Author's note: Hellooooo everyone!

Okay, as much as I respect and love the original work that SM created, I must admit that there are times when I wonder if Isabella adjusted to her vampiric existence a little too quickly and easily. I know there is a theory to suggest why she did so (according to the illustrated guide, choosing to become one already may have mentally prepared her for the challenges being a newborn presented, meaning she didn't struggle so badly with the change.) However, given that she was completely unprepared in this story, I have decided to make things a bit harder on our dear heroine. I've tried my best to remain true to the essence of the original story (like I have fr the rest of this story) and hope my description of it fits for you all :)

Chapter thirty nine

Bella

Light was too bright, everything moved too fast and it was impossible to focus my vision on anything. It was like racing down a highway, without being able to pick out a single detail. A sound echoed through the air and reverberated off every single surface, making my ears roar. Everything hurt, but not in a physical way, the way I expected it to. I felt sort of stiff, cumbersome; like I was made of...I wasn't sure what. All I knew was that I didn't feel...

I didn't feel...

I didn't feel...

...right.

It was as if the entire world was spinning in every single direction and my fingers gripped the nearest solid surface involuntarily to help me maintain my balance.

That was when I realised I was lying down, yet the knowledge did nothing to soothe the paralysing terror of my disorientation. Where was I? What was happening to me? Another sound rang loudly, and it resembled deafening claps of thunder. The noise startled me so much, that my torso flew upright, which was the biggest mistake I could have made. My surroundings may have been a shambled mess before, but had now become a terrifying haze of colours and shapes whirling past my eyes. I couldn't gain any sense of balance, so ended up toppling over the edge of whatever I was sat upon and crashing to the ground.

The ground level view was even worse than my previous one and the new perspective made me feel vulnerable. A shape advanced, simultaneously moving slowly, yet at an incredible speed and I scurried backwards, panicking when I felt my back slam into a solid surface. I was cornered and I could feel my heart beating furio-

-wait...

...no...

My panic was halted by the distraction this new enigma presented. I listened intently, my right hand flying instinctively to my chest. Nothing...there was absolutely nothing. My fingers flew to my neck, to the pulse point just below my jaw line. I waited for that all-too-familiar rhythmic thud that signalled life. Still nothing. I gripped my wrist and when I was greeted with yet more nothing, hastily let go, as though my arm had turned into a deadly snake.

The panic returned tenfold and my eyes darted about my surroundings, wishing the dizziness would just stop and let me focus. The noise was becoming beyond unbearable, too, as my anxiety only heightened the intensity of the sounds assaulting my ears. Each one crashed against my eardrums, vibrating loudly in my head. Voices, footsteps, doors, floorboards, wind, leaves, gravel, birds...

Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom...

"SHUT UP!"

I screamed and slammed my hands over my ears, as I squeezed my eyes shut. I wanted to drown everything out and let my senses focus. The noise was still there, though and it refused to go. It was quieter, but no matter how hard I tried, my palms were unable to shut it out completely. One sound in particular made its way to the forefront of my attention, a careful, deep, repetitive sound and I attempted to pour all my spiralling energy into understanding it. It was...a word? A name, perhaps?

Umbrella...Better...Bellah...Bella...

Bella?

Bella!

The word struck a chord deep inside and my eyes shot open of their own accord. My irises seemed to maintain a life of their own, incapable of concentrating on a single thing, but I used all my might to keep them relatively trained on the shape coming towards me. It was tall, dark and crowned with bullion. A person, I was sure, but what person? My palms remained clamped against my ears, but I let the fingers stretch up to my temples, hoping their pressure would encourage my eyes to work better.

It took a great deal of effort and patience, but my surroundings slowly began to steady, although the slightest twitch of my eyeballs still made the world seem as though it was moving at a thousand miles per hour. I focused them forward and the shape before me solidified into a man, a beautiful man. He was still taking small, careful steps forward, his hands outstretched, as he maintained a passive stance. It was from his lips that the word Bella originated.

Sensing he had gained my attention, he started saying other words, too and I reluctantly allowed a fraction of space between my palms and ears. It was hard to understand what he said, as all manner of other sounds came barging through, but, with great exertion, I was able to grasp his speech.

