A/N: I know we still have one more chapter after this, but I just want to thank everyone who has been following my story from the very beginning and for all those people who came in sometime in the middle. I got over 200 reviews! And who knows how many story alerts/author alerts/favorite story/favorite author alerts! Thank you so much! You guys are truly amazing and it's sad to see this story come to an end. *Tear*
Go Pens! Stanley Cup Champs! (had to put it in:P )
June 12, 2009
I don't own anything, just like the first was and just like the last will be.
Alice's POV
I start pacing up and down our living room, trying to see something, anything, that will tell me Bella is alright. Charlotte went around the house to make sure we didn't just over look her. Rosalie was in the garage, not caring, like usual. Esme was frantically looking everywhere.
I let out a frustrated groan. Why did Bella have to block herself from everything? Why would she need to block herself from me, is the better question. I just want to make sure she's safe, but now I have no idea and I have the worse feeling that she's not okay.
"Charlotte," I yelled to the third floor where she was located. She came down in the blink of an eye, her eyes full of worry. "We have to call Edward."
"Yes, I know. Maybe Nathan has an idea where she is," she agreed taking out her sleek black cell phone pressing the number 3 to speed dial Nathan.
"Why would he know, but you have no idea? If Bella wanted to be found she would have told someone here, not with the boys." I was letting my anger get the best of me, but I was too worried to keep up my calm and cool personality.
"Nathan tends to know everywhere Bella goes," Charlotte explain putting the phone to her ear. "Nathan, where are some places Bella is likely go to get away from everything?"
Why would she need to get away from everything? I wonder, still trying to 'see' Bella.
"Well, she normally goes to the roof of the house, but I would have known if she was there considering we are here. Besides that she likes to go to the old meadow where it happened. Oh and she likes to hunt in the clearing. Why?" I could hear Nathan's muffled voice getting worried.
"She went off by herself when we got home. But she's been gone for over an hour and we can't find her anywhere."
"I'm on my way," Nathan said hanging up the phone on her.
"Crap," Charlotte said ending the phone call and then dialing 1 for Austin.
"Why are you calling him?" I asked looking over her shoulder.
"Because I don't need Nathan here running through town trying to track someone who probably isn't in trouble. If she was in trouble, she just would have either unblocked herself, or called Austin. Since she hasn't done either I doubt she's in trouble."
"Bella is a magnet for trouble," Edward said coming through the door and looking directly at me.
I can't see anything Edward. She blocked herself from the moment we first saw her and I've barely been able to see her future since then, I thought looking back at him.
"Alice can't you get around it or something?" he asked closing his eyes and rubbing his forehead.
I didn't have to read his mind to know how worried he was. Even though she was a vampire now, he still thought of her as the same fragile human she used to be.
I've been trying Edward, believe me. We need to set out a search party or something. I just have this feeling she is in danger.
Edward turned towards Jasper and Emmett, who were standing behind him getting ready for the order. "Jasper, go at the clearing. Emmett, I need you to go to the hospital and get Carlisle and then try to track her scent. I'll go to the meadow."
He hated the thought of her getting hurt again at the place that was supposed to be a place of so much love for him. He never got over that she got changed there.
"Edward I'm coming with you," I said getting up off the sofa. "I have to make sure she's okay as well and I'm not going to sit here and wait."
"Neither are we," Nathan said stepping forward talking for his whole family.
"We can't all go and we are wasting time trying to figure out who is going to go. Just go where I told you to go now and then if we don't find her we will all set out," Edward growl, his temper getting the best of him.
"No, I'm not sitting around to find out if my sister is hurt or dead. I'm going with you Edward," Nathan said looking at Edward as if he was a scum for thinking otherwise.
I froze. Trees, there were a lot of trees. They were all covered in the green moss that covered this whole town. Then it all went black again.
"So she's still in Forks," Edward said after my vision went dark.
I nodded too frustrated not knowing exactly where she was.
"Look I'm going to find her now," Edward growled getting angry again. "I need to find her. The rest of you can do what you please, just don't tell me you are coming with me."
With that he stalked off out the door and took off towards the meadow.
A second later Jasper and Emmett set off to where Edward told them, both knowing full well that she was going to be in meadow, even if I couldn't see it.
Nathan stalked around the living room with Austin, while Charlotte sat down on the couch with Esme who recently joined our little party. This was not the party I wanted the day before their wedding.
I skipped over to the stairs and sat down closing my eyes and becoming completely still, hoping that something would come to me.
I couldn't let her die again.
Edward's POV
I sat on the ground watching Emmett and Jasper wrestle. Nathan was going to wrestle whoever won. Austin was just sitting on the side lines with me watching them run back and forth at each other. I was counting down the seconds until I got to see my Bella again.
I didn't need a bachelor party. They were for the men who were sad to see their single life to end, having to share the rest of it with one person. I, on the other hand, couldn't be happier that I finally got to have the love of my life all for myself. Yes, I was being selfish, but I've wanted to marry Bella for 24 years, ever since I saved her from Tyler's van, since we sat in that little Italian restaurant in Port Angeles, when she found out who I really was.
