A/N:

Okay, so this is my favorite chapter so far. You are either going to love it or hate it!

Thank you always to my beta, ms_ambrosia, who is getting lots of interest in her story, Blossom – have you checked it out yet?

Disclaimer: Stephanie Meyer owns everything, including my envy. I own my little twist on the story. It just gets twistier and twistier.

Chapter 17

I paced my room; the waiting was killing me. Bella was coming.

Not only could I sense her getting closer, but images kept hitting me, filling all the corners of my consciousness. I saw the backs of houses at the fringe of my neighborhood streaming through my mind - Mr. Carlson's dilapidated fence with tall weeds strangling the weathered boards, an abandoned set of moss covered lawn furniture, and a frightened calico cat – its body arched and hair on edge. I felt the moist air cling to my skin – Bella's skin – as a hedge of wild calla lilies came into sharp focus. They were a sea of white soldiers, standing tall and proud, their caterpillar stamens yellow like the yolk of an egg. A hand reached out and severed one from the bunch. It was breathtaking in its perfection; the white hand grasping it like an offering of peace, a talisman to purge the evil that she feared lurked inside her.

And then she was here. I looked out my bedroom window to see her on my lawn, the flower in her hand.

Edward, I am here.

Now that she had finally arrived, I couldn't move. She was a vision of loveliness in the ethereal glow of the twilight sky. She painted an image of pure innocence in her white diaphanous dress that seemed plucked from another era and was uniquely fitting. I had never seen her dressed this way. It was as if the dark and dank cloud that followed her had been lifted and I could see her clearly for the first time. She radiated light. Her innate and pure goodness was never more evident than at this moment. She was the epitome of beauty, a goddess to rival Aphrodite, and she was mine.

Edward, are you going to let me in, or should I go?

She noticeably shifted on her feet, evidence of her willingness to turn and flee. I leaned out the window, suddenly anxious and spoke to her, knowing that it wasn't necessary for me to raise my voice in order for her to hear me.

"No, Bella. Please don't go. I'm coming down now."

I scrambled clumsily down the staircase and clambered towards the front door.

"What are you doing?" Alice asked from the living room couch.

"Be right back," I mumbled as I threw myself through the front door.

Bella was still standing on the lawn, frozen as a statue, as though still trying to decide whether or not she was going to come in. I wriggled my toes in the wet, dew-covered grass.

"I promise you, it will be fine. Please, Bella, come," I held my hand out to her imploringly.

She hesitated only for a moment before she visibly relaxed, dropping her shoulders and placing her hand in mine. I reveled in her touch. It amazed me that every time our bodies connected I felt it deep in my core, as though only fully alive when we were united. Her fingers jolted me with energy; I literally surged with Bella-laced adrenaline.

She may have been nervous, but as we ascended the front staircase, she glided gracefully forward.

"Hey Bella!" Emmett boomed as we stepped into the entryway. Emmett had a naturally effusive nature and as I anticipated, he leaned in to hug Bella. Before his muscled arms could connect with her hard body she stepped to the side so fast that his arm flopped awkwardly through the air, sending his hulking form reeling forward.

Just at that moment, Rose emerged from the kitchen to see Emmett stumbling.

"You big oaf, you're gonna scare Bella away before she even comes in," she said harshly while stepping forward to offer a steadying arm to Emmett. The sweet smile and loving embrace she gave him belied the coldness of her words. Emmett wiped his hand down his face sheepishly, but Rosalie didn't notice.

She was captivated by Bella, studying her face curiously as if entranced. She reached her hand out tentatively, a vacant expression on her face. Bella stiffened infinitesimally, but I seemed to be the only one aware of her discomfort. Rosalie's outstretched hand trembled as though her body instinctually knew it should recoil. I cleared my throat, trying to break the quiet tension, to awaken her from her daze.

Rosalie's eyes widened as she spoke, her voice raspy and forced, and lacking its usual tinge of conceit, "Um, I'll go find a vase for that," she offered, her eyes flicking nervously from mine to Bella's. Though she was more perceptive than Emmett, I could see in her eyes that her innate apprehension of Bella was only slightly overpowered by the lure of Bella's vampire charms.

