Author's note:

I know I've been gone for so long and I am sorry about that. It's hard to squeeze in time for my stories right now. Given that, I will be putting my other story "The Decision to Live" on hold, indefinitely. I am still not in the proper mood to finish that story and I wouldn't want to ruin it with forcefully finished, emotion-lacking chapters. I am not ending it in any way and I AM going to finish it. But as of now, I want to focus on this story first and then when this ends, I will continue TDTL. I am so sorry but I see no other way.

On a slightly brighter note, here is chapter 9 of Destroying Typecasts. Read and review.:)

Chapter 9 Obstruction

BELLA SWAN

I sighed as I looked up at the night sky. The speckles of light that shone above me illuminated the snowy landscape. The stars glinted, blinked, twinkled in their positions, dancing the night away. The moon glowed in brightness as the wind let the trees sway, creating a quiet, soothing melody. It was beautiful. At least it should have been beautiful… if I was able to really see it, if my eyes weren't clouded— if my mind wasn't drifting off to the other end of the world.

I sighed, my fingers moving absently along the velvet snow— it wasn't too cold, maybe a few degrees lower than my own body temperature. I appreciated that— having something colder than me. It made me feel more normal. I usually enjoyed the sensation the coldness caused, but at this moment I couldn't fully cherish that.

Getting away from Forks was supposed to help me keep my sanity. It was supposed to help me focus, to clear my mind, to be sensible, to be Bella. But it just made me move farther away from that goal. I was moving farther and farther away from myself, becoming someone I didn't fully comprehend, thinking thoughts that weren't supposed to belong in my mind.

Looking into the stars, I did not see the shining crystals I used to see. Instead, my eyes drank in immaculate emeralds, sparkling in the darkness. The sea of snow beneath me was not comforting anymore with its coldness— it was depressing. I wanted something else, something I wasn't supposed to have. But all the more I told myself I couldn't have it, all the more I desired it. Why was some unknown power pulling me towards him, making it almost impossible to stay away?

Yes… it was almost impossible… not entirely impossible. Meaning if I had enough will power, I could do it.

But it was proving to be difficult. Just the smell of him was addicting (though it was painful, too), but the feel of his skin, the warmth coming off it… it was… unsurpassable and impossibly indescribable. Being so near him made my skin tingle and yearn for the contact— it almost hurt to not be close to him. But at the same time, I knew I couldn't stay by him both for his safety and my… what? Sanity? Peace of mind? Ridiculous… Both of those were successfully evading me… because I wasn't with him? But I could easily sacrifice those for his safety, right? For his happiness?

But was he happy right now? And why the hell did I care for his happiness? Why was I even concerned about him?

Again, those green eyes flashed before me. Wide with innocence, deep with confusion… seeking out answers that even I didn't know. It hindered me from appreciating the beauty of the stars, the dazzling moon, the frosty snow…

Why was a human… a human I've only known for such a short period of time, causing me so much trouble and confusion and frustration and anger and… aah! This should have been easy— staying away should have been entirely simple. But the days I spent away from Forks crept slowly, each second feeling like a minute, each minute an hour.

"Boo."

I slightly jumped in surprise. In surprise? A vampire can't be crept up on— especially not a mind- reading one. Was I that distracted? Had my mind flown so far that I didn't even acknowledge another vampire's scent? Maybe going to Denali wasn't the best idea.

"Tanya. I didn't see you coming."

The blond vampire beside me raised her eyebrows, her blond hair was almost silver in the moonlight. She was exquisite, indeed. But she was also a succubus… making it a little… difficult to find a mate.

"I must have set a world record. When has anyone snuck up on you?"

"This would be the first, I think." I smiled sheepishly.

"Hmm… boy problems that bad?" Her tone was teasing.

I didn't answer. Instead, I continued to look blankly at the stars. Her tinkling, bell-like laugh that resounded after quite a long silence did not cause me to avert my gaze.

No way. I'm right? You've got a man? Her thoughts echoed her amusement.

I thought about my answer in a way that it couldn't fish out any twisted thoughts. In some context, maybe.

"Then what are you doing here? Go back and knock your man out."

I sighed again. "It's not that simple." I frowned. "He's not mine… He can't be." I whispered the latter part.

"What do you mean? He can be yours. You can get anyone you want… want me to teach you?" Tanya said in a playful tone. Her lips stretched into a smirk.

