Author's note: Sorry this one took so long, everyone! Thank you so much for the huge amount of reviews I got from the last chapter… and sorry to leave you hanging like that. I just couldn't resist =]. Continue reviewing and recommending to people… I feel so special to have you guys =]. Enjoy!

Love,

Mel

8. The Light

Throughout all my life, I had always wondered about the concept of death. This tricky question kept me up at night nonetheless after the sudden death of my Grandpop. I wasn't raised religious, nor have I gone to church anytime other than Christmas and Easter, but I like to believe there's somewhere greater than Earth. A heaven where even if your life was a living hell, complete and utter bliss is exceeded there nevertheless. You're reunited with family members, do what ever pleases you, and never have to worry about carbs or work. A reward for living in the imperfect world.

I also couldn't help but question what happened before my Grandpop's death. Who was the last person he talked to? His last thought? Was it about me and the day at the park that never was? Did he die instantly, or did he feel pain when the trains collided at such great speeds? Did he see a light to the great beyond? These questions I would just have to wait to find out when my time came and I hopefully met him in this heaven.

I had no idea my end would come so soon, however. I thought I had many more suffering years before I would finally be relieved of my duties on Earth. But I learned to not be afraid of death. That life takes many unexpected turns. And if it was my time, then so be it.

I was trying to recall the events that occurred before everything went black. What the hell was I hit by? It was a very heavy and hard material, like the wrecking balls people used for demolitions way back when. But it couldn't have been one of those caveman demolition tools; there was no crane in the middle of the forest. Nor was it an eighteen-or-so wheeled semi speeding at hundreds of miles per hour, there was no road and the trees were too close together for one to come through. Then what was it? If it had killed me, it had to be something as massive as a shuttle at top speed in the sky.

Finally in all this blackness and confusion, I saw a light. It was a beautiful, pure white as it depleted the blackness around me. It blinded me momentarily, but when I could see again, it was wafting through golden gates, where I saw four people standing. One beckoned me forward with his arm, and I obeyed his commands. I took a step toward him, and when I placed my foot down, searing pain shot up my leg and all the way up my spine. I fell the black ground or whatever it was, it was to dark to see, and a scream pierced through my throat. Even with the continuous screams of agony, the pain assaulted my body inexorably. Heaven could not be this painful.

Suddenly, one person standing at the golden gates started yelling with utter exuberance, "She can feel her legs! She can feel her legs! Carlisle you did it!"

The next voice sounded even closer than the first, and urgent. "Bella, hand me those braces, I need to set her legs."

The pain was then even more unbearable, and I screamed once again.

The next voice was a girl's, and she sounded like she was in tears. "We should just let her die! She's going to get us all killed! You heard Alice! She's going to tell everyone! And her parents are going to notice her absence no doubt! We're done for! Edward, Carlisle, how can you just continue and save her life? Ronan is being completely irrelevant! He sees everyone's memories this way, there is always something hidden… I don't know what makes her different. He doesn't know her!"

"I do too, Bella, stay out of this. You could never understand."

"I could never understand!? How many times have you dealt with the Volturi? Once? I know what their capable of. Our body parts are going to be burning in a pile as soon as they find out about this! They're going to kill her anyway, so I don't know why you even bother saving her."

"Bella, will you shut the fuck up?"

Ouch, I thought as I watched the two bicker near the gates. Was swearing aloud in heaven?

There was a complete silence.

Finally, that beautiful yet familiar voice spoke again. "We're saving her because she's decent, and she won't tell anyone about us. I know her like no one in the world knows her. And she's different."

"Look, Ronan, I'm done talking to you. I'm meeting Alice and Jasper in Denali. Do what ever the hell you want with your life, but I'm done putting ours in danger for you. Lets go Edward. Get Nessie and Jacob. I don't know if they can do a better job of making it look like a bear attack. She looks as if it was."

I heard a deep snarl of agony and sorrow rip from someone's throat, I couldn't tell, the people at the gate were getting blurry, and the light was dimming. Was I going to hell?

I heard a new voice then, someone else familiar. "Bella, honey, calm down. We can't just leave little Avs to die. She didn't do us any harm."

"She's bound to cause us harm right after we save her! And Little Avs? Now you've found a little kinship for this monster? She's going to ruin us, Edward. I love you. I don't want you to die." She choked on the last word, like it was going to suffocate her.

"Love…" the familiar voice replied, deeply pained, when all of the sudden I heard a sickening crack that caused a seething pain to rush from my shoulder and down my arm, and my eyes fluttered open while I screamed once again.

Though my head was foggy and I was delusional, I noticed I was in a small living room that was old and worn, yet elegant. A vintage ottoman sat by the antique wood-burning fire place that was still burning, but I was still shaking from the iciness of the room and the alien hands now setting my arm. The ceiling exposed cobwebbed beams, but even though it was freezing cold in the room, it was cozy enough to suffocate me.

