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I feel like I left you guys on that cliff for too long. Please don't be too mad. Everything starts to pick up speed so, hold on tight!
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BPOV
Then I felt a nudge beneath my ribs.
I was completely taken aback. I think the shock of feeling something move inside of me made my visible reaction worse. It didn't even hurt, it was just so unexpected that it completely startled me.
Edward was in the room with me and saw the flash of panic on my face. I tried to control my expression, but it was too late the flicker of disbelief was enough. He could tell I was freaked out.
He was in front of me in an instant. "Love, what's wrong?"
"I-I don't know... I think I felt something move inside of me," I said, my voice breathy and slightly panicked. I saw Edward's eyes widen.
Then his phone started ringing. We were both frozen, the ring was the only noise filling the deafening silence. It took me a second to recompose myself, and once I did I reached into Edward's front pocket and answered.
"Alice?"
"Bella, are you alright? I saw-."
"What-what did you see Alice?"
"Here's Carlisle." Why would she pass me off to Carlisle? What was happening? Edward was still standing frozen, as still as a statue.
"Bella? Is everything alright?" Carlisle's voice was gentle and completely composed, it definitely helped to ground myself.
"I don't know, Carlisle. Can vampires go into shock?" I wasn't sure how to put this into words, how to explain the inexplicable.
"Have you or Edward been harmed?"
"No, Carlisle. I know it's impossible, but I swear I felt something move inside of me."
"Carlisle? What's going on?" Edward said taking the phone from me, finally having broke from his state of shock. Edward's voice was laced with panic and worry. I felt another nudge in the same spot.
Thanks to my hearing I could hear what Carlisle was saying.
"I don't know, Edward."
"This isn't possible Carlisle, you know that."
Thanks to my vampiric thinking speed, I was able to start piecing things together. Eleazar had said that I had a gift, a gift unlike anything he had seen. It still felt like too far a stretch.
Vampires couldn't change to accommodate a pregnancy, but I still kept circling back to that explanation, there was nothing else that fit. Nothing about anything that was going on right now made any sense.
"Bella? Are you alright?" Edward was watching me intently. He had dropped the phone from his ear, but Carlisle was still on the line. In spite of the risk of sounding insane, I decided to share my thoughts with Edward. I was still too new to this world to make any determination alone.
"I'm fine. Edward? Do you remember what Eleazar said? About me having a gift that he had never seen before? Maybe it's insane, but what if it's this?"
Edward was silently mulling over my words.
It was then I started hearing the small thump-thump. It sounded like a heartbeat, which neither Edward or I had.
The small sound broke Edward out of his thoughts again, "Do you hear that?"
I nodded silently. It got slightly louder.
"It sounds like a-," he paused.
"A heartbeat?"
He nodded wordlessly. I could see how fast his mind was working, I knew because mine was working just as fast.
He brought the phone back up to his ear.
"Carlisle? Are you alone?" Edward's eyes never left mine.
"Yes, Edward, are you two alright?"
"Carlisle, I know it's absolutely impossible, but we can hear a heartbeat."
"A heartbeat? Are you absolutely certain?"
"Yes, we're certain, Carlisle." His eyes flickered to me once more, "Eleazar said something about Bella having a gift. A gift he had never seen anywhere before. Something completely unique, he couldn't know for sure. Bella's shield was too strong, she's been able to push it out enough for me to get slight glimpses of her thoughts. Could it-,"
"I have no idea, Edward. If you'd like we can meet you in Denali? So we can figure out this together?"
"No," Edward said sharply. It was clear to me that he was already on edge, adding these nomads to the mix would not help. He took a deep breath and explained, "One of the nomads, that came the night you went to play baseball in the clearing. He's with them now. There was something he was hiding from me. If this is true, if it is possible, we need to keep this as quiet as possible. I don't want any more of a target on Bella's back."
I was shocked to hear this, what would anyone want with me?
I felt a stronger nudge in the same spot.
"I'll talk to Eleazar, and we'll meet you there. He'll be discrete, Edward."
"Thank you, Carlisle."
