Author's Note: This is not the last chapter. I'm not sure how many more there are - one or two, I haven't written them yet. :)

Disclaimer: The Twilight series is the imaginative creativity of Stephenie Meyer, whom I am not.

Chapter Twenty One.

'Standing Still, I'm Moving Faster'

I wondered, unsettled, what had changed. An hour ago, I had practically performed a song-and-dance number while getting out of my temporarily Edward-free bed – Er, couch.

And now, at eight o'clock, just eleven hours before my twilight wedding, I was staring up at the marvelous silver arch that had been strung with hundreds of tiny, glistening stars, and I was rethinking everything.

Why had I agreed to be married? Why had I let myself get talked into it, when it was the last thing I'd wanted? I'd had the chance, I reminded myself, to have my own way, and I'd changed my mind. Decided to be moral, instead … Maybe I could just call of the wedding and jump ahead to the vampire-ness. I thought desperately.

This is what you wanted. That stupid, maddeningly rational little voice said. Stupid conscience.

Without warning, something cold, hard, and small streaked out nowhere and smacked into me, giggling excitedly.

"Just hours away from the big event! Can you believe it?" Alice chirped. Her announcement sent tiny spasms of panic ricocheting through me, and my hands started to shake uncontrollably.

Alice caught sight of my face, the wide grin sliding of her own face immediately, and she stopped moving mid-bounce, standing stock still, looking at me concernedly. "What's wrong? You're – you're not having second thoughts, are you?" She eyed me shrewdly. She knew me too well.

Glad that we were out of Edward's ear shot – and mind shot – I nodded. "Maybe fate doesn't want us to be together. I mean, look at everything that's tried to tear us apart …"

Alice blinked, startled for a second, and then scowled, snorting derisively, "Of course fate doesn't want you to be together," She snapped, "You're a human, and he's a vampire. But there's not much fate can do about that now – soon you'll be a vampire too." She paused, "You just have cold feet." She decided in a would-be sort of calm voice. "It's very common." I didn't miss the traces of panic that were hidden in her tone.

Unexpectedly, Alice's eyes grew wide, and she stared at me accusatorially. "You haven't been talking to Jacob Black, have you?" She asked me suspiciously.

Now it was my turn to blink. "No. Why?" I was stunned. She didn't still think that I'd change my mind and choose him, did she? Because I wouldn't – I couldn't. Alice would've known if I had, anyway; she would've had a vision – or lost her vision – if I had. There had to be another reason for why she had brought up Jacob.

"Alice, what's going on?"

She shrugged, her eyes deceptively wide and her voice innocent. "Nothing."

"Alice?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Okay, okay." She broke after a moment, "I don't like keeping things from you, you know I don't, but …" She looked away unhappily, shuffling her feet, "Seth called Edward today. He can't come to the wedding after all. It's been three days, and they still can't find a sign of Quil. They're all out looking now. I thought Jacob might've told you, and you'd felt guilty and decided not to get married after all." She finished in a soft, whispered voice.

I stood there, horrified, casting around in my completely blank mind for something to say. "…Maybe, maybe it's too early for a wedding. Maybe we should wait." I confessed eventually, "I mean, Sam's just died, Quil's missing, and there's just been a huge battle … Everyone's still in shock."

Alice shook her head knowingly. "Bella, if there's one thing we all need right now, it's this wedding."

I sighed; she was right, of course.

I could get married. I decided. I'd faced worse and survived. After all, I ran with the vampires. And the werewolves. A wedding should be no problem.

"On the bright side," Alice added lightly as we made our way toward the house, "Now that the wolves aren't coming, I can see the ceremony again. And you'll love it. Remember to thank me."

I couldn't believe that ten short hours ago (where had the day gone?) I had been reconsidering this; almost decided to not to go through with it. As I stood, gazing at myself in the mirror, the brilliant smiles of my relieved wedding-planners reflecting behind me, I found it increasingly hard to believe that I had really allowed myself to doubt marrying Edward.