"Oh," Bella said, carefully handing over the proud calla lily. Rose stiffly grasped the flower in her hand, but didn't move. She continued to stare at Bella, transfixed.

I was always so thoroughly intoxicated by Bella's presence that I'd barely noticed how most people reacted to her. I was fairly certain that until she met me, she would have done anything to avoid any situation like this where she'd be so closely scrutinized. It amazed me that most of the other kids at school couldn't fully see her like I could. It was as though she existed in a blinding mist that shrouded everything that was extraordinary about her.

Rosalie's reaction to Bella worried me. Somehow she had seen through the mist. My mind sought a diversion, as did Bella's, but it wasn't necessary. Emmett ran his large hands down Rosalie's arms soothingly, pushing his chest against her back and pecking her lightly on the cheek. She leaned into his touch, turning her head toward him, and closed her eyes. Quicker than I would have thought possible, Emmett's ministrations thawed her, and her posture relaxed.

She hung limply against him, the flower loosely clutched in her hand.

"Hey babe, weren't you gonna put that in some water?" Emmett asked, his dimples flashing. Rosalie nodded, and as she retreated to the kitchen, we waited in the entryway. She returned moments later with the flower in an elegant vase. Bella's face lit up with genuine pleasure. It surprised me that such an otherworldly creature could be so enchanted by a simple flower.

Beautiful, she thought, looking intently at Rosalie, and I wondered if she meant the flower or the girl. I couldn't imagine that it was possible she was intimidated by Rosalie, but I sensed her anxiety spike.

I'm worried Edward, she thought, her gaze falling to the floor, her hand squeezing mine with increasing force.

Nuzzling her neck, I leaned in to her ear and whispered, "Bella - my hand, please don't crush my bones."

She softened her grasp, only the tension around her eyes revealing her worry and slight panic as they scrutinized my face.

Please Edward, you'll tell me if I hurt you, won't you? I'm just so nervous.

"Don't worry," I chuckled, "I'm not permanently damaged."

We followed Emmett and Rose into the living room where Alice and Jasper were curled up snugly on the couch as though they couldn't tolerate for there to be any space between them. When Alice saw Bella she jumped up and I could tell that she, like Emmett, intended to hug Bella. For once in my life I wished my family wasn't so openly affectionate. I acted instinctually and shoved my body in front of Alice. I dropped Bella's hand and picked up Alice's by her shoulders, and spun her around in a circle like I used to when we were kids.

"Edward, put me down!" she yelled as she pummeled my back with her tiny fists, her weak, girly punches such a contrast to the power in Bella's every touch.

My parents filtered into the room, no doubt wondering why Alice was yelling, while Jasper laughed at our childish antics. With a flourish, I carefully dropped Alice into a heap on the floor. She squirmed up to a sitting position, huffing indignantly at the audience of smiling, curious faces.

"Alice, what do you have planned for tonight?" I threw the question at her as I offered her a hand and yanked her back on her feet.

"Edward, grrr, what did you do that for?" she mock hit me, feigning anger but smiling, drinking in the attention. Alice was always forgiving and easy to appease. Growing up with two brothers she had pretty thick skin and had learned how to deal with our often over-zealous physical expression of our feelings.

Luckily, I had achieved the desired effect – Alice forgot that she was on the path to accost Bella with a boisterous show of affection. I took advantage of the distraction, entwining my fingers with Bella's again and tugging her forward to meet my parents. Their immediate impression of her was clear, their open expressions blatantly easy to read. I squeezed her hand encouragingly and tried not to cringe in pain when she squeezed back more firmly. My father was gawking at Bella as though she were a Heath Bar on legs. My mother, on the other hand, looked as though Bella was some sort of criminal; her eyes were filled with apprehension, her fingers wringing the dishtowel in her hands with vehement worry.

Edward… was Bella's silent plea.

"Mom, Dad, this is Bella." We took a step forward together.

Without warning, I was assaulted by the image of a woman who I instantly recognized as Bella's mother. Like mine, she held a dishrag in her hands in this errant memory, using it to dry a dinner plate, sunlight streaming in through the kitchen window behind her. I tried to shake the image from my mind and return to the present.

