Chapter 18


Bella felt her eyes flutter open and forced herself to sit up, looking around and taking in her surroundings with curiosity. Bella noted that she seemed to be floating on some sort of forestry island. In place of the sky there was nothing, just a plain white void, that went as far as her eyes could see. Bella looked around the immediate areas that surrounded her, finding the area was filled with trees, mossy ground and streams. It became painfully aware to Bella that none of the Cullens or Jake were there. Bella heard a twig snap and shot around to see the hooded figures walking towards her, their hands in the air almost as a peace offering.

"We come in peace, Isabella" The figure with red eyes stated.

Bella nodded and sat down on a fallen tree, her thoughts floating to Alice, her family and then to Jake. She rested her head in her hands wondering how things could have turned out so terribly wrong and let out an incredibly defeated sigh.

"Am I dead?" Bella finally asked as the two figures moved in close and leaned against the nearby trees, patiently waiting for Bella to get her bearings.

"No, you're just locked in your subconscious right now, more or less at the crossroads of life and death" The figure with yellow eyes responded.

"Who are you?" Bella asked after a few moments of silence.

The hooded figures paused for just a moment and nodded as they looked at each other, clearly having some sort of silent conversation. Finally, they lowered their hoods, displaying themselves for the first time.

The red eyed figure was a man with extremely pale skin, almost transparent. His dark auburn wavy hair was pulled back into a half ponytail, the ends reaching his shoulders. His eyes were blood red. He locked eyes with Bella.

"Isabella, my name is Aurelias. I am the first vampire to make an existence in this world."

"And I am Taha-Aki, the first Shifter of the Quileute tribe." The figure with yellow eyes murmured as he flicked his long raven colored hair from his face.

Bella looked at the two of them, her eyes widening with curiosity.

"You'll have to excuse me for my bluntness but I am terribly confused and honestly not exactly in the mood for games. Why are you in my subconscious and why have you both been plaguing my dreams?" Bella asked with a raised eyebrow.

"We needed to discuss something with you, but your mind was not secure. The only way we could was through your dreams and even then, we had to be cautious." Aurelias stated.

"I'm sorry but maybe I did not make myself clear. Can you please stop being so fucking cryptic? God, you're worse than Alice is sometimes when she receives a vision. Just shoot straight. I don't have it in me to read between your lines anymore" Bells retorted with a slight snap.

"Isabella…What we are about to tell you is going to be rather…Difficult to take in. However it is time for you to know the truth." Aurelias began rather cautiously, "Your mind is unique. You have a mental shield, and a strong one at that but when you fell asleep, your shield faltered making you susceptible to attacks. Surely you did not think that these nightmares were normal occurrences?"

"You mean to say someone has been getting into my head to create some sort of mental warfare?" Why on earth would someone do that to me, and who?" Bella asked with a huff of annoyance.

"Can you truly not think of someone? Consider it, Isabella. These nightmares have happened after every life altering moment that involve your imprint. After you said that you loved her for the first time and after you proposed? Sometimes attacking someone's mental state is the best way to break your enemy down" Taha responded.

"Okay, fine. I'll bite. If that's the case, how are you communicating to me now so freely?" Bella asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Your mental shield only had this flaw as a mortal. With vampire venom now circulating through your veins, your shield will be complete. This will come to the knowledge of the Cullens after they suggest that you see Eleazar with the Denali coven and allow the truth of your gift to be made known then" Aurelias responded.

"What is so significant of this ability?" Bella continued to inquire.

" You will be safe from Aro, the leader of the Volturi as well as against many of his guards. The Volturi is a merciless and chaotically organized Coven who oversees Vampire laws. Much like Edward, Aro can touch you and see every thought and experience you've ever or will have. No one can lie to Aro. All vampires live in fear of them. This coven have grown to be too powerful and thus, thrown everything out of balance." Aurelias responded.

"And why would the Volturi be a concern of mine? I have done nothing wrong except allowing myself to deviate from the plan, which caused me to almost die and for Alice to be forced to try and change me against her wishes." Bella asked as she looked down to play with her nails.

"The Volturi do not like things out of order. By definition to them, your very existence is an abomination, a creation that never should exist in this world. Being part vampire and part shifter is a threat to the natural order. They will want to end this threat and will likely come for you. They have been worried about the strength of the Cullen clan for some time. Having you as the added asset makes them that much more of a threat." Taha responded.

"Ugh, seriously! I just took out a huge threat and was ready to return to a normal life with my family, you know, get married. Now you're telling me that a whole organization has to be taken down? I cannot put my family into that type of danger. I refuse!" Bella groaned as she closed her eyes in frustration.