When she didn't run away I knew she was the one I was supposed to be with, even if I didn't necessarily want to. I didn't want her to have this life, now I wish I did. If I had just changed her, or let the venom run through her veins when James bite her. I would have never caused her so much pain.
I would have been married to her for at lease 23 years if I just would have let that happen. Then I never would have forced myself to be away from her. I would have never caused her so much pain that her own father could barely recognize what she became. I wouldn't have had her be alone when the transformation happened.
Why did she have to fall in love with the most selfish person on the Earth?
"Edward, I just wanted to tell you I'm happy you are marring her," Austin said pulling me out of my own self misery.
I thought about it for a moment. I was shocked he was happy for me. I thought he hated me that's what his thoughts told me at least. "Thank you Austin, that means a lot to me."
He nodded turning his attention back to the wrestling match.
Nathan walked over shortly after, motioning me to follow him. I nodded, already knowing what he was going to talk to me about. Sometimes I wondered if they remembered I could read their thoughts.
"Edward I just wanted to talk to you," he said when we got close to the entrance to the woods by his house.
"I know."
He smirked, remembering I could read his whole conversation right now. "Sorry, I keep on forgetting you can do that. So you already know the conversation I had with Bella yesterday?" I nodded. "Good that makes this a lot easier."
He paused, getting to preoccupied with the fight going on twenty yards in front of him. I cleared my throat.
"Sorry," he said shaking his head turning it back to me. "I just wanted to tell you that she has been through hell these past years, trying to cope with this life alone. She's loved for as long as I can remember. Just watching her talk about you brought longing and pain into her eyes. When she first saw you I could already tell she was falling all over again."
He paused again, but this time he was trying to find the right words. "Look, I want to say that if you ever hurt her I will kill you, but I don't think that's fitting. See I can already tell you love her more than life itself and you would much rather be dead than hurt her again. That and I don't think I could take you in a fight, seeing as I'm still new to this."
He gave a nervous chuckle. I could now see why Bella loved him so much and why he was her favorite sibling. He could be so protective of her, yet he seemed to be able to make a joke out of something he was trying to make serious. He cared for her almost as much as I did, and I really respected him for it.
"I love her probably more than my own biological sister Edward. I can't stand to see her hurt the way she was. She never smiled a real smile for the longest time. I could always tell she didn't feel comfortable smiling, almost like she thought she shouldn't be happy. Then you came back into her life and everything changed. I felt like I didn't know the real her until I saw her smile the way she does around you. Thank you for that."
"You shouldn't be thanking me," I said quickly. "I don't deserve it."
"I know this may seem hard to believe, but I don't blame you for leaving her. I would have done the same thing if I was in your position. I could never purposely give someone this life when they have a potentially long life ahead of them. I just couldn't take that away from them."
I smiled at him. "Thank you Nathan. That means a lot to me coming from you. I can tell how much Bella loves you. She looks up to you like you're her older brother."
Nathan clapped me on the shoulders. I could feel his phone ring through his jacket. He took it out quickly and looked at the caller ID. "Hm, I wonder why Charlotte is calling me."
Bella's POV
I stood frozen in the middle of the meadow. I knew she was coming. I could smell her; I could see her running through the woods. She stopped and step on the stick for a dramatic affect, I concluded. She wanted me to know she was here to kill me.
I wasn't scared, though. I had fought other vampires before. Sure it was only my family, but that counts, right? Well, I had one thing she didn't. I had my shield.
She stopped at the edge of the meadow, staring at me with her red eyes. Her fire read hair was spinning around her, making her look so much fiercer. "Hello Bella," her childish voice called to me before she took a step into the moonlight. "I'm surprised to see you alone."
"Who else would be here with me?" I asked wanting to know who else she was planning on attacking after me.
"Well," she said taking another step forward, "I recently found out you have a family of your own. I'm surprised you would leave them when you knew I was back here looking for you. You've known for awhile, haven't you?"
I gulped. "Yes, I've knew you were hunting me. I knew even before the Cullens told me." I smiled at her. Just saying their name made her shiver.
"Their back?" she hissed.
I nodded. "Yes, they've been here longer than I have. I'm actually surprised you didn't go and check that out before you came after me."
"Laurent said-"
"Laurent's dead."
"I know he's dead! I knew he couldn't finish off the job, but he made this much more interesting." She paused taking another step forward to test me. I stayed still. "You see, I would have been fine just killing you as a human, but now I can kill you fairly. I'm assuming Edward found out you were changed, but he probably thought you were dead first, now however, you have seen each other again, and I will kill you making it ten times worse."
"You can't kill me," I said calmly.
She laughed shrilly. "Oh you have no idea what I can do." Her eyes looked me up and down until the fell on my left hand. "You're engaged? To Edward, right? Oh this makes it even better."
"You know, if you do succeed, Edward and his family, as well as my own, will come after you and kill you."
