DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THE CHARACTERS FROM TWILIGHT. THEY ALL BELONG TO STEPHENIE MEYER.
Yes, this is the Epilogue. So sad.
The quote from the last chapter was 'She fucking hates me and I love it' from Eminem feat. Rihanna's 'Love the Way You Lie'. There's no quote in this chapter.
I have a number of people I want to give a shout out to.
First of all, my dear Shelby. Where do I start with you, honey? I want to say a HUMUNGOUS thanks for giving me the swift kick up the arse when I needed it when it came to this story and for making me giggle. No one has made me laugh as much as you have when it comes to my Edward's and I don't know what I'd do without you there to take the edge off a bad day. Thank you, girl!
I also want to shout to those of you who have been with me from the beginning of this story and reviewed every single chapter. Bleachblonde2244, Nicoconsd, glo4twilight, babylopez2008, proudmom21, mugglemom08. I'm sure there are many more of you that have been there, but these ones have been there through all my stories. I'm sorry if I missed anyone but there are so many of you and I appreciate you all.
IMPORTANT: This year, I am participating in Fandom for Preemies. As a preemie baby myself – 30 weeks gestation – it is a cause very close to my heart. And what am I offering, I hear you ask? Well, it's the one question I've been getting from nearly all of you all throughout this story.
I am offering an outtake of Edward's change.
Yup, you heard me. For a donation of a mere $5 you get to find out how Edward became the original vampire along with many other incredible one shots. I will not be posting this one shot anywhere else.
EVER!
So if you want to see it and find out the answer to that all important question, head over to the Fandom for Preemies homepage – link is on my profile – and donate and help some innocent babies get a head start in life.
It is with a heavy heart I press the 'Complete' button on this story and I want to thank you all again for the support you've shown me through this story, even if my posting hasn't always been reliable and I have left you waiting months for an update.
Enjoy.
Edward
Eternity.
That is what I am bound to.
Nothing more. Nothing less.
Never changing. Everything the same.
Of course the world around me changes. But I never do.
Mortals dream of immortality, and how "cool" it would be never to age. To stay the same forever. Take it from someone who has been the same forever, it's not all its cracked up to be.
For nearly fifteen millennia I have wandered the vast expanse of this earth, never changing, watching everything around me change and alter with regards to the planets needs. Let me tell you something, the planet isn't as big as people like to believe it is.
Everything that has come and gone in this world I have seen.
I have been there for everything.
But unlike before, eternity didn't seem so bleak. Because now, I wasn't facing it alone as I had always believed I would.
I had Isabella Cullen with me.
And she made everything worthwhile.
Before I had found her, I had found entertainment in very little. Nothing would hold my interest for long and I grew irritated or bored with most things other would find fascinating or appealing. I had always been a fickle creature and I knew that would never change.
But Isabella was the only thing in this world that still held my interest. Even one hundred years after we'd first met. Well, not counting the actual first meeting. I had spent a century with the most glorious creature on the planet and I knew I would never want to be away from her for any length of time.
We rarely left each other's sides as it was. The only time we were away from each other was when we needed to hunt. Well, more specifically, when I needed to hunt. I usually went with her when she hunted, purely because she was a magnificent creature when in her instinctual predatory state and it always made me see her for the dangerous creature she could be when she put her mind to it.
It was as though nothing else but her prey existed. I had looked into her mind when she had been hunting before and she hadn't even registered my presence. Behind her or inside her head. She was focused and it was as though I could feel each and every one of her muscles moving as she ducked and sprung at her prey, her teeth meeting their mark before the animal could even register what was happening.
She didn't come with me when I hunted, for obvious reasons. Through the years, she had come across the memories locked away inside my head of previous hunting trips and I knew they upset her. She had seen the memory I held of the two girls I had fed off of just after we had been reunited and I could see that it bothered her.
"Edward?" I turned to see Isabella standing there, looking slightly sheepish and upset. Not wanting her to feel any kind of pain, whether it be physical or emotional, I pulled her to me as I sat down. She sat in my lap, slightly curled in on herself.