I twirled almost gracefully in front of the mirror – the extra grip on the bottom of my shoes was really effective. Behind me, Rosalie glanced at an expensive gold watch dangling delicately from her wrist. "Less than an hour to go." She declared, watching avidly as Alice, Esme, and Renée attacked my hair with hot curlers and styling products, causing a shiny, glossed over rippling, wavy effect to appear within my normally dull, limp hair. Completing the look was sheer yellow eye shadow and nail polish, and a petite, soft yellow daisy that had been placed precisely in my hair by Esme, and then impatiently adjusted by Alice again and again.

I groaned as the finishing touches were finally finished. "There's about ten minutes until my wedding – aren't we done yet, Alice?"

"Beauty is a long process." She answered simply. "You want to look breathtaking for Edward, don't you?" She had me there.

After quite a few last-minute wrinkle smoothings, I was deemed perfect enough to walk down the aisle.

"It's a shame that sweet woman, Emily, couldn't be here, isn't it? It's so sad what happened to her fiancé." Renée mumbled after a while, sounding detached. I felt my stomach clench. I had only mentioned Emily a few times to Renée I passing, but she must have remembered. I turned dismally to Esme.

"She doesn't blame me for what happened, does she?" I whispered tragically. Esme's face clouded with motherly concern, and she wrapped me in a bone-crushing hug.

"Of course not! Who could blame you?" She muttered bemusedly, "You and Edward really do belong together – you're both always blaming yourselves for things that had nothing to do with you, always wallowing in grief you don't need." She chided sadly.

Rosalie's shivery hand slipped into mine and gave a gentle squeeze. "Be happy – it's your wedding day!" She smiled. She even managed to look only the slightest bit upset that it wasn't her in the spotlight for once. I returned the smile graciously – maybe I wasn't on friendly terms with Rosalie just yet, but I could definitely see her armor starting to crack.

Alice suddenly grabbed Rosalie's wrist to glare at her fancy watch. "Come on, everyone – places, places! The wedding is about to start!" She was glowing, looking absolutely chipper.

My heart flew into my throat at her words – but it was a good kind of feeling, nervous excitement. I knew that Esme, Rosalie and Alice could all hear my heart's sudden uplift in tempo as it raced to a hundred miles an hour. With difficulty, I forced down the butterflies that had been fluttering out of my stomach and into my throat.

Alice held my hand a little tighter than was actually necessary as she led me to the pale yellow, rippled curtain that was hung behind the arch where Charlie waited for me. He smiled broadly as he watched me approaching, and this time I was sure that I could see tears glittering in his crinkly eyes.

"Wow, Bells, you look … All grown up." He said gruffly.

"Good luck, honey," Whispered Renée, leaning in closer to give me a swift kiss on the cheek. Esme hugged me around the neck and wished me luck, too. Rosalie didn't say anything, but I distinctly saw her wave as she disappeared on the other side of the curtain.

When everyone else had already taken their places, Alice finally let go of my hand to briefly poke her head around the other side of the ruffled curtain. "Wow," She said breathlessly, "It's a beautiful ceremony. I can't wait to see it again, and in person, this time!" She turned back to me just before dancing fluidly to her place on the other side, a small simper on her face. "Be careful on that last step." She warned, "Or you'll trip."

For once, Emmett managed to hold in his laughter, but I thought I heard him give an unconvincing cough.

"Ready?" Charlie asked me, looping his arm through mine. I shook my head to clear the jumble of thoughts rolling around inside it. Fate was going to have to sit quietly by and watch this.

"As ready as I'll ever be." Though I wasn't ready – I knew it deep down, that while I wanted this, there was a part of me that was scared - very scared. But she was going to have to deal, because it was time for me to become officially bonded with my true love. My soul mate. I snorted. It still sounded cheesy.

Not that it mattered. Because, as I stepped out from behind the curtain, into the sea of ecstatic faces all beaming at me, I couldn't help but smugly tell myself – and fate – that none of it mattered. Not the risks, or what people would say, not even losing my family mattered that much anymore.

Because there, waiting for me under the other silver arch, under the twilight sky, with a huge crooked smile plastered onto his dazzling face, was Edward.

And he was all that mattered to me now.

Author's Note: Sigh. I still feel like I haven't edited enough - it's tedius looking over your own work. Wildwood Harmony, if you're still willing, I still need a Beta reader! I need someone to tell me if my stuff sucks ahead of time, someone I can bounce ideas off of. Pleeease. This is me begging. :)