Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight - I don't even want to! I just like playing with the characters, so chill Stephanie Meyers, okay? I do, however, own some really awesome ice cream (yep, I've been busy again. You know. Writing this. Yeah.)

CHAPTER TWO

"Take me backwards
Turn me around
Cannot find my balance
On the ground
This world is too heavy
For a feather falling quickly"

~ Christina Perri

Rebeka's countenance is sublimely excited as the door of my sleeping quarters slide open. Eagerly, she holds her hand out to me. "I've found the location of the Leumian girl," she tells me, running her palm against her swollen stomach. "The Leumian's are so secretive; I'm sure she will be able to give you a speedy tutorial of the culture."

I step out of my quarters, fiddling with the pendant hanging around my neck. "Why are the Leumian's reluctant to share their history?" I wonder aloud as I follow Rebeka through the tight corridors of the shuttle.

Rebeka's steps slow as she allows me to catch up to her. "I'm sure the Leumian girl will be able to answer that better than I can. Perhaps they do not keep their history in a data base."

I ponder her words in silence as I follow her past the dining area and public waste-rooms. I had a feeling that the Leumian's were even more advanced than the human race.

No, they held their history as a secret for a reason.

"Ah, there she is!" Rebeka exclaims, smiling happily as she walks over to a small girl seated in the shuttle's disk-library.

I am startled by the beauty of the Leumian girl – while I am aware that the Leumian's are a humanoid species, it hadn't occurred to me that they would be inhumanely beautiful.

The resemblances between the Leumian girl's figure and mine are impressive; we are both small and thin, lacking voluptuous curves. I was sure I could pass for a Leumian if it was not for the soft lavender shade of her skin – so light that it is barely distinguishable. Her nose is smaller, slightly more flat while her eyes have an almond shape to them. The color of her eyes is a startling smoky amethyst, the pupil reminiscent of a cat's. Her hair is thick and smooth, sapphire tinted onyx and perfectly straight.

With her as my first impression of the Leumian race, I assume that the Leumian's are a relatively colorful group of the Seven.

Yet, even with her intimidating beauty and novelty, I am instantly comfortable in her presence – nearly as comfortable as I was in Yvette's.

"Rebeka," the girl greets with a disarming, bell-like voice. Even the Leumian voice is beautiful; my own voice, in relation, is much lower, more smooth and less musical. "How is your young today?"

Rebeka smiles softly, running her hand over the curve of her stomach again. "Kicking. I'm afraid I'll have bruises!" she jokes.

The jib seems to fly over the Leumian girl's head as she replies very seriously, though her trilling voice never seems to lose it's cheer. "If that does happen, I know of a very good remedy."

Rebeka smiles, letting out a soft chuckle as she turns to introduce me. "This is Bella, the daughter of Earth's Grand President. Bella, this is Alice."

Alice immediately shoots up, falling into a curtsy as she learns of my station, her eyes wide and excited. "I should have seen this," she offers in apology, though I do not know why she continues to bow to me or what she meant by seen. When she finally stops her curtsy, she smiles widely at me, flashing a row of perfectly white teeth and two very pointed incisors. "You appear positively Leumian."

I feel my brows raise as I had had a similar thought. "Thanks," I murmur, realizing that Alice does not have eyebrows; it does not make her face any less expressive. Did all Leumian lack that feature?

Rebeka's name is called from the hallway and she gently excuses herself to join another pregnant woman. "I will see you both at dinner."

Alice is not one for long silences as she grins, sitting down and lightly tugging on the hem of my dress. "This is wonderful," she tells me, fingering the soft fabric with barely contained wonder. "It is perfect to wear on Leumin."

I sit down, jumping on the chance to learn more about the mysterious planet and it's people. "Why is that?"

Alice seems pleased by my interest. "It is almost a Leumian tradition that females show their bare neck and shoulders through their dress." She shrugs her own shoulders, brushing against a series of connected crescents tattooing the top of her left shoulder. "To show off their birth markings."

"They are beautiful," I tell her honestly, thinking that my pale skin would certainly stand out in Leumin. I center my mind, brushing away the sudden concern I had for fitting in; I'd never fit in before, it shouldn't matter if I did now.

