Chapter 3

Edward had his phone to his ear, brow furrowed. Surely, Alice saw this. He paced the floor worriedly as he waited for her to answer. If she knew this would happen, why didn't she say anything? Finally, she picked up on the third ring.

"Alice," he spoke tensely, not waiting for her greeting.

"Hello, Edward," she answered with a lighter tone, but there was an undertone in her voice, he recognized it as the, "don't say too much because of the future," tone.

"Anything you want to tell me?" he asked, eyes narrowing. Even if it was to conserve the future, he was still annoyed he had no warning.

"I'm sorry. You know it had to be this way," she apologized, "I'm figuring out how to get us out of school now."

"How soon? She needs time to-," he started to say "control her gift" but was cut off by Alice.

"Soon enough, Edward, I miss you, too, bye!" she hurriedly finished, ending the call. Edward drew the phone away from his ear, dearly missing the inside knowledge he received by reading his family's minds. Being out of the loop was a rare and annoying occasion. He met the eyes of his cousins, not needing to relay information because they had heard it all, but still felt the need to add,

"Sorry about Alice, she can be allusive like that far too often," he shrugged, then took a seat next to Irina on the sofa.

"That's alright, Edward," Eleazar replied, "We aren't used to knowing things beforehand anyway," he supplied with a smile.

"But there does seem to be something going on that you know, and we don't," Kate accused, eyebrow raised. "Who is she? Do you know her?"

Edward shook his head, peeking out the window to make sure she wasn't around to hear, then looked at the coven intently, "I thought I recognized something about her when she approached, but I know I've never met her before. It wasn't until her companion, Mary, started thinking about Clara's past and mentioned someone we all know well, Jasper. I believe Clara is Jasper's daughter from his human life," he finished, watching their eyes grow wide.

"That's incredible," Tanya breathed out, speaking for the entire coven. Their thoughts all reflected this astonishment, but Edward picked up on one of Carmen's thoughts: How will Jasper react?

"I don't know, Carmen, that's what I'm worried about," he answered her unspoken question. "He surely won't recognize her, since I believe he was changed when she was an infant, and now she appears the same age as him," he worried.

"That's why Alice was acting so secretive, I assume," Kate offered, "She's treading carefully, knowing Jasper, he'd think that was some sort of trick or associate Maria with it."

"If only she could speak for herself," Carmen shook her head, "Of course you could translate, Edward, but there's something about hearing it from the mouth of the speaker that certainly would help."

"We need to help her control her gift," Edward realized, "and Kate is the perfect one for the job," he looked at Kate's wide and confused eyes.

"Why me? Our gifts are completely different," she argued.

"I know, but you're the only one who can. Without hearing her speak, we can't know if she's in control or not, and women are apparently less affected by her speech than men. We could have Eleazar or I as guinea pigs, if you don't object, of course," he directed at Eleazar.

"I would certainly be willing to assist and am genuinely curious as to the extent of her gift," he reassured.

It was then that Edward heard her drawing nearer by her thoughts, and quickly heard her footfalls after, the rest of the coven perking up.

"It's only Clara," Edward said, "I don't hear Mary."

A second later, a knock was heard at the door, and Eleazar swiftly rose to answer it, Clara stepping in with some trepidation at the unknown.

"Don't worry, child," Eleazar soothed her, "You're among friends," he smiled. She returned the gesture but was still tense. She'd probably never been on her own before, Edward thought.

She looked around the room, taking in the faces that greeted her, but lingered slightly on Edward's face. Seeing her in the light and out of the elements he really got a chance to take in her appearance. Long, blonde hair that reached her waist and seemed to give off its own glow, round eyes, a diamond-shaped face, and full lips. She was long and lean, seemed comfortable in her body. Every move she made seemed natural, almost premeditated.

Too soon, her eyes pulled away from his and settled on Eleazar, giving him a small smile. She started to sign, but then realized that her translator wasn't with her and turned to Edward, silent question in her eyes.

"I'll tell them anything you want to say," he offered kindly.

She nodded her head at him in thanks and thought, "Tell them Mary and I have decided to go our separate ways. I would like to learn about this alternative diet you all practice."

