Bella's POV
"So Bella, what's it to be? Deer or mountain lion?" I mutter to myself, wrinkling my nose as I search the forest for at least a slightly appealing scent.
I hadn't drunk blood for three and a half months now and had only just begun to feel some faint vestiges of thirst which meant it was time for a hunting trip. Only problem was, animal blood smelt and tasted disgusting, even if I could find my favourite animal – mountain lion.
Deigning so low to drink animal blood was way better than the alternative – human blood. Even though it smelt marginally better than animal blood, I refused to drink it, remembering how less than a year ago I'd been human.
Cue Bella Swan – the vegetarian vampire with morals. One of a kind. It's pretty ironic considering I'd always thought vampires were slave to their bloodlust, but all types of blood, even human blood, was unappealing to me. It was only after a few months of abstaining because of the god-awful taste that I felt the urge to drink some.
Hence why I was currently in the forest trying to decide between deer or mountain lion. Deer were more common than mountain lion and I tried to keep to the balance of nature, but as I was barely thirsty, they both smelt pretty much the same. Revolting. I sighed and closed my eyes forcing myself to make a decision.
Deer.
I opened my eyes and inhaled deeply, frowning almost instantly. This particular forest had less mountain lions that I would have expected, but the number of deer were also particularly low. I shrugged off my initial wariness and laughed in exhilaration as I sprinted towards where I could smell deer most strongly. I loved being a vampire, drinking blood aside, purely because of this reason. I loved the feel of the ground pressing softly against my bare feet and of vines caressing the bottom of my legs. My dress was torn, frayed and muddy from the amount of times I'd run through the forest this way, but it didn't bother me.
My appearance, stunning as I'd become, didn't bother me either. I purely enjoyed the speed and strength that came with being a vampire.
I came to a graceful halt as I found myself in a clearing full of deer grazing. I stayed motionless as I picked a deer to feed on. Usually I wasn't so picky, but I wanted the biggest animal so it'd even longer before I'd have to feed.
I made up my mind instantly, the biggest doe in the clearing would be satisfying enough. I'd just started to focus on the unappealing scent coming from the doe, trying to convince myself to move properly into the clearing and drink its blood when a pale blur flitted into the clearing and attacked the very doe I'd chosen as mine. I could only stare in shock at the pale blonde head that had just grabbed my doe for a few seconds and then an instinctive growl worked its way up my throat, surprising me so much I didn't follow my next urge in grabbing the blonde and tossing them across the clearing. However, my growl worked in distracting them from mauling my doe.
They raised their head and turned around so fast, I realised instantly they were a vampire. They had handsome features, the typical pale vampire complexion, framed by hair so pale blonde it almost looked white. I noticed two things that shocked me simultaneously. One was that this male vampire had blood around his mouth, he'd not just been mauling my doe, he'd been drinking its blood. Secondly, the vampire's eyes were wrong. They weren't black or red like I'd grown accustomed to. His eyes were a shocking gold shade that complimented his hair perfectly. For a second I viewed him as humans would view him, an off-worldly beautiful golden angel.
I automatically shifted into a defensive crouch as I noticed the vampire's aggressive body language. He wiped the blood from his mouth as he stared intently at me. "This territory has been claimed. You are not to hunt here." He growls.
I back up a few paces and force my body to relax, trying to demonstrate that I'm not a threat. "I'm sorry. I didn't realise." I say cautiously.
The vampire looks surprised for a brief instant but hastily composes a neutral expression. "The humans in this area are protected. Please let it be known to any vampires with you that aren't to be harmed." He says quietly, brushing his pale blonde hair out of his face as the wind picked up.
My brown hair blew around my face as I answered. "I'm alone." I say honestly. "No-one here to tell."
The vampire goes rigid, staring at me in shock. I back up a couple more paces, startled by his reaction. "Um… are you okay?" I ask cautiously.
The vampire stares at me with his golden eyes, scenting the air. He frowns and begins to move towards me continually sniffing the air. My body instantly drops back into a defensive crouch.
