Big thanks to all of you who have been reviewing and keeping up with this fanfiction! :) Neko-shaped cookies for all of you! Enjoy this chapter!
2. THE MAGIC, THE MERMAID, AND THE SOUTHERN GENTLEMAN
"I can't believe he is letting you stay." Sylvester meowed, rubbing his nose against my wrist in an affectionate way and curling up beside me. "Tell me again what happened."
"I told you, I don't know." I muttered in frustration, crossing my legs. The hay of Edward's bed didn't feel as soft as it had before. "One minute that man-lady was about to throw me off the train, and then the next thing I know, I'm flipping back inside." It happened so fast that I didn't remember the details, although my sore back was telling me it involved some sort of uncomfortable maneuver.
"Perhaps the experimentation resulted in some sort of superpower?" The tomcat suggested. "How else would you describe it?"
The two of us were alone in the same bunking car as before, near the end of the train. After the showdown in the dining car, Aro suggested that Edward take me back to his room while he prepared a contract with the details of my new position.
He had told me that I was just the sort of new act they needed.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Sylvester continued to interrogate me. "You won't be able to step out of this once you sign that contract."
"Thank you, Captain Obvious." I rolled my eyes, resting my head on the lumpy pillow to the top of the bed. "I know what I don't want. I don't want to spend the rest of my life running from everyone because I'm supposed to be dead and human. If they find out what happened to my father... My fingerprints are on that pipe, Sylvester."
"Whose fingerprints? Alice's? Or Mary Alice's?" He purred. I gave him a confused look, so he continued. "Your DNA changed, remember? You transformed. The only remnants of anyone they are going to find in there are your father's and the fingerprints of a girl who was never technically born."
His words relieved me, but thinking about my father was still upsetting.
"Even if we had gotten to Texas, what would we do? Live in an old abandoned house for the rest of our lives, hiding from everyone?" The words sounded meaner than I thought they'd be. "There's people here, Sylvester. There are people who are different, like me."
"You can't trust them." He meowed coldly, curling his tail around his nose and ending the conversation. I watched him attempt to sleep, wondering if he would have rather stayed with his friends on the farm.
Minutes later, the door slid open and Edward stepped inside. I was relieved to see that it was him and not Caius or the other henchman. Both of them intimidated me.
"You gave Caius quite the cut on his arm." The thin boy smiled, walking over and sitting down on the edge of my bed. "He's not happy with you, but if Aro says he wants you to stay, then Caius will behave. Are you alright?"
I blinked several times and realized he was talking about my stunt off the side of the train.
"A little sore, but I'm fine." I assured him, wrapping my tail around my waist. "Did Aro say anything?"
Edward shook his head.
"No. He told me to look after you until you're in better condition. How long have you been traveling, anyway?" He dug into his pocket and pulled out a large baked bun, handing it to me. I immediately took a bite. Despite being slightly hard, it was delicious.
"I few days, I guess." I had lost track of time in the wilderness. "We started walking from Biloxi and ended up here."
"You're very brave." Edward dipped his head respectfully and sat down beside me. "All the way from Biloxi, and having to leave your home behind. Living in fear of your own father... I don't blame you for leaving."
My eyes widened and I swallowed hard, dropping the rest of my lunch on my lap.
"H-how do you know that?" I stuttered. The auburn-haired boy turned his lips into a smile.
"You caught me. I'm a telepath." He told me, tapping his forehead to emphasize. "A mind reader."
"You... You read minds?" I gasped, immediately trying to clear my head of every embarrassing thought. Edward chuckled.
"That's right."
"Wait, if you knew that, then why did you ask me how I became like this?" I demanded, flicking my ears curiously.
"Emmett wanted to know. He was too afraid to ask." Edward leaned back against the wall of the room. The bed of hay was big enough for both of us to sit on.
"So... Do you read people's fortunes then?" I asked.
"No, not at all. I can't see the future. I can only see in someone's mind. It's good for magic tricks."
"Ahh." That made sense. "So you play with people's heads because you can see inside their heads. That's smart." I giggled. Sylvester's ear twitched against my hand.
"My father was Edward the Great. He knew how to pull rabbits out of hats and cut women in half, but he never had the sort of powers that I have. I imagine he was proud of me, picking up on his tricks so easily..." Edward smiled smugly, as if he was looking back on a fond memory.