He relayed the message to the group and Eleazar responded, "We'd be more than happy to teach you," then looking around the room and making eye contact with Edward in particular, who nodded to voice his thoughts, "in fact, we'd be willing to help you control your gift, should you so desire," he offered.

"What does he mean by control?" Clara thought to Edward.

"She wants to know what control means," he relayed.

"Would you like to explain, Kate?" Eleazar suggested.

"Sure," she responded, "At first the current was just in my palms, but eventually I learned to radiate it throughout my whole body. We can help you learn to control your gift as well, as much as possible."

"I'd- that would be wonderful," she thought, amazed look on her face. Edward smiled at the sight, then nodded to the group. He found himself not thinking about, or more accurately, not brooding in his own woes about his almost lack of control with Bella ever since Clara arrived. He more than welcomed the distraction.

Clara thought better than to mention her father with the Denali coven (& Edward) when she returned without Mary and made sure to not even let the thought cross her mind with Edward around. It was exhausting trying to shield her own thoughts, but she managed. At first, she wanted to know anything and everything about him and when she would be able to see him, but the more she thought about it, the more nervous she became. The two would be practically the same age now, and did he even remember her, let alone want to get to know her? And if he was practicing the animal diet, how would he react when he saw her red eyes? Or couldn't hear her voice? There were too many problems, too much unknown. In the back of her mind, she knew everything would turn out okay, but she couldn't move past her worries yet. One step at a time. She had to eat a deer.

Eleazar and Carmen volunteered to take her out for her first hunt, though she could tell by their faces that the others wanted to come, too, but respected her desire for as small of an audience as possible. She had never hunted animals before and was sure to make a fool out of herself on the first try.

"Hunting animals is different than hunting humans," Eleazar began, "You can't lure them to you like you can humans, and every animal is different in how they will react to you. Some will flee, some will attack. No matter what they choose, of course, you are still much faster and stronger than they are and feeding off of them shouldn't be a problem."

"Unless you're turned off by the taste," Carmen teasingly added, a smirk on her face.

Eleazar shook his head, amused, "Yes, the taste is different, but all of us have managed it and it's just a part of our lives now."

"Some of us find the hunt to be more enjoyable with animals than humans," Carmen pointed out, "Whereas drinking from humans requires little to no effort, hunting animals is different. You'll see," she smiled at Clara.

"Trust your instincts," Eleazar encouraged, "They know what to do." And with that, the two sped off into the forest, Clara right on their heels. She could have sworn she felt someone watching her right before she followed the two vampires, but shook it off, focusing on the hunt.

There was something to be said about the beauty of this form on hunting, Clara noted. Seeing the brilliant colors of the forest flash by as she ran was remarkable. If she fed this way, these sights would become a part of her life, something she realized gaily. She was so lost in the surrounding sights, sounds, and smells that she almost forgot what she was here for, until she caught whiff of an animalistic scent. In a word, it smelled… dirty. A lifetime in the wild assured that fact. She almost couldn't fathom putting her mouth on the creature but decided to trust her instincts like Eleazar said. Thinking of him, she glanced around, focusing her hearing, but couldn't find the two in her radius. They must have found their own meals, she pondered.

Turning back to her animal, she walked closer to where the smell was coming from, steadily falling into a crouch the closer she got, careful to not step on any twigs that could alert it of her presence. A deer, like she feared she would have to eat today, was grazing on a small patch of grass, every so often looking around for any danger. It was male, and fairly large, Clara noticed. She was almost sad for the buck, as his efforts to stay unnoticed were failing. Closing her eyes, she allowed herself to be immersed in the hunt, taking in the scent of his blood, the heart pumping, the veins in his neck that were so close to her, so inviting. Venom pooled in her mouth and her eyes darkened, as she agilely crept closer to the buck, hidden in the brush, until she was close enough.

She dug her feet into the ground and without thinking, sprang forward and latched onto the deer's neck before it had time to move a muscle. She drank swiftly, hardly noticing the taste of the blood, purely focused on the nourishment it provided her. After the animal was drained, she let it fall at her feet, slowly coming back to herself. She noticed the taste then, cringing slightly as it wasn't the sweet nectar she was used to, but at least had the same effect as human blood. She felt faster, stronger, the ache in her throat dimming slightly. She felt a smile tug at the corners of her mouth. She did it. She drank from her first animal. Looking back down at the buck, she inwardly promised to never eat from a human again.

