A/N: Helloo readerrss :). Here's the first chapter I've written for The Darkest Path. Hope you like it.

I need some feedback on these chapters so I know if I should carry it on or not.

So . . .read, enjoy & review!

Disclaimer: Twilight characters belong to Stephenie Meyer. I am just borrowing them :).

- FurryHottness56

Chapter One : Discovery

April 23rd 2003

Maria Gonzales was walking down Mark Street in Queens, New York, as fast as her short legs could carry her. She gripped her umbrella in one hand and had 3 bags of shopping in the other whilst sheets of rain poured out of the clouds.

"Ay, dios mio! I did not need this today! Not today!" She exclaimed, the 20th anniversary of her son's death weighing down on her heart.

Maria walked up her driveway and dropped her shopping on her front step as she fumbled with her keys when her train of thought was interrupted by the sound of something moving in her garden. Her brows furrowed with confusion.

"¿Qué es eso?"

She shielded herself from the rain with her umbrella and hurriedly followed the sound over to the side of her small house. There, hidden behind her rose bushes was a young bruised girl - around 10 years old - who looked as if she'd been to hell and back. Maria's heart swelled with sympathy for her and without a second thought she approached her and held out her hand.

"Aw, Mija, come inside, you must be dying out here!"

Maria's inviting smile reassured the girl and she took her hand. They quickly shuffled into her cosy house and Maria began putting firewood in the fireplace and made it as hot as she could. Then she started up a bath for the girl and offered to help her take off her soaked clothes when the girl shook her head slowly. Maria smiled, "its okay Mija, just go in there and when your nice and clean, come out and I'll have a hot chocolate waiting for you here, yes?" The girl nodded, gave her a small smile then went in the bathroom and closed the door behind her.

Maria walked over into her homely kitchen, filled the kettle with water and set it on the stove. She pondered on the thought of being a mother again and thought that maybe she'd forgotten how to do it. Parents should always die before their children do. But for one of Maria's children, that wasn't the case. Her heart warmed with love and pride when she pictured her son Damián in his US Navy uniform, kissing her goodbye as he set off to be a soldier. She begged him to stay as she didn't want him to suffer the same fate as his father did before him, but unfortunately for Maria, lightning really did strike twice.

Just as she had finished making the hot chocolate, a piercing scream thundered from the bathroom. Maria's eyes widened in panic and she rushed into the bathroom to find the girl sitting in the bath tub with steaming and bubbling water all around her, as if boiling water straight from a kettle had been poured into the tub. Maria spewed a string of curses in Spanish that you'd never hear from a 63 year old woman before grabbing a towel and wrapping it around the girl's shoulders. The intense heat coming from the water was like a force field; stopping her from getting to close. She could feel the sweat dripping from her body as she used all the strength left in her to pull the girl out. Surprisingly, the girls face was completely neutral, her mouth wasn't open but Maria could somehow hear the child's manic screams inside her head; the sound echoed that of someone being burnt alive. Maria could not fathom what was happening, and didn't try to. All she cared about was saving the girl's life.

Maria examined the girl's body for any signs of burning but there was not a mark upon her. Her skin wasn't even mildly hot! Her brows furrowed with confusion once more but she shook it off and just smiled at her.

"My name is Maria. What is your name, querida?" Maria said softly.

"Isabella, or Bella." She whispered.

"Beautiful." Maria smiled widely, hoping to get the same from Bella and she did. For the first time, Bella was truly smiling; overwhelmed by the care this stranger was giving her.

She handed Bella her hot chocolate and sat her upon Maria's favourite armchair beside the fireplace. Maria sat opposite her in her late husband's loveseat and began to ask the questions she knew she needed to.

"So, Isabella, where is your mother?" A brief flash of longing appeared on Bella's face but disappeared quickly.

" I, I do not know." Maria tried not to look concerned but she did anyway.

"And where do you live?"

"I do not know." She repeated; as if she'd just realised that she really does not know anything about what had happened to her.

"Well then how did you get here?" Maria said, the concern now largely evident on her face.

Bella just shot her a look that said, I really don't know.

"Okay mija, I'll go and make some dinner, just make yourself comfortable and call if you need anything, yes?"

Bella nodded and gave her a small smile before seeking refuge in her hot cup of chocolate.

Why can't I remember anything? She thought to herself. Bella closed her eyes and tried hard to remember anything about how she ended up outside Maria's house in nothing but a nightgown. But it was no use; it was as if there was an invisible wall inside her mind, closing her off from her memories. Bella sighed sadly as a tear escaped her eye.

"What is wrong with me?" She closed her eyes and just felt the warmth of the mug in her hands. But inside, all she felt was loneliness. Physically and mentally, she was completely alone.

"No you're not." Said a posh-sounding voice with an English accent.

Bella's head whipped to her right and there, perched on the arm of her chair was a small, green alien-looking creature wearing a miniature pinstriped waistcoat and matching pants.