"Do you have birth markings?" Alice inquires, searching the skin of my shoulders for anything visible.

I frown, touching the small dark circle at the base of my neck – a beauty mark to match the random sprinklings on my arms and back. "Yes, but not as designed as yours. You are born with them?"

Alice nods. "They mark social class on Leumin. My mother and father were of the nobility, marked as such, and now so am. The royalty have many more markings, darker too."

My mind was absorbing the information, eagerly filing it all away to combine later. Alice seemed happy to share what she knew, which didn't align with the secrecy Leumin was shrouded in. Perhaps Alice knew more than she was letting on – knew why I was traveling to Leumin. That would certainly explain the bowing.

But how fast would that kind of information travel?

"So, you are nobility?"

Alice smiles brightly. "Yes, though I am a royal dresser. The Princess insisted on having an Earth fabric for her next gown. There are such beautiful materials available!"

I find myself genuinely smiling at Alice's enthusiasm – I couldn't even remember the last time I felt the urge to laugh. My laughter, however, dies in my throat as Alice stares deeply into my eyes.

"That color is very vibrant for humans," she observes, her eyes glazing over much like Yvette's did when she was experiencing a vision. Alice's personality was so random, so disarming – so intuitive. "You will look extraordinary in dark blue. I shall make you a dress," Alice declares in a trilling tone that bares no arguments.

I stay and listen to Alice chatter until dinner, where she eagerly tries "human food", eating twice as much as Rebeka who was eating for two.

As I retire to my sleeping quarters, I have no trouble falling into a deep, dreamless sleep.

The next day is much the same on the shuttle – the other passengers avoid me, Rebeka lends her jovial personality and Alice simultaneously creates a shimmering cobalt dress and answers the surface of my never-ending questions.

"So, Leumian's learned the languages of the Seven?"

Alice nods, pursing her lips. "Yes. We thought it would be easier than teaching our own language."

"Is it really that difficult?"

She looks up from her work, deep in thought. "You will easily be able to learn it, like most humans with the psychic gene. But other species lack the necessary vocal chords and mental capacity to store the intricacies. Even so, Leumian's have several more vocal chords than humans. When you speak the language, it will not be nearly as seamless. But you will get by. It will all come in time."

It struck me again how Alice seemed to slip into the future when she was talking, mentioning things she couldn't possibly know.

"You're a seer," I declare confidently.

"And you are telekinetic. But only with metal for now," she adds, locking eyes with me and letting secrets dance behind her smile.

I sit up straight, pressing my lips together and glancing around the empty disk-library. "Nobody knows about that."

"I do. I think it's wonderful. You will need it in the future."

I shake my head quickly, pushing my hair behind my ears, the short strands swinging back towards my face almost immediately. "You don't understand. It's dangerous if someone finds out about the telekinesis."

Alice continues to sew, her fingers nimble and quick, completing row after row, adding swishing layers in a translucent sapphire fabric over the dress. "It is a gift, just like the one that flickers in the center of your mind."

I stay silent for the remainder of the evening, using the sleep aid to stop the thoughts racing through my head. It seemed that for all the questions that had been answered – their language, the hierarchy of their social class, the markings, the way the orbits of their moons work – more and more questioned cropped up in their place. Alice was not forthcoming with any information about the royal family, insisting that I make my own judgments about them, which only served to increase my suspicions of my role in this arrangement.

Was there some issue that made the Leumian Prince undesired by the females of Leumin?

The third day on the shuttle begins with a series of perky knocks on my quarter's doors.

With my hair wild around my face and my eyes bleary from sleep, I slide my door open. Alice pushes by me, thrusting the garment she had spent the last day making into my arms. "Try this on so I can make adjustments. First impressions are very important to Leumian's."

Still metabolizing the effects of the sleep spray, I stumble into the washroom and pull the dress over my head. It fits like a glove, the hem ending between mid-thigh and my knees; the fabrics are lightweight, catching the light with subtle glimmers. The bodice of the dress is lightly boned with silky ties forming a bow at the center of the scooping neckline, thin scraps creating delicate netting over my shoulders in fine swooping straps, which leaves my entire back bare to the dip of my spine.

I step out of the washroom, following Alice's demands to spin in a circle and stay still while she pulls at various parts of the dress.