"Don't take another step." I hiss at him. He was a complete stranger for one, but he was also a vampire who was acting very strangely. I did not trust him.
He stops so suddenly it's like he's been hit in the face. His mouth drops wide open. "You are a vampire." He whispers.
I frown at him, before gesturing to myself. "Of course I am." I mutter, straightening up out of my crouch. "I mean, look at me. Doesn't my appearance tell you I'm a vampire? Besides, I'm pretty sure humans don't have red eyes."
The vampire blinks. "Yes of course. That's why I thought you were a vampire originally but…" He trails off thoughtfully.
"But what?" I ask sharply.
"What's your name?" He counters.
I narrow my eyes at him but I couldn't see the harm in answering. "Bella." I say slowly.
"How old are a vampire are you, Bella?" He asks instantly.
I frown as I answer, but again I couldn't see the issue in answering. "Eight months. Are you going to ask me questions all day?" I ask snarkily.
His golden eyes widen. "You're a newborn?" He exclaims.
"Yes." I say dryly. "Is that a problem?"
He frowns, completely ignoring my question. "But most newborns would have attacked me when I went into their personal space. You didn't. You warned me instantly." He whispers, awe evident on his face.
I fix him with a piercing gaze, wondering if it was possible for vampires to have mental conditions. I hadn't met one with any issues so far, but this one was acting very oddly. Perhaps his eyes were golden because he was crazy. "I may not be human any longer, but I'm still considerate." I say slowly. "Besides, I hissed at you, remember? Was that not warning enough?"
His eyes widen further. "You're missing my point." He says quietly. "Newborns are governed by instinct, with no room for reason until they mature. Their instinctual reaction to what seems like an infringement of personal space would be to attack. But you didn't."
"Carlisle! Have you finished hunting yet?" A deep male voice drawls before I can answer. "I'm bored and all the bears have buggered off. I want to go back to the house."
I instinctively turn on my heel and my jaw drops as I see a hulk of a vampire standing there. He had dark brown curly hair and a totally cute, well defined face that instantly turned defensive when he saw me. His dominating and overly muscled mountainous figure tensed as he met my eyes. I noticed with some shock that they were the same lovely golden shade as the blonde vampire I'd been speaking to.
"What's going on here?" The newcomer asks, flexing his muscles threateningly. His gaze was relentless. "Ooh, vampire chick. Don't often come across those in these parts." He chuckles menacingly.
"Emmett, she's not a threat." The blonde vampire says quietly, staring at the muscled vampire.
The muscled vampire laughs, his laugh deep and booming. "You have a tendency to trust people too much, Carlisle. I'll stay here on the defensive just in case." He growls.
The blonde vampire sighs and I blink in irritation as the wind blows my hair into my face again. I push it out of my eyes forcefully only to see the muscled vampire staring at me in shock. "I thought she was a vampire!" He booms. "She certainly looks like one! She's pale as ice!"
"She is a vampire Emmett!" The blonde exclaims, grabbing the mountainous vampire's arm as he made an effort to move towards me.
The big vampire freezes. "But she smells like…" He starts, staring at me.
The blonde vampire interrupts. "I know." He says quietly. "But she's definitely a vampire. Her appearance proves that, as does her stillness."
I casually lift a lock of hair and sniff it, wondering what on earth they were talking about. I was a vampire. I didn't smell. "Excuse me!" I splutter. "I don't smell like anything. I'm a vampire. Get over it already!" I growl at the menacing big vampire.
He doesn't growl back, much to my surprise. His eyes are fixated on mine. "Carlisle, this is strange." He mutters, shifting uncomfortably.
The blonde vampire releases him. "I know." Then he looks at me. "Bella, I haven't introduced us, have I? I'm Carlisle and this is my son, Emmett."
I stare at Carlisle in shock. "Your son?" I was wondering why he wasn't calling him his creation.
"Yes, my son." Carlisle says quietly, smiling at Emmett. I frown and Carlisle smiles again. "Bella's eight months old Emmett."
