Chapter Three: Memorable Facades
Bella's Perspective

What did I just do?
Edward... I sent him away.
No- I left him.

And it hurts.

It was as if I had left a part of me behind at that small forest clearing, the very thing that gave me reason to exist, that justified my existence as something in this world. Despite this I knew I couldn't go back; especially not when it was this very piece of me that told my instincts I had to leave in the first place.

I couldn't tell exactly where I had decided to call my home since I never really excelled in Geography- all I could tell was that I was in a row of mountains somewhere in America, since I hadn't crossed the borders nor had I gotten on a plane and jetted off somewhere. Something inside me told me that I shouldn't leave the country completely because something was coming, but I just left that down to the fact I don't think I would have the strength to be even further away from him than I already was. As I was sitting on a ledge jutting out from the mountain that was a good 100ft or so in the air I was very grateful that I had become a vampire- the thinning air didn't affect me because I didn't need to breathe and if I was still a human I am pretty sure that scaling this rock would have been far out of my limits. When I was running I didn't leave much time to think about where I was headed, all I could think about was the conversation- the last conversation- I had with Edward.

--

Flashback - Forest (Bella/Edward/Jasper/Jacob)

"Edward, i'm leaving," I spoke in a controlled manner, not wanting to reflect any of the pain the words were causing me to speak. I wouldn't have minded this pain if Edward was there to see me through it by my side, but now was not a situation where I could willingly allow him to put himself in harm's way for me. That was one of the reasons why I came a vampire after all; so he wouldn't need to anymore. I tried to sound as uncaring as possible as I spoke again but his crushing expression wanted me to do otherwise, the pain in my gut becoming near unbearable as his face bore the same pain I so sorely wished to express myself, even if it were only a fraction of the agony I felt inside. "I want you to carry on, okay? Don't come after me."

"Leaving? But... Bella, you can't! I don't know what i'll do without you!" He cried, his perfect angelic features falling behind a veil mixed with pain and desperation. "I can't live without you!"

Edward then pressed his soft lips to mine and for a moment I thought about giving up- the composure I had worked up for this very moment threatening to crumble underneath me. But I couldn't let myself break- I had to do it so he wouldn't come after me. He just couldn't. I lightly pressed my palm to his cheek and stood silently in his embrace for a short while, giving my memory the necessary time to record the moment for all eternity. He relaxed slightly as the seconds ticked slowly by, his eyes reaching for mine as I cupped his face gently in both my hands.

"I sometimes wish you could hear what I was thinking, just so you would understand," I murmured, my eyes taking in every minute detail of his face and committing it to memory as I had before. "I did hope that maybe it was just because I was a human but it seems that it didn't make much difference, i'm still as much of a one-person freak show as I was before."

He tensed once again at my words as I tried to combat it with a light joke, the apparant strain of effort on his part being that he was trying in vain to read my mind, but like the many times before we had tried we both knew it wouldn't work and he sighed; defeated once again.

"I do love you Edward. Until the day I die I always will, so promise me you'll remember that."

He pushed back a few strands of hair that fell across my eyes with his hand, his touch leaving tingling sensations in its path. "Then why are you leaving me? If you love me, then why don't you stay?"

The words he spoke overwhelmed me and I instantly felt my impassive demeanour crack and allow some of my own sadness to filter through, the secret I had tried to remain hidden seeping slowly into my eyes. I suddenly remembered something he had said to me before; one of the first things he said to me when I told him I was scared of him leaving me. "Because I love you enough so that if I had to leave for the sake of your life then I would."

Stepping back I freed his face from my hands and forced a smile onto my face as I glanced at Jacob and Jasper, their bewildered expressions reflecting the fierce curiosity that wanted them to know what our conversation had been about. I memorised these faces as I had done Edward, my heart wishing that I could have spoken to the rest of my vampire family before leaving- especially Alice.

"Look after Jake," I performed, intentionally raising my voice so the other two could hear, keeping my face blank as I tried not to allow any of my emotions to slip past my facade. It would have been easier if Jasper hadn't been here to have a read on the emotions I wasn't expressing, but I couldn't help that now. I heard Edward speak that he loved me but I couldn't muster the strength to say it back and keep my charade going so instead I just chose a simple answer instead that of the automatic; something I had never done before.

