Escaping Trains

Chapter 3

I OWN NOTHING!!!!

Bella sighed, content as she snuggled into Edward's cold side. It was now early December. She was wearing both her coat, Edward's coat, and the blanket Edward had gotten for her. He'd offered her an actual pillow, but she preferred him to anything else. He had still gotten her one for when he went hunting, but more often then not when he returned he found Bella using her bag as a pillow and the pillow as something to snuggle with.

Still, they were perfectly content at the moment despite the cold. They were in a small clearing seated beside the fire Edward had made for her. Even with having to sleep in all of her clothing, Bella wouldn't exchange her life for anyone else's. Home, as far as she was concerned, was wherever Edward happened to be.

"May we join you by your fire?" A voice, bell-like and happy, ringed out in the cold night air.

Bella was instantly behind Edward, who was crouched in front of her protectively. Bella lay frozen. Edward wouldn't have reacted like that with humans. She remembered when he had snatched her up and run with her because he had caught the scents of others of his kind.

A short girl with slightly spiky black hair and a tall male with curly blonde hair stepped into the light of the fire. They both had gold eyes, even though the male looked slightly uncomfortable and stared at Bella as if she were something to eat. Which, she thought, she technically was.

"I'm Alice," the girl said with a smile, "this is my mate Jasper. We've been looking for you Edward, and Bella."

"How do you know our names?" Edward demanded, not taking his eyes off of Jasper.

"I can see the future," Alice said, completely undisturbed by Edward's demeanor as she sat down. "We're going to be sibling and friends," she explained.

Jasper sighed, "If you don't want us here, we'll leave." He gazed at his mate and Edward sighed.

"You may stay," he said, "is that alright Bella?"

"That's fine," Bella agreed, yawning. "My boyfriend can read minds, what's a sister who can see the future?"

Edward laughed. "Only you, Bella, would be perfectly at ease about this." He looked at Jasper, knowing his power from Alice's mind as well as his own when he thought about keeping them all calm.

He easily slipped back into his spot, letting Bella curl up to him. "Sleep now love, I'm not leaving tonight."

"M'kay," Bella, just like if the two newcomers weren't there, dropped off into sleep.

"I'm so glad we found you two Edward," Alice broke the silence, speaking softly so that she wouldn't wake up Bella.

"Why were you searching for us?" Edward asked, acting exactly how Alice had seen him do so. His entire life revolved around the human woman curled up next to him, he'd protect her with everything he had.

So Alice told him her story, or rather what she knew of it. Jasper added in his own, explaining the scars Edward had seen on his face. He knew Edward was wary of him, with Bella so nearby, but Jasper stayed as far from her as possible. He hardly left Alice's side.

Things were tense between the three vampires. Jasper didn't want to attack Bella and he was under no illusions about his control. Edward was wary of Jasper because there was still a slightly crimson tint to his eyes. Alice was trying to mediate between them, trying to convince the both of them that Jasper wasn't going to hurt Bella.

By the time Bella woke up the next morning, they had reached an uneasy truce. Bella herself felt uneasy as all three vampires watched her eat. Edward she was used to, especially once he'd explained why he stared.

She stood up, stumbling a bit as she did so. Edward glanced at her.

"Human moment?" At Bella's blush, he chuckled, pointing her in the direction of the small creek they had come across the night before.

"Do you mind if I go with you Bella?" Alice stood.

Edward blinked, surprised at the height difference between the two girls. Alice was tiny, pixie-like. She couldn't even be five foot! She had told him last night that she wasn't sure how old she'd been when she was turned. She had remembered her name and that was it, really. She'd had a vision of Jasper and one of himself and Carlisle. Edward remembered that day, Carlisle had been teaching him the reason behind hunting animals verses humans. He eyed the tiny vampire, she was probably around seventeen or eighteen. Children didn't carry themselves like adults, and Alice carried herself as an adult.

Bella smiled, "No, I don't mind. Knowing me, I'd fall in."

"Bella, please don't joke about that," Edward asked her, "Are you asking for trouble?"

"I don't have to ask for it," Bella retorted, sticking her tongue out at him. "It finds me on its own without prompting."

Edward stared at her. "Did you just stick your tongue out at me?"

Alice giggled, fully enjoying their interactions. Bella didn't answer him, just turned and began walking towards the creek. Alice appeared beside her, catching her before she could fall. Edward stared after them, still trying to wrap his mind around the fact that Bella had stuck her tongue out at him.

"Is she always like that?" Jasper asked softly, his southern drawl apparent.

"Yes," Edward replied. "Is Alice always that cheerful?"

"Usually," Jasper replied. "How can you stand being so close to her without hurting her?" He couldn't understand it. He knew he'd never be able to do such a thing.

Edward looked at him. "Because being apart from her is something I can't handle. If Alice left, would you be able to handle it?"

