural way; I needed to feel this scent. Breathe it in…taste it…I knew that if I could reach it I would find relief for my burning throat. Venom gathered in my mouth as I pressed my lips to Bella's, running my tongue along her bottom lip for her to grant me access to her mouth, where I knew the treasure lay. She opened her mouth obediently and I could taste the blood that still coated her mouth like the venom that coated mine.
She stopped breathing, and drew herself away from me as she realized what I was doing. I looked down at her, my hands still cradling her face. I could feel her fear as if it were my own. The scent still haunted me, making my lungs feel dry and aching.
"Breathe, Bella," I begged, my eyes pleading with her to give me more blessed relief. "Please, Bella, let me have the scent again."
"Edward," she whispered, sending another soft wave of the smell towards me. Her hands were on my shoulders. "You need to come with me. I'll take you hunting; you can control your thirst."
I didn't understand what she was saying; I could sate my thirst here, now. If only she would let me in. A low growl made its way to my mouth but suddenly stopped as Bella's hand pushed down on a spot on my neck.
Fire. So much fire. I dropped to my knees, and she followed, maintaining the pressure on my neck. I felt like I was going to burn from the inside out; it hurt so much. I found myself begging for her to make it stop; I knew she could, though I didn't know what was causing this.
"What did you do?" I shouted, even as pain lanced through my arms and legs, and my head felt like it was going to burst.
"I turned you into what I am." Her voice was calm and patient, though sorrowful. I could tell she regretted what she was doing to me. But if she regretted it, why did it continue?
"And what are you?" I met her gaze, her dark smoldering golden eyes. The fire in them terrified me. I didn't know why; everything burned. Everything was burning. Fire was everywhere; in my mind, in my body, in her eyes.
"A vampire."
A vampire. I paused, looking down at the floor. I was aware distantly of the pressure of her fingers on my neck leaving, but I was too stunned to move. A vampire. With that word, several things came flooding back. Golden eyes. Venom. Pale skin. Glowing skin. Sparkling skin. Several things I had never seen, but had dreamt about. Several connections I hadn't made, but made now. Bella was a vampire, and now, so was I.
"Alice?"
"She's one too. One like me."
I frowned. "One like you?"
"One who doesn't feed off of humans. Vampires with golden eyes feed off of animal blood. We are called 'vegetarians' by the rest of our kind. Ones with red eyes are the classic vampires." She reached out to me and traced her finger along my cheek. I leaned into her touch, closing my eyes. "Your eyes will go black when you're thirsty, though you'll always be thirsty." Her voice held so much sorrow, it was heartbreaking.
We sat on the floor in silence for the longest time, staring at each other. I studied her face, memorizing every detail in a new light as my eyes were more focused. Everything was sharper, more defined. It was amazing, to see her in true perfection.
Quite suddenly a huge wave of thirst hit me, and I felt the strange pooling sensation behind my eyes again. She smiled a little and held out her hand for me to grab as she pulled us both up to stand.
"Let's get you something to drink."
And we were off.
Sorry for any bad bits here, but I'm majorly tired and I can't be bothered right now. Next chapter is some more drama, because I love the idea of Edward freaking out and going crazy, and don't worry, Alice will find out. Mwah. Oh by the way there will be no werewolves in my story because I am most definitely not a Jacob girl. Grr.
And sorry but I'm not going to correct it unless there's some huge blunder. I shall do so later but not right now because I'm tired. Stupid jet-lag. :P
Love you all! Review!
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