"Isabella, I'm afraid you don't have a choice. They will make this decision in the next few months. Alice will receive the vision due to her gift. It has all been foretold in our legends. This is your destiny and always has been." Aurelias replied, his tone softening.

"What legends and what the hell do you mean this is my destiny? This is my life, my story. I will say how it all goes, no one else!" Bella sighed in frustration.

"Isabella, I know that this a lot to take in, but you and I are related, through your father's side. You inherited your shield ability through him. It was always your destiny to become a vampire. As a human, you were always out of place. You were never truly comfortable in your skin. That is because you never were meant to stay as a human. You were born to become one of us." Aurelias said with a slight smile.

Bella did not respond few a few moments, her deep breaths becoming rather choppy as she forced her mind to wrap around all that she had been told. When Bella did not respond, Aurelias continued.

"According to legend from an ancient seer, one day a being would come forth to unite our worlds. It was said that only this being could end not only the Volturi but also create a bridge between our two worlds, stopping the curse of the phasing and break the hatred for vampires. The Volturi have been trying to figure out the riddle for decades, but have not been successful." Taha answered.

"And you are positive that this person… is me?" Bella asked with a slight grimace.

"Yes, we would not be able to appear in your subconscious if this were not true. You are the person that we have been waiting for in the afterlife and we are here to help guide you and provide the strength of your ancestors that come from your vampire blood lines and the blood that was given to you by Jacob. If you were not the person foretold, you would have died when the venom entered your bloodstream" Aurelias nodded.

"Hold up. My body accepted the venom? Oh, god. How long have I been out for?" Bella asked with a raised eyebrow, finding it very difficult to absorb the information that was being shared with her. She was a no one, and she had come to accept and like that life. How could someone like her be this significant of a person?

"35 hours and 30 minutes on the dot. Traditional changes take exactly three days. As a partial vampire, your turn will be different and you will wake at 36, precisely half of the time" Aurelias stated.

"Alice must be so freaked out… everyone must be" Bella sighed.

" You must learn to forgive yourself for what happened. They do not hate you or think less of you for what happened. Alice is in pain only because she is terrified that you are not going to wake up because of her venom. Once you wake and adjust, all will be well." Taha replied.

"But different. I will be different. Everything is different now." Bella sighed.

"

Yes, it is true that you will be different but your bond with each other will not be, if anything, it will be enhanced as her venom is now running through your veins. She's an exceptional mate. I don't believe I've ever seen or felt a bond as strong as the one that you and her share. She will take this information that we shared with you all in stride." Aurelias smiled.

"How can you be so sure of that?" Bella sighed as she shook her head.

"Isabella, it's almost time. You'll simply have to trust us, trust yourself, and trust your bond with your imprint. You will awaken soon. It will do you well to tell your family of this interaction as soon as you feel comfortable in doing so. They will need the time to prepare. Any further questions?" Taha asked.

"Am I now…immortal?" Bella whispered, looking up to meet their gaze.

"Yes, that is what the legends foretold. You will no longer age, regardless if you stop or continue to phase. But let me make this clear, you must embrace both sides of you. If you do not, you will find that the toll on your body and mind will be too much. You will need to find this balance." Taha murmured as both he and Aurelias faded into nothing.

Bella, now alone was once more surrounded by blackness. She heard Alice faintly calling her name. She felt the immense searing pain seemingly burning through her insides like an inferno and felt herself clench her jaw tightly, refusing to scream or moan, not wanting Alice to feel any more pain that she already felt. If Taha had been correct with his assessment, her transformation should be complete soon. Surely she could handle a few minutes of life ending pain to save Alice from feeling any more than necessary.


Alice sat next to Bella, where she had been sitting for the past 35 hours, 50 minutes and 13 seconds. She had only moved to change Bella into more comfortable and intact clothing and to clean off the dry and crusty blood from her broken body. She had gone over thirty different outfits that would be fitting for when Bella awoke, and had finally decided on a pair of dark cargo style pants, a white t-shirt and an army green colored leather jacket.

Alice moved her trembling hands to a collection of cool and damp washcloths and placed the torn pieces of fabric against the multiple healing but still visible bite marks that she had inflicted on Bella. Out of desperation, she had sunk her teeth into each of Bella's main pulse points, hoping that her venom would work its cursed magic. Alice could only hope that the cool washcloths were providing some sort of relief from the raging fire that Bella must have been feeling, assuming she had done everything correctly, that she had not been too late, and that Bella's body did not reject the venom.