"What is it, love?" She let out a breath, looking away from me. I hated it when she did that. I loved seeing her brilliant golden eyes as she spoke to me. They spoke volumes, conveying emotions that her words and her tone of voice did not.
"Look at me, love." Her eyes flicked up to mine and I saw a large amount of uncertainty floating in their amber depths. "What's the matter, love?"
She took a deep breath, closing her eyes – which I didn't like – before she let down her shield and a barrage of images flew at me.
Two girls in a bar making their way towards me.
The same girls in a cab pawing at me as though I was an object.
In the hotel room.
Lying on the bed.
Both of them drained and lifeless.
She opened her eyes and I could see the venom that had pooled in them as she showed me the images she had somehow managed to find inside my mind. I could see that if she were able to cry, she would be right now. I could feel the betrayal pouring out of her and she wondered what had happened beforehand. Why I felt the need to feed in such a way.
"Where did you see those?" I asked quietly and she looked away from me again. I placed a finger underneath her chin and pulled her around to look at me. "Bella?"
"I don't know." She whispered, shaking her head quickly. "I don't know why but I think you must have let your guard down for a little while and I just had that night thrown at me. I knew it was when the Denali coven were visiting and I . . . I know it's stupid but . . . you don't feed like that anymore . . . do you?"
I shook my head, resting my forehead against hers. She had said she thought I had let my guard down. I did that an awful lot around Isabella and it wasn't a good thing. There was no telling what information she could come across.
This just proves my point.
"No, I don't." I whispered softly, not breaking eye contact with her. I knew I couldn't lie to her. Not because she'd be able to tell I was lying, but purely because I was incapable of doing so. There was something that physically stopped me from doing so.
There was no way for me to explain it.
"I haven't fed like that since that time." I knew she didn't really want to hear this, but there was part of her that knew she needed to know. She was too curious for her own good and she wouldn't be able to let it go until she knew the whole story.
"You sound like you used to all the time." She whispered and I inhaled deeply.
"I did." She closed her eyes, turning away from me. "Some part of you knew this already." She nodded, still not looking at me. She was feeling hurt and betrayed and I hated it. Before I'd met her, I wouldn't have given a damn about what someone else was feeling. But she had opened up a new part of me and although there were times when it was trying to be around her, I would be away from her for anything in the world. I still remembered when I had let her go hunting by herself when we'd first left for Volterra. I had nearly lost her that day and I wasn't eager for a repeat. "I know it's hard to hear, but I was a completely different creature before I met you. Before you came along, I didn't care what happened to others around me. I could care less about them. Especially humans. They were nothing more than cattle to me."
"Are they really anything more now?"
I had to think about that for a moment. Were they? "Well, not really, no. But knowing that you care for them, it's kind of adjusted how I hunt, if that makes any sense."
"It does." She nodded, biting down on her bottom lip. "I know that it's who you are and you're never going to change. But . . . I often wonder what you'd look like with golden eyes." She smiled up at me, her eyes wistful and full of things I'd never understand. Purely because she was female. Even though I might be able to access whatever crevice of her mind I could think of, I would never be able to fully understand what went on in there.
It was confusing to say the least.
That day hadn't been brought up by either of us since. I knew that she thought about it from time to time and that it still bothered her to think that I'd used and abused humans in that way but she also acknowledged that that was who I used to be. Not who I am now.
Though I would never admit it in front of anyone else, I had changed and it was all because of her.
She would never make a vegetarian out of me, though. That shit was not happening.
It had been a few years since she had seen her family and she missed them, so we had travelled back to the States to see them. They were now living in Boulder, Colorado. I wasn't one hundred per cent sure that this would work out for them and seeing how humans could sometimes be smart enough to see things they weren't supposed to but Alice and the rest of them were certain they would be fine.
They had been there for two years already and had gotten away with it so far, so maybe they were right.
Maybe.
