Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or New Moon, or any character in this story. The plot of this fanfiction alone is mine.

Chapter 1: A First Glance

"Please watch where you're walking tonight Bella, dear. Your leg must be rather painful after today's…accident. I don't want to see any new bruises tomorrow."

"Yes, Madam Cope."

I was on my home from my daily courtesy lessons, from which not by surprise, I had managed to acquire more unnecessary injuries. Today's class consisted of "Tea Time Etiquette", or also known as "An Accident Waiting to Happen". Actually, I was doing rather well up until the actual pouring of tea, when half the contents of the pot managed to land upon my lap, rather then correctly entering the cup in front of me. Nobody seemed too surprised by this either. And of course, they shouldn't be. You see, I am by nature, an extremely accident prone person. It's reasonably hard for me to go through a day without gaining some new form of bodily damage from the simplest of tasks known to man. But it's quite alright; I have come to accept it over time.

I continued on my way home, without a worry in the world. In a place as small as this, even unmarried women are free to come and go as they please. No judicial law has ever been broken before in Forks, which makes the town as close to perfect as it gets. So everybody can feel secure here; in their idealistic safe-haven. Everybody but me, that is.

Ever since I was a child, I have felt unfamiliar to my town's overprotective lifestyle. With the founding of Forks, many rules and regulations were established, for the mere sake of safer environment; for the women in particular.

Being a woman in Forks can be both a benefit and a curse (more of the latter than the prior). From childhood, females are almost completely separated from males, in fear of becoming harmed by, what adults would call as, an adolescent boy's disruptiveness. Cuts and bruises are not seen as an attractive thing on a woman in Forks. And so, for that reason, they are kept in unblemished condition, until that of out sixteenth birthday. After which, they are finally allowed a short merging period to ensure that they are somewhat protected from the awkwardness of courtship, and eventually marriage.

I however, am not a fitting example of a "Forks Woman". I have never been graceful enough for etiquette and poise, and personally find it somewhat redundant. Though my teachers and instructors have worked endlessly to improve my ineptness, it has finally won out as a hopeless cause. Yet, with my sixteenth year fast approaching, my father has persisted that my coaches try to improve me in some shape or form. Because, as my father sees it, without improvement, no man will ever wish to marry his daughter; leaving her to rot as a burden and disappointment. And right now, I was nothing but a failure to him in every aspect.

I've always been a failure…

Refusing to wallow more in my own self-pity, I continued to walk down the dark forest path towards my house. The woods were thick with greenery in the early summer, which made walking rather difficult, especially at night. And since last week, during a particularly large storm, one of the larger trees on the trail had fallen to cover a good portion of the pathway. And I, not wanting to risk further injuries in the dark, decided to find a way around it. So opting for a different route, I strayed off the path and walked into the forest ferns.

It wasn't until about ten minutes later that I realized I was lost. I have never been very good with directions, so it wasn't quite as frightening as it could be. But it wasn't very often that I got lost in the woods at close to midnight. I kept walking however, eager to find some trace of life or civilization.

After about thirty minutes I started to get nervous. I was nowhere near home, in an isolated forest, and it was starting to rain. I began to run, tripping a few times in the process. I kept going straight wishing that I could find an opening to the town, or even just a visible horizon; right now anything would do. And after what seemed like forever, my wish came true…partially. I could see a clearing of trees in the distance, with the full moon right above.

Just follow the moon's light Bella, you're almost there…

I chanted to myself over and over. I would be able to make it home, see my father, go to sleep, in the ease of my room. In just a few short moments I would be on my way there. There was nothing stopping me, I just had to keep moving. I was at the edge of the clearing now. I could already see the grass of a meadow illuminated by the starlight.

Keep moving. Keep movin–

I stopped. There was someone there…or something.

Taking shelter behind one of the trees in the clearing, I turned my eyes to see just who the mysterious figure was. At the current time, they were too far away; however, they were approaching quickly. It seemed nearly inhuman at the pace they were walking, like they were almost floating upon the longs reeds of the meadow grass. I was starting to find myself alarmingly captivated at how something could move with such grace and elegance. I yearned more and more to see this peculiar creature's face, but with its head cast away, glaring off somewhere into the night, I was not rewarded. I kept staring, waiting, hoping for them to turn their head; to give me a mere peek.

They were only a few fifteen feet away by now, and I could tell by now that it was a male. And from my point of view, there was no possibility that he was human.

In that moment, the creature chose to turn his head, his eyes still facing off into the distance, and I was given this single moment to glance at the form's previously hidden face. And when I did, my mind lost all sane thought completely.

It was hard to adjust to him at first. His ivory skin, dark eyes, and coppery hair, all shined celestially in the full moon, nearly blinding me, and if you looked close enough you could see that his skin tone was almost transparent. It was a sheer white, that was obviously too pale for a normal human body. Also, there were dark circles under his eyes as though he hadn't slept in weeks. However, after adjusting to the paleness you could see the exquisiteness of his face. Especially his eyes, as the golden orbs danced in fascination as to whatever he was thinking.