"That's great." I said encouragingly, sensing that he felt some sort of loss there.
"I'm a better magician than my old man ever was, and it isn't just because I can read minds. I may have learned some of my tricks from him, but who I am today is because of me alone."
I smiled at him, unsure of what to say. From what I had seen, Edward was the nicest boy on this train and he hardly looked older than myself. I hoped he would be considered my first friend on this crazy train.
"Perhaps I can show you my act sometime." He laughed, and it was clear that the serious moment had ended. "For now, you should finish eating that and continue to rest." He glanced down at my half-eaten bread and urged for me to finish it.
"Edward?" I wondered out loud, popping the last bit of bread onto my tongue.
"Hmm?"
"How many others are there?" I pondered. Edward smiled his signature grin and stood up, dusting hay from himself.
"In the world? Countless. Everyone is special, some of us just have more prominent looks or capabilities. Here? There's a nice handful. We're a family. That's the first thing you need to learn if you choose to stay here. Family means forever." Edward headed back to the doorway. "Sleep well, Alice."
The thin boy disappeared behind the door and the room was silent once more.
I awoke several hours later feeling quite refreshed and left Sylvester resting soundly in the bed of hay. After I got up, I made my way across the room towards the sliding door. My bladder was just about to burst and I hoped there would be somewhere to use the bathroom on the train.
I slid open the door and looked around. There was no one in the car, or for the next three cars after that. I kept my eyes out for a restroom, but didn't see one. After sneaking through several doors, including the one which led into the dining car from earlier, I was beginning to give up hope.
"Alice! You're awake!"
I was startled by the sudden booming voice behind me and jumped several inches into the air. Emmett laughed at my surprise and put his massive hand on my shoulder.
"What're you doing all the way down here?" he asked me.
"Looking for a bathroom..." I muttered, feeling my bladder shake uncomfortably. Going long periods of time without using the restroom was not something I thought about when I started this journey.
"You're in luck." Emmett guided me towards the next car, opening the door and leading me into a room that reminded me of a restaurant bathroom, with stalls and a number of sinks. I quickly thanked him and darted into one of the stalls. To my great discomfort, Emmett stayed.
"So Edward said you were gonna be stickin' around." He called. I sat down on the toilet and tried to talk over the sound of relieving my bladder.
"Aro said he liked me." I said, reaching for the toilet paper. "But that was after he tried to throw me off the train."
"Oh don't worry, the whole train heard about your little stunt off the side of the dining car. So you're a little acrobat? That's cute." Emmett laughed as I stood and fixed my shirt over my pants. The hoodie I was wearing since day one was dirty and ripped by now, and my backpack of clothes was still in the bunking car.
"I didn't know I could do that." I sighed, coming out of the stall and walking past him to wash my hands. "It just happened. Do you always linger in the bathroom when someone is trying to go?"
"Hey, family is family." Emmett responded with a shrug of his broad shoulders and a loud laugh that might have been a chuckle but with his bass sounded more like thunder. "It looks like you're part of the family now, squirt."
"Don't call me that." I wiped my hands on my jacket. I turned to face him. "Who else is here? I've only really seen you and Edward... And those creeps that tried to throw me off the train."
"Aha! That's Caius and Alec for you. They're Aro's sidemen. There's nothing special about them, and they're grumpy as all hell. They're just here to keep everyone in line, if that's what you want to call it... Come on, I'll introduce you to the others."
Before I could speak, Emmett was pulling my wrist through yet another door.
"A-are you sure? Maybe we should wait..." I began uncertainly.
"Relax. Remember where you are, Alice. This is a circus train full of freaks. Nobody is going to judge you."
We walked into another bunking room. I immediately noticed two large guys leaning casually against the wall in beds of hay quite similar to the one in Edward and Emmett's room. They both turned to look at me in synchronization. One of them was slightly larger with broad muscles, and the other was skinnier with a baby-like face. Both of them were tan-skinned with dark hair and dark eyes.
"You must be Alice." said the smaller of the two, jumping to his feet. I was feeling especially small compared to all these tall boys. "Welcome to the circus! My name's Seth." He put his hand out to shake mine, which I awkwardly did. "That's Jacob."