"Did you know that this is where that little girl was murdered?" Isabella mused, perching on a rock and looking out over the city. She sat there, glistening, her marble skin gleaming in the sun. We were above the clouds that hung over the city at this point and no humans were able to come this way. It was off their paths and far too dangerous for them to attempt.
Which meant we were out of the way and that to me was perfect.
"Lots of little girls are lost, love." I whispered, wrapping my arms around her as she looked out onto the scenery below us.
She sighed, shaking her head before turning and placing a kiss to my jaw. "I mean the little girl. The little pageant queen. JonBenet Ramsey her name was." She looked back across the town in front of us. "I don't understand how people can do that to a child."
"Humans are cruel." I answered easily and she turned to look at me again. "They're cruel to the animals that walk the planet, they use its resources for their own needs but most of all they're cruel to each other. Humans do things to each other that are unexplainable. There's generally nothing anyone can say to explain it and so it goes unnoticed until something like that happens. Think of all the murders that happen right under their noses and the human trafficking rings. There's no sense to it. And there's nothing we can do about it."
"I guess so." She sighed, resting her head back on my shoulder.
"Come on," I buried my nose in her hair for a moment. "Let's go and see your hyperactive family."
She grinned at me as she stood, taking my hand in her own as we turned and made our way down the mountainside. It was twilight, so we didn't have to worry about sticking to the shadows, which made things easier for us.
Alice was waiting for us on the front porch, no doubt having seen our decision to come to see them. She stood there, her hands clasped in front of her as she bounced lightly on the balls of her feet. The grin on her face was bright enough to light up the night sky and I knew she was happy to have her 'sister' back, even if it was for a short time.
"Everyone's waiting for you." She practically squealed as she wrapped her arms around Isabella. She glanced at me as the two of them hugged as though they would never see each other again. Both of you. I shook my head at the little pixie's insistence that I was included in the 'family' they held dear. She pulled away from Isabella and pulled her into the house. Isabella glanced back at me, a look begging me to help her etched on her face. I chuckled, shaking my head and she scowled at me before she was pulled into the building.
I followed the two of them inside to find Emmett was the one that now had hold of Isabella, twirling her around as she laughed. "I missed you, Bellsy." He laughed before placing her back on her feet. The giggle that escaped her was unlike anything I'd heard from her before. It was a little girl's giggle and it seemed completely out of character coming from my sultry goddess.
"I missed you too, Emmett." She pushed him away, barely having time to move before Esme had wrapped her arms around her in a motherly hug. I could feel the overwhelming emotions coming from her. She had missed Isabella more than she would openly show but the smile that graced her lips and the light that shone in her eyes as she looked upon her eldest 'daughter' said it all. Well, to me, at least.
"It's so good to have you back." She whispered before her eyes fell on me, much like Alice's had. "To have the both of you back."
"It's good to be back, Esme." Isabella whispered in return, looking upon Esme in such a way that proved to me that Esme was the mother she had missed in her human years.
Isabella had confided in me that she didn't remember her mother at all. She remembered bits about her father, the love and protectiveness that she had felt when he was around. She remembered what he looked like and the sound of his voice but the majority of the individual memories she would have had during her human years escaped her. The sadness that lingered in her voice and expression made my dead heart ache for her and that in itself threw me. I hadn't ever felt something like that. Not even for myself, let alone another being.
"She's been missed, you know." Jasper had made his way over to me and, like me, was watching the interaction that was playing out between the women in the room. They were laughing and chatting amongst each other, clearly happy to be back in each other's presence.
"I know." I nodded once, realising that no matter how long they had in this world, whenever she wasn't with them, she would be missed. "I don't force her to come with me, you know."
"No." He shook his head, his eyes lingering on Alice. She, for him, was the light in his world. His reason for existing and I knew how he felt. If Isabella wasn't in this world, I wouldn't want to be either. But, unlike Jasper, or any of the others in this room, there was no way out for me. I was destined to linger for eternity and long after that. "But the bond the two of you share does. It doesn't matter where you go, she'll follow."