"Bella?" he said, the sound clear, deep and lilting in a bizarre way that wasn't entirely unpleasant. "I know this is all confusin' to you right now. In time you will adjust." He stopped moving and crouched down a few feet before me, placing a hand on his chest. "Do you know who I am?"

It took a moment for the question to register, but, when it did, I was at a loss for an answer. Did I know who he was? That must have meant that I should have, but his identity was currently lost on me. I gave myself a mental kick, although it was nowhere near as powerful as I needed it to be. However, it was enough to allow a memory of sorts to tickle the back of my mind and a mental image started to merge with the man facing me. They didn't match, though and the panic that had started to alleviate grew once again.

There were similarities between the two: pale skin, intense gaze, alluring beauty that hinted towards something unnatural. The differences were far more distinctive. The man crouched before me was discerning, but kind, understanding, his amber irises radiating stern patience and offering help. The creature in my mind was the polar opposite: dangerous, vindictive, with scarlet eyes that screamed maliciousness. He was not kind, he was not understanding, he was evil.

He hurt me.

More memories trickled into my awareness, each one helping to form a horrific picture. I remembered pain, I remembered fear, I remembered the sadistic pleasure that had contorted the ghastly beauty of the man in my head into a sneer of malevolent delight.

He hurt me.

"Bella?"

I snapped back into the present and my lips quivered, as garbled words of panic left my mouth in a breathless whisper.

"H-he...oh God...I was...he hurt..."

"Who?"

The man reached towards me and that was when I flipped. I cringed away and, when I realised there was no further way backwards, I dived to the side, to escape his clutches, but was confronted with another solid surface. He didn't move any closer and tried speaking to me again, but I wanted to leave. I needed to get away. My eyes began a frantic search for escape and followed the direction of the light that spilled into the room through large panes of glass on my right. That was my escape route, but a large, heavy object was in my way.

Fuelled by desperation and adrenaline, I lunged forwards and gripped the object in both hands, flipping it out of the way to liberate a path to freedom. The sound the glass made as I crashed through it was immense, like a thousand stars had fallen from the sky and collided with the earth. The wind hit me like a wave of ice cold water, screaming past my ears and I had no choice but to endure it, as I held my hands out to aid my landing.

When I finally met the ground, it sent a deep tremor through my entire body, momentarily dazing me. I had no time to dwell on the sensation, as I knew I was being pursued. It wasn't so much that I heard the others coming, but more like I sensed their pursuit. I straightened up in a flash and began to run, my limbs needing no command, as they moved of their own accord. Thought was no longer playing a part in any of my actions, as instinct and impulse took over.

Now that I was moving at an incredible speed, my eyes seemed to settle and everything was remarkably clear. The landscape flew past me and I could feel the speed I was running at, but was never in any danger of colliding with anything. As the trees passed by, I was able to see each and every single leaf in minute detail, right down to the dark veins snaking across the surface. If an ounce of thought had control of my senses, I would have been able to appreciate and marvel at their beauty, but there was no time for such frivolity. I could hear the racing footsteps following me and I pushed my body to move even faster in order to get away.

Shouts echoed in the growing distance between my pursuer and me, but I refused to heed their call. I was confused, scared and lost, utterly clueless as to what was happening to me, with no recollection of how I had arrived at the situation to begin with. In the very dark recesses of my mind, I knew the most sensible course of action would have been to stop, turn and request the answers from whoever was following, but I wasn't in a fit state to understand answers right then. I wasn't sure what I wanted or needed at that moment, but a conversation definitely wasn't it.

I kept pushing forward, following no path, but simply letting my feet lead me to wherever they desired. It was oddly freeing in one way, having no plan to stick to, but simply doing whatever I wished. It was also terrifying, as I was beginning to realise that there was no possible way for me to carry on this way forever. I would have to stop, eventually.

Through the sensation of air blasting my skin and sounds howling through my ears, another sense was vaguely beginning to be aroused: smell. It wafted past my nostrils and, without even realising, my trajectory altered. After less than a minute of following the new course, my nose was hit by something that held the force of a lightning bolt. It was so strong that it stopped me in my tracks and left me bewildered. I staggered, closing my eyes, before taking a long, deep inhalation. The moment the scent properly registered with my brain, it was like a switch had been flipped on and my eyelids flew open. My throat suddenly felt dry and a burning began deep in my chest. It felt like nails were being dragged up my oesophagus and I clawed at the skin of my neck, trying to stop the terrible sensation. I didn't know what the smell was or why it made me feel this way, but I had to stop it and, for some reason, I knew the only way to do that was to locate the source of the intoxicating scent.

