A/N:

pheobesapphira: thank you soooo much!!!

Twilightfan21: thank you so much!! I'm gojng as fast as my little hands can type! Actually, my hand are kind of big. Oh well...

Vampire's Love: OHH how could I have not seen? You are fun, IM me: xplasticastle.

Gylactica: hi, thank you so much! I've been updating about every day, I hope it's up to par!!

Totalvampire-holic: you're a feisty little one aren't you? I don't even get an A for effort? Haha... well the blush thing slipped, & I fixed it. Thanks. You will find out her power in chapter 11.

Ashxkami13: haha thanks! Nice word!!

All the things in life: thank you, & thanks for the constructive criticism. The "&" thing is habitual, & I'm not going to change the whole story now, but I'll keep that in mind in the future. :)

Chapter 9

"Nice, right?" Bella hadn't even realized that Alice has followed her, she had been so absorbed with examining her glittering arm that she hadn't even heard her footsteps.

"That's incredible..." Bella breathed.

"Yeah, until you have to stay inside because of it," Alice chuckled.

"Still..." she drifted off.

"I agree." Alice smiled, her enthusiasm creeping up, "Why don't we go & talk a little bit? You could probably use some girl talk. Plus, I'd love to get to know you a little better." Bella nodded, following her to another comfortable sofa away from the others. She had never been one to need 'girl talk' or anything of the sort, but Alice's enthusiasm was contagious - it was impossible not to want to talk with her. Alice sat down & pulled her feet up under her, & Bella mirrored.

"You seem to be adjusting quite well," Alice observed.

"I'm quite surprised about it myself. But it's impossible not to feel comfortable around your family." Alice smiled, seemingly oblivious to the fact that Bella had included Alice in the statement.

"They're pretty great - I love them so much." Her smile was warm. "You know, you're welcome to join us. I would love to have you as a sister." Bella just smiled. How strange it was to be invited into the family of her murderer. Alice seemed to sense this.

"You know, Edward really isn't a bag guy - he's actually lovely. & I'm not just biased. He feels terrible about what he's done. He doesn't feel that anyone should have to live as we do - in secrecy, hiding what we are, & denying it from ourselves. He feels a great deal of affection for you already."

"Strangely enough, I feel the same for him. He does seem to be genuinely remorseful. I can tell he's a good person, it's hard to dislike him. & that's just besides the obvious..."

"The obvious?"

"Well," Bella laughed nervously, "Brother or not, you have to know how..." she wasn't sure what wording would be correct, speaking with his sister. "How... alluring he is. I-I mean, the affect he has on people - on girls." She still felt a little awkward, but Alice didn't seem to. She just laughed.

"I think every girl that's ever seen him has made that perfectly clear." Bella laughed as well, feeling more at ease.

"Well, yeah!" They laughed again, but Alice seemed to be laughing at her own private joke.

"You know, he can't hear your thoughts, but he can hear mine. So you know he's listening to what we're saying, using the medium of my thoughts." Bella slapped her hand to her head in embarrassment. Alice just continued with her musical laughter. "Don't worry, it's nothing he hasn't heard before."

"Well, on a subject that doesn't involve my humiliation," Bella said sarcastically. "How did you become a vampire? From what Edward said, usually vampires are created intentionally."

"That is true, because of how difficult it is to resist feeding once having bitten. But to be honest, I have no recollection of my human life, or even being turned."

"That's unfortunate,"Bella said sympathetically.

"I guess so, but not really. I love my life - or unlife - or whatever. I really do."

Alice was amazing. She was so optimistic. Bella had never been completely good at that, though she wasn't quite a pessimist. She deemed herself a realist, but she envied Alice's outlook. How could she be like this? She knew she could learn a lot from Alice.

Later that day, Bella found herself in Edward's room, listening to one of his CD's from his vast collection. He wasn't in there, but he had left it playing, & she was lured in there. It was something classical, but she didn't recognize it. She let the instruments swirl around her head as she sat down & leaned her head back, closing her eyes, She heard Edward walking, but she had been hearing every footstep within a mile radius, that she hadn't noticed that he was in the doorway. It was only when she smelled his magnificent scent that she opened her eyes.

"Hello, Bella," his musical voice rang out,

"Hello..."

"It's twilight, we were going to hunt. You're joining us, aren't you?"

"Yes, I suppose. I don't know how though..." she had only just realized.

"Don't worry - it's very instinctual. Primitive, really. But I'll help you with whatever you need. We usually go off on our own, though in the same general area, but you & I can stay together." She was comforted by the thought.

"Um... what exactly are we hunting?"

"Just deer," he responded with a chuckle. "We're making it easy on you. They don't put up a fight, & we run much faster than they do." He saw her expression, yet found it unreadable. "It's fun, really. It's better when your more experienced, & we hunt things that fight better, it's more of a challenge. You'll catch on in no time."