I squinted my eyes at the two of them, trying to find anything about them that stood out. There was nothing as obvious as my ears or Emmett's massive size.
"Meet the Black brothers." Emmett grinned. "Try not to look so excited, Jake."
The larger of the tan boys gave me a quick glare, as if it was my fault that Emmett had spoken out.
"You really brought a cat in here?" He sounded irritated.
"Hey, she's part of the family now. Get used to it." Emmett started to guide me through the door to the next room. "I'm introducing her to the others." He explained.
"See you later, Alice!" Seth called, waving excitedly from where he was. I smiled at him and quickly hurried through the door after Emmett, letting it close behind us.
"I thought you said no one was going to judge me." I frowned.
"Don't pay any attention to Jake. He's always in a bad mood. Seth is great though. A real trooper."
We walked through another empty car.
"Why are all the rooms so spread out?" I asked.
"We like our privacy." Emmett shrugged. "Rosalie's room is in the next car." He stopped walking suddenly, causing me to bump into him. "Rosalie is..."
"Someone else in a bad mood?" I assumed, twitching the tip of my tail. I was relieved to hear that there was at least another girl on this train.
"Oh no, not at all. Rosalie is great." Emmett smiled. "You'll love her. It's just hard to look away. You'll see what I mean." He opened the next door and revealed a room very unlike the rest of the train I had seen so far.
It was as if I had walked into an aquarium. There was a blue glow to the room that came from a large tank, reaching from ceiling to floor. Other than a narrow walkway from one door to the next, the entire train car was designed to be a fish tank.
Floating idly in the fish tank was a beautiful blonde woman. Her hair was long and bellowed in the water like individual fans of gold. There were several strings of pearls around her neck and wrists, and other than a bikini top, she was naked. Above her waist she appeared to be a goddess, but her hips blended into a long silvery fish tail. Rosalie was a mermaid.
"She's beautiful…" I had never seen someone so gorgeous in my life. Rosalie couldn't be compared to magazine or runway models. She had the sort of beauty that needed no touchups or photoshop. I was in awe staring at her flawless perfection. Even with the thin wall of glass between us, we fixed eyes on each other and couldn't seem to turn away. She smiled at me with teeth like pearls and eyes brighter than the water she breathed. After what seemed like ages, Rosalie turned away, swimming to the far corner of the tank and resting in a bed of coral. Her long shimmering tail sprawled out in front of her, reminding me that what I saw was not completely human. Her beauty, I realized, was her irresistible charm. Emmett had warned me of such.
"She's really wonderful." He sighed from beside me. "But as you can see, she's limited. Imagine living your life out of a fish tank…"
"She can't leave the water?" I asked timidly, touching the glass with my fingertips.
"She can, but not for very long. That's why she prefers to stay like this. The whole tank separates from the train. You know, for shows and stuff..." He motioned towards the tank and then gave a quick wave to the blonde. She waved back and swam back to us.
"Hello." Rosalie spoke as if the water was air and a only a gentle stream of bubbles from her lips reminded them otherwise.
"Hi." I answered through the glass, pulling my hands away and stuffing them back into my hoodie pockets.
"How you holding up, Rose?" Emmett leaned against the side of the tank and I wondered if his weight alone would be enough to crack the glass.
"The water is a little cold, but I'm great." Rosalie answered, her voice surprisingly clear through the glass. "It's nice to meet you, Alice."
"Y-you too." I stuttered, unsure of how she knew my name already.
Emmett spoke a few more hushed words with Rosalie before we moved on into the next room.
"She was nice." I noted.
"She's lovely." He corrected me. "We were in Miami a few months ago doing a big headliner tour. Aro found her off the coast of Florida with a fishing hook stuck in her tail. He invited her to come travel with us." Emmett took me into another room, ending his story abruptly.
"Emmett, I told you to knock before you came barging in here." A cool voice scolded from across the room before we had even entered. I felt the urge to hide my face, as if it had been my choice to go into the room.
"How did you know it was me?" Emmett chortled.
"Because everyone else has learned to knock." The voice answered. I looked up at the owner of the soothing monotone and fixed my topaz eyes on the most beautiful man I had ever seen.