"How did it go?" Edward asked as soon as they returned. He couldn't seem to make himself busy as soon as their thoughts went out of his hearing range, instead made his cousins crazy with his pacing and sitting down then standing back up again until they went to their own rooms to escape his anxiousness. Perhaps it was pure curiosity, he wanted to get to know her, compare her thoughts and Jasper's and see how they are similar and different. Their looks should be enough to confirm their relationship, they had the same features and hair color, both had wavy hair, they were even roughly the same size and stature. She was really just the feminine version of Jasper; he was astonished he didn't notice right away.

"Good!" she thought and signed to him, nodding her head excitedly. She didn't have a drop of blood on her, he realized, astonished. Normally the first few hunts were messy, but he supposed she had been a vampire for long enough to know how to stay clean while eating.

"She performed very well," Eleazar confirmed, "We actually left her alone to hunt, allowing her to rely fully on her instincts. It proved successful. She took down a buck and two elk."

Edward was slightly bothered by the fact that they left her alone so soon into her hunt, but he knew that the possibilities of humans in the surrounding woods were slim to none, and Eleazar and Carmen wouldn't leave her if they didn't trust her.

"We believe it's time to start working on controlling her gift. Kate?" Carmen asked at her speaking tone, Kate instantly appearing at her side. "Thank you," she smiled at Kate.

"Certainly," Kate responded, "Are you ready?" she asked Clara.

Clara nodded, her thoughts drifting to a mixture of anxiousness and excitement. She started worrying about her gift and the effect it'll have when she uses it, even mentioning Edward's name in her thoughts, which he picked up instantly and whipped his head towards her to meet her eyes. She was worried about him. He was equally intrigued by the notion that she cared enough to worry about him and worried himself at the strength and effect of her gift. How would he react? What would he do? Still, he was more than willing to help her learn to control it. Above all, he wanted to hear her voice.

"Edward? Do you mind?" Kate asked, head tilted in his direction.

"Not at all," he recovered, snapping out of his reverie and rejoining the conversation. Clara had her lips pinched together, obviously more worried now about this experiment. Edward reached out a hand to her, placing it on her shoulder. "It's okay," he consoled her, "We'll figure it out," he smiled.

Clara seemed to relax slightly, thanking him in her thoughts, "Thank you, Edward," offering a smile of her own, "It's just that I don't know how strong the effects are or how long they will last. I've only ever spoken to humans or Mary before, and with humans, I didn't wait for the effects to wear off," she explained, a bit forlornly at the end, her thoughts drifting to all the times she used her ability to lure men to her before she attacked.

Edward cleared his throat, shaking his head to clear thoughts of bloodlust from his mind. Clara seemed to realize where her thoughts were headed and looked instantly remorseful. Edward looked at her, making sure she knew she was forgiven, giving her a nod and a small smile, then relayed the information to the group.

"You spoke with your companion, though?" Tanya spoke up. At Clara's nod, she continued, "Did she ever show any affects from your gift?"

Clara shook her head. "We never spoke for long periods of time and when we did, I switched to sign language as a precaution," she thought, Edward translating.

"Alright, well, we won't have you do too much talking today, just in case," Kate said, giving her a wink. Clara's eyebrows raised slightly before she could catch herself, then had a look on her face that would've had a blush all over it if she still could. Edward thought it was very cute, before catching himself and furrowing his eyebrows. He's known the girl for less than 24 hours and already he's developing a crush? Perhaps the century of loneliness was catching up to him, he thought. Snapping himself out of his thoughts, he followed the women that were already making it outside. Why they needed to do this outside, he didn't know, but the breathing room was a nice change.

"When you speak, do you notice your gift? Do you have any sense of its strength, where it's going, and sort of control like that?" Kate began.