Just as I lurched forward, something held me back and I turned to see a hand gripping my wrist. In the blink of an eye, my free arm swung and smashed into the owner of the restraining hand, sending him or her flying backwards. Now free, I sprinted ahead, letting the increasing strength of the scent guide my way. A thrill of excitement and need surged through me, lending speed to my already incredible velocity. I was almost there, I could feel it. The burning in my chest increased and a desperate hunger elicited a growl from my parched lips.

Not far now, not far...

The scent became unbearably strong and I crashed through the brush, coming to a screeching halt when I discovered the source of the tantalising aroma. My eyes zeroed in on the solitary creature traversing an empty path and my irises didn't stray a millimetre from my prey, as I assessed every facet of its anatomy in search of weaknesses. The path was a few feet down a steep hill and I worked out the time it would take to close the distance between us, before making my move. I slid down the hill, giving no thought to the noise I made, as I moved too fast for my prey to have any chance of escape.

I was almost at the path, ready to jump and pin down my victim, before something barrelled into me, knocking me to the ground. We rolled along the path several times, before I managed to kick them off me and leapt to my feet once again. My victim had started running and I gave chase, needing only a few seconds to reach them and pin them to the ground. My quarry was about to scream when I clamped a hand over its mouth. They struggled beneath me, their limbs flailing, as the body bucked and thrashed in a vain attempt to throw me off balance. Tired of my prey's resistance, I released the mouth and endured a moment of noise, before smashing their head against the hard ground, rendering them silent and still.

My mind became foggy, as the delicious scent overwhelmed it and my lips parted, ready to open the body and discover if the source of my hunger tasted as incredible as it smelled. The anticipation was excruciating and I lowered my head, but just as my lips had opened enough for my teeth to appear, I was jerked backwards, away from what I desired most. I fought immediately, although it was difficult to do when the restraint came from behind. Something wrapped around my waist, whilst something else attempted to pin my arms to my sides. My feet left the ground, as I felt myself being carried away and, although it required a little effort on my part, it didn't take me long to break the hold. With a backwards jab of my elbows, I managed to thrust whatever was attempting to restrain me back to the ground, before taking quick returning steps to the still creature lying ahead.

"Bella, stop!"

I obeyed.

I had no idea why and didn't entirely understand the command, but something about the tone of the voice as it reached my ears captivated my attention. I suddenly realised that I had recognised the sound as a voice, rather than simply dismissing it as noise and it threw all other senses off balance. There was something about that voice, something amazing, thrilling and altogether incomparable, which filled my mind with a million different feelings and emotions, making it impossible to ignore.

My feet were rooted to the spot and, despite the desperation to return to my prey, I was unable to move. Where had the voice come from and who did it belong to? A tingling of familiarity brushed the furthest corner of my consciousness and I tried wading through the murk of confusion, in order to pull that familiarity to the forefront of my brain.

"Bella, turn around."

Oh, it was almost painful how much that voice lured me into its clutches. It snaked towards me and brushed the hairs on my skin ever so softly, sending chills up and down my spine. I had no choice but to comply. Slowly, ever so slowly, I forced the toes of my dominant foot to lift and the heel to swivel, which stimulated my legs and torso to follow. When I completed the one hundred and eighty degree movement, what I was confronted with rendered me senseless.

An angel stood before me. A gust of air travelled past and blew onto my face, bringing an altogether different scent to my attention. It was nothing short of divine and my eyelids fluttered, wanting to close in order to feel the full effects of the aroma, but my pupils refused to relinquish their hold on the remarkable creature they were fixed upon.

"Bella, come here."

Spurred on by the gentility of the tone, as well as the delightful fragrance, I did so immediately, taking careful and measured steps towards the angelic being. It stood completely still, neither beckoning nor pushing me away, but simply waiting patiently, letting me move at my own pace. My eyes had no trouble focusing on this particular being. The angel seemed to shine brightly, amidst the murk of the reality surrounding me, like a bright moon in the pitch black sky or a lighthouse beacon guiding a ship through dark and stormy seas. There was something else about the angel that called me towards it, too. I was unable to ascertain precisely what it was, but, I felt some sort of...connection to the beautiful creature.