"Ava? Oh, Avs! Thank the Lord; I thought I had lost you forever. I am so sorry, Ava." I was in disbelief. There was no way it could be him. But it was. His floppy, dark brown hair was a mess on his head, and his butterscotch eyes were glowing with hope. I was instantly paralyzed. Ronan. Swan.

"Carlisle, did she just wake up?" I heard the girl at the gate question as if the sky had just fallen. I looked over in the direction the voice came from, and I recognized the twisted up expression immediately.

"Bella?" I croaked.

Bella gave me an ice-cold stare that could freeze hell over, and the front door swung open so hard, the door knob went right through the dry wall.

"Are we too late!?" the dainty girl asked frantically, followed by the blond boy. More Swan-Masons.

When her eyes landed on me, someone behind me that was setting my aching neck into a brace replied, "Evidently."

The girl gave me a shocked expression. "Carlisle, you know she's awake..."

I wanted so badly and see who this Carlisle was, but my neck would probably dislocate from my body and my head would roll onto the ground.

"Yes, I am aware of that." He said, clicking the brace on my neck together. "Are you in any pain, Ava?"

"Immense." I said, my voice hoarse.

"Baby." Bella sneered, rolling her eyes. For some reason, I found this hilarious, and I couldn't stop the urge to chuckle.

"Bella, my love, stop being childish and bring Nessie and Jacob back. Her injuries are extensive; we're going to have to go with plan B." Edward told her softly.

She huffed as she walked out the wide-open door, and I shivered.

"Cold, Avs?" Ronan asked when he noticed my trembling, bringing over a fuzzy and thick blanket, and I gave him a weak smile.

I couldn't think straight, and the only explanation for that was I had been given very old medicine to ease my pain, possibly morphine, and I felt even dizzier when Edward injected more into my blood stream.

"Ugh… I can barely see you. What is the pain reliever you're using?" I asked Ronan, who was looking over me with a weak smile.

"Morphine. I'm sorry. We weren't stocked with Relief Injection or whatever the hell they call it, but hey, it's better than nothing, right?"

His reply went through one ear and out the other, and I was seeing double, so I asked, "What's your favorite song?"

"Anything that wasn't made in the 2100's. I think its pretty much all crap. I'm into classic alternative, soft-rock, indie. I don't really have a favorite, to tell you the truth, I pretty much love bands like-"

"Bach, Coldplay, Ray Charles. Those are my favorites." My words were slurring, and the room was spinning.

Ronan raised an eyebrow at my sudden out burst, and I started laughing hysterically. "You're so cute when you do that!"

Edward began laughing with me, and Ronan grinned. "I think we O. D'd her with morphine, Doc." Ronan groaned.

I heard Carlisle chuckle. "Well, at least she's laughing and not in pain. It'll wear off sooner or later."

Edward sat on the ottoman, and Carlisle spoke again. "We'll keep a close monitor on her tonight. I'll grab some Bone Fixture from the hospital tomorrow, but until then, we're dealing with healing them the old fashioned way. The bleeding has stopped thanks to the little bit of Skin Fixture I had, but make sure you keep an eye on that gash on the head. It may get infected, so I'm going to inject some antibiotics, it's all I have here and we can't risk waiting all night for some Anti-Bacteria. Did you write that letter, Edward?"

"Signed, sealed and delivered." Edward smiled. "And unfortunately, Avs is the last thing on their minds at the moment."

I started laughing hysterically again. "My God, Edward, it's like you can read minds or something, 'cause you are exactly right! Exactly right."

Edward smirked and looked down, and Carlisle asked, "Can I…?"

Ronan's head snapped up and he said quickly, "No. She remembers. You can go out through the master bedroom. Don't let Esme in here either."

I snickered. "Carlisle and Esme. Are we in like the freaking 1800's? I love old names. Oh how they amuse me. Like Ethel. And Stella. And… FREDERICK!" I burst into hysterics again.

Ronan was covering his mouth with his hand, trying to fight back his laughter. "Edward, watch this." He looked over at me with a mischievous grin. "Bertha."

Tears of laughter began rushing down my cheeks at the abnormal name.

Edward laughed out loud. "Okay, enough torturing the poor girl. She's as high as the clouds. Inject the antibiotics and let her get some rest."

"Alright. Rest well, Avs. I am deeply and sincerely sorry I did this to you, I don't think I will ever be able to forgive myself." Ronan said, agonizing pain in his eyes. I wanted to ask him why he kept on telling me he was sorry, but he caressed my cheek, and even through the fogginess and numb feeling, an immense tingling feeling buzzed under my skin where he had touched me. He then took my unbroken arm and held my hand as Edward injected the antibiotics into my veins. I began to drift off, and exciting tingling rushing up my arm from his ice-cold hand, and his face was the last thing I saw before I drifted off into a deep slumber amid too many outlandish but terrifyingly vivid dreams I was forced to endure.

Author's note: Please don't be too angry with me if Ava mocked out your name… no offense intended AT ALL! My grandmother's name was actually Stella… and come on, Bertha is the coolest name ever, I'm so jealous of people named Bertha =]. Hope you liked it. More soon =].