"I know Edward," I sighed, my heart breaking into ever-smaller pieces with each syllable that passed my lips. I gave one last look at the sea of faces through my blurred vision before me before turning my back on them all, the tears that I had kept back for so long now falling freely down my face as I left the clearing, the water droplets coating the jade blades of our meadow as I ran through it with no direction set in mind. The longer I thought about where I was going I knew I would be more tempted to find a place that he would find me again, so instead I chose the looming grey monument that soon appeared before me as my new home, the lonely mountains echoing the emptiness I felt inside.

--

The downside of being a vampire came with the plaguing thirst that heightened as time passed, and mine had been pestering me ever more over the last few hours since the brunt of my energy from the last hunt had been used healing the wounds I received a few days before. Without realising it I ran my fingers over the stitches Carlisle had used to seal up the injury and sighed, my eyes soon trailing as they often did about the rock face, falling across a pair of elegant mountain lions. It seems that irony and fate had joined forces to put at least one thing in one of the most isolated places to remind me of him, placing the feline form of Edward here to test me. I pushed the memory of him to the back of my mind as I pushed myself off the ledge and fell the next six feet with a grace I couldn't claim in my mortal life, the fact that I had decided to quickly divert myself to the cottage Edward and I shared to change fulfilling its purpose now. I was pretty sure that remaining in the hospital clothes out here wouldn't be one of the best choices I could have made but neither was the pink baby doll dress that I was wearing now- but at least the dress was highly pratical in movement terms. It certainly wasn't the best for camouflage but I highly doubted I would meet anyone this far up plus I wasn't blessed with enough time to figure out different fabric scents other than satin and denim.

As I crouched downwind of the two magnificent creatures I couldn't help but marvel at their beauty- their elegance, flair and beauty was so akin to Edward's I could see why Emmett had compared the two. It was then that I felt an uncertainty creep over me. I had only had one hunting lesson before this but that was just on elks, and if i'm not mistaken I believe that lions are a lot different but luckily I had my vampire instincts to help bridge the gap inexperience made. With one perfectly executed leap I landed upon the back of the larger male, my teeth sinking into into the back of his neck to his cries allowing the refreshing warm liquid to trickle down my throat. However it wasn't as soothing as I thought it would be- in fact the burning in my throat seemed to protest against this foreign substance and as a result of my distraction I didn't see his mate launch at me, her claws and teeth sinking into my skin. I didn't allow myself time to assess what damage might have happened since I was pretty sure that no animal could tear my vampire skin, so instead I jumped back a few feet to separate me from them, dodging the half-hearted swipe the injured cat aimed towards me. As I landed my hand wound itself round my stomach as a fierce inferno erupted there, a whimper pushing past my lips as a pain I couldn't have even imagined before raged in my insides. It was certainly a lot more painful than any measly thirst I had before- it was like comparing a match to a volcano. I gave one weary look to the advancing pair and decided now was the time to return to the safety of the ledge; my body slumping on the cool rock underneath me as another wave of agony washed through me.

Moving onto my hands and knees I tried to resist the urge to throw up but it seemed like my stomach had different ideas, deciding to hurl the contents upon the floor, staining the ledge red with the blood I had just drank. I rolled to the side onto my back and laid out staring up at the twilight, my mind not having realised until now how long I had really spent travelling here until I saw the sky darken with my own eyes. Another thing I suddenly realised was the light twinge that ran down my arm as I moved it a fraction, my eyes widening as I saw a blood trail of my own emerging from a trio of distinct claw marks. Claw marks I never expected to see.

"It's beginning..." I murmured, my fingers tracing the three lines with the lightest touch I could muster. I exhaled a sigh while I closed my eyes to shut out the truth of my situation allowing the water that had been collecting at the sides of my eyes to fall, casting my mind back to to where I had first noticed the change.