"Bella, it's so nice to meet you," my dad said as he reached out for her hand. "Please call me Carlisle." Rather than take his hand Bella raised her arm, tucking it close to her body and fluttered her elegant fingers in a small wave. My father adjusted quickly, dropping his hand, probably attributing her guarded greeting to nervousness and timidity. If only he knew her true reason for avoiding his touch.

My mother cleared her throat and I worried at the tension in her posture as she addressed Bella. "And you must call me Esme," she said formally. "Welcome to our house. We've heard much about you," she added with her jaw uncharacteristically clenched. I couldn't help but notice the lack of warmth in her words and how it differed from her easy acceptance of Jasper and Rose when they first entered our house.

I felt my mother's cold rejection intensely, filling me with a profound need to comfort Bella and shower some tenderness her direction. I lifted her hand to my lips, not caring about our audience, and before linking her fingers with mine, I kissed it.

I heard my mother gasp in shock and I darted my eyes in her direction. She had never seen me show so much attention or open affection to a girl before and I knew that her reaction was partially due to the novelty of it. But I sensed that it was more than surprise; her protectiveness of me made her naturally wary and suspicious. And as I looked on her tortured expression, I couldn't fault her for her worries. Her fear was not misplaced. I had brought a dangerous predator in the house, and though I loved and trusted Bella, if things went wrong she could destroy us all.

*

The rest of the evening was surprisingly unremarkable. Bella and I worked as a team to hide her lack of eating. No one, except perhaps my mother, noticed her silently shifting the uneaten food around her plate. I purposely took very small helpings of food so that I could reach over and grab a few bites from her plate, leaning in and pretending to share, while disguising my true purpose.

Emmett dominated the dinner discussion, mostly talking about his friend from the football team, Tyler Crowley, who was coming over later in the night to play video games with him. Bella was largely quiet during dinner, only speaking when absolutely necessary, politely answering everyone's questions as well as possible in her sweet voice. Unfortunately, Alice was absolutely intrigued with Bella and kept digging for details about her life.

I actually learned a few things about her through Alice's relentless prodding. I was ashamed that there were so many things that we hadn't talked about, that we still didn't know about each other. But everything I learned about her only made me like her more. We shared many interests – in music, books, and art. I didn't even know that she was interested in Classical music until Alice grilled her about her tastes, and it made me even more anxious to play my composition for her.

When Emmett asked her if she played any sports, Bella's gaze fell to her hands and she chose her words carefully.

"I used to be kind of clumsy and didn't really like to do anything athletic, but now I kind of like to run," she said.

Unwittingly, she was in my mind again and I was overtaken by a scene of dense forest foliage. The giant redwoods were ominous sentinels in the shadowy darkness, appearing like an impenetrable wall around me. I felt an inexplicable need to lurch forward and in one brisk movement, the trees began to part. It felt like flight, my bones hollowing, my feet barely needing to touch the earth to achieve the dizzying rush of motion. The leaves and pine needles were a soft caress against my hard skin as my soul escaped my body, and the forest was no longer surrounding me but had become an unrecognizable, mind-bending sensory blur.

I inhaled deeply as I emerged out of the other side of the vision. My mother's brow was furrowed as she looked on me sharply. I was suddenly hot, perspiration beading and running down my sideburns.

"Edward, are you okay?" my mother said as she jumped from her seat. She lurched forward but stopped herself midstride as Bella placed her palm on my cheek, her icy hand soothing me, offering immediate relief. I just caught Esme's wounded expression before she grabbed the empty plate in front of Emmett and stalked off to the kitchen.

Rosalie stood and began stacking plates, following after my mother. I raised my eyes to see that all the faces at the table were turned to me, their expressions ranging from fascination and wonder from Alice to my Father's hard look of concern and consternation. I smirked and stood, grasping Bella's hand in mine. Slowly chairs were pushed back, arms were stretched, plates were cleared, and we all found ourselves making our way into the living room where Alice had at some point earlier pulled out a selection of various board games.

When I saw the stack I immediately turned on her. "Alice really, do we have to play a board game? Let's do something else," I nearly whined.

"No way, we are playing a board game! We haven't played in way too long. Jasper and Rose haven't even had a chance to participate in game night. And Bella wants to play, don't you?" she asked in her most persuasive voice.