"No," Jasper didn't hesitate. Life wasn't worth anything with out his Alice. Her way of hunting was painless and there was no regret and depression for him. Animals didn't taste as good as humans, but it was something he knew he'd have to get used to. So far he'd only slipped up once. Alice had comforted him, reassuring him that it would take time for him to adjust.

They were immortal vampires. They had time aplenty.

They stared at each other, not talking. When the girls returned, they each went to the man that was theirs.

"Are we leaving now?" Bella asked Edward, folding up the blanket and handing it to him. She carried the bag and Edward carried her.

"Yes," Edward told her. "Train or running?"

"There's going to be a snowstorm in a few hours," Alice spoke up. "If we take a train it'll be warmer for Bella."

"Yes, but slower for all of you," Bella didn't want to hold them back anymore then she had to because she was human.

"If we run, we'll run right into the storm." Alice opened her eyes.

"Train it is then," Edward placed a finger against Bella's lips to stop her protest. She glowered at him before nodding. He was doing what he thought was best. She had to admit, she'd prefer a train to traveling in a snowstorm.

"Alice," Jasper looked at his mate. How was he going to deal with a train car full of humans?

Alice grinned. "The only human will be Bella," she told him, "you'll be fine Jasper."

Bella hugged herself closer to Edward. She didn't want to cause anyone pain and it appeared that her mere presence was causing pain for Jasper. Edward had already told her that the pain was worth it for him, because he loved her.

Edward hugged her back before lifting her onto his back. He took off, knowing that Alice and Jasper had fallen in behind him. He grinned when he felt Bella's grin. She had her head tucked into his shoulder, protecting her face from the icy wind, but she was enjoying the speed. She'd gotten used to it by now and had learned to enjoy it.

That was the start of their lives with Alice and Jasper. It turned out to help Jasper to be around Bella, since she smelled so appetizing. Most of the other humans seemed to pale in comparison, meaning that his control was strengthened as he resisted the allure of Bella's blood. Alice was responsible for keeping them all out of trouble. She also revealed her talent for predicting poker hands. They didn't need much, since Bella was the only one who needed food, but it was nice to be able to have clean clothing that wasn't worn down to threads and even to be inside when they were 'resting' instead of outside.

Bella and Alice were in charge of the train jumping, finding the trains that they would be jumping on. That was what they were doing when they came across another vampire. Alice saw her first, in a vision. Bella saw her first in actuality.

"Bella, what is it?" Alice looked at her friend. She had never seen Bella scared, not even when all three of them left to hunt.

"I know her Alice," Bella whispered, barely loud enough for her to hear. She couldn't take her eyes off of the red-haired woman standing near the doorway of the train station.

"Come on Bella," Alice was whispering as well, "we need to get back to the boys."

Bella didn't resist. Her clumsiness even seemed to recede as she put distance between her and the woman. Alice didn't ask any questions. She had her own misgivings about the new vampire in town and she didn't need a vision to give them to her.

Once Edward was in sight, Bella leapt at him. He caught her, holding her to him when he felt her trembling.

"What is it love?" He glanced at Alice who was being held by Jasper. Jasper was trying to calm them both down and keep the both of them calm.

"I, Alice and I saw one of them!" Bella tried to control her tears as she buried her face into Edward's chest.

"Saw one of who? Bella, who scared you?" Edward knew Bella didn't scare easily, despite first impressions. She hadn't batted an eye when Alice and Jasper joined them. She wasn't terrified of much of anything. Not even the thought of having to dance scared her this badly.

"One of the people who killed my parents!" Bella finally got out. They weren't in private, but she knew Edward would understand.

Edward did and he growled. "Did she see you?"

"I don't know," Bella replied, calming down a bit.

"I don't think she did," Alice spoke softly, just loud enough for Bella to hear as well. "If she did, I don't think she recognized Bella. I can't see anything changing in the few days."

"Let's go back to the hotel," Jasper suggested, "I think we've had enough fun for tonight."

Edward nodded in agreement. "Did you girls find where you wanted to go?"

"I just want to leave," Bella said softly, being carried by Edward. She wanted to be as far away from her parents' killers as possible.

"There's a train headed back towards Chicago tomorrow morning," Alice told Jasper and Edward. "We can take that one with no one finding us."

"We'll do that then," Edward agreed. Nothing was going to harm his Bella. Unfortunately, he was slowly coming to the conclusion that the only way to actually assure that was to turn her. He didn't want to do that. He didn't want to damn his angel to a soulless existence. He didn't want her to have to go through that pain.

Jasper and Alice dropped back, guarding Bella. Already she had become a sister to them. One of the reasons Jasper cared was because she didn't judge him on his past actions, nor was she scared of him. Not even after he and Alice had had to run away so that he wouldn't attack her when she had accidentally cut herself. Alice loved her mostly because Bella didn't think she was insane for having visions. Bella liked her no matter what. It simply didn't matter to Bella what they were.