--

Flashback - Hospital (Bella/Edward)

"Edward?" I whispered in a voice I could barely distinguish as mine, my eyelids fluttering as I willed them to open to escape from the darkness I was in. My body felt heavy as I finally was greeted with the sight of a white, tiled ceiling, followed shortly with the sight of my vampire family when I shifted my gaze to the side. They seemed to be engaged deep within their conversations for they seemed oblivious to me waking, giving me the opportunity to shift my body from the bed and stand on my feet for what felt like the first time in years. I clutched onto the side of the bed for support as my feet threatened to disappear from underneath me, feeling my way along the wall to the nearby bathroom to see how bad I truly was that I had to be in the hospital and not back at the Cullen home.

With a short stumble to the mirror I immediately zeroed in on the bandage wrapped around my shoulder, grimacing slightly as I ran my fingers under the material and over the various bumps in my skin. The broken bones I thought I had seemed to have already healed in the time I had been unconscious- probably aided by my new and improved vampire immune system. However from where I had been focusing on the more obvious injuries I had received I didn't realise the difference in my facial features- it wasn't deformed or anything like that, but the freakish person I had gotten used to seeing had been replaced with someone different. Their eyes were no longer the chilling scarlet but a strange violet colour; a colour unknown to both human and vampire. I reached up and watched as my mirror image mimicked my fingers running down my cheek, my mind unsure if the person there was actually me. Blinking didn't help either as they were still there every time I opened my eyes again, remaining in silence as if to prove that they were me.

"What's happened to me?" I breathed, my eyes still wearily watching each action I made that my reflection copied with perfection. I kept this up this aimless motion until Edward suddenly appeared in the doorway, still dazzling me despite the obvious look of pained worry on his face. This look did soften slightly as he resumed his usual position with his arms locked around me, his face burying itself into my hair as I continued to stare at the person in the mirror. He didn't seem to notice the change in me that I had, his embrace somehow feeling not as comforting as it usual was.

"Would you love me even if I changed?" I asked suddenly, my eyes kept busy watching their violet cousins as his breath curled on my neck, his lips caressing the length of my neck as I closed my eyes, falling into the euphoria he was creating. Another motive laid behind me closing my eyes as he performed his reply, that being that I didn't want him to see the ugly orbs that seemed to look wrong whatever way you looked at them. Despite this I wasn't allowed to keep them shut for long as he gave me a light shake, forcing my gaze to the picturesque couple embracing in the silver surface. I tensed in his arms until I locked upon my reflection's eyes, the scarlet spheres that stared back at me in fear being oddly comforting.

"I will always love you Bella; no matter what happens."

My mind settled slightly at his words for a minute or two as he reached in to kiss the base of my neck until a wounded wolf's cry shattered the silence, casting my body out of its dreamlike stance in Edward's embrace and to the small window posed opposite my bed overlooking the forest.

--

Seven months later

Over the next few months I filled my time with a gift that just appeared out of the blue one day, an ability that put me into one of those small groups of unique vampires along with Edward, Alice and Jasper. It certainly did explain why Edward could never hear my thoughts since my power was something along the lines of mental manipulation, where I could theoretically get anything I wanted through sheer mental prowess alone. When it came to Edward I decided on the explanation that I had somehow sub-consciously formed a connection with his telepathy and forced it to not to read my mind- or at least that was as far as I could figure out. A very frustrating thing with it however was that I could never single it out as a particular thing unlike Edward's telepathy or Alice's precognition; mine just seemed to be a whole mess of everything.

For one thing I found after some random coincidence that I could move objects with just a simple gesture in my eyes and that to some degree I could also mimic Edward's ability- but it was more of listening to their past memories than their thoughts, and even then that worked scarcely, very much so when I found out I could only listen to what they didn't close off from me. The final part of this overall ability was perhaps the most fun and interesting to use; especially when it meant I could make pretty much anything with a brain my own personal puppet. It was quite fun to watch hikers frequently walk in circles thanks to me, their bemused faces enough to put a smile on my face. This led on to the superstition amongst hikers that this mountain was haunted; heightened moreso because of various times where my laughs echoed down to the people hiking below. After more people began to believe this idea less people frequented my mountain so I ran out of subjects for my games so instead I climbed higher to the submit and watched the different cars pass on the highway a long distance away.