Clara thought for a minute, then thought "aloud" to Edward, "I don't know. I don't have anything to compare it to, I suppose," she shrugged. Edward relayed her response, then Kate continued,

"Well, I'm going to have you speak a bit and really think about what you feel. Does it have a shape? A color? Is it reaching out like tendrils or washing over like fog? Just start by saying 'hello'," she finished. Edward heard Carmen take Eleazar out hunting, but Tanya and Irina were peeking curiously out the windows, longing to hear her voice and see its power, no doubt. Edward was just as curious and growing ever more anxious as the time was now. Clara nodded and braced herself, a worried look on her face, carefully avoiding Edward's gaze. He picked up a stray thought of Clara's that if she didn't look at him, perhaps the affects would be lessened, but even she didn't believe that truly.

Slowly and carefully, Clara opened her mouth, inhaled, and spoke clearly,

"Hello."

The effect was instantaneous. Everything around him seemed… vague, dim, almost. The only clear thing he could see was her. She was glowing, shining, and he couldn't look away. In the back of his mind he knew where he was and what was going on, but the temptation to lose himself and run straight to her was almost too strong. She met his eyes and he felt himself take a step towards her before he could stop himself. In the distance, another voice was saying something, but he didn't want to listen. All he wanted was to hear her voice again. The other voice grew louder, stronger, until he couldn't ignore it anymore.

"Edward, Edward! Look at me. Listen to my voice. Edward?"

He blinked, dazed and confused as the world came back to reality. It was Kate, he realized, who was speaking to him. Another voice was almost shouting in his head that grew in volume as he became aware of its presence.

"I'm so sorry, Edward! Please forgive me. I feel absolutely terrible. Oh, I can't express how truly sorry-," Clara begged, a look of absolute sorrow on her face.

"It's okay, Clara," he consoled her, "There's nothing to forgive. It wasn't your fault. We knew this would happen," he gave her a small smile.

"What was it like, Edward?" Kate asked, "Do you remember?"

"It was like a dream, like she said," he explained, brow furrowing, "Everything became unclear, unfocused, except Clara. She was like… all I wanted. Her voice is… It's hard to explain," he finished, lamely.

He almost said beautiful, but held his tongue. That thought, unlike the ones he had while in the trance, was purely his own. She had only said one word, but it was that most gorgeous sound he'd ever heard. He even caught the slight southern twang in her voice, to his delight. Even knowing the consequences, he couldn't wait to hear her speak again.

"Did you feel anything, Clara? Did you feel you controlling him at all?" Kate prompted Clara. At her negative shake of the head, she nodded, "Okay, then let's try again, only a longer phrase this time. How about, 'What a beautiful day it is today'," she nodded to Clara again prompting her to speak.

Clara met Edward's eyes, apologizing to him again, then speaking, "What a beautiful day it is today."

The same thing happened as before, but this time Edward was prepared. He felt the dream state close in around him but fought to stay in reality. Her voice was truly beautiful, he thought. As was she.

Edward wavered on his feet slightly, but came back to reality quicker this time, to Clara's pleasure. She gave him a full grin as his eyes cleared, never leaving hers, that he couldn't help but returning.

"Alright, try that again, only really think hard about not controlling him at all. Try to reign in your power," Kate suggested, "If you can remember what it felt like to talk as human, try to mirror that."

Clara nodded, then looked at Edward again, seeming to not want to look away. He inwardly hoped she felt the same way towards him as he did towards her. She took on a look of concentration as she repeated,

"What a beautiful day it is today."

You could tell she was trying to restrain herself, some of the words weren't as clear, but its effect remained constant. Edward was once again drawn into the dream state, where he fought the urge to throw himself into her arms and never leave, which he was sure to become more difficult the more he grows closer to her, he realized, but came out of it after a few minutes.

Clara shook her head, looking at the ground, pitiful look on her face. "It's alright, Clara," Kate reassured, "This is only our first time. This could take weeks, months, even years to master. Though I'm sure you don't want that," she finished, taking in Clara dejected face. "Perhaps this is enough for one day," she decided, placing her hand on Clara's shoulder and walking back to the house. Edward sighed. He was falling in love with her, and fast, but he was finding that he didn't want to stop it as he took in her kind eyes and relaxed smile. He wondered what all Alice had seen in the near future, and perhaps not all of it was about the two Whitlock's meeting each other again.