Bella had followed me into the room, trepidation clear in her wide, amber eyes. She was imagining someone's hand touching hers and then random faces gaping at her in fear and outrage. I felt a burning in my throat and a stinging acidic sensation in my mouth. Was this venom I felt pooling under my tongue? I swallowed involuntarily, but my mouth was dry. I searched Bella's face but she had again transformed her features into a calm passivity. She had fought a brief internal battle and had conquered the malevolent force that tugged at her instincts. I smiled at her, somewhat overcome with my feelings of pride and relief.

"I would love to play a game, Alice," Bella replied, a genuine smile pulling up the corners of her ruby red lips. "Can we play Scrabble?" she asked. And then just for me, she added, I used to play it with my dad.

"Yay! Of course we can!" Alice jumped up, hustling over to the large coffee table and beginning to set up the game.

"This is perfect! Since there are eight of us, we'll play teams. Should we mix things up a little, or just play as couples?"

I answered quickly before anyone else voiced their opinion. "Let's stay as couples," I said, tucking Bella's hand in mine and pulling us to the floor by the far end of the table.

"Okay," Alice agreed happily.

My mother and Rosalie appeared in the room a few minutes later as Alice was finishing up passing out all the Scrabble tiles. Jasper quickly explained the game plan to them, while grabbing a dining room chair for my mother to sit on so that she would be more comfortable. Rosalie wiggled into her space next to Emmett on the couch and we all began to look through our first set of tiles.

We were all silent while we configured the best possible words out of the random letters we had been given. Alice broke the calm, grabbing the bag of tiles and standing. She held the bag open in front of Bella.

"Go ahead Bella, choose one tile. The person who gets the closest to the beginning of the alphabet gets to go first," she said. And then to everyone, "I've got to warn you guys, Mom always wins Scrabble. It's hardly even fair. I think Edward won once – but wasn't Mom sick that day, Edward?" she asked facetiously with a wicked grin.

"Yeah, but her fever was only like one hundred and two degrees, not too high," I answered, casting a glance in my Mom's direction to see her smiling impishly while she shifted the little wooden squares around on the holder in front of her and my father. My father sat back in his chair, his hand rubbing wide circles on my mother's back.

I tried to focus my mind on the game, but Bella was humming a familiar tune in her head and I was distracted with trying to figure out what it was.

My gaze fell to the tiles in our holder, Bella having arranged them in groups, creating a pattern with them that made sense to her. Rosalie and Emmett were arguing from their spot on the couch, both of them with their fingers on the tiles, their hands clashing as they waged a subtle war of dominance. Alice had finally made her way around the table and sat down, pulling a tile out of the bag as she plopped down on the carpet next to me.

"Okay, we got 'I,' what'd you get, Dad?" she said, slipping her tile back in the felt bag.

"B," he answered, raising his eyebrows as he did when dealt a winning poker hand.

"We got 'I' too," Bella said.

"We got a 'P,'" Rosalie said, thrusting out her bottom lip, eliciting a chuckle from almost everyone. My mother and Bella continued to concentrate their attention on the tiles as though their lives depended on it.

When mom finally raised her eyes, Alice said to her, "Well it's up to you guys to start us off and then we'll go clockwise, okay?"

"Hmm," she responded as she gathered the tiles and arranged them on the center star. We all looked at her word – "Topaz."

"Great word, Mom!" Alice said with enthusiasm.

We all moved our attention to Rosalie and Emmett who were now more frantic in their battle of wills. It was several minutes of fruitless bantering before Rosalie huffed dejectedly, her mouth set in a straight line, and acquiesced to Emmett. He sat up straighter, leaning over the board, a smile of victory on his face and placed the word, "Pop," on the board, overlapping "Topaz."

"There's our brilliant two-point word," Rosalie spat sarcastically, playfully nudging Emmett's broad bicep.

"Hey baby, every little point counts," he retorted merrily.