The heartbeat was getting faster, the nudging kept continuing but it was sporadic. I could hear the muted thud that accompanied each little nudge.
"They'll be here soon, Bella. Don't worry. You'll be okay," Edward's words were soft, but I could still see the worry in his eyes.
I nodded, to be honest I wasn't too worried about myself. We waited for a day and a half before Carlisle and Eleazar made it to London. I felt guilty that they had to make the long journey over here. My marble-like stomach now had a slight curve to it. The heartbeat getting stronger, even if this was true, why was this progressing so quickly? Normal pregnancies lasted nine months, though there was nothing normal about this situation.
We had just gone hunting a few days prior, but I could feel the thirst building in my throat already.
Edward saw the darkness forming in my eyes, and he suggested a quick hunt before Carlisle arrived, I nodded. It was a slight distraction from this tempestuous situation we found ourselves in. The hunting trip was practically silent, except for Edward occasionally asking me if I was okay.
One we returned, we sat on the couch, it was only days ago that Edward had moved this couch so we could dance, and now we found ourselves in another situation. Edward remained holding my hand next to me the entire time. There were still no words exchanged. The only thing that kept us from complete silence was the small heartbeat emanating from me. It took them about a day and a half from the time of the phone call to now to get to London.
"They're about a mile out, Bella," Edward informed me, breaking the tense silence.
I nodded. My thoughts were still racing with questions, but I felt oddly protective over the little nudger that had taken root inside of me.
Edward opened the door before Carlisle and Eleazar even knocked.
After a quick greeting, I could see the confusion on Eleazar's face.
"What's going on, Carlisle? And what is that noise?" The sound of the fast heartbeat filled our silences once again.
"That's what we would like to know, you told Bella and I that she had a unique gift. There is no logical reason that this should be possible," Edward explained.
"I couldn't see past her shield, Edward. That would be the only way to know," Eleazar reminded him.
"I've been working on it, pushing the shield out of my head, Edward's been able to get glimpses of my thoughts. I can try to do it again?" I quickly rushed out, we needed answers as to what was going on with me.
"Very well," Eleazar nodded.
I started to visualize the bubble around me, once I had a grasp on it, I slowly pushed it out of my head. It didn't last more than a few seconds, but I hoped that was enough.
"Impossible." The shock was evident on Eleazar's face. He turned to Edward and I with a look of awe, "It's true, the gift of children. In all my years, I've never heard of such a thing."
I didn't like how everyone was watching me, like nobody knew what to say.
"Eleazar, we need this to remain hidden, in the wrong hands," Carlisle began. I could understand why this needed to be kept a secret, I suppressed a shiver at the thought of other vampires finding out about this.
"I understand, Carlisle. I will not say a word, but if Aro-." I remembered Edward saying that one of the leader of the Volturi had the ability to read every thought one had ever had with just one touch. If Eleazar saw him, he would know our secret.
"Of course, you can't help Aro's gift, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Thank you, Eleazar. You've done us a great kindness," Carlisle thanked him politely. It was nice having Carlisle here, even in this ludicrous situation, he was still the pinnacle of calm.
"What do we do now? Does this pose a threat to Bella?" Edward demanded. Even though we didn't know what would become of this, I felt unnaturally at ease. This wasn't scary to me. Despite my initial shock, I felt okay with all this.
"I've never heard of such a thing before. It's completely new territory, Edward," Carlisle spoke softly to try to keep Edward calm.
"What if Bella gets hurt in the process, Carlisle?" Edward demanded once again.
"Technically, I can't die anymore, Edward," I reminded him.
"You can still get seriously hurt, Bella. Just look, you've hunted twice in the last week, Bella, and your eyes are already black. It's taking up a lot of your energy," Edward explained in exasperation.
"Edward, it'll be okay. Everything will work itself out, you'll see," I gently comforted him again. I knew he heard me, but he kept his focus on Carlisle, there was something upsetting about Edward's reaction to this whole thing, I tried not to let it bother me because I knew it was all rooted in concern for me and my wellbeing, but I didn't like not being on Edward's side, it made everything feel unbalanced.
