Disclaimer: i do not own Twilight nor will i ever. this time, i do own double fudge cupcakes with vanilla icing, dark chocolate drizzle and chocolate sprinkles.

chapter eleven

"A kiss is a lovely trick designed by nature to stop speech when words become superfluous."

Ingrid Bergman

Edward

I wasn't one to be nervous - it wasn't my typical style. I didn't do the whole pacing my anxiousness out thing and yet here I was, pacing, pinching my nose and pulling on my hair. Bella made me nervous. A nervous wreck, if I'm being honest.

It's not that she's unpredictable - because she's not - it's that I can't get a good read on anything about her; her body language, her expressions, not even the words she speaks. She doesn't lie but I don't think she's ever completely honest with anyone.

I want her to be honest with me. Some part of my craves her trust and affection while another part of me craves her pale flesh in the most carnal of ways and yet another part of me longs to protect her from everything Olympus represents. I have trouble sorting out which part of myself to follow - the romantic fool, the lusting man or the protective beast.

Yesterday the beast won.

My mind shies away from reliving that horrible scene - seeing Bella being hit and then brutally beaten against Arena fighting regulations and being held back by Emmett. In my effort to save Isabella - once free from the gargantuan dumbass - I may have broken Eric's arm and a few ribs but I couldn't find it in myself to have one ounce of remorse. He deserved everything I did to him and more. Even now, I want to seek him out and finish the job but I hold myself back because I can almost feel Isabella coming to me.

The binding invisible rope that ties me to her hums quietly to life, instantly relaxing my tense body; I stop pacing and breathe out a cleansing sigh, ions crackling around me as I release my unconscious hold on them.

I've known that Isabella needed to see this place since I'd kissed her. My mother, Hera, had had the beachside cabin cultivated specifically for her children to have a place that Zeus was unable to find. Hera knew of his pressurized ambitions on his children and did everything she could to shield us from it, even creating a hide-away that literally hid our essence from our father. I hoped with everything in me that Isabella would be able to find solace there too.

I'd asked her to meet me around eight o'clock, just when the sun was setting, so I could lead her away without anyone the wiser. Jasper had some idea of where I was going, but as I had never shown him the cabin, he wasn't sure of it's location - I did, however, leave a way to contact me if there was any kind of emergency.

Standing under the large oak tree, I watch as Isabella steps out of the girl's dormitory dressed in all black; motorcycle boots, tight grey jeans, a worn leather jacket similar to the one I'd first seen her in and an odd pair of gloves. She walks up to me nearly nervously, the bond between us growing tighter - I have to suppress the urge to kiss her, my mind racing to imagine the difference between the cool air and her warmth.

"Where are we going?" she asks immediately, her light grey eyes roaming my face. I wonder if she has noticed that most Gods tend to demand rather than ask; only out of necessity did Gods ever ask a question.

I grin at her, unable to stop it, and shake my head, instead holding out my hand for her to take, my body almost begging for the contact even though our skin will not be touching. And then I wonder if the last time I touched her skin was a fluke - could this docile creature have the ability to kill me?

The difference I feel being around her is so instant, so odd; I feel calmer, more honest, happier in general. Isabella takes my hand warily and I lead her through the woods behind me, tugging gently on her hand when she hesitates in her steps and helping guide her over valleys of rocks and under low branches.

Though the cabin is only a mile or two away from the Academy - hidden well on a low peninsula that leads a gulf lake into the ocean - I learn much about Isabella during our hand-held journey. And the more I learn, the more I am horrified by her history and awed at her mental strength.

I feel such anger towards the family she was put with at birth - and why was that a necessary step then. Anger at their indifference, at the hate they oozed towards her, at their non-support during her childhood and the inevitable mental health issues that were summoned by her loneliness in dealing with her gift.

But Isabella moves onto her love of art, especially that with charcoal, and her favorite books and music and movies and I am distracted, trying to dissect every sentence that falls from her plump lips.