Edward grinned a bit, hearing the thoughts of his two friends. Esme was going to adore Bella and Alice both. Carlisle and Jasper would get along just fine. Rosalie would probably be bitchy until Alice and Bella worked their charm on her and worked their way into her heart. Emmet would be overjoyed in having a new sparing partner. That and he'd have two little sisters to protect.

They quietly made their way into the room in the small motel they had rented. Edward lay on the bed with Bella. All of them were tense. This was something Bella had feared since she had had run away the day her parents died. Even knowing that Edward had wanted to drain upon finding her didn't scare her, made her concerned for his well being around her but didn't scare. The vampires that had killed her parents terrified her.

Bella felt the bed shift as Alice crawled onto it. "Don't worry Bella, nothing is going to happen to you. We won't allow it." Looking at Edward, the tiny she-vampire wrapped her arms around Bella.

Jasper watched his small family. He was concentrating on easing Bella's fear. More often then not he agreed with Edward that she was like a brave kitten. Bella's attempts at growling amused all of them. Now, as he fought to calm her fears, she reminded him of a kitten again. Only this time she was terrified, to terrified to fight. He nearly growled himself at the thought of the vampires that caused this reaction in the girl. It also made it all the more amazing that she felt safe and protected around them instead of being like she was now.

The morning couldn't come soon enough. The second Alice told them it was time to go, Edward already had the finally asleep Bella in his arms and their bag in his back. Jasper took the bag that belonged to him and Alice, picking her up and copying how Edward held Bella. Alice pretended to be asleep, matching her breathing pattern to Bella's.

"Ya'll leavin' now?" The man at the desk asked as they appeared in the lobby.

"Yes," Edward replied, placing the room key on the desk in front of the man before resettling Bella. "Our train is leaving shortly."

The man waved them away, taking the key and returning its to its place. When he turned around, they were gone. Shrugging, he turned back to his newspaper. At least they had paid.

They jumped the train just as the sky was beginning to lighten. Just as Alice had said, no one saw them. No one else was in the boxcar either. There was hardly any room to move, it was filled with crates. Jasper and Alice pushed several aside just enough to make room for them to sit down. They could have stood indefinitely without trouble, but Bella wouldn't have been able to. However, stubborn human that she was, she would've stood with them. This way they didn't have to argue about it.

They didn't stay on the train for very long, at least in vampire terms. They all needed to hunt, none of them wanting to risk losing a fight with Bella so close. Most of their kind would have gotten annoyed, but Bella had a habit of knowing when they needed to hunt and would almost force them to go.

Bella was awake when they jumped off the moving train car. The train was moving full speed, but she hardly felt it from Edward's arms. They only stopped long enough for Bella to take the pack from Edward and climb onto his back. She was hungry, but wasn't going to risk being sick while Edward was running. Nor did she want him to go slowly to try and avoid her being sick. He'd had to walk and then carrying her would have been pointless.

Alice located a secluded clearing, one that showed no signs of ever being touched by humans. It was January now and still bitingly cold. They had added a small tent to their supplies, much to Bella's protests.

Bella, once all three vampires had annoyingly assured she had everything they thought she might need, sent all three of them off to hunt. She glared at Edward, insisting that she could take care of herself. Besides, Alice hadn't seen anything happening to her.

"You know I'm only concerned about you Bella," Edward sighed in defeat.

"I know Edward," Bella caressed his face with her gloved hand, "but I'm a big girl. I can take care of myself. I promise not to leave the clearing. I'll be right here when you all get back." She worried about Edward as well, she couldn't even begin to imagine what she would do without him. She hadn't worked up the courage to ask him to change her, mostly because she didn't want to fight about it. She'd already dealt with his 'monster issues' several times and knew that asking him to change her would only bring those things back up once again.

"She'll be fine Edward," Alice fought the grin that threatened to spread across her face. "I'll keep an eye on her."

"See?" Bella coaxed him, "I'll be perfectly fine. Now go hunt. Catch a mountain lion or two."

Edward chuckled, shaking his head. Only he would manage to find the one human that wasn't bothered by what he was along with being immune to his power. He kissed her softly.

"I'll be back as soon as I can be Love." He promised her.

"Love you," Bella returned his kiss. "Now go on, Jasper and Alice have already left you behind."

Edward looked up, now realizing that their friends had indeed left him. With one last look at Bella, he left the clearing.

Bella watched as he disappeared. She then turned to fix herself something to eat and set a pot of water to boil for tea. She had never enjoyed coffee and so didn't drink it. Alice had suggested and gotten her tea because of her own curiosity. Bella had taken a liking to it and it tasted much better then any of the coffee she'd ever tried.

Jasper had set up the tent. Alice and Edward had ensured Bella would have enough wood until they returned. There was plenty of clean snow for Bella to melt for water. So she settled in, pulling out a book to read by the light of her campfire.