"As I would her." I didn't need to hide the fact that Isabella was my world within these walls. They all knew what she meant to me. It was only when we were on our own, that the intensity of my feelings for her had to be dialled down slightly. If the wrong creature gathered the information of her worth when it came to me, the one trying to find a way to best me – which had happened in the past – then there was a risk to her. One that I was not prepared to take. She understood my reasons, even if she didn't like them. "As you would Alice."
"I would." He looked at me as I watched Isabella. "I would follow Alice to the ends of the earth."
"And beyond."
No more words were needed with Jasper. He, like me, didn't find the need to dwell on a conversation that had been finished. He was content to stay in a silence that could say more than words ever could.
"So," Emmett had joined us, a huge grin on his face. I couldn't recall a time when – other than our first meeting – Emmett hadn't had some form of a smile on his face. He was a generally happy and exuberant being and I saw why Isabella enjoyed being around him so. He brought light and comedy to a situation, diffused arguments without even trying and alleviated boredom when it regularly occurred. He could also put up with Rosalie and her ever changing moods and to me that took a lot of guts.
Be nice.
I smirked inwardly at Isabella's silent reprimand. She knew that she was the only one that could get away with such an action and she utilised it whenever she felt the need. Clearly, she was now poking around in my head.
Invade people's thoughts and you're bound to find things you don't like.
Speaking from experience?
Don't I always?
Touché.
"Got any problems that could make a guy's life more interesting?" I knew what Emmett was hedging at. For someone that was always finding the humorous side to any situation, he was always banking on their being some kind of confrontation. I knew that he could be useful should it turn violent – hell, he had been scrapping with a bear less than half an hour before Rosalie found him – but the need hadn't arisen as of yet. I knew it was only a matter of time and I was still debating on whether or not I would let Emmett play or just save the fun for myself.
"Nope." I shook my head and his shoulders fell slightly, disappointed. "Everyone is behaving themselves of late. It's only a matter of time, though." I turned to face Carlisle, who had stepped through the door moments before and had already shed his coat and tie. "Any word from the coven in Denali?"
"Nothing." He said with a small smile. This, to him, was good news. I knew that nothing had happened on the western side of the country and he knew that I would know had they been contacted. It was merely a formality that I asked.
After Isabella and I had taken out the Volturi, as the largest coven in the world, the Cullen's had become the go to for vampires. It had become widespread that they were in contact with me and they had been cautious about what this meant for them. Overall, it didn't really have any impact on their lifestyle. Over the years they had had a few visitors wondering about certain things and several newborns had sought them out, seeking their help.
When the first newborn arrived on their doorstep, looking for help, they had still been living in Forks, keeping up appearances, as it were. They hadn't known what to do, so they had contacted Isabella and me. We had made our way back to Forks to assess the situation. Well, I had been there to assess while Isabella wanted to see her family again.
There was a flurry of activity happening in the house as Isabella and I climbed out of the car and quickly made our way through the front door.
I could hear the thoughts of the newborn, frantic, scared, thirsty. He didn't want to be a monster. He didn't want to take life and yet he couldn't control himself. It was the story of all newborns. The lack of control that didn't even begin to wane until the end of the first year.
He didn't want to live the life of a killer.
"Edward." Carlisle sighed, his relief at my presence visible. That was something I had never really encountered before. Normally, creatures feared my presence. They kept as far away from me as possible, not wanting anything to do with me.
And that was fine by me. If they wanted to keep me off their tails all they had to do was behave. And the majority of them knew that.
The newborn had been told that I was coming here and he had caught my scent as I followed Carlisle up the stairs into his office.
"Garrett?" He called quietly as he opened the door. Obviously the warning was unnecessary but Carlisle being Carlisle was the ever the considerate creature.
I'll never understand why.
I moved around Carlisle, inspecting the newborn for myself. Of course, I had seen him in the minds of the others but each mind came with its own personal view of him. Seeing him for myself made it more possible for me to assess the situation with this creature.