"Alice, dear." Esme sighed as she sat next to Alice, who visibly a mess. Her dark hair was sticking out in every direction and was filled with forestry vegetation from when she had run through the forest with her dying mate in her arms. However, what was of most concern to Esme was how the customary light that always had shone in her eyes had been replaced by a dull and vacant expression.

"She's too quiet and too still. I must have done something wrong." Alice sighed, her eyes not moving from Bella.

"Listen to her heart beat, Alice. Her wounds have almost all but healed. Her scars from her childhood, other blemishes, even her tattoo have disappeared. Her hair has reverted back to its natural color but with enhanced auburn tones. Everything is going smoothly. Perhaps her shifter blood is acting as a natural pain killer." Esme soothed, running her hand up and down Alice's back.

"I know I did what I had to do but I feel like I robbed her from life. I took away her choice. As a shifter, she could have lived a more or less normal existence. She could have slept. Ate. Stopped aging if she chose to by ceasing to phase. Now, I have no idea what her life will look like once she wakes and I am terrified to even try and look into the future. I think she will hate me for what I have taken away from her." Alice responded, feeling venom begin to pool in her eyes.

"It will all be okay. You need to put more faith into Bella than that. I'm sure she will be grateful that you saved her life." Esme tried to reason.

"Yeah, if she wakes up at all." Alice murmured out, her voice cracking from the raw emotion she felt building up inside.

Esme did not reply but pulled Alice into a fierce and loving embrace, causing her to let out her tearless sobs against Esme's crook of her neck. Esme continued to hold onto her adoptive daughter, whispering comforting sweet nothings into her ear, stroking her hair and gently removing the forestry debris to help calm down the emotionally distraught pixie. Alice pulled back to apologize for adding more stress to everyone around her but the words became stuck in her throat as she felt a disturbance. Esme and Alice looked over to Bella, eyes wide with anticipation. Bella's right hand was flexing into a fist and then releasing in repetitive motions, almost as if she was trying to grip something.

"It's only been 36 hours. Esme, something is wrong. She shouldn't be getting ready to wake." Alice breathed as she continued to watch Bella's body preparing itself to come back to the real world.

Carlisle, Emmett, Rosalie and Jasper quickly ran into the room, staying near the back. They knew all too well how it was to be a newborn. There was no way of knowing how much Bella remembered or if she would try and attack anyone nearby. As a newborn, this likely posed a significant threat as she would be stronger than any of them, including Emmett. Jasper swapped places with Esme, as he was the most familiar with newborns and was prepared to protect his family and Bella from herself if need be. Alice stood up next to Jasper and leaned against the bed, her eyes locked onto Bella's expressionless face.


The moments seemed to still until suddenly, Bella let out a deep sigh, almost as if she had been holding her breath for an extended amount of time. Her eyes shot open. She looked up at the ceiling, her eyes blinking quickly as she tried to register what she was seeing. Her eyes saw the texture of the ceiling, the hairline cracks that had come from the foundation settling throughout the years. She saw each and every dust particle in the air. She felt her eyebrows furrow, as she attempted to adjust to her newly amplified surroundings.

'Everything is completely different. Is this… is this my bedroom? I feel like that's right but it can't be. No room had single thing out of place. I would have noticed the cracks' Bella thought to herself as she slowly lifted her head and sat up. She looked down at herself trying to figure out whose clothes she was wearing; they certainly did not belong to her. She lifted a hand to inspect the foreign jacket, and stopped as she saw her hand. There was a slight tan to her skin.

' What the honest fuck. I, Bella Swan have no way shape or form the ability to have a skin color other than plaster.' Bella thought to herself, shaking her head in disbelief. Bella breathed in a deep breath and then was overcome with earthy smells. The smell of the forest was the first to hit her, followed by the smell of rain, of dirt, and lastly of chai.

' Chai? Hold up. That's not right. It doesn't blend in with anything else.' Bella thought to herself. She felt her eyes at that moment dart to the right, finally realizing that she was not alone. Her eyes locked onto a group of striking beings standing in front of her. Bella's ears were met with a low buzzing sound, almost like if there was a swarm of bees nearby. She blinked a few times and realized that the sound was coming from her. She was hissing. Before she knew what had happened, she launched herself up in the corner, her strong fingers gripping the wall with such force that cracks began to spread out from her hands. Her lips raised as she let out a warning snarl, lifting to reveal her perfectly white and lethal teeth.