"We'll need to monitor her closely, but if this is Bella's gift, then I don't see why it would harm her, Edward." It was reassuring to know that Carlisle agreed with me. I didn't want to have to convince the both of them that everything would be okay, but if I had to then I would.
"I must go now, but good luck to you all, if there's anything I can do, please let me know," Eleazar said before taking off. We thanked him one last time before he took off.
"Carlisle, this could be dangerous," Edward warned.
"It's not-," I began.
"You aren't exactly the best judge of what is or isn't dangerous," Edward said curtly. I was taken aback by Edward's remark. I hadn't seen this side of Edward since I was a human, and he was trying to convince me to run away from him. I could see that there was nothing I could say to convince him. I knew he was just lashing out in concern, but it still left a bitter taste in my mouth.
"Edward, you know Bella is like a daughter to me, and I would say if I truly thought that this endangered her," Carlisle countered. I, too, saw Carlisle as a second father, I knew I could trust him with this, he wouldn't be cavalier with my wellbeing.
"We don't even know what it will be. If it's anything like the immortal children we won't be able to control it."
"The immortal children?"
Carlisle and Edward briefly explained the frightening history of these children who had been changed at such a young age, children that were uncontrollable, and anyone having to do with these vampiric children were executed by the Volturi.
"But, Edward, it's already growing very quickly, it won't just stop growing once it's born. And it has a heartbeat, immortals don't," I argued.
"I have to agree Edward. It's growth rate is already unprecedented. There is no reason that the heartbeat should be this strong, and you can see it's growing inside of her. It's truly fascinating," Carlisle marveled.
"Where do we go from here, Carlisle? Do we stay here, go back to Forks?" Edward asked.
"For observation's sake, I'd like you two to come home, but people believe you to be deceased, Bella."
"How is he, Carlisle?" I interrupted our little conversation. I was really worried about Charlie, he was all alone in that house.
"He's...managing. We've stopped by his house a few times, Renee has already returned to Florida, but she and Esme have been speaking daily, they both understand the grief from losing a child. Charlie's been spending time on the reservation with Sue Clearwater, Harry's widower."
"Harry died?"
"He passed not long after you did," Carlisle explained gently.
I nodded. I didn't know Harry very well, but I knew he and Charlie were close. I only vaguely remembered him and his two kids, Seth and Leah. Seth used to hang around Jake, he was one of the youngest in the pack. I was glad Charlie had found someone to work through the grief.
"So what do we do Carlisle? I don't want to put anyone at risk," I pondered. I wasn't even sure what we should do. I wanted to go back to Forks, but I knew that was impossible for right now.
"Maybe we have you two relocate near the Canadian border, it's not ideal, but it's closer than here. It's too risky to have you two in Forks, even in Seattle someone might see you."
"Alright, I'll make the arrangements," Edward agreed sharply. He spent the next hour on the phone making the arrangements, only occasionally sparing me a glance, like he was making sure I was still here.
Carlisle left not long after we had decided.
He thought it was best that he tell the family. I wanted to tell them myself, but even a quick trip to Forks was too risky right now. I knew he was most worried about Rosalie, up until now it was believed that vampires couldn't have children and we all knew how desperately she wanted them. I felt bad that I was getting everything she had wanted for the last century.
There was a tension between Edward and myself. I knew he was worried that I was putting myself at risk, but I didn't feel that way. I already felt so much love for my little nudger.
"Edward," I sighed, "are you alright?"
He didn't say anything, just looked at me and pulled me into a tight embrace.
"I'm going to miss this place," I whispered into his chest.
"I will too, but we'll come back eventually."
The tension had eased ever so slightly, but I still saw the look of worry in Edward's eyes.
Edward had somehow already arranged a house for us. He had called Alice to ask if she could prepare it so it was ready for us, she enthusiastically agreed.
Edward quickly packed up our necessities, which wasn't much. He insisted that he do it alone, so I could rest. I knew he was being absurd but I didn't push him. I only brought my very worn novel containing an anthology of Jane Austen novels, the guitar Edward had gotten me despite his insistence that he could just get me another one, my journal, and the photo album that Charlie had given me.
And then, we were on our way to Canada.