He was sat on the couch Carlisle had situated along one of the walls of his office. He had curled himself up into a ball in the corner of the leather. There was no doubt he was tall, approximately the same height as Jasper. His hair was a mousy brown and, like all of us, he was pale. He was having a hard time adjusting to what he had become, like so many before him, he didn't understand. He had thought he was going to die and didn't understand how he had become a vampire.
Through his blurred memories, I saw that he had been the victim of a simple mugging that had turned into something more. He hadn't anticipated the muggers to pull out a gun and shoot him point blank. He should have died, bled out in minutes, but it would appear that one of our kind was in the area and had caught the scent of his blood, figuring it was an easy meal.
And it would have been. Easy meal, easy to disguise.
His memories didn't reveal who it was, only that it was a female. He could hear her voice echoing in his mind and it sent chills down him to recall the sound of her tinkling voice. It would appear that she had been interrupted by something and hadn't killed him.
He had woken on the same street three days later, wondering what had happened and feeling a burn unlike anything else.
It was after he had made his first kill that he knew he didn't want to do it. He didn't want to live that way.
He was no more than a few weeks old. He had some strength to him to have discovered Carlisle's coven and sought them out as he had done.
"What do you suggest?" Carlisle asked quietly as I surveyed the newborn. "He has told us that he wants to learn to live as we do. He doesn't want to take the lives of humans."
"That may be," I said and the newborn looked up at me, his eyes black with thirst. I knew in that moment that should he be left alone, he would take off in search of food.
In search of humans.
What with the Cullens' being so close to the main town, it would not do well for that to happen.
"You're too close to humans." I didn't take my eyes off him as I spoke. He saw the colour of my eyes, wincing slightly as he took in the red as opposed to the amber of the others around him. "Yes, I feed from humans. But unlike you I have mastered my control unlike any other."
"What do you propose we do?" Carlisle asked, watching the newborn closely.
"You're certain you wish to live as the Cullens do?" The newborn nodded, opening his mouth to speak before his hand came to his throat, the burn overpowering him. To not have moved from that spot for two days after his arrival, he had remarkable control already. He was doing better than I was, at least. "Call Eleazar."
"Eleazar?" Carlisle sounded confused and the newborn looked up at me, panicked.
"Yes, they have as much experience with this lifestyle as you do but they have the advantage of living out in the wilderness. They have better . . . facilities, as it were, to cater to what he needs. In Alaska, he can roam freely without the risk of running into humans. Here, even in the forests, he may run into a hiker and I'm assuming – I use that term loosely, of course – that that is not what he wants?" He shook his head fiercely and I nodded. "Call Eleazar. Get him and his coven here."
Carlisle nodded and crossed the room to the large oak desk, picking up the phone. I kept my eyes on the newborn, who was watching Carlisle with a look of fear on his face. His mind was racing, wondering what was going on. He thought that Carlisle was abandoning him when he had asked for his help.
"He is doing no such thing." His head snapped around and he looked at me. His mind turned angry and confused, wondering who the hell I was. "I would calm yourself if I were you. I'm the one who decides whether you live or die." He inhaled a sharp breath, clearly not having anticipated my importance. He was new, he didn't know.
Jeez, Isabella's really rubbing off on me.
Carlisle wasn't long on the phone to Eleazar who informed him that they would be down later the same day. It would be a few hours until they arrived, so there was time to kill. They would be running there and back, giving them and the newborn a chance to feed while on the move.
"Hey," Isabella wrapped her arms around my waist as we waited for the arrival of the Denali coven. She rested her head on my chest as she watched Emmett with the newborn. Emmett had taken it upon himself to take him hunting, which all in all wasn't a bad idea. "I never would have thought that you'd go to so much trouble for a newborn." She said softly as Emmett guided the newborn through the taking down of a deer. Not that there was much to it, really.
"Normally, I wouldn't." I sighed and she looked up at me, confused. "There aren't many who willingly embrace the life of a 'vegetarian'," I chuckled to myself at the term they used for it, "and having a newborn who wishes to do so without any guidance to that lifestyle is almost unheard of."
"What about Carlisle?" She asked sounding slightly smug.
