Author's Note:
Most of you probably know that this story is going to be mainly in flashback form, through Alice's eyes, and that she is actually having the flashback. However, some of the chapters are going to be placed in the present – what is going on directly after Alice started having the flashback, so that you can see how Edward would react. This is one of those chapters. So, no, this chapter is not a flashback, but in the present time. Alice is still "vacant", I guess you could call it, which sort of freaks Edward out. You'll see.
Sleep Through the Static
"Alice!" He shouted her name, her ocher eyes wide and worried, unneeded breath hitching in his throat. He'd never seen her like this – her visions were never this violent, panicked, and she'd never crumpled to the ground as she just had. Instantly he'd rushed forward, catching the little pixie in his arms before she could hit the ground. He didn't worry about her hurting herself, but rather, he couldn't stand to see his invincible little sister crumple to the ground. It was plain wrong in his eyes.
Her eyes were black, no longer gold as they had been merely moments before, vibrant and full of life – now they seemed almost dead, gone from the world and holding nothing. Her eyes were the eyes of a dead girl.
Edward had been supporting himself by resting on his knees, but once he'd held her for a few minutes he gently lowered himself to the ground, cradling her in his arms. The bronze haired vampire crossed his long legs in an Indian style and rested his sister in his lap, letting her lay her head on his shoulder. Her lips parted and she whimpered sharply, but her eyes remained unchanged.
Edward's heart was clenched in his chest seemingly gripped by an icy hand that tried to strangle the long still organ. "Shh, Alice." He rubbed his sisters back in little circles soothingly, trying to calm her down. "I'm sorry, whatever this is, whatever I did, I'm so sorry." He hadn't a clue what this was – but whatever it was, there was no way that it could be a normal vision. She'd never had anything like this, and Edward was sure that he'd managed to do it. "I'll make it better, I promise. Please just hang on in there, alright?" He stroked her hair, wishing he had some way of contacting his father or brother. There was no way to get in touch with them now – he hadn't a phone near him, and feared getting up with her in his arms in case he was to hurt her by doing so. His father would be so much better at handling this, and his brother so much better at calming Alice down. She needed him right now.
There was something else that was off about this vision as well, if that was what it was – with all of Alice's visions, he'd been able to decipher them as she had them, to find out what was in her mind, what she was seeing. It was different this time – it was as if the signal had jammed, and all he was getting back was white noise and static. There were random bits and pieces, fragments of things that went by too fast for even him to catch. The eternal seventeen year old growled in frustration, needing to be able to see what she was seeing, or thinking, if his suspicions were correct and this wasn't a vision. It felt like he was confused for the first time in a long time, on a day when everything was supposed to be perfect.
Her head jerked suddenly to one side, as if she'd been slapped, but she didn't come around from whatever she was in. Edward's eyes burned angrily, horrified for his little sister at whatever was doing this to her. She shook, and he placed a hand on the cheek that she'd seemed to jerk away from. "It's alright, Alice. I'll get Jasper for you." He knew that she'd want nothing more, if she had been able to tell him at the moment.
The last shards of sunlight from the day bounced through his window and shone on the invisible prisms in their skin, as twilight fell. Would Jasper be too far away to feel that something was wrong? Edward could only hope that it wasn't the case. He was more used to dealing with these things, even if this was one that was out of the norm, and if Jasper left, so would the rest of the family, if they'd realized something was wrong with Alice, the entire family's sunshine.
They couldn't lose their sunshine.
Author's note: I'm sorry that this one was shorter than the other two, but it was more difficult to write when it was a one sided conversation. The next chapter will be back to the flashback, and will be longer. I hope that you enjoyed it anyway. Review!