"Bella, it's okay. We won't hurt you. Do you know who I am?" A small soprano voice called out. Bella's eyes focused on the small stature of the most beautiful pixie like creature she had ever seen. She breathed in again, and found that the lovely and intoxicating scent of chai had belonged to his person. Bella's eyes locked onto the swirling color of liquid gold and found herself becoming lost in wave after wave of emotions she found there. Love, longing, lust even… but a hint of fear? Or was it concern? Bella could not put her finger on the last emotion and found herself frowning slightly.

'Why would this breathtaking creature have those feelings for me?' Bella thought to herself, her eyebrows furrowing.

" Bella, please?" the pixie asked again, more panic in her tone than previously. Bella blinked and realized that she had been asked a question. She tore her eyes from Alice and looked down to her hands, wracking her brain.

' I feel like I know this person. What the fuck is going on?' Bella thought to herself furiously. Her eyes moved to her left hand and saw a ring.

' Wait, this is an engagement ring. Oh god, I'm engaged?" Bella paused as she looked over and registered the bracelet she was wearing. She lifted her fingers and ran it against the small silver plate. Bella felt her eyes widen as she did a sharp intake of breath. Memories at this moment came back flooding through her system with such force that she found herself sliding down the wall until her head was resting on her knees. She was a shifter. Charlie had been murdered, so had Billy. Victoria had tried to kill her and almost succeeded. Bella lifted a hand to her chest, surprised to find it all in one piece. Bella looked back at her engagement ring and then back up to the family, all who had anxious expressions on their faces. Bella looked to her right and noticed the ring that the pixie was wearing.

Without thinking, Bella moved forward and grabbed the pixie's left hand and turned it over quickly so her eyes could take in the details on the ring. She moved her index finger against the metal band, closing her eyes tightly as memories of the island and the proposal flooded through her system, causing such an increase of emotions that one found its way down her cheek in the form of a tear.

Bella opened her eyes and reconnected her gaze with Alice, her soon to be wife. Bella could now feel the pain radiating off of Alice, the pain that came from the fear the she had lost Bella as her mate. The pain was so intense that Bella felt the air be taken away from her lungs. This was all simply too much at once.

" Alice." Bella finally spoke, taken back by the change of her voice. Her rough and clumsy human voice was no more and had been replaced by a smooth sound of wind chimes. Each syllable, every word almost felt as if it was coated in velvet.

" Hello, Bella." Alice said with a soft sight of relief, relieved to see that Bella had come to her senses.

Bella's eyes were locked onto Alice's, and found that she could not form any more words at this moment, besides to breathe Alice's name. It was almost as if she was seeing Alice for the very first time. Bella might as well have been living behind a veil. If possible, Alice had become even more beautiful and Bella suddenly felt incredibly shy and insecure.

' There is no way that a beautiful creature such as this should want to be with me.' Bella thought as she did a sharp intake of breath. Her eyes shot to Jasper, who was clearly focusing his gift on her in an attempt to help calm her nerves, but failing. Between being a newborn and a shifter, Bella's emotions were off the charts and going in every direction.

" Are… are you alright?" Bella finally asked, as she moved her eyes back to Alice.

"I wasn't the one who almost died, Bella" Alice retorted with a tad of frost in her tone.

Bella felt herself recoil slightly from Alice and felt her face grimace for a split moment as she felt the pain in her tone, but knew full well that it was completely justified. Still, that did not stop her from feeling worse if possible than she already did. Alice seemed to take notice of this and offered an apologetic expression before Bella tore her eyes from her and back to the ground.

" No… But I'm sure this time waiting around wasn't easy for you… For any of you for that matter" Bella replied with a light sigh.

"Bella, I am so sor…" Alice began but was cut off as Bella quickly pulled Alice against her, resting their foreheads against each other. The smallest of actions but the one that held more meaning than anything else. The action that always re-grounded them.

"It's my turn to say this. There is no need for that word. Besides…" Bella paused as she pulled away and swallowed the building lump in her throat that had caused her voice to crack, finding herself not able to meet the gaze of the family " This… it's my fault. If anyone should be apologizing, it's me."

"Bella… Honey, you can't blame yourself." Rosalie started but was stopped as Bella shook her head and moved away from the family to look out the window, her jaw clenched tightly.

"But I can. You have no idea what happened…We were on the right track…. But I allowed us to be diverted and then things just went to shit in a blink of an eye. I should have run. I should have done just about anything besides what I did" Bella replied in a hushed and strained tone, her voice wavering as flashes of the memories during the fight began to come back with a vengeance.