"I said 'almost'." I replied and she scowled at me, realising she had been beaten. "And the fact that you would have insisted we come to help anyway." She nodded, looking very pleased with herself and I laughed, shaking my head.
"Why send him to Alaska?" She looked back out at Emmett and the newborn as they hunted, a small smile on her face. "I mean, my family know what they're doing. He could stay here with them."
"Alaska is a better environment for him overall. The coven can dedicate all their time to aiding him, while here, they have to attend school and Carlisle is expected at the hospital and the only one that would be around would be Esme. It's not really the ideal environment for a newborn adjusting to a different lifestyle."
"Carlisle was able to with me." She looked back up at me.
"Yes, but Carlisle was also able to focus all of his energy on you. No matter how much she argues to the contrary, Esme will not be able to do that and neither will the others. For one thing, the pull from their mates will often win out over any responsibility they feel to the newborn. Not through choice but lack thereof. The bond between mates is such that it cannot be denied." She nodded and pressed my lips to the top of her head. "When Carlisle found you, he was connected to no other creature and was able to focus his energies on you. Though there are many of them, the Cullens will not be able to do the same thing."
"What about Carmen and Eleazar? They're mated."
"But the three sisters are not." I felt her disapproval of the sisters as I mentioned them. I chuckled lightly and she growled against my chest. Apparently, she did not find it amusing. "You're not still upset about the Tanya debacle the last time they were here, are you?"
"Well, who wouldn't be?" She asked, rolling her eyes as if to say 'men'. "I mean, she knew that we were together and yet she still tried it on. Who does that?"
"A succubus." I supplied and she let out a breath, clearly not pleased with the fact that I had an answer for her. "It's true, though. Though they may not have lived that way for a long time, but they do still retain the title of succubus. They act through attractions and use sex as a weapon purely because it's what they know. It's what they can utilise."
"Sex as a weapon, huh?" She smirked up at me and I scowled down at her.
"Not for you, no." I wrapped my arms tightly around her and she giggled, pressing her back into my chest as she rested her head on my shoulder, sighing gently. "There's nothing for you to worry about, love. There is no other for me." She let out a breath and I could see her becoming insecure and worried about the impending visit from the Denali coven. "Don't."
"What?"
"Do that." I whispered in her ear and she sighed, knowing that I had figured her out. "You are perfect in every way. Do you think that I want them? You think I want the three of them?"
She shrugged, looking away from me as she spoke. She had retained the self conscious image she had had when she was human but it appeared that it was only around these three vampires it really showed. "Well, you could have them if you did."
"Well, I don't." I spun her around, making her face me. She didn't meet my eyes and I knew we were going to have to work on her self esteem which was incredibly low for a vampire. "You're right, I could have them if I wanted, but . . ." I buried my nose in her hair, inhaling her sweet scent deeply. "I don't want them. I want you. You are the most perfect creature to me. The way you look," I urged her to open her eyes, which shone liquid gold at me, "the way you smell," I ran my nose down her jaw slowly, "the way you taste," I gently nipped at her throat, where her pulse point would have once been and she moaned quietly. "The way your mind works, the way you see things in others that no one else would even begin to look for, the way your body responds to my touch. It's all I will ever need. For the first time in my life, I need nothing more than what I have with you. You confuse and perplex me, yet you entice and excite me at the same time. I have never met a creature such as you and you are mine." I ran my nose back up her throat and jaw, placing a kiss to the corner of her mouth gently. "As I am yours."
She opened her eyes, the gold replaced by black lust as she wrapped her arms around me, her fingers tangling in my hair. She yanked my head down, crashing my lips to hers as her tongue forced its way between my lips. I welcomed it eagerly, never one to deny Isabella anything she wanted.
She pulled away for a brief moment, her eyes locking with mine as we stood there. "Mine." She growled, her eyes landing on my throat. Her eyes were fixed on the mark she had left not a year ago.
"Yours." I whispered as our lips met again in another passionate embrace.