Emmett's curly haired head whips round to stare at me. "You're a newborn?!" He roars.
I force myself not to flinch at his volume. "Yes. So?" I challenge.
"That's impossible! You didn't attack me when I first walked into the clearing and I was on the defensive, ready to attack you!" He says loudly. I was beginning to learn that loud was his normal voice setting.
"For goodness sake! Why does everyone think I'm going to attack them just because I'm a newborn?" I yell back, giving Emmett a run for his money. "I have this little thing called impulse control!"
Emmett and Carlisle immediately tense, like they're expecting me to attack them. I glare at them in disgust. "Are you even taking in anything I'm saying?" I mutter irritably. "I won't attack you unless I feel like I'm in immediate danger. I have morals!" I growl.
There is a brief stunned pause and then Carlisle speaks. "Excuse me, what did you just say?" He asks, his voice stunned.
I roll my eyes and groan in frustration. "You're a vampire Carlisle! There's no way you didn't hear what I just said."
"You have morals?" He asks again, his voice still stunned.
I sigh and refrain from rolling my eyes again. "I should probably just accept that having morals is obviously a rare thing among vampires. The few vampires I've met have acted like this. I just don't understand why you can't understand my desire not to drink human blood." I was beginning to ramble in my frustration. "After all, I was human myself less than a year ago. I have respect for human life. And just because I'm a vampire it doesn't mean I have to drink human blood to live. Animal blood works just as well." I narrow my eyes at Carlisle. "And just when I chose a bloody animal to drink you come along and steal it."
Silence meets my outburst and I notice Carlisle blink rapidly. "I don't believe it." He murmurs, his voice pure shock.
"Nor do I." Emmett agrees loudly, his facial expression one of disbelief.
"Who's your creator, Bella?" Carlisle asks immediately.
"Why do you want to know?" The questions threw me off my annoyance.
"I want to know how they got a newborn to refrain from drinking human blood. Newborns are uncontrollable for the first year – all they can think about is blood." He explains quietly.
I growl so menacingly that Emmett steps forward so he's standing next to Carlisle, defending him. "My creator has absolutely nothing to do with the way I feed! In fact, my creator is the total opposite to everything I am! As soon as I'd turned he tried to make me feed on a bleeding human that he'd just slaughtered right in front of me! When I refused he called me a freak and I ended up leaving! My aversion to human blood has absolutely nothing to do with that… monster!" I growl again.
There's a brief shocked silence and then Carlisle speaks. "I'm sorry Bella. I can see I've greatly offended you with my words." I relax my pose slightly. "It's just that I'm completely amazed. I've never seen a newborn act the way you do." An amazed smile was beginning to form on his face.
"He's right you know." Emmett booms, but this time it doesn't sound threatening. "Most newborns immediately attack when they're upset but you haven't gone for his throat even once."
I glare at Emmett. "I'm a civilised person. Just because I'm a vampire it doesn't mean I have to act like a savage."
"You've just proved my point." He grins, his cheeks all dimples. If he wasn't so dominating and muscular he would be seriously cute.
"So you've been alone ever since you left your creator?" Carlisle's voice was burning with curiosity.
I turn to look at him. "Yes. I've met a few other vampires on my travels and even had some offers to join their covens. However, they all drank human blood which didn't really fit in with my lifestyle so I ended up moving on pretty quickly. I crossed paths with my creator less than a month ago who begged me to return to him but I refused." I found myself being honest with Carlisle, who for some inane reason seemed worthy of my trust.
"Why?" Carlisle asks softly.
"Three reasons actually." I admit, finally putting my finger on why I was being honest with Carlisle. He had a very open and relaxed face, and his eyes were kind and sincere. I deliberately maintained eye contact with him as I spoke, trying to keep myself calm. "I knew he would be adamant that I drank human blood. He wasn't the type of vampire you could argue with. Secondly, he hurt me badly when he called me a freak. I knew I was going to be a vampire before he turned me." I hesitated before continuing. "He told me he loved me, so to be called a freak… well, it was difficult. Then thirdly, the last reason. When I crossed paths with he was with a blonde female vampire. He was looking at her in the same way he used to look at me when I was human. It was then I realised that he had never loved me. We were all just pawns to him. He confirmed this when I refused to go back with him. He promised to kill me if we ever crossed paths again." I say softly.