"But you got her and we got to you in time. Nothing else should matter." Emmett said in an uncharacteristically gentle tone, his concerned gaze locked onto Bella. She was not acting like herself at all and it was concerning him greatly.

Bella did not respond for a few moments, almost as if she was trying to absorb his reasoning. She then shook her head again, letting out an aggravated chuckle.

"You don't get it. I put Alice and all of you through living hell, for what? 36 hours? I broke the agreement. I got Victoria, yeah. That's great. But at what cost?" Bella replied, feeling the all too familiar of burning hit the back of her eyes.

"Bella, I know we need to discuss what happened but how can you stand there and have this rational of a conversation with your emotions being all over the map? Isn't your throat killing you?" Jasper finally intervened, causing the family to look at Bella, realizing the truth of what Jasper had just said.

Bella froze mid-thought as Jasper's words seem to break through her emotionally charged haze. Bella lifted her right hand and moved her index and middle finger against her throat. Now that he had mentioned it, there was a slight pain, almost as if she was experiencing a sore throat. She swallowed, as she turned to face the family, her expression changing into that of discomfort as the feeling did not go away.

" I mean, my throat feels a bit weird…. I wouldn't say pain exactly… " Bella mused as she pondered on what the correct word would be for what she was feeling, " Just, I don't know, rather uncomfortable."

"Extraordinary, Bella. I don't think you understand how rare and remarkable of a situation this is. However, I think that Jasper is correct. You need to hunt. Alice can show you how. Once you return, we can discuss all that we need to" Carlisle finally stated, causing Bella to nod.

Bella lifted her gaze to meet Alice's hesitantly, almost afraid of what emotions she would see. Once their eyes were connected, Bella found that she could not get a true read on Alice, and found herself biting down on her lower lip, fearing the worst.


Bella left the room and Alice followed. Together, they left running into the forest in absolute silence. Bella found herself replaying Alice's words to her over and over again. Bella knew that she had damaged their relationship, she just had no idea to what degree.

' What the fuck am I supposed to do? To say? How can I make things right when I am the reason why everything is so screwed up? Alice did not want this for me. I forced her into this. Oh, God. What have I done…' Bella thought to herself, furiously trying to come up with a solution all while knowing that one was not likely to be had.

Bella stopped suddenly as a new smell caught her attention. The smell wasn't particularly good or bad, but it did cause her to feel her throat tighten.

"Bella…" Alice began and Bella turned her attention from the smell reluctantly to meet Alice's gaze.

" I am so incredibly sorry, Alice," Bella paused as she held eye contact, " I went against the plan. I almost died. I did exactly what I promised I wouldn't. I hurt you. I hurt the family. And I hurt this relationship. And in doing so, I forced you into a decision that I know you did not want to make and forced an action that I know you did not want to do. There are no excuses for why I did what I did. I just hope that in time, I can fix the damage caused but I will understand if that is not possible." Bella finished as she watched Alice's expressions closely.

"Bella…Why on earth are you apologizing to me? I'm the one who stole everything from you due to my own selfish reasoning. I am not mad at you. I want to know exactly what happened but that is not nearly as important to me as making sure that you are okay and fed. The rest we will deal with later." Alice paused as she took a deep breath in an attempt to clear her mind from what she had considered to be the most ridiculous thing Bella had ever said, " As your creator, I have to teach you all the rules about being a vampire, ones that you may or may not be aware of. First you need to hunt, animals only. As a newborn, predator animals will be more appealing to you than a deer or elk as predators have cleaner blood but it won't be the most appealing thing you've ever tasted. It will however give you the strength to not go after humans. If you slip up, you will find that transitioning back will be almost impossible." Alice instructed.

"And how do I hunt?" Bella asked, not exactly satisfied with Alice's response but knew that was all she was going to receive from her at the moment and she wanted the feeling in her throat to go away.

"As you've noticed, your senses are heightened. I know it's a little disorientating at first but if you can focus past that, you should be able to sense when a source is nearby. Once you make the determination to hunt, your instincts will take over and it will be an automatic process. Now, tell me Bella, do you sense any predators nearby?" Alice questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes." Bella replied quickly, causing Alice to raise her eyebrows in surprise, " So, just hone in and that should be it?"

"Simply put, yes. Though I am very surprised that you caught on so quickly. Hunting should not be as natural to you as it is." Alice responded.

"What else is new? I've always been the weird exception to everything else. Might as well just add this to the list as well" Bella shrugged before averting her eyes to the direction that made her throat tighten.