She broke the kiss with a growl and looked over at the trees behind me. I knew what had upset her this time. It was the thoughts of a certain member of the Denali coven that had come to find us. Apparently, she had unresolved issues when it came to Tanya and Tanya was not one to leave them buried for long.
Apparently, she still thought that what Isabella and I had was fleeting.
Not a chance.
I turned to face her, Isabella still locked in my arms.
She stood there on the edge of the woods behind us, a smirk playing on her lips. Clearly she wasn't the least bit sorry for interrupting our moment. If anything she looked pleased with herself. She had a lot to learn.
"Did you not learn anything from our last encounter, Tanya?" I spoke calmly, coldly and she tensed slightly, her mind flickering back to what had transpired between us when she had come upon Isabella and I alone once before. "Mark my words that will seem pleasant to what will happen should you behave in that manner again." I turned to see where Emmett and the newborn were. He had taken him to bury his kill, ensuring he knew to place it where it would not be found by unsuspecting hikers. Not that they came out this far but one can never be too careful. "Emmett." I called softly and the two of them joined us.
Isabella and I made our way back to the house where the rest of them were waiting for us. Eleazar and Carlisle were speaking of the newborn, his wishes to learn their way of life and his countenance. Eleazar seemed impressed that he had made it to Carlisle's coven without making any more kills. He had deemed him strong.
I had made it my intention to wait before making any assumptions.
"I assure that you're willing to take him under your wing, Eleazar." He turned to face me, his head bobbing in a small, respectful bow.
"Yes, my lord." His response was quiet but his head was teeming with how to control the newborn. "We will depart with him as soon as possible to make it easier for him." His eyes flicked behind me to where he had walked into the house. He was nervous being surrounded by unfamiliar vampires and scents. It would take him a while to acclimatise to the life of a vampire, but he was certain in his mind that he wanted to do this.
In his eyes he didn't want to be a murderer.
Eleazar stepped forward, holding a hand out to the newborn who backed away slightly, unsure of the man in front of him. "There's no need for you to worry. We're not here to harm you." The newborn's eyes flicked to me and I knew he had realised that I was the one, should the need arise, to take away his life. "My name is Eleazar and this is my mate, Carmen." She gave him a warm smile as he addressed her.
"Hello," He had obviously found his voice while out hunting with Emmett. "I'm Garrett. Thank you for coming all this way."
"It's really no trouble." Eleazar's smile was genuine as he talked with Garrett. "We're always happy to welcome another member into our family. This is Irina."
"Hello." She gave him a small wave, staying back, realising that it was wise to, lest she overwhelm him.
"And over here we have Tanya and Kate." Tanya gave him a slow smile, which even I found a little creepy while Kate was standing there, her eyes wide and her body stiff.
Isabella looked up at me as I watched the two of them together. The surge of energy in the air seemed to have caught Jasper a little off guard as he shook his head before looking at me. I shook my head, telling him not to try to diffuse what was literally burning through the air. He nodded, knowing full well what was happening. As did I. The energy I felt coming from the two of them was instant and familiar. The pull that they were now feeling towards each other was just as the one I felt for Isabella.
They were mates.
They stood their looking at each other while everyone else in the room watched them. I now had no doubt that they would be the ones to help Garrett adjust to the lifestyle.
After a few more minutes, the room had subsided into small groups, quiet chattering happening between them. Garrett and Kate had moved out into the expansive garden the Cullen's possessed, talking quietly, getting to know one another. They were still unsure of what had transpired between them in the house but were both determined to work it out between them.
I heard Isabella growl once more and turn to face Tanya where she was standing with Irina. I turned to face her and saw that she was glaring at Tanya with more fire than I had ever seen before. Rosalie and Alice, whom Isabella had been talking to beforehand, were watching her, a little stunned as she stepped away from them.
"If you have something to say, Tanya, why don't you just say it?" She spat and I smirked as the rest of the room fell completely silent at the words.
"I'm not sure what you're talking about." Tanya replied, a false bravado in play. I chuckled softly, feeling Jasper's amusement at Tanya's attempt to cover up her emotions.