She likes contemporary science fiction but has a soft spot for romances featuring damsels in distress. She secretly enjoys comical movies but tends to lean towards psychological thrillers more often than not. She loves the loud instruments but also the soft, intelligent lyrics.

Isabella was, in short, a being of contradictions - all of which filtered away from her fairly contradictory and ironic gift.

"Are we there yet?" she sighs, quick to cut me off before I can ask yet another question.

I let out a short laugh and nod, assisting her over a small fallen tree. "Less than a minuet," I promise, squeezing her lean forearm.

The cabin, I know, is a startling site after being in the forest - describing it as a cabin is even stretching the truth. It stands at two stories and is made of smooth slate stone, pane-less windows and rare carbonized wood accents, including the coded front and back doors. Surrounding the cabin is a maze of overgrown flowery gardens, large boulders and an enchanting spell cast by Rhea and Hera that is meant to throw off unwanted guests from coming near the property. I'm sure the long-standing secrecy of the cabin is because of the spell's side-effect of memory loss.

I lead Bella through the garden maze, monitoring her reaction from the corner of my eye. Her face is youthful in her awe, her mouth open slightly and her grey eyes wide.

"My mother's," I tell her as we walk up the short steps of the porch. I lay my hand on the carbonized wood where I know a fingerprint scanner is hidden underneath the thin paneling. With a beep, a small key pad reveals itself by the door knob; I type in my personalized code and wait for the loud clicking indicating the door is unlocked.

Bella watches with keen eyes, glancing up at me with a raised brow when I open the door. "Heavy security for a cabin."

"Hera takes precautions for her children," I supply, shrugging out of my heavy leather jacket. I hang it, along with Bella's, on the built-in coat rack beside the door. "Thirsty?"

Bella nods, looking around at the jewel toned walls and the carefully coordinated décor of the living room and kitchen. I fill a glass of water for each of us and take her on a quick tour of the cabin; the rooms, the basement that was made for emergencies, the bathrooms. Soon, we are sitting side by side on the couch; I have my left arm resting along the back and Bella is curled up on the opposite side, knees under chin and her eyes locked on mine.

"Why did you bring me here?"

I frown, taking in her question. There were, of course, many places I could have taken her in Olympus - to the Death District or Poseidon's shore or the old cinema in the Demi-God District - but what I truly wanted was to take her somewhere she would be able to relax. In hindsight, I probably should have run my plans past Emmett or Jasper for approval as they had both managed to secure Gods in the same caliber of Isabella. Rank wise, Bella, Alice and I were on the same level, Rosalie coming next and finally Jasper and his brother, Esme and Emmett as the low-level heirs.

But what did rank have to do with-

Was I wooing her? Is that I what I was attempting to do? How had I not realized until this moment that I was genuinely trying to win her over? It was a shock to my system to finally process that I wasn't the same anger-driven aloof Edward from a few months ago.

I didn't mind the change.

Knowing I hadn't answered her, I turn my gaze back and smile effortlessly, putting my personal change on a shelf to analyze later. "You should have a safe place too," I tell her, completely somber once the words are out of my mouth. "It seems like Hades is very seriously considering crowning you as his heir, Bella - and some people aren't going to like it." This, too, was true - while Hades didn't have many children, it wasn't a secret that his offspring had very low-level gifts. Isabella was clearly an abnormally and that instantly made her a target for her siblings.

A crease forms between her brows. "What people?"

It dawns on me that Bella might not be aware of many things regarding her family and I instantly feel bad for saying something I probably wasn't supposed to say. But I can't lie to her. "Your brothers and sisters."

Bella's mouth drops open; she begins to stutter. "W-what? Y-you ha-have to be ki-"

"I'm not," I assure her, taking my arm off the back of the couch and putting my elbows onto my knees, my head dropping into my hands. I groan. "You didn't know."

"I don't know a lot of things," Bella whispers forlornly. I'm surprised to feel her tiny hand on my shoulder and my head turns so I can look at her. Her grey eyes are sincere when she speaks again. "I'm glad you're being honest with me. Do you-" Bella pauses, biting her lip and huffing through her nose. "Do you know how many siblings I have?"