Bella squinted her eyes in focus, and heard the heartbeat. Bella blinked as she made the decision to go for the kill and her body was moved almost on its own accord. Bella looked up to the branches to find a cougar. The cougar glared at Bella and hissed. This normally would have caused her to freeze in fright but not now. She found her fingers and feet quickly scaling the tree, pieces of bark flying off from impact. She easily evaded the swipes of the cougar's lethal claws before tackling the animal who struggled feebly against Bella's hold. Bella instinctively snapped the neck of the cougar midair right before her feet met the ground and felt her teeth sink through flesh.

Bella moaned lightly as the warm liquid substance filled her mouth and run down her throat, feeling the tightening sensation begin to fade away. She decided that the taste of the blood reminded her of a broth of sorts. Not exactly packed with flavor but nourishing. She let the drained cougar fall from her grasp and found herself falling backwards against the nearby tree and felt herself slide down it until she herself was against the forest floor, her eyes closed.

"Bella, you okay?" Alice asked as she cautiously made her way to Bella.

"Alice, I assure you. I am no way upset with you for changing me. I am incredibly grateful that you got to me in time and saved my life. I know we said we would discuss this later, but I just need you to understand that." Bella responded, keeping her eyes closed as wave of wave of emotions hit her like a tsunami.

' I had thought my emotions had been heightened as a new shifter, but this…this makes that look like a cakewalk.' Bella mused to herself as she struggled to get past what she had just done to the cougar.

" Then… I'm confused. What's wrong?" Alice asked, carefully taking Bella's hands into her own and intertwining their fingers.

" Alice, my mind went blank and I killed without mercy. I didn't think about the right or wrongness of it. None of that mattered. I couldn't have stopped if I had wanted to. I know that this is in my nature now, but for whatever reason my emotions just seem to be getting the best of me. Everything is just so…heightened. From my emotions to my senses. Hell, even seeing you in this light makes me feel like I am seeing you for the first time. It's incredibly overwhelming." Bella muttered, her eyes closing tighter.

"How is looking at me overwhelming? What do I look like now to you, is it bad?" Alice asked, her tone laced with concern.

" Oh, god no. I suppose you look the same as you always have, I was just living behind a veil. Now that that has lifted, I see you in a new life. You're…Stunning. Breathtaking. There isn't a word to describe just how beautiful you are. Your skin is incredibly smooth and has a shine to it even when you aren't in the sun. Your eyes are a sea of pure liquid gold. Your lashes are long and full. Your lips are luscious. My god, Alice. It felt like a kick to the chest to see you, you took my breath away. How can someone like you possibly want someone that looks like me?" Bella asked, her insecurity finally rearing its ugly head.

"Bella, you have not yet seen yourself. You have changed, completely. Even if you hadn't of though, you are still the most beautiful woman in the world to me, and I am beyond honored to call you mine," Alice paused, taken back by Bella's words, " Bella, sweetheart. Please, open your eyes."

Bella took in a deep steading breath and opened her eyes slowly, tilting her head in concern as Alice's eyes grew wide.

"What? What's wrong?" Bella immediately asked, feeling her heart beat faster in anxiety.

"Bella, your eyes. Normally it takes months for our eyes to revert to gold after changing but yours…Bella, they're a dark gold with a distinct green circle around the iris." Alice whispered in awe, reaching out to run her fingers down Bella's face.

"What does that mean then? Should I be worried?" Bella asked, shaking lightly against Alice's touch.

"I don't think so but we should head back and see what Carlisle says." Alice replied, her hand dropping to Bella's. They intertwined fingers and stood up. Together they ran like a bullet back to the house. Right before they reached the front, Bella pulled her hand from Alice's and launched herself upwards onto the deck that led into her bedroom. She opened the doors and walked in, and picked up her phone, trying to mindful of her strength. She saw that had no messages from Jake, and frowned slightly and quickly scrolled to Jake and wrote out a text.

' Jake, hey… I'm sorry but I've been, well… out of commission for the past 36 hours. I just wanted to check in with you. If you need anything, anything at all, please let know' She then hit send and placed her phone back down on her nightstand table and made her way down to meet her family.


"Bella, holy shit! Your eyes are already changing to gold!" Emmett grinned as he picked up Bella into one of his bear hugs. For once, it was not too much Bella hugged him back.

"Yeah, apparently my weirdness carried over. Everything about me has always been different, it makes sense that this would be too" Bella sighed as Emmett put her back on the ground.

"How was the hunt?" Jasper asked, his eyes watching Bella closely as he tried to feel out her emotions.

"She's a natural! She got a panther and look, her clothes weren't completely destroyed in the process. I am so proud of her!" Alice chirped as she wrapped her arms around Bella's waist.

