The Meadow

The sun breaks through the tree line, a spray of gold that dances over the babbling brook and the wild, violet flowers. Beau sits on the bank of the stream in only a pair of grey boxer briefs, his legs hugged to his chest. He stares at his reflection in the pool below and tortured crimson eyes glare back at him. His pallid skin glitters as the sunlight beams down upon him and he groans, closing his eyes so he doesn't have to see it. The memory of being so violently turned by the tracker James was freshly ingrained in his mind.

James was in front of Beau in a flash, had taunting him as he ruthlessly sent a crushing blow to his chest. Beau went flying backward, crashing head first into the mirrors of the ballet studio. The shards of glass buckled, shattering and splintering all around him. There was a piece of one lodged into his thigh which he yanked out foolishly, but he was too stunned to feel the pain or even breathe. Beau's blood pooled from the wound and seeped into his blue jeans, he tried to apply pressure to it to slow the bleeding, but that only seemed to entice his assailant further.

James had a predatory gait similar to a leopard, each step purposely slow and suspenseful. He was shirtless, clad in only a pair of dark jeans. "That's a very nice effect," he said, examining the mess of glass, his voice friendly again. "I thought this room would be visually dramatic for my little film. That's why I picked this place to meet you. It's perfect, isn't it?" Beau could barely make out the tracker's face, his vision failing him as the blond vampire stalked closer. He ignored him, scrambling on his hands and knees in an attempt to get to the other door. Beau barely managed to blink once before James hovered over him, his foot stepping down hard on his shin. The sound of the snap was sickening and Beau screamed in agony, twisting up to reach his leg while his predator stood over him, smiling wickedly.

"Go on," he purred darkly, "beg Edward to save you! Beg him!"

"No! No, Edward don't-" Beau croaked out weakly, his response resulted in James grabbing him and smashing him back into the broken mirrors. There was a sharp rip across his scalp where the glass cut into it, the warm wetness of his blood spreading through his hair with alarming speed. The smell of it twisted his stomach, but for James it resulted in burning, uncontrollable need. The scent was strong and irresistible to his predator and once again James pounced on him, sinking his teeth into Beau's right hand. The feeling of teeth tearing into his flesh was enough to elicit another scream from Beau and shortly after he fell unconscious.

It took about a minute before he woke up screaming from the pain of the burning of his hand, the venom spreading like wildfire throughout his body. He was spasming, even as he felt cold hands trying to hold him still. There were a myriad of voices speaking over each other, some begging, some authoritative and some simply...resigned. "Please, please-! Just kill me!" He cried, but his pleading fell upon deaf ears before he felt another face against his throat. The last thing he heard was the quiet sound of Edward's teeth cutting through his skin.

. . .

"Beau? Beau!" The last thing he expected was to hear his father's voice. Beau's head snapped up instantly, wide eyes as he stared back at the old man. There were dark circles under the eyes of Charlie Swan and they were red rimmed, puffy from tears he'd never admit to shedding. His brown hair was disheveled, his beard unkempt and overgrown. He was in his police uniform, clutching his shotgun as if his life depended on it. Alice Cullen was next to him, looking just as worried about Beau as he was. Her eyes were a ravenous black and that alone was enough to signal a sense of alarm within the newborn vampire. "What are you doing here with him? Why are you here?! Get away, go far away dad!"

"No, I damn near lost you once and I ain't going through that again! Beau, Billy told me everything. The Cullens, the wolves, you-I know what you are. I want to help you, son."

"You can't! Alice, you shouldn't have brought him here!" Beau screamed and there was a loud whoosh of air that surged from the newborn, a transparent field of energy that seemed to stop short of the pixie girl. They both knew that Beau would never actually harm her, she was his best friend after all. "I brought him because I thought if anyone could get through to you, it'd be him. You've been shielding yourself from all of us, to the point where I can't even make heads or tails of your future! We've all been worried sick about you, Beau. Please-just let the shield down, let us help you." Alice pleaded with him, her eyes wet with venom coated tears. Charlie took a step forward, a baffled expression on his face as he pressed a hand against the barrier in front of him. It was solid but shimmery and it vibrated beneath his palm, a hum of raw power that left him speechless.