"It's perfect," I tell her after thanking her profusely. She waves me off, digging through my travel back until she finds a pair of slouching black ankle boots and silver-toned tights made of a net material similar to the straps of the dress.

"We will be landing in Leumin soon," Alice informs me, more solemn than I had ever seen her in the short time that I've known her. "You must remember to walk with confidence. The people will be watching your every move."

I finger the gemstone pendant hanging from my neck, nerves settling deep in my stomach as loose metal objects around the room begin to float in the air.

Loneliness was something I had grown used to since the death of my mother. Something I expected. Other children my age shied away from me, sensing something abnormal about me and avoiding it as completely as they could.

The isolation was something I grew to anticipate and appreciate. I faded into the background quite easily. Anonymity agreed with me, hardened me and built the mask I eagerly hid behind when I wasn't asking questions.

But now, being thrust into this situation with no feasible way out lest I be locked up my entire life in a mental institution, I wasn't sure how to process the complex emotions – the nerves mixed with excitement and curiosity and determination and the shattering loss of Yvette's companionship burrowed deep within. I'd never needed to dissect any of the more intense emotions beyond anger and contentment.

The Leumian people would be watching me – judging the human who was sent to marry their Prince with harsh eyes.

Instead of lingering on my insecurities, I push the emotions away, forcing a confident nod of my head. "Of course," I say. "I should bathe."

Alice grins, waving her hands eagerly as she dances out of my quarters.

I carefully place the dress on the bed alcove and step into the hot jets of water in the washroom, quickly rubbing my skin with lightly scented soap and washing my hair with foaming gel. I do not allow my mind to linger on the events that are about to transpire – instead, I focus on the flickering center of my brain and the zinging charge that races down my arms to my finger tips.

Standing in the heated and scented air jets, I focus on my breathing, on centering my mind as nerves are beginning to rise up from where I'd buried them.

I ruthlessly push them down.

Always hiding my emotions.

I'd gotten good at it.

Alice's dress slides smoothly against my skin, billowing in loose waves, the shimmering layers shifting with each of my movements, the netting straps capping over my shoulders, the skin of my back completely bare. I pull on the tights, slouching black boots and my mother's pendant before I gather the scant evidence of my presence from the room and stuff the items into my travel bag. Out of spite, I leave Father's gift under the alcove bed.

As I leave my quarters with my bag clutched in my hand, I run into Rebeka as she is stepping out of the Captain's quarters. "Oh, I was just going to come looking for you! Jared is landing the shuttle in Leumin's spaceport in a few minutes. Come on, I'll take you to the shuttles port entrance."

Alice waits near the port entrance that Rebeka leads me to, bounding excitedly on her feet, several wrapped parcels leaning against the wall beside her. Before Rebeka lets me pass closer to the port entrance, she gently squeezes my hand. "You stay strong. There will be troubles ahead of you but I have a feeling things will work themselves out."

I nod solemnly, reading the genuine meaning behind her words, and move to stand beside Alice, who grins at me and makes a high-pitched squealing sound in the back of her throat.

I hoped that wasn't a common occurrence.

The shuttle slides smoothly into the Leumian spaceport, the doors automatically sliding open to reveal the much more sleek space station that orbits around Leumin.

It seemed that, while Earth was fond of rigid blocks, Leumin is partial to curved structures. The walls of the space station are oval shaped, the floor being slightly more level than the curving ceiling. Immediately, I wondered if all Leumian structures were similar to this design or if it was only this space station.

A striking man with warm clay-toned skin greets us with a stiff nod. "Lady Alice, Lady Bella, please follow me." His voice is much deeper, his accent thick and harsh like the German people of Earth but somehow more like the Native American culture of our past.

He called me Lady.

That throws me off enough that I barely even notice when Alice rushes past me, following the man with her arms full of heavy-looking parcels. I hurry to catch up, careful to keep my chin level and my shoulders back.

No matter why I was here, I would not let any Leumian's see me as a weak human.

The man leads us through circular tunnels until we reach a loud garage-like room. The sound of torches and metal grinding on metal is familiar, comforting even. There are several small vehicles, white, silver, and shaped like bubbles with thick windows of glass in small circles along the front and rear of the machine.