"No?" Isabella smirked at her, a smirk that reminded me a lot of myself in fact. She folded her arms across her chest as she stared at the blonde vampire. "I thought you'd left the days of a succubus behind. Or was that just a story you told your family?" Tanya's eyes widened as she realised that I was not the only telepath in the room anymore. "He's off limits."
It was clear to everyone now what Tanya's thoughts had been moments before and there was no surprise there. Isabella was glorious as she stood there, her eyes burning into the blonde across the room. Apparently, there was no esteem issues anymore.
My god I loved her.
After Isabella's little outburst, the Denali coven had left pretty quickly, not wanting to witness a confrontation between the two.
It wasn't something I would have minded seeing, but hey, that's just me.
The Cullens had accepted their position as a 'go-to' between the vampires of the world and myself. They were easier to find than I was, considering Isabella and I were constantly on the move and they settled in places for a time. There had been a couple of incidences where vampires had contacted them about a rogue they were worried about and I had always gotten the message. It was a system that had worked pretty well over the last century or so. And it kept Isabella in contact with her family, which she didn't mind so much.
"Edward?" Carlisle turned to me slightly, wondering how to broach a subject. "Over the last couple of weeks, there's been a scent appearing in the area. It's not one we recognise and we've never gotten a glimpse of who it is. We're concerned that it might become a problem. They've not made any contact as of yet and Alice hasn't been able to get a read on who they are through her visions."
"So you need my help." He nodded and I let out a breath.
"Yes," He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "We've tried following the scent but after a few blocks, it disappears. No trace of anything there at all. We've tried going up and searching all around but there's nothing."
"Alright." I made my way over to Isabella, pressing a kiss to her hair and telling her softly that I'd be back in a while. Her eyes questioned me, wondering if I wanted her to come with me. I shook my head, silently telling her to enjoy her time with her family. "Where was the last place you encountered the scent?"
Emmett led me to where they had last encountered the scent, not the day before yesterday. The weather had been still and dry for the last two days, meaning that the scent lingered.
My head snapped up as we encountered the scent and I felt a growl erupting in my throat. It couldn't be.
"Edward?" Emmett stepped away from me slightly, sensing my change.
"Stay here." If the scent was who I thought it was, then I knew exactly where it would lead me. It wouldn't stay in the city. It would lead up into the mountains, where he was most comfortable. He had always been at home in the mountains, being the master at navigating them when human.
I left Emmett standing there, speeding down the streets. I didn't encounter the minds of humans as I ran, leaving me free to gain speed as I made my way towards the mountains Isabella and I had been relaxing in earlier. I encountered the scent again and knew I had been right.
I paid no mind to the rocks as I launched myself up into the mountains, following the scent. Why was he here? How was he alive? I had assumed he had perished with the many others all those years ago. What did he want now and why hadn't he made his presence known before now?
I stopped, hearing the worried thoughts fearing that he had made a mistake. Who would know if it was a mistake or not? Not even I could see the outcome of this particular meeting. It had been such a long time since we had seen each other and the last time he had really laid eyes on me, I was coming at him, ready to eat him. Which I did but what does that matter?
I moved towards him slowly and he registered my presence, standing quickly. I pushed my way through the trees and stopped, seeing him in front of me. He hadn't changed at all. Not over the millennia but then again, I guessed that I hadn't either.
We stood there for a few moments, assessing each other before he nodded, doing that bow Eleazar did. Clearly, he knew who I was in our world and knew to show me the proper respect, no matter who he had been to me once.
The past was past and that was where it was supposed to say.
"Seytu." He inhaled at the sound of his ancient name, his body tensing as I spoke. Standing in front of me was the only creature to have survived as long as I had. He was the only one to know the rise and fall of the empires.
Now my question was, how had he managed to avoid me for all these years?
And what was I going to do about it?
"Edaar."
. . . . . . . .
I know I left it on a cliffy, but there is a reason.
You'll find out soon enough what it is and no, it's not a sequel. If you want to find out the story between these two, shove me on Author's Alert and wait and see.