As I got closer, I was able to study the features of the face and realised I was looking at a man. Not the one who had first spoken to me before, but this man shared the pale skin and golden hair and eyes of the other. Beyond those small similarities, the two were absolutely beyond comparison. I couldn't recall a single identifying feature on the other man, but the face currently looking back at me was instantly committed to memory. And that was when I began to realise I knew him.

There was only a foot of distance between us and I stopped, unsure of whether to get too close. I still didn't want to take my eyes off him. His lips parted and he spoke again, offering another sample of that wondrous voice.

"Isabella," he said and I knew that he was referring to me by name. I couldn't quite explain it, but it seemed to fit, somehow. He slowly raised his hand and held it out to me. I stared at the open palm for a moment or two, studying every line traced along the creamy white skin. In response, my own hand rose and inched towards his, my fingertips slowly, gently and carefully running down the skin until our palms connected. He was cold and I briefly wondered if I should be worried, if it was wrong, but found that I didn't actually mind it. Cold felt good. Cold felt comforting, inviting, right. Cold had become the new warm.

"Do you know who I am?" he asked softly, repeating the question uttered by another not so long ago.

My eyes met his. I did.

A surge of...what? Emotion? Feelings? Whatever it was, a surge of it overwhelmed my body and I rushed into him, one of my arms going around his neck, whilst the other hooked round to clutch at the fabric covering his shoulder blade. I felt a moment of hesitation, before strong arms enclosed me into the embrace and pressed us even closer together. My face just reached his shoulder and my nose brushed against skin. His scent was stronger than ever and I buried my nose into the crook of his neck and inhaled as deeply as I possibly could, unable to get enough of the aroma he exuded.

A rush of feelings, emotions and experiences all came back to me in a garbled well of memory and I clung even tighter to my angel, clasping his clothing so firmly that it tore beneath my fingers. I continued breathing him in, as the images flew past the eyes I squeezed shut. I was reliving an entire lifetime, but none of it was in order and made little sense to me. I knew I would need to understand some of it very soon, but I wasn't ready to just yet.

My angel never let go. One hand ran through and tangled into my hair, whilst the other made large, slow circles on my back, sending little shivers up and down my spine. I didn't want to move. Ever. Unfortunately, the memories were becoming too much for me and I was forced to open my eyes, just to provide some means of distraction. I reluctantly pulled my face away from his neck and decided the best distraction would be looking at him. The arm around his neck slid down to wrap around his back and both his hands moved to cup my face. Both thumbs began a soft caress of my cheeks, moving back and forth across my skin and it did something odd to me.

A look of wonderment crossed my angel's face, as he witnessed the small smile curving the corners of my lips and a grin of his own spread across his.

"I have gone too long without that smile," he remarked, gazing into my eyes.

When another surge of something ran through my body, I knew exactly what it was, although I couldn't really give it a name. It didn't matter, though, because I was right where I belonged, with him in his arms. Sadly, the warm glow that feeling offered wasn't allowed to last very long, as another feeling dared to interrupt. A wave of confusion, mingled with a smidgeon of anxiety, swept over me and a frown creased my forehead. Even with the rush of memories that had just come to me, I still felt none the wiser over what was going on.

"What is it?" the angel asked, noticing the look of concern upon my face.

I allowed my eyes a moment to quickly survey my surroundings, before returning to him and looking intently into his eyes. They were my anchor, the thing that would keep me weighted to this world with their calm, support and, above all, love. As long as I had them, I would be able to face whatever horrors my mind forced upon me. As long as had him, I wouldn't be quite so scared.

After a long time, I finally found my voice and it sounded so very strange to me. There were all kinds of hidden notes and tones I had never realised were there before. Bracing myself, I gave him my reply.

"What happened?"

A/N: So, there you go, folks, I introduce to you Bella the Vampire! Again, I'm hoping the description fit what you all imagined for the story. The most important thing to strike me was that mentally, I imagined a human wouldn't necessarily always be prepared for the physical changes that occur after a transformation, hence the major disorientation and confusion Bella experienced to begin with. Luckily, the good doctor was on hand to help in the end ;)

What did you all think? Does it sit alright with everyone? I really hope you enjoyed and will have the next chapter up ASAP! xxxx