It definitely was a lonely existence but despite this it was also one I was content with; the various animals that had called these mountains there home soon accepting the fact that I wasn't going to attack them anymore since I hadn't been feeding lately. I found that anytime I tried to quench the thirst I felt with blood I was met with the all too similar protest and rejection of the liquid, so instead I just compromised and didn't try again. A result of this was that my energy was now pretty much non-existent these days, not really finding point to move from the laying position I have inhabited on the summit for the past week or so. Along with this came the subject of Edward; as the hours passed I found that the gaping hole he had left in my heart had dulled over time to just a dull ache, the image that I had committed to memory blurring along with the other images of my slowly forgotten family.

As the same, agonizing feeling rose from the pit of my stomach once again I shifted my body to the side and raised my hand to my mouth, the sickly cough that arose from my throat painting my palm in a scarlet coating. This had been occurring for the last few weeks and over that period had become ever more frequent; increasing from perhaps once every four or so days to at least twice a day, if not more. I slumped back and stared uselessly up at the overcast sky as the rain began to fall, the small raindrops sliding down my cheeks accompanying my own tears on their journey to the ground.

As I wiped away the tears collecting at the edges of my eyes I coated my cheeks with the blood that had stained my hand, the rain soon spreading the liquid across my face, making it look almost as if I had cried this scarlet substance. I couldn't say exactly how long I stayed in that position as the storm continued, my mind disallowed any room to think as thunder ripped across it and lightning flashed across the sky. It was complete darkness when noise other than that of the weather spoke to me, their tone of voice sounding rather amused as they did.

"Most people I know don't like the rain. Are you not cold?"

I didn't even bother to turn and look at the source of the voice as I replied, my own words sounding foreign to me since I hadn't actually used it in quite some time. "I don't like the rain much either."

"Then why don't you find shelter?" They inquired, their voice indicating to me that they were male. A short silence followed as I gave my mind enough time to register his question, the reply I gave echoing the loneliness buried deep inside.

"Because I have nothing to live for."

As they crossed to my side I caught a glimpse of the rather ornate cloak they were wearing, the effort put into the intricacy of the patterns lining the hem causing me to assume that they must be from some sort of nobility. This of course made me wonder why they were bothering to speak to someone like me, but since he had pulled the large hood that accompanied the coat across his head I couldn't see the person behind it. I instead chose to remain impassive as I fixated my gaze upon one particularly bright constellation of stars, catching a glimpse of the stranger's eyes as he crouched down beside, the scarlet eyes filled with curiosity as they delved into my own.

"Your eyes... they are quite something," he murmured, obviously taken by the vivid violet colour my eyes had decided to remain upon after a couple of months of flickering between my human colour of brown and vampire colour of red. At first I was fond of them but the novelty soon wore off so I did not share his interest in them; if anything I hated them, as they singled me out as more of a loner then I was if I were just a simple red-eyed vampire living here on their own.

"I prefer yours."

"Why would you prefer mine?"

"They remind me of you I once was," I replied wistfully, my hand sorely wishing to reach up to him.

"Who you once was?" He asked, clearly confused from my answer.

"I used to have them too. I miss them..." Without realising it I ran my numbed fingers down the side of his cheek, a small smile that I didn't know I had beginning to form on my blue lips. My hand soon ran out of cheek and as a result fell limp to my side as my tiny energy reserves diminished, surprising the male as he noticed how weak I had become.

"Miss, may I ask when the last-"

"Bella," I interrupted, not truly caring that I cut him off in mid-sentence.

"Pardon?"

"Bella. My name," I responded simply, my eyes still looking up lovingly at the perfectly scarlet of his. "You called me miss."

"Oh," he said, the confused look he had held melting away as his lips curled up into a smile. "Bella, don't you think you should go hunting?"

