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Chapter Three

April

So much had changed in only a year.

To start with, April was still coping with Emmett's death. She had only had him for a few days, but he was her brother.

Secondly, she no longer thought of Jason Dave as a father. He had betrayed her and her friends for Francesca, and was helping her all along. After he had turned, however, he went for redemption from April and the Cullens by helping to rescue them – a plan that didn't work so well. Shortly after, he had left Forks, leaving his distraught wife alone with only the comfort of April who was still just a normal human girl in Christina's knowledge.

April suppressed a sigh of frustration as she dug under her unused mattress for her diary. Only recently had she started writing, but it had become a habit quickly. Instead of the cheesy 'Dear Diary' she wrote it like a journal, stating the date and events, occasionally adding what she thought.

Finally, she found the small brown book and yanked it out, causing it to spread open and wrinkle some unwritten-in pages. Without trouble April found a black pen on her desk and bounced onto her bed, already flipping back to the page she was currently on.

Monday 19th October

Skipping school today – it's become a habit. I'm thinking about dropping out altogether. What's the use of it anyway? I have forever to learn if I want. But I know Christina won't let me – after Jason's 'disappearance' she has been desperate for normal. She doesn't want to be the sympathised wife of a missing husband, or the mother to a delinquent, school-skipping teen. Her tolerance with me has lowered, and it's getting harder to squeeze hunting into my life when Christina has a need to know everything. The Cullens have been more of a family than her, but I forget that they understand what I am. Isabella Swan doesn't stop by their house anymore. I guess she has no reason to, what with Emmett gone. A year after and she still hasn't healed. In my opinion, it's ridiculous. She'd known Emmett for two months yet it's taking more than a year to move on! Oh, I forgot to mention this – I gave up home-schooling. Christina wasn't much of a teacher, anyway.

April heard nearly silent footsteps out in the hallway, and snapped her diary shut. Christina's quiet breaths came up to her door, and April used her advantage in speed to tuck her diary away and disappear into a corner before Christina could turn the handle on the door.

She stepped in and looked around the room tentatively, but sighed in relief when she didn't see April in there. She probably expected that she was at school already.

When Christina left, April did too, only using her bedroom window as an exit. Before she landed her eyes did a quick sweep of the area, looking for anyone that might have seen her descent. A movement in a window across the street caught her eye and she ducked behind the fence to look closer. Inside was someone April recognised from school. Mike Newton. He didn't look himself – he appeared to have seen her land unharmed from the window, but didn't look too shocked. In fact, he looked grim and he turned away from her, walking back into whatever room he was in.

April swore under her breath and contemplated what to do about it.

I can't just barge in there and force him not to tell anyone...she thought, biting her lip.

Who will believe him anyway? April mused. Shaking her head slightly, she started walking down the street at a tedious human pace, following a familiar route to the woods. As she passed a couple teenagers, a thought occurred to her. Why hadn't Mike been at school? He certainly didn't seem sick, and he wasn't one for avoiding school. April shrugged off her mental debate and crossed the road, circling around the back of the houses and into the thick trees and vegetation.

As she got farther, the trees were plentiful and certainly taller. There were no animals in her immediate area, only a few passing birds or hiding insects and rodents. Her throat felt dry and burned with a need for blood, something she couldn't suppress any longer.

April took a deep breath and closer her eyes, opening her other senses to everything around her. Somewhere, heavy hooves lazily clomped around, and she smelled fresh blood pounding through an animal's veins. Farther away to the east, water was running. It was the little stream that she passed frequently. April opened her eyes again and let herself ghost in the direction of the blood. As she got closer, more details flowed to her.

She was stalking two huge elk, both females. They were just leaving the stream, muzzles wet. Their long necks were bare, and their slow heartbeats seemed to invite April closer. Instincts kicked in, and she silently came up behind one of them. Right as she jumped the closest elk, something collided with her in mid air. Two snarls ripped through the air, one distinctly her own. It was dangerous for anyone to be near while a vampire hunted, and it took a few minutes for April to calm down enough to see her companion.

The elk had fled, but she didn't stand alone. She recognised Alice Cullen glaring at her, only a few metres away. Her pale arms were folded across her chest, and her face was twisted in a scowl.

"What the hell, April?" she growled.

"I should say the same!" April retorted.

"I could have killed you! What were you doing?" Alice demanded. She stopped when she saw April's black fathomless eyes and stepped back.

"Exactly what you were, although I don't purposely interfere when others hunt." She spat.

"How could I have not sensed you here?" Alice wondered aloud, her glare gone.

"Maybe you were just being an idiot and not paying attention." April growled, turning and speeding off in the direction of the stream without waiting for a reply. She suspected that there would be animals at the stream, because that's where she usually hunted.

Disappointment and agitation crossed her face as she found the area empty, and Alice came up cautiously behind her.

"I've been out for ages," Alice said grimly. "There's nothing. Those two elk were the first animals I've seen for a day now. Aside from the, uh, squirrels." April glanced over at her and noticed her fidgeting, lost in her own thoughts.

"That doesn't make sense – it's October, they can't be fricking hibernating!" she yelled in frustration. "Where are they?"

"I don't know, April! But..." Alice trailed off, biting her lip.

"What?" April demanded, facing her.

"I found some dead animals. All drained of blood completely. I – I think there are other vampires in town."

...

Carlisle was no help whatsoever.

Under Alice's suggestion, they had gone back to the Cullens' house to talk to him, suspecting other 'vegetarian' vampires in the area.

"Impossible." Carlisle protested. "We would've found them."

"Oh yeah," April said dryly. "Just like you found me." She was in a particularly bad mood, partly because she was incredibly thirsty, and also because she was still annoyed with Alice.