"Succubus." I muttered under my breath.

"Proud to be one." She winked.

I sighed again. "I'm not like you Tanya."

She frowned at me. "Okay, seriously, what's wrong honey? I know you're serious by nature, but even this is too much for you." Tanya shook her head as she took in my appearance from head to toe. "I can't believe all this is caused by one guy."

"I told you, it's not that simple."

She smiled kindly at me and held my hand gingerly in hers. "Bella dear, everything in this world is simple. We're the ones who make things complicated."

I looked at her with tentative eyes. "How can you say that?"

She shrugged and giggled as she looked to the stars. "So, what's complicating things?"

"He's a human."

She frowned. "And how does that complicate things?"

Uh. Of course Tanya couldn't understand that. She was a succubus. Such a thing was easily over looked.

"He's not just any human, Tanya. His scent... it's the sweetest, most mouthwatering thing I've ever come across." And as if to prove a point, the memory of his scent brought forth excess venom into my mouth. "If I hadn't fed the day before I smelled him, I don't think I could have stopped myself from pouncing on him."

"Woah, but your self- control is as perfect as Carlisle's. He must be your singer." She turned back to face me. "I can't believe you're having some control issues Bella."

"Well… not exactly."

Her brow furrowed in confusion.

The events that led me to go away from Forks played over my head again. I sent these memories to her, each crystal clear, absolutely complete in detail.

"Oh… oh." She breathed out. "I see."

"Do you?"

She nodded her head slowly. "You almost bit him but you where nowhere near hungry, that right?" I nodded and she continued. "So, you left Forks because you want to find out why that is so."

I cast my gaze downward, embarrassed about my moment of weakness. She was only partially correct, though. That wasn't the real reason as to why I left. If I was still human, my cheeks would have been flush red right now.

"You don't need to worry about a thing. It's all so simple really." Tanya smiled kindly at me.

I looked at her questioningly. "How so?"

"When I was still a young vampire, I heard these… legends about ancient vampires. Now, you have to understand that I'm not entirely sure about this… but it is still possible, I think."

I motioned for her to go on. Any explanation anyone had to offer would be better than nothing at all.

"Well, this… condition is very rare nowadays… because vampires now hide themselves from humans. In the past, when the Volturi still weren't as powerful as they are now, vampires interacted with humans much more freely. Some treated other humans as comrades, friends. The more… strong-willed and to some extent foolish ones tested their restraint and went over the boundary of friendship. They sought out human mates."

"Succubi and Incubus." I whispered.

"Others were, yes. But these vampires I'm talking about are completely different. They wanted their mates not for sexual pleasure. It was something deeper than that."

I frowned.

"These vampires… they claim that as they first laid eyes on… what came to be as their mates… something… a force pulled them toward that human. It was like the human, his or her essence or soul… whatever you want to call it… was calling out them. And no matter how much they fought the urge to be near that human, afraid that they might loose control, it was impossible to do. Something was bringing them together, tying a bond between them."

She paused, her eyes filled with wonder as she looked at the lightening sky.

"And then what?" I asked, curious for more.

"Well, they claim that being away from the other was excruciatingly painful. It was like undergoing transformation again. But being together brought indescribable bliss. Every time they looked at each other it was with irrevocable, pure love. They didn't need words to communicate. Almost everything they wanted the other to know, they expressed with their touch, their eyes… They said they could feel what the other was feeling… sense if the other needed them." She shrugged her shoulders, indicating this really was no big deal to her.

For a while, we fell into a thoughtful silence. But I broke the stillness.

"That was… interesting, Tanya. But what does that have to do with simplifying things?"

"Oh, well… when the vampire and human have a mutual acceptance that they can't be without the other, the vampire marks the human as his or her property. They say that marking is not something that can be controlled or decided upon, it is purely on instinct and relies heavily on trust. If one falters midway, the urge to mark stops and will only resurface when both parties have truly given themselves to the other, accepted them for whatever they are. In this marking process, the human's soul is bounded to the vampire's— nothing can separate them. They belong to each other forever."

"And how is marking done?" I asked out of plain courtesy, my face blank of emotion. I already knew the answer, knew that Tanya thought this was all a rational explanation as to why I acted as I did. Ridiculous!

"Simple." She smiled at me as she stood up, brushing the snow from her pants. "You bite the human."