"I don't hunt." I allowed my gaze to trail to the side where it settled upon the two lions I had once attacked, their cubs dancing around their ankles as they ushered them back inside the small cave they had taken as shelter from the rain. "It has been about six months since I last tried to hunt. I can't be more specific as I forget the days."

He seemed shocked when I said this, which just spurred on my own confusion. The first few months were hard and I couldn't deny that, but after that I didn't even notice the burn in my throat and now the survival instinct that usually told my mind to hunt had faded into nothing. All I had to deal with now was the coughing fits that occurred every so often, and even then they just seemed to slot into my daily routine. "Does that surprise you?"

"Well of course! I haven't heard of someone going this long... a month maybe but not like this," he said, his gaze glancing over my glaringly obvious frail state as he began to think over the information I had given him.

"It just became part of my nature considering I can't drink blood anymore," I explained, my hand raising to stifle the yawn that pushed past my lips. My eyes drooped slightly as the little efforts of the day reminded me of my exhaustion, my body soon drifting slowly to sleep as he remained silent. I was just watching a string of blurred memories as a light shake threw them from my mind's sight, my eyes opening under protest to gaze wearily back at the man.

"Can you actually sleep?" He inquired, his curiosity being the reason his further shaking prevented me from falling back into a dreaming state.

"Sometimes, but not all the time," I mumbled, my body struggling to keep the heavy weights that were my eyes from falling shut again. "I can usually sleep when I am very tired though."

He stood up at that point, his hand tapping against his chin as he paced in a ring around me. "Are you human, Bella?"

I shook my head.

"Vampire?"

I shook a gain.

"Werewolf?"

While this spurred another no to his thoughts he then decided to list a string of names that I hadn't even heard before, each time resulting in a shake and a defeated grunt as he admitted defeat.

"I don't know what I am. I had once been human and I had once been vampire, but now..." I guessed he was unhappy with my answer as he picked up his circular pacing again, my mind counting at least seventeen rings before he finally stopped. His eyes lightened up from under the hood as he turned to me, looking as if someone had just told him he had one the lottery.

"Come with me."

"What?" I said confused, my face screwing up as I tried to figure out what he meant. Did he want me to go with him?

"Come with me. To Italy. I'll even carry you if you like- someone might be able to help you there." He extended his hand to me and waited patiently for my answer, his smile returning as I willed my hand into his, my body easily being lifted on his part. He unfastened the long cloak he had been wearing and draped it round my shoulders with no explanation as to why, the spiky tawny hair that had been hidden underneath the hood instantly flattening against his head as a result of the rain. I didn't really know why I was leaving the safety of the summit but the offer of his companionship was something my inner loneliness didn't allow me to send away, so instead I found my frozen limbs locked into place around his waist and neck as we raced down the mountain. He rested his hands on mine that wound around his neck as I felt the home I had adopted for past months move further away with each passing second, the comfort of my mountain now passing onto the vampire that I had pushed it onto.

"You never told me your name."

"I didn't?" He replied with a hint of thought, his head turning slightly so that I could gaze into those scarlet eyes I wish I still had.

"I'm Corin."


A/N: A semi-in depth explanation of Bella's ability.

Bella's Power: Mental Manipulation

- Mild form of telepathy; however she does not read the thoughts of the time, but listens in to memories that passes every once in a while across one's mind. There are limitations to this, as if there is a particular memory someone has pushed back Bella will not be able to access it herself, as she doesn't have the power to delve deep into someone's memories.

- Average ability with telekinesis; Bella can move things with her mind but has to accompany this with some sort of gesture, her favourable one being that of her eyes since it can be easily concealed when compared to a wave of the hand. She hasn't experimented much with this part of her ability so she does not know the extent of her limits, or how powerful this could be.

- Subtle mastery over mental persuasion; With his Bella can instruct anything with sufficient mental capability to bend to her will, and in effect she can assume complete control over them without the subject truly realising what is happening. She does this by inserting an idea into the subject's hand which they then believe to be their own and dutifully performs it. As she has experimented this gift with both animals and people (the hikers on the mountain) she has achieved an almost complete mastery over it but still finds that sometimes with particularly stubborn individuals they can disagree with her ideas.