"No," I sigh. "But I do know for sure of one."

"Will you tell me?"

"I don't know much," I say, reluctant to speak of her family. Hades and his were always a mystery to the other Gods - he kept to himself for the most part and was fiercely protective over what he considered his.

Bella sits back against the arm of the couch, curling her legs beneath her and hugging a pillow to her chest. "That's fine."

"Her name is Victoria," I begin. "As far as I know, she was the girl born before you, maybe thirty or so years ago. Hades never named her heir, for whatever reason. I see her sometimes with James but other than that, I don't know anything else."

Bella nods thoughtfully, her nose scrunching up adorably. "What does she look like?"

My mind filters through all the daughters and sons I've seen throughout my life and I shake my head, shrugging. "I guess she looks like you," I tell Bella uncertainly.

We fell asleep.

That much is apparent when I open my eyes to dawn breaking under the horizon. I'm aware of so many things instantly as I draw in my first conscious breath of the day; warmth covering my front, my hand grasping something soft but firm and my nose inhaling the sweet smell of pomegranate and some flower.

My body is curled around Bella, my arm holding her tightly to me with my hand clutching her hip, my nose buried in her messy mahogany hair. She is still asleep, her body instinctively pressing closer to mine.

What a way to wake up, I think to myself, completely content to stay where I am. I have no thoughts to move until a breathy sigh falls from Bella's lips.

I tense. "Edward," she breaths, pressing closer to me, her fingers twitching but still encased by the odd gloves; thick knitted grey wool from her forearm to her top knuckles, the fingers a gauzy material of the same color. They remind me of leg warmers.

My hand falls away from her hip and I sit up slowly. Bella frowns in her sleep, her back rolling to cover where I once lay; a subtle pout forms on her lips.

The feelings rushing through me are staggering - a flood of warmth, happiness, contentment, lust and protectiveness all cresting over each other. If I had any doubts about my feelings before, they were snuffed out in this moment.

As I watch her dream, her eyes flicking behind closed lids, I wonder when I will have the chance to approach Hades about this. As the son of a major God, it would be considered a great respect to ask permission to - what? marry, date, love - his daughter before actually doing so.

But I don't want to wait for that. I want to hold her to me, fuse us together until we are one being. My obsessive thoughts should scare me, but they don't - they invigorate me.

I want to kiss her again.

What was it that I thought the moment I first saw her? I want her?

I want her.

I want her - only her. Forever, if she'll have me. The perks of being immortal have never been so astoundingly amazing until now. I can have her forever.

After Bella wakes up, shyly looking at me from under her lashes, we head over to the Academy. The walk seems much shorter than before, the air still chilly even though it's almost March.

I stand awkwardly beside her in front of the girl's dormitory, watching her as she watches me. Is now when I tell her I love her?

"Thank you," she says, eyes suddenly on her toes. I can barely make out a touch of pink on her cheeks and her blatant femininity makes me feel all the more masculine; I am able to protect her because I am taller, stronger, faster and my build has never been more pride-worthy.

"It was my pleasure," I say, willing her mentally to just look at me. The bond between us is insistent and I tire of fighting it.

Black fringed grey eyes meet mine, liquid in their warmth. I lean down, bending at the waist and knees until I am nearly eye level with her face, merely inches apart. This close, her skin is stunningly creamy porcelain, her lips flush raspberry red and her eyes carrying flakes of reflective silver. Bella's mouth drops open slightly, her eyes fluttering.

The first touch of lips is gentle and chaste and warm. The second is more, a slight nipping of her top lip, a hesitant tug of my bottom.

"Thank you," I tell her.

"It was my pleasure."

A/N: slightly nervous about this chapter as Bella was conscious for this particular kiss. guesses as to how she'll react? she might surprise you. on another note, it seems like these kids have a knack for waking up together - seems like a habit is forming, no?

a round of applause, please, for my awesome pre-reader/beta IvySnow who makes time for me even when she doesn't have it!

be brutally honest. i can take it.

~cupcakeriot