It was our turn and I hadn't even glanced at the tiles, freely allowing Bella to take control. I watched her fingers hover over our letters, her mind obviously working in overdrive to figure out our strategy. She rotated the letters a few times and I just barely made out some of the words she was considering. Her humming continued persistently and I wondered if she was shielding me from her thoughts. This worried me. Why would she do that? A few words slipped into my mind and they were good ones – high scoring ones. Her fingers finally palmed the tiles and placed them carefully on the board, framing the tiles that were already there. Our word was "Azure," using the high scoring "Z" from "Topaz."

The rest of the game was like a fluid intellectual dance between Bella and my mother. No one else could come close to their expertise in the game. Even when we only had all vowels or some weird combination of consonants, Bella made high-scoring words out of them. My Mother was equally in command of the game, and it seemed as though she was actually enjoying facing a challenge in her opponent. I caught my mom staring at Bella a few times throughout the game and I detected a change in her opinion of her; there was an intimation of respect in her look that hadn't been there earlier.

After a while of sitting back as an observer, I noticed a pattern emerging. Bella kept forming exceptional words in our tray but reworked them at the last minute to be less extraordinary. She kept our score consistently under my parents' total. Her melodious humming, which I eventually worked out was the Flower Duet by Delibes, was slowly deteriorating throughout the night and bits of her strategy began to surface for my scrutiny. It didn't take long to realize that she was throwing the game, allowing my parents to win.

When we were finally out of tiles, my parents were named the winners. My mother glowed in her victory and Bella looked happier and more at ease than she had been all night. I could barely contain my feelings for her. I was in awe of her selflessness. It was clear to me that Bella could have easily won the game. She probably would have even won as a human, but with her vampire abilities – her quick mind and supernaturally sharp intellect - she was unbeatable. But with a kindness that was deeply rooted within her, she had allowed my mother to win simply to make her happy. My Bella was no monster.

*

After the Scrabble game was put away and everyone had scattered to different areas of the house, I drew Bella to my piano. I sat down on the bench, pulling her down to sit next to me. I lifted my arm and caressed her back, gently running my fingers through the strands of her long hair. Her head tilted to the side, her eyes closing and her lips slightly parting. I ran my fingers up her neck, and under her hair, eliciting a moan so seductive, I almost forgot myself and why I had lured her to the piano.

"Bella," I whispered and her eyes fluttered open. "Bella, can I play for you?"

"Yes, Edward, yes," she whispered back, running her hand down my forearm to my fingers that rested on the keys. I hit the first note and her hands slid back into her lap.

As my fingers began to recall the song, they lightly and slowly danced over the keys. The melody consumed my mind and as my eyes closed I fell into a hypnotic trance, allowing my body to become a vessel for the music. The notes flooded out of me, surging through the air, filling the room and encircling us. My senses were focused but I was intensely aware of Bella's body next to mine as she fueled my passion. She was my muse, my inspiration; I couldn't play, I couldn't create, I couldn't breathe without her now.

I played the last few notes, hesitantly opening my eyes, searching for Bella's reaction. She was unmoving, her head was still tilted, her eyes were closed but her mind was alive and active. My melody was haunting her thoughts, which were embellished with soft colors and profound emotions that I couldn't even comprehend.

Slowly she opened her eyes and looked directly at me. "Edward…that was…that was incredible, beautiful…so beautiful! There aren't words to describe how your music made me feel."

"Bella, but I do know…I know how you feel. I can hear it. I can see it. I can feel it," I whispered mischievously, smirking, palming her cheek lovingly.

She ignored my playful tone, regarding me with the same level of awe as I almost always felt for her. "Did you write that?" she asked incredulously.

"For you Bella," I breathed into her neck.

When she lifted her gaze to mine her eyes were full of lust and desire. My heart was bursting with my feelings for her and I leaned in to kiss her. My lips just grazed hers as Emmett stomped into the room, announcing that his friend Tyler had just called and that he was almost to our house.

"Em, you have the worst timing ever!" I grumbled angrily, my jaw clenched.

"It's okay, Edward," Bella said, trying to calm me, and placing her hand on my arm. "I should go."

"No, stay," I pleaded. She shook her head. I can visit you later…in your room.

"Well, I'll walk you out," I said loudly, so everyone would know she was leaving.

"I'm coming out too," Emmett declared as he headed for the front door, "Tyler just texted, he's just coming down the road," he added as he hurtled down the front steps.