He was so astoundingly beautiful that I couldn't look away. I couldn't even blink, in fear that he would disappear into the endless night. And I knew that possibility alone would most likely kill me. So I kept staring, allowing my mind to memorize every pattern of his features. My eyes ran from his golden-brown hair to his hands, taking in every detail. I don't know how long I stayed there. Time wasn't even an issue anymore.

Just let me stay a little longer…

Then, the wind chose this most inconvenient moment to blow.

The ribbon tying back my brunette hair suddenly broke free, to be carried away with the unexpected gust. And, just to my misfortune, the breeze happened to be sending my ribbon in the direction of a certain mysterious man. Who, up until this time, hadn't had any idea of my current whereabouts.

Then, three things happened at once.

Firstly, my ribbon managed to entangle itself around the stranger's pale wrist. In the second moment, I saw his golden eyes darken into a fiery black, a sinister color that by all means only meant danger. And third, the last thing I remember before I blanked out, was an iron clad grip on my arm, and cold…yet somewhat godly voice whispering in my ear.

"Well, well, what have we here?"

I can't recall any other moment in my life when I have felt as scared as did in that moment. But the strangest part of it was that the adrenaline was fueling something other than fright inside of me. I was so entranced by everything that this man was…if he was a man that is.

He was so different from everything that I was so accustomed to seeing. Something raw and new. But then again, perhaps I am insane. A normal person would be screaming in terror, fighting for their life, or in the least shaking.

Yet I, being the odd person that I am, could only stand there in shock. Of course I was scared for my life, I am not that unusual. But, it didn't really seem to matter too much to me in that instance. He could take my life for all I cared. As long as he was the last sight I would see, it would be worth it.

I'm going to die now…I know it

Shaking the pessimistic thoughts from my head, I tried to focus in on what the creature was whispering in my ear.

"Oh Dear, someone seems to have wondered a bit too far from home. It's a little past you bedtime don't you think, little girl?"

I could almost feel his eerie grin by my shoulder, sending shock electricity running through me…and it wasn't a completely unwelcome feeling. However, when his mouth started to inch closer to my throat, I become more aware that I had no idea of what exactly this creature was.

"Didn't somebody warn you of what lurks in the shadows, child? Even you should know better than to wonder around past midnight."

"I…I-got lost. Please, let me go! My father is waiting for me!"

I don't know how I ever allowed the words to form in my mouth, and I could feel him tense as soon as they were spoken. His fingers dug into my wrist until I could feel the blood slowly run down to my fingers.

"Ah! Stop-please, it hurts!" I cried as he increased his grip. I was used to pain, but never had it been intended before.

"Learn to think before you open your mouth human. You don't know what your dealing with here," his soft voice increased to a harsh growl as he continued, "But, of course, your about to find out."

My eyes widened in horror as he brought his fingers, covered in my blood, up to his lips. He opened his mouth and slowly tasted the liquid, with a rather perverse look of satisfaction. He continued until he had removed all traces of from his hands.

A vampire…

"Absolutely delicious, I must say. This certainly will be a meal to savior indeed." His voice was threaded with a malicious intent, as he traced his tongue slowly along the lining of my throat, and as I felt his teeth slowly graze the flesh covering my veins, I knew the end was coming soon.

I'm going to die! Oh my god, I'm going to di-

But the end never came.

The vampire's face had snapped to the left, as something rustled in the leaves of a nearby bush. He growled, and released his present hold on my arms. Turning his eyes back to me, he locked his gaze with my own. I stared, enthralled, as the golden orbs danced in aggravation and rage.

"You will see me again, girl. Soon at that."

And with that, he was gone; as though he was never even there in the first place. The only remaining evidence of presence, were the claw marks lingering on my wrists, with blood still falling freely.

I must have waited hours before I even had the ability to move, and when I did, the only fraction of movement was my sudden collapse to the ground.

Perhaps it was a loss of blood, or the after-shock of a near-death experience; but whatever was causing my loss of all-physical activity, was not helping matters in the slightest.

I need to get inside…

My mind began to kick into overdrive, with a second rush of adrenaline. I cried out in frustration as willed for my broken nerves to work. Fighting for a twitch, a jolt, a spasm, anything!

However, after many hundreds of failed attempts, I gave up.

I sat back and did the only sane thing left…wait.

The vampire did say he was coming back…

Luck is not of my side, Today.

"Bella!"

I heard a shout in the distance. The voice seemed familiar, somewhat like my father's. But by now, I was too tired to react to anything at all, so all I could do was stay still and let whoever it was find me by themselves.

"BELLA!"

The voice was closer and clearer by now, only a few 10 paces away, and it was when the cooling hand of my father touched my face, that I finally allowed myself to relax completely.

"It's okay, Bella. You're safe now."

But he's coming back…

And with that…everything went black.

Chapter one finally finished and reviewed. Chapter 2 is coming soon. R&R.