"Lady Alice," the man begins, stopping in front of a shiny bubble vehicle. "I trust you know how to operate the space pods?"

Alice nods nonchalantly – or, as nonchalantly as she can – and steps closer to the pod, pressing a discreet button that flips the top of the pod open. She easily stuffs her parcels into the sides of the pod before she turns to me, a slightly apologetic look on her face. "It will be a tight squeeze, but we are both small. Be careful not to wrinkle your dress."

By this time, the man has already left after instructing one of the workers in the garage to operate a podium of blinking buttons; buttons that I assume open the doors to space.

Alice and I are closed in together, a steady stream of cool air flowing into the pod.

She presses her hand to the center of the blank dashboard, prompting a wide array of blinking lights to emerge; her fingers dance over the lights and soon we are experiencing a brief stint of zero gravity. "I love the weightlessness," she tells me happily.

I nod, speechless as the pod enters the Leumian atmosphere, the sides of our vehicle glowing red from friction. We are plummeting to the surface of the planet through thick white clouds. My stomach flips when the clouds break to reveal a blue ocean so clear that I can see reef-like structures near the bottom from miles above the ocean surface.

Leumin is like nothing I've ever seen.

Massive trees and bright green masses of land cover the planet, large pits of ocean breaking through the land and mountains. I see virtually no cities or building structures – either the Leumian's lived off the land or they were careful to preserve the integrity of their planet's appearance.

Using the lights and her tiny hands, Alice steers the pod to a particularly mountainous region.

"Home sweet home," she murmurs when the top half of the pod flips open, gusts of wind shocking me.

The temperature of the planet is so similar to Earth though the colors of everything is so much more visible, so much more vibrant. My eyes drift up to the sky and I struggle to hold in a gasp as I see how clear the sky is; the atmosphere is barely tinted blue, so light that I can easily make out the blinking stars during the day. One moon, a smooth and full white surface, dominates a third of the sky.

"Alice?"

I snap my head away from the mesmerizing sky as I register both the echo of iron in the natural rocks and pebbles around me and the lilting male voice that calls for Alice. My eyes land on a lanky male with almond colored skin, beryl-tinted blond hair and bright ocher eyes.

Alice drops her parcels and takes off in a quick dash to the male, throwing her arms around him and hugging him tightly. The moment, though innocent, is so intimate that I have to look away.

I take the time to pull my travel bag out of the pod, holding it in front of my body with both hands. The air feels so pure here, smells so fresh compared to the air on Earth where our days of smog still scarred the planet.

Perhaps the reason why the Leumian's were so secretive was to preserve the purity of their planet. I wouldn't blame them if that were the case.

"Bella!" Alice calls, motioning for me to come towards her. "Bella, this is my mate, Jasper. Jasper, you know of Bella."

Mate.

Was that what Father meant when he said the Leumian didn't believe in marriage? Because they had something better than marriage?

How would that work out for the Prince?

I shake my head and force a smile at Jasper who seems wary of my presence.

Could he, too, sense something off about me?

Before I can dwell anymore on it, he abruptly speaks, squinting his eyes at me. "She looks Leumian, Alice."

"I know," Alice agrees sagely. "But she is not. Apparently, humans have many body types."

I feel my face heat in embarrassment, flicks of energy surging through my brain in response. I struggle to quell the urge to manipulate the iron-studded rocks around me.

Embarrassment was not a common emotion for me.

I clear my throat and straighten my back, looking Jasper square in the eye for a moment before I let my own eyes stray to the nature around me. "Where are we?"

"Outside the palace."

I furrow my brows, seeing trees, trees and more trees. No wonder the planet was so dense in oxygen – it seemed that the Leumian's had no interest in harvesting wood for any reason. I couldn't see one stump.

"Inside the mountain," Jasper clarifies with an amused note in his voice. His accent is faint but no less fluent than Alice's. "I will lead you."

Jasper is able to carry the majority of Alice's parcels – which I figure to be spools of fabric – as we walk through a heavily guarded entrance in the side of the mountain. The guards seem to inhale the air as I walk past, exchanging curious looks.

I had expected the inside of the mountain to be cave-like like the mines of mountains on Earth.