Beau ran a hand through his hair, gripping the strands a bit tightly as he stumbled back from his family. "No, I said no-he shouldn't be here. This world isn't for him, get him out! ALICE GET HIM OUT!" He growled ferociously and his shield consumed the pixie as Beau went surging for her, his speed unnatural before Charlie's human eyes. Alice narrowly escaped being tackled by Beau and she grabbed his arm, twisting it behind him before shoving him roughly into the ground. The barrier all but shattered as he lost his focus, the right side of his face crushed into the dirt. Jasper had taught Alice well when it came to dealing with emotionally driven newborns and Beau was no exception, even if she did care deeply for him.

"Don't hurt him, don't hurt my boy, Alice." Charlie begged her, his voice cracking as he lowered his gun. Beau continued to scream and thrash, but Alice kept him pinned while she gave the police chief a silent affirmation. "Beau, I need you to calm down. Slow breaths, okay? Charlie isn't going anywhere and neither am I. I'm going to let you go, but if you rush at me again-I'll rip your arm off and beat you with it." She promised him, her tone even and no-nonsense. Beau gave a grunt, his breathing labored even and still so oddly human. Alice released him and he righted himself swiftly, biting down on his lower lip when his eyes settled on his father. "Dad, I'm so sorry...I-I never meant any of it, Edward said I had to do it, but I didn't want to-"

"Beau, I don't care about any of that or about that Edwin kid. I missed you-" Charlie attempted to reach for him, but Beau visibly flinched and shrunk back from him. Chief Swan dropped his hand and inside shrugged out of his brown leather jacket, tossing it at him. "Put some clothes on son, it's below freezing out here."

"I don't..." Beau swallowed thickly as he accepted the jacket, shrugging it on when his father gave him a pointed look. "Thanks, dad." He mumbled, eyes downcast as shame flooded him instantly. How could he think to deny his father yet again? He'd broken his heart once already, he couldn't do that to him again. "I have to go back, I'm technically not supposed to be here-but I got a short reprieve because of Charlie." Alice's voice cut through the silence like a butter knife, startling Beau out of his own silent dilemma. He stared at her, brows furrowing in confusion.

"Where are you going?" Beau asked in a strained whisper, dread filling him in an instant. Now that she was here, he didn't want her to go-but they both knew she had to. Word had spread to the reservation that the Cullens had broken the treaty and as such, they were no longer welcomed. Alice brushed a hand against Beau's face tenderly, her thumb dancing over his cheek briefly. "Seattle, it's outside of the wolves' territory and at least from there, I can keep better track of the Victoria situation. We're convinced she's the reason there's a lot of missing teens and Edward-" Beau flinched, "-he's determined to put an end to it all."

"Oh, well...good luck." He muttered darkly, pushing her hand away. Alice exchanged a quick glance with Charlie, mouthing a silent apology before leaving in a blur. Beau caved in a matter of seconds, his arms wrapping around Charlie as he embraced him a bit tightly. Charlie grunted, but returned the hug, not caring that his only child was suddenly colder and bizarrely stronger than he used to be. It was true about the Swans, they were good with weird. "I'm sorry, dad. I'm so sorry...I didn't want this to happen, I didn't...want this life.." He had chosen to play with fire, despite the looming consequences. Edward had warned him repeatedly that it was dangerous to mix with his kind, but Beau had been so fascinated and in love with the idea of being with a family he'd chosen.

His mortality had been an afterthought and now it was too late.

"Beau, it's not safe for you out here. I want you to come home, finish school-just..come back, we can figure it out. I don't want you out here, come home son." Charlie pleaded with Beau softly as they pulled back from each other. It was so tempting to just say yes, to go home and pretend he was still the same old Beau. The wind blew and suddenly Beau was hit with the reminder of why he couldn't go home-Charlie's scent, it was intoxicatingly sweet and it made his throat burn for what he craved most: blood. Beau held his breath and concentrated, his barrier form over him in an instant and it even pushed Charlie back.

"No dad, I can't. Alice was wrong to bring you here. You might know the truth about this world, but that doesn't mean I'm gonna keep you in it. Go home, forget you ever saw me-I'm dead, dad. I can't go back, it's over for me." Beau closed his eyes tightly, even as Charlie cried out his name and begged him to reconsider-he didn't. The transparent barrier projected further, pushing Charlie away at a much more rapid pace, far away from him. He could hear his father crying, banging his fists against the invisible dome, screaming that this wasn't the end of this conversation-that he would be back. Beau sunk to the ground in a fetal position and heaved out a broken sob, clutching onto his father's coat.