"She's got a point," Jasper joined in the conversation, not meeting anyone's gaze. His eyes drifted past everyone except Alice.

"Maybe these vampires are hiding, like April did." He suggested.

"These?" April repeated. "How do we know that there is more than one?"

"How could one vampire destroy most of Forks' animal population so quickly?" Esme called from the kitchen. She could obviously hear their conversation, but didn't join them in the living room.

Everyone noticed Jasper look down and fidget, and so all eyes were on him.

"Jasper?" Carlisle asked. "Do you know something about this?"

"Yes, Jasper, is there something you're not telling us?" Alice put spiteful emphasis in her latter words, standing and glaring at Jasper. He didn't meet her eyes.

"No." He mumbled. "Excuse me." Jasper cast one last apologetic glance at Alice before disappearing from the room. A gust of wind drifted in as he opened and shut the front door. Alice also stormed off – but she went upstairs. Carlisle frowned, and April looked innocently confused.

"What...?" she trailed off, looking at Carlisle. He gave a slight shrug.

"I don't know. But we need to focus on the problem at hand. Until we discover who is doing this, we'll have to hunt outside of Forks. And in small groups – we don't know who these vampires might be." Carlisle stood abruptly and disappeared into the kitchen to join Esme, and left April sitting on the wide leather sofa. She grumbled a jumbled insult at the Cullens and stood, making her way to the door.

Naturally, it was unlocked. Vampires didn't really fear burglars. April pushed it open and felt the wind whip against her skin, but not with any temperature. Not bothering to close the front door behind her, she bounded down the stairs and into the trees, opening her senses to what was around her.

"...can't hunt here! They're getting suspicious." April caught some words from what sounded like Jasper's voice, but he was at least a mile away. She jumped to the top of a nearby tree in a second and silently leapt to the next. Finally, she could see him. Jasper stood in front of a tree, facing someone who had their back to April. From what she could see, the girl had porcelain white skin and ash blonde curls that grew to her waist, which was covered by pale green shorts. Her shirt was covered by a grey hooded jumper.

"I know, Jasper! I've been telling them that, but Travis has convinced us – well not me and Tim – that it's okay to hunt in Spoons!" the girl complained. At her mistake in Forks' name, April nearly laughed aloud, but contained it to a grin. Jasper, however, wasn't amused.

"Well then I guess I'll have to talk with Travis. Oh, it's Forks." He muttered, starting to pace. Just then, a figure emerged from the shadows surrounding them. Jasper and the girl didn't seem to notice, and had gone into deep conversation.

The man that stepped forward was unfamiliar to April, even though he was looking right at her. He walked past Jasper, right in his line of sight, and Jasper didn't even look at him. He seemed oblivious and continued arguing with the girl. The strange man kept walking until he was a few metres from the tree April was perched on, and looked up at her. She backed up the slightest bit, but didn't move her gaze.

Suddenly, April felt a strange rush of thoughts sweep through her mind – memories. Somehow she knew, this man was the vampire Lyreco, a former Aeterna – whatever that was – and the previous leader of the Hostium. Francesca, also a former Aeterna, had murdered him with his own newly invented weapon against vampires.

April gasped as all of Lyreco's memories flooded into her, and grabbed a nearby branch for support. She had no idea what was happening, and soon found herself running back towards the Cullens' home, images still flashing past her eyes.

When she arrived, she was breathing heavily. Not from exhaust, but from fear and shock. April crumpled against the outside wall of the house, trying to make sense of what her mind was receiving. Her hand dug into the wall behind her, causing dust to fall on her fingers. A figure in front of her made April quickly lift her shaking head up to see them. It was Lyreco.

"Wh-What are you doing to me?" she whispered. It was all she could manage. April felt as if she was having the world's worst migraine, and she ached all over. Not to mention her burning thirst.

I am doing nothing. His voice seemed to voice itself inside her mind, and his lips didn't move.

"Well then what's h-happening?" April demanded weakly.

Your gift is awakening.

"Gift? What do you mean?" she mumbled.

You possess the power to communicate with me – to break the barrier between the living and the dead. Lyreco explained.

"I don't understand!" April cried.

My darling, how do you think you are talking to me now, if I have died? With those final words, Lyreco stepped back and seemed to fade into darkness.

Since Lyreco's appearance, an hour had passed.

It turned out that Carlisle, Esme, and Alice weren't home, and Jasper wasn't coming. April was sitting, unmoving, on the same leather sofa, pondering over what happened. Her first thought was, I'm insane.

She wouldn't believe that she had just spoken with the dead. It was impossible.

But, she countered mentally. Seeing the future and mind reading are meant to be impossible too. But why would her gift only surface now? Why not in the past years? And why did it have to be something so useless as talking to the dead!
Useless? Why would you think that? Lyreco's voice spoke in her mind. April was still new to him doing this, and it made her jump.

"Well how could it possibly help? Oh, yippee, I get someone dead to talk to!" she said dryly.

Manners, girl. I may not be living – if I ever was in my immortality – but I still expect some respect. Lyreco paused. I can help you.

"Again: how?" April asked.

No other vampire can sense me as you do, and therefore I can observe and watch whatever I wish. This may be helpful in what is coming. Lyreco didn't elaborate, and April frowned.

"What do you mean, 'What is coming'?" she asked.

Now that I cannot help you with. You must discover that yourself.

"You've got to be kidding me! Now you sound like some sort of fortune-teller!" April groaned.

"Helping me would be telling me about that!" she complained.

I apologize, Alicia, but some things I must not interfere with.

A sudden idea occurred to April.

"Could I...Could I speak to my brother, Emmett?" she whispered.

Yes.

OoOoh! Will April get to speak to Emmett?

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