"And your throat? Is it feeling better?" Jasper asked.

"Feels better. There is no more pain, no scratchiness." Bella replied honestly, causing Jasper's eyes to widen.

"Remarkable… what of her abilities?" Carlisle asked as he turned his fixated gaze to Alice.

" Just like one of us, speed and sensory wise as well" Alice responded with a pleased smile.

"And yet, her heart still beats and she still is breathing" Rosalie thought out loud.

"Can you eat and drink as you would normally?" Esme asked as Bella shrugged.

"No clue, but might as well find out." Bella replied casually and walked into the kitchen, although she felt as if she had almost glided. She reached out and picked up an apple and sniffed at it cautiously, finding it to smell better than she expected. She raised the apple to her mouth and took a large bite out of it and chewed slowly, her taste buds exploding with new flavors. She swallowed and waited a few moments, half expecting the bite to come back up, but was pleased to find that it did not, " I guess that is a yes" Bella responded after a few moments.

"I'd venture to say that you will need a balanced diet of both blood and human food to satisfy both parts of you but time will have to tell" Carlisle murmured.

" If I can sleep then it would appear that I get to live a normal-ish life after all." Bella said with a thoughtful expression.

"I wonder if you will age." Esme asked, more to herself than to anyone else.

"I won't" Bella groaned internally as all eyes were suddenly locked on her with curiosity, " I mean, as long as I continue to phase, I won't" Bella quickly stated, trying to cover up her slip up of too much knowledge. This was not the time to bring up her interactions, things were still rocky at best between her and the family. Bella did not know when she would reveal to her family her interaction in her subconscious but she had a feeling in her gut that now was not time and decided to listen to that feeling.

"Ah, yes. Valid point indeed." Carlisle murmured.

"So… why don't you tell us what happened and more importantly, what happened to your hair?" Alice lightly joked as Bella ran her hand through her significantly shorter hair as she sat back down. Bella took in a deep breath and then looked up to her family.

"Thinking back, I was so stupid. Jake and I were walking to the designated area when we got to the fork in the road, you know, where the path splits. Jake sensed his dad at my old place. He wanted to go see him, just in case he didn't have the opportunity again. I had a feeling we shouldn't but like an idiot, I said okay" Bella paused as the memory came flooding back to the front of her mind and felt her eyes glaze over, " We got to my old place and that's when it hit. The smell, the feeling. I knew Victoria was there. She walked out with the lifeless body of Billy wrapped around her neck like a scarf. Jake… he lost it and phased. He lunged without thinking and Victoria landed a critical blow before I could blink. I knew then that I was fucked. I decided to take her on rather than expose the secret by running off, giving up the element of surprise. She was fast but I was keeping up, until I slipped in mud of all things. She grabbed me by my hair and threw me into the ground. My ribs shattered on impact…" Bella paused as she took in a shaky breath, her hand running over her now healed ribs.

"Bella, it's okay. We don't need to kn…." Rosalie started, her voice tight with emotion but Bella shook her head.

"Yes, you do need to know. I found a sharp rock. I managed to slice my hair with it, freeing me from her grip right before she was going to drain me dry. It was then that I … I made the decision to take her down. She rushed me and I let it happen. I didn't have much left in me to do anything but that. Right when her nails pierced the skin of my chest, I used whatever was left of my strength to phase. Her whole arm when through my chest. I pushed myself forward, and got my jaws around her neck and yanked, pushing myself away from her body and removing her head in one motion. I had brought a drawstring back filled with clothes, lighter fluid and a zippo. I set her on fire and put on clothes because I was damned if I was going to die naked…. And then I woke up here." Bella finished as she blinked quickly, trying to bring herself back to the present.

"Oh, Bella…" Alice sighed and pulled her close, " I am so incredibly sorry that you went through all of that and by yourself. I vow that you will never go through anything like that again without me by your side. I never should have left."


"My question is, how did Victoria know?" Jasper finally asked causing everyone to look at him after a few moments of silence.

"What do you mean, Jazz?" Alice asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Victoria knew you were going. She killed Billy at the perfect time so that his scent was strong. If he would have been dead for an extended amount of time, you would have smelt that. I mean, the timing is just too perfect. She knew of our plan and played us all, feeding off of Bella's nature. Someone had to have told her. Someone must have betrayed us." Jasper urged; his eyebrows furrowed in concentration.

"But…who? The only ones that knew were the wolves and us, and I know none of us said anything. That only leaves those damn mutts." Alice snapped with a hiss, her eyes darkening at the thought of betrayal.