We followed him through the door to see him scanning the driveway. "Bella, where's your car?" he asked curiously. I turned to Bella to see a brief glimmer of panic, her catlike eyes widening, before she returned to a façade of complete composure.

"Um, she got dropped off and I'm, um, taking her home," I blurted, thinking quickly, not knowing if Bella was going to be okay with my plan.

"Oh," Emmett replied, nodding, accepting my explanation.

Bella and I walked out to the driveway and the wind picked up sending a chill in our direction. I noticed for the first time tonight that the temperature had dropped dramatically and it had gotten much colder outside. I heard the dew crunch under my feet as the moisture in the grass had hardened to ice. I walked to the passenger side of my car and opened the door for Bella. I was walking around the back of the car when a loud squealing pierced the silence of the night.

I looked up to see a white van barreling much too quickly toward our driveway. It had hit a patch of ice, its bald tires screeching as the van spun sideways out of control. My mouth dropped open in shock and my body stiffened as though paralyzed. I had the odd sensation of existing outside of time like I was watching an action scene in a movie unfold in front of me. But as soon as I realized that the van was headed in my direction, my heart jump-started to life. My primary instinct was to protect Bella, but I knew that I couldn't react in time to save myself or her. Fear and a crushing wave of regret seized me as I turned to look at her one last time.

Two things happened simultaneously. I looked to where I expected Bella to be standing to see that she wasn't there at the exact same time that I heard the splintering explosion of the van crashing. I slammed my eyes shut and flinched against the impact. With a surge of adrenaline coursing through my veins, I dropped to my knees on the hard concrete and flung myself backward into the driver's side door of my car. A second passed, my heart thundered in my chest, and my back throbbed dully. I was afraid to move, wondering if I how badly I was hurt and worrying that I might be numb to the full intensity of the pain I was bound to feel.

My labored breaths reverberated in the deafening silence. I shifted my weight carefully, turning to face the white van, folded in half like an envelope, a thoroughly unrecognizable mountain of white metal. There was a little pocket of space around me. I was unharmed, virtually untouched. I rubbed my hand over the wide bruise on my back, realizing with awe that it was my sole injury. Besides the body-shaped buckle in the door of my car, there wasn't a scratch on it. I was alive. I survived. But how?

I stood up in place, trapped by the wreckage. Where was Bella? Emmett? Tyler? I stretched my neck to survey the damage when all of a sudden, the metal in front of me shifted and groaned, like a great robotic beast waking from slumber. The wall of white parted, pale dainty hands slipping through a crevice in the side of the van. Thin fingers wrapped around the twisted metal, pushing the solid frame apart as though wrenching open a set of heavy double doors. Bella emerged from the twisted, broken vehicle completely unscathed, her white dress lightly soiled.

I lunged at her, overcome with relief, a flow of jumbled thoughts and questions pouring from my mouth, "Bella, oh god, oh Bella, what happened? Are you okay? Why were you over here, when you were over there? Oh god, did you save me? Jeez, Bella, you could have died!" I pulled her tightly to my chest, wrapping my arm around her, holding her head in my hand. I never wanted to let her go. Never again.

I only held her for a brief moment – a too brief moment – when I heard scuffling behind us and I pulled away from her quickly.

"Jesus Fucking Christ," bellowed Emmett, his face full of rage and disbelief. "What the fuck, Bella? How the…what the…how did that shit happen? Did she push the fucking van away with her bare hands? How the fuck did she stop the van from hitting you? What the fuck?!?"

Bella's body whipped around so fast that I didn't even notice that she was out of my arms until I saw her on the other side of my car. She glanced at me, and even though she lingered only for a second, I saw the hurt and confusion in her expression. Her head snapped to the door of my house where my family started to spill out into the darkness to see what had happened. Emmett was behind me and by his loud gasp I knew he was watching as Bella fled the scene, running at her inhumanly fast pace, a white blur against the black backdrop of night.

End Notes:

What did you think about the surprise in this chapter? I'm anxious to know what you think!!! Please leave a review and let me know!!

I don't often leave recommendations, but I'm so engrossed in Psyche001's Set in Stone. It's totally unique, dark and so so passionate.