She shrugged. "They won't be able to catch me. Edward has tried, and he's not good at tracking."
"Luckily someone in my family is," I lied. No one has even tried it.
"I doubt it. They are nothing compared to James."
That's true. As much as I hated to admit it, he was a great tracker. I was about to say something else that might stall her, but she was finished talking. She crouched into the same position I saw Laurent, Edward and James go into before fighting. I did the same, like I did when I fought Nathan a few months ago.
We started to circle around each other, waiting for the other to make the first move. If you've seen the way lions fight, then that's what we looked like. We were testing the other to see who was be weaker and try to catch the other off guard.
Victoria stopped, as did I, and crouched lower to the ground. She was going to attack first. She realized I was waiting for someone to show up and save the day by killing her for me, but she didn't want that.
I knew it wouldn't happen though. If they hadn't showed up now, then they would never show up. I don't even know why no one has, though. Alice would have seen this by now.
I snapped back to attention. I didn't want to be caught off guard. Then she pounced.
She tackled me, trying to break something by the fall, but I was quick and shoved her off of me.
We both got up quickly and looked at each other. This time, however, I took the first step. I lunged at her and both of us smack to the ground. Her arms gripped my forearms with unbearable strength. I dug my knee into her stomach so she would loosen her grip, which she did.
I knew I had to get off of her and clear of her so she could attack me. I quickly pushed myself off of her and backed up to the edge of the meadow.
She got up just as fast as I did. Then she threw herself at me again, but I read her all to well. I concentrated and my shield threw her back through the trees. I ran after her hoping to catch her off guard enough to begin to tear her apart.
I followed the paths of trees that had been broken down from her and found her starting to fall 100 yards from where we originally were. As she fell I threw myself on top of her and began to tear.
First her arms came off, followed by her lefts. I quickly tore her torso into two and disconnected the head from the rest of her body. Then I grabbed as many sticks and branches I could and lit a match to them and threw her scattered body into the flames.
Then I collapsed onto ground, my hands shaking. I just killed someone. Okay, sure I didn't like her and she was just going to kill me anyways, but still I killed someone. It was so unreal.
Suddenly arms were around me holding me close to their cold body. I instinctively stiffened, not knowing if Victoria brought anyone else with her.
"Bella, it's me," Edward's voice whispers in my ear.
I immediately relax and turn into his chest, burying my face. My body was still shaking uncontrollably.
"Shh, its okay love, I'm here," he said softly as he rocked me back and forth.
OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO
"Bella!" Alice and Charlotte both yelled as Edward led me through the doors of my house.
Edward refused to let go of me as they both hugged me. His arms stayed around my waist pulling me into him repeatedly to kiss the top of my head. Not that I was complaining.
"Bella, I am so sorry! I should have seen this coming," Alice said with her hands still on my shoulders.
"Alice it's not your fault. I shouldn't be blocking you like I am."
She nodded, taking a hint from Edward that I didn't see. But he led me upstairs to my room and took me to my couch. He pulled me into his chest and held me there as I rested my head on his chest.
"Edward?"
"Hmm?" he asked opening up his eyes to look at me.
"How did you find me?" I asked picking up my head so my chin was resting on his chest.
He hesitated, like he wasn't sure if he should tell me the truth or not. "I started to follow your scent, but then I saw the smoke."
I nodded, not knowing what to say to that. It took me almost an hour to get my body to stop shaking. Even though I'm a vampire doesn't me I like to run around ripping peoples heads off. I just wasn't ready.
"Bella," Edward said softly, but with strongly, "I should have been there with you. You shouldn't have had to do that yourself. Can you forgive me?"
"No."
"No?"
"No, you didn't do anything wrong. You were at your bachelor party and I just shouldn't have walked away from my own party like that. I just wanted to see the place again; I didn't think that she would be there. Can you forgive me?"
He rolled his eyes at me, but smiled anyways. "There is nothing to forgive. I never would have thought she would try to come near you when my whole family is here."
I shrugged and laid my head back down.
We stayed silent for a few moments, before Edward started to hum lullaby. I closed my eyes, wishing I could fall asleep to this like I did so many years ago. Life seemed so complicated then, even though it was the easiest thing. Only I would be in a life or death situation every day I lived.
We stayed like that for the longest time. With Edward, the hours of my long existence just seems blend together. It makes everything go so much faster when I would rather just be caught up in the moment or have life free. But everything must come to an end, no matter how great that moment it.
"Bella, time to get ready," Alice said peeking her head into my room.
A/N: Sorry I would have had this done sooner, but I've just had like the worst couple of days in my life this week. Started with a fight, ended with my friend going away for the whole summer. FML. Anywho, I'm still going to post the sequel to Not Always You and Me, tomorrow, or today, however you look at it. And yea. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, sorry if the fight scene was a little week, I didn't know where to go with it. Um, hopefully by Tuesday I shall finish this story and I can concentrate on others. Thanks everyone for sticking with me!