In reality, the walls are made of smooth stone-like rock, curved in much the same way as the walls in the space station. White lights are built into the walls along the floor and the ceiling, the floor made of shining marble.

The palace is very much a palace.

We pass several well-dressed women and men, their eyes widening when they see me; hands move to cover mouths and whispers begin to echo every hallway and room we pass through.

Paranoia creeps up on me, tickling the back of my neck while I struggle to keep my face in a neutral mask. I had never let rumors and stares affect me before; I would not be starting that now.

While I may not be royalty, I had always been the daughter of a powerful, if cold, man. A man who held great influence over the entire planet.

I knew how to hold myself in public, even if most people thought of me as strange.

Silently, I follow Jasper and Alice into a large room – the only room I had seen so far that had windows, wide and tall views of a valley leading into an ocean. The room is one large circle, curving marbleized walls and soft lights illuminating the shadows the walls create. In the center of the circle along a wall farthest away from the entrance are four separate throne-like chairs.

The chairs are reminiscent of Earth thrones, ornate and large, though these are much simpler and made of sleek metal lines. The metal is unfamiliar to me, some cross between steel and iron – and very hard to move. The chairs themselves are also much larger than thrones from history disks – but, judging from Jasper's height, the size was necessary.

Other than the thrones and the three of us, the room is completely empty. Jasper and Alice remain in the center of the room, their heads close together as they speak quietly to each other.

Not wanting to interrupt their reunion, I wander over to the set of windows, completely mesmerized by the sheer life this planet displays.

Setting my sights on the nature outside the window, my mind wanders to a time where my mother was alive and teaching me about nature – to cherish it, to maintain it's purity.

Painful pangs echo through my chest but I push them away, knowing that I need to keep my mind focused on the present so I can sort through what is currently happening in my life.

Such drastic changes.

Less than five days ago, I was pushing my record with steel and now, I was on an alien planet, arranged to marry – mate – a Prince who probably didn't want me here any more than I had initially wanted to come.

But that had changed sometime on the shuttle. I'd come to push away the resentment that had been forming a pit in my stomach after I'd met Alice. Were my mother alive, she would have assured me that this was a blessing – and though I wasn't spiritual by any means, my mother was.

And I would have been inclined to believe her.

But she wasn't alive; she wasn't telling me what a blessing this may turn out to be.

And I was still nurturing the suspicion brewing inside of me.

"Bella," Alice whispers.

I jump, not realizing she had come up behind me. Turning to face her, I push my hair behind my ears and finger the gemstone hanging from my neck, breathing deeply to push calm into my mind. "Yes?"

"You were talking." Alice says, frowning as if in deep thought. "Oh, what do humans call it? It is lower than whispering and-"

"Muttering!" Jasper supplies, stepping up behind Alice, laying a large hand on her small shoulder.

"Yes! You were muttering, Bella. Are you alright?"

I sigh internally – they must think I'm not right in the head, talking to myself in front of a window. "Just a bit tired," I lie, feigning a small yawn.

Perhaps a few sprits of the sleep inducing spray would be beneficial. My mind and the confliction emotions that wanted to be processed would be better settled after a deep, dreamless sleep.

Alice smiles softly, flashing her teeth at me. "You can sleep after you meet the King," she tells me, reaching for my hand and tugging me towards the still empty thrones. "It is a tradition for nobility to visit the family after a trip. And for new comers to introduce themselves. The King should be here soon."

I nod; similar practices had been traditions in ancient cultures on Earth as well. The consequence for avoiding the tradition was a trial for treason and a swift death.

Would this King be any different?

As if called by my mind, a man walks briskly through the heavy doors of the room, trailed by four other people.

The man's fair caramel skin, tall burly build and fair hair gives nothing away – but the odd metal crown sitting atop his head does.

It seems the King has arrived.

A/N: i know. i know - really, i do. another update so soon? was i drinking mountain dew?

nope. i was just excited about the awesome feedback i got!

shout out to Murfdizzle, who was the first review on the first chapter exactly 29 minutes after it was published (yes, i counted. sue me!)

i love that everyone is so excited by this story! it makes me excited! which makes me write more! which makes you more excited! get where i'm going with this? it's a never ending cycle of excitement!

as always, be brutally honest. i can take it.

~cupcakeriot