His hair fell in blonde waves and his eyes were even more red than Aro's. His skin, of what I could see, was porcelain white. He stared back at me with ruby eyes and then returned his gaze to Emmett. I tried to look away but his beauty had me paralyzed from my head to the tip of my tail.
"Alice, this is Jasper Whitlock." I vaguely heard Emmett say behind the parade of cartoon hearts that must have been soaring from my eyes.
"Ah, so this is the new girl I've heard rumor about." The more Jasper spoke, the more I realized he had a strong southern accent. I couldn't put my finger on it, but it was pleasant, like music to my furry ears. "It's a pleasure to meet you ma'am."
I blinked.
Ma'am?
"Does she talk?" Jasper's voice continued, bringing me from my thoughts.
"O-oh, sorry, thank you, I mean, hello." I smiled, tripping over my own words. Emmett was laughing, but I could only stare at the curve of Jasper's pale lips.
"You've done it again, haven't you?" He accused.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Jasper responded with the most devious smirk I had ever seen.
"You can't seduce every girl on this train, you know that? It's not fair to the rest of us."
"Occupational hazard."
Jasper got up from his position on the ground and approached us. The closer he got, the faster my heart began to pound.
"What do you do?" He asked me curiously, reaching out to touch my ear. I nearly fainted.
"I... I don't really do anything." I told him quietly.
"That's not what I heard about the little fiasco on the train earlier." The blonde man pulled his hand back, dropping it slowly to his side. I was memorized by the graceful movement of his arm.
"I couldn't do that again if I tried." I shrugged, almost forgetting that Emmett was still in the room with us. It felt as if Jasper and I were the only two people alive.
"Well you better start practicing if you plan on staying with us." Jasper smirked. "Aro doesn't let just anyone on the Train de Nightmare."
"Yeah, but he's getting desperate." Emmett interrupted. "You saw the ticket sales over the past three months. Our fanbase has completely dwindled."
For the first time, I looked away from Jasper and stared at Emmett again.
"You're going out of business?" I asked, shocked.
"We've had the same act for a year and a half." Emmett shrugged. "People get tired of seeing the same thing."
"I can see where Aro is going with the idea." Jasper smiled coolly. "Bringing in someone like Alice- young, cute, interesting... It's wise of him, really. You might be the new star in the big top."
"Er, who was the last big star?" I asked curiously, wondering how someone like me would be able to become the main attraction so easily. Emmett and Jasper looked at each other warily and before I could say anything, the two of them had changed the subject.
"Our next major performance is in Baton Rouge." Jasper explained, capturing my attention with his voice once again. "We'll probably stop on the border of Mississippi before then and you'll have a chance to rehearse. Where is she staying?" His question was aimed at Emmett.
"Right now in Edward's bed." He chuckled. "She'll probably bunk with Bella. We haven't gotten that far yet."
"Well my bed is unused." The blonde stated. "Why don't you stay in here, Alice?"
I looked at him with wide eyes and curled my tail around my thigh.
He wants me to stay in his room? With him?
Alone?
"Good idea. Let's just lump every girl with two legs in your room and let you have a dinner party." Emmett howled with laughter and even Jasper chuckled, but I didn't get why it was so funny.
"I couldn't take your bed." I whispered quietly, shuffling my feet.
"Didn't you hear me? I said it was unused. I don't need to sleep, Alice. The bed is only there for comfort on this rickety train. Since you're so new, it would make sense for you to sleep here, in your own room." Jasper stared at me with his ruby eyes and for the first time since I saw him, I wondered what about him was so unique. With skin so pale, and eyes so red, I couldn't help but to question what made him different.
A vampire?
I shook the thought from my head, smiling half-heartedly when I heard Emmett and Jasper continue to joke about things I didn't understand. Vampires didn't exist. They're as fake as the fiction novels I read when I was twelve. There was no way that Jasper Whitlock, this sweet southern gentleman, was a bloodthirsty creature that lurked throughout the night. Because there was no such thing.
Right?
There you have it! Alice has finally met the charming Jasper Whitlock... but this is only the beginning. Have any other ideas for familiar faces that Alice may meet on the train? Let me know in the reviews! As always, you guys are my inspiration! Unfortunately I don't have a preview for the next chapter yet... because it hasn't been written! But don't worry, it'll be up soon! Love you guys! -fuchsia light