Bella did not respond, and sat in complete silence as it dawned on her.

' Jasper is right. Someone had to let her know. This someone… this person has a grudge against me. This person is likely the person messing with my dreams or at least working with that person. I only know of one being who holds the potential to have that much of a grudge against me. I just hope I'm wrong.' Bella thought to herself and she subconsciously nibbled on her bottom lip as feelings of anxiety began to fill her. She had created this enemy by choosing to love Alice. If there had been any doubts that this was all her fault, there were none now.

Bella was brought back to the real world as Alice nudged her. Bella blinked a few times and looked at Alice.

"Bella? You completely zoned out there. I lost you. Are you okay?" Alice asked as she ran a loving hand down Bella's back.

"Yeah, sorry. I was just trying to think who it could have been" Bella shrugged as she swallowed what seemed to be a permanent lump in her throat. Alice looked at Bella with a concerned gaze before leaning forward and burying her nose in her hair, taking deep breaths of her mate to calm herself.

"Well, it doesn't matter. It's in the past now and it will do no good to dwell on it. Bella, the only direction we can move is forward. That being said, we need to go see our extended family, the Denali Coven. Eleazar is gifted with the ability to sense gifts and it would be good to see what he can find about you and for you to meet the Coven." Esme said softly, her gaze locked onto Bella. While it may be too soon, she knew that this was likely just the distraction that everyone, including Bella needed.

"When?" Bella asked rather shortly.

"Depending on your blood lust control we can likely head out in the next couple of weeks if you're up for it of course. They're dying to meet you" Esme responded.

"Yeah, sure. How long would we be gone for?" Bella asked again with a raised eyebrow.

" Just a day or so. Not long. We don't want throw too much at you too soon, but this is important. It's always easier for Eleazar with newborns to sense gifts and given your case, it may be even more important that we do the testing sooner than later. " Carlisle responded.

"Yeah, sure. That'll be fine." Bella nodded and stood up quickly, suddenly feeling the need to be alone to collect her thoughts. She felt the looks from the family burning into her back but ignored the feeling and walked up the stairs just in time to hear her phone make a notification sound. She unlocked her phone to see a text message from Jake.

' The only thing I need from you is for you to stay the fuck away from me. You caused this, all of this. You're the reason why my dad was murdered. I never want to speak to you again, Bella. I hate you. Get out of my life and stay out.'

Bella's eyes read that message over and over again. Bella numbly locked her phone and sat it down on her bedside table. Bella felt a tightness in her chest, finding it rather difficult to breathe. Bella began to shake feeling an intense amount of emotion, anger and betrayal taking the lead. Just like Edward, he was putting the blame on her and then throwing her away like she was trash. He had seen exactly what that had done to her, and swore he would never treat her like that and yet here she was.

Bella's thoughts were broken as Alice walked into the bedroom and wrapped her arms around Bella's waist.

" I know everything has changed and this is a lot to adjust to but I will be here for you, every step of the way. I promise. I do hope that this is what you wanted. I just couldn't bear the thought of losing you forever." Alice whispered as she leaned up and kissed the back of Bella's neck.

"There is nothing more I want more than to spend every second to every millennium with you, my love. I know this has been hard on you. But I assure you. Being with you in this state and in your arms makes me feel like I'm finally home, the place I have always belonged." Bella replied as she leaned back closer to Alice's touch.

Alice nodded with a smile, feeling Bella's tension and anger melt away under her embrace. Bella turned around and passionately claimed Alice's lips as her own, marveling at the new sensations and taste from her heightened senses. Bella pulled back, breathing heavy as her arousal instantly heated up throughout her body, causing a horrible ache between her legs. She had heard about battle lust being a thing between mates but she had seriously underestimated how real it was.

"My god, Alice. I thought you tasted amazing before but now, you taste positively…" Bella paused, obviously looking for the right word.

"Sinful" Alice replied with a lustful tone, her eyes pitch black with arousal.

Bella knew that look anywhere. Bella swiftly picked Alice up, who wrapped her legs around Bella's waist and her arms around Bella's neck. Bella walked over to the bed and laid them down, placing herself on top of Alice. Their lips were met with a fiery passion, a passion that neither had yet experienced. Bella pulled back as she felt her own eyes darken to seek permission within her imprint's. Alice's lust filled eyes bore into Bella's, and her lips turned into a sensual smirk, causing Bella to groan in sexual anticipation. They both knew that it was time to see just how much exploring of each other they could do in one night, knowing that there were likely no limits now to either of their pleasure.