Carlisle looks aghast. "I'm so sorry Bella." He murmured.
"He could have just killed you there and then. It would have saved a lot of hassle. Besides, you were outnumbered." Emmett interjected bluntly.
Carlisle shoots him a warning look. "Emmett!" He chastises, horror evident in his voice.
"It's fine Carlisle. He has a valid point." I turn to look at Emmett. "I think he was afraid of me. I still have my newborn strength and the female with him didn't seem that attached so it wasn't even definite she would turn against me. I'm think he just wanted to be sure he could destroy me." My voice became bitter. "Besides, he loves to play psychological games. He thrives on it."
A phone rings suddenly, interrupting my dialogue. Carlisle looks apologetic as he delves into the pocket of his spotless jeans and pulls out a flashy silver mobile phone. "Esme?" He asks, holding it to his ear.
I hear a soft female voice on the other end of the phone. "Carlisle? Are you with Emmett?"
"Yes." Carlisle says quietly and I notice Emmett roll his eyes.
"Thank goodness! I got a little worried when Edward and Alice came back, but not you two." The female laughs, a delicate tinkle. "I assume Emmett got irate when he couldn't find any bears to wrestle."
"That's not why we're late Esme." Emmett says in exasperation and I hear her laugh again down the phone.
"Where are Rosalie and Jasper?" Carlisle asks.
"In the garage, working on Rosalie's car."
"Okay, that's fine Esme. We'll be back soon. We just… got held up." Carlisle replies.
"Is everything okay?" The female, Esme, asks instantly.
"Yes, it's nothing we can't handle. We'll be home shortly. I love you." Carlisle murmurs.
"I love you too." Esme says and I can hear some reluctance in her voice.
Carlisle ends the call and puts the phone in his pocket, before turning to me. "I apologise." He says softly. "That was my wife Esme, making sure I'm okay."
"You have a wife?" I ask, frowning. I hadn't realised that vampires got married.
Carlisle nods, his face lighting up with a smile. "Yes I do." It was immediately obvious from the expression on his face that he loved Esme very much.
"I don't understand." I eventually muttered. "You don't act like a coven… You seem to be an actual family."
Carlisle bit his lip, his expression kind. "It'll be hard for you to understand Bella. There aren't many vampires like us out there. You wouldn't have experienced something like that. Normal covens can't form families because of their human blood diets. It interferes with their humanity. We abstain, therefore we have the capability for closer ties."
I gasp as I understand what he is saying. "You don't drink human blood either?" I mentally slapped myself for not realising this earlier. I should have figured it out when I'd encountered him drinking the blood of my doe, but I'd completely missed it.
"No. It's why our eyes are golden. Animal blood dilutes them." Carlisle smiles. "May I see your eyes?"
"Um… sure." I concede. He immediately steps closer, peering into my eyes briefly before stepping back.
"Yes, you have some golden tinges to your irises. Obviously your eyes are still mostly red, although a lot lighter than you would expect from a vampire of your age." He explains, before his gaze pans downwards. "Bella," he says softly, "I couldn't help notice the condition of your clothes. Have you been living wild all this time? You don't seem to have changed your clothes."
"No, I haven't." I admitted, feeling slightly embarrassed. I was glad my skin made it impossible to portray that embarrassment. "I didn't want to steal clothes off humans."
Carlisle smiled wider. "You have no obligation to come but I would feel more at ease if you would come to our house and stay for a few days. We'll give you fresh clothes and the chance to socialise with some vampires on the same wavelength as you." He offers hopefully.
I was taken aback by his offer but found myself replying without thinking. "Of course I will." I smiled back reflexively.
"Come on then. We should be heading back. Esme will be worried." He grins impishly, before flitting off.
I follow.