Title: Protect My Heart

Author: Erik-in-CT

Disclaimer: All recognizable characters belong to Stephanie Meyer or Marvel Comics, and not myself.

The sun had just sunk under the horizon, the lights of the big city illuminating the night sky like millions of stars. Throngs of people still filled the sidewalks in the lingering summer day's heat, and cars still crowded the busy streets. A lone figure slipped between the groups of people, drawing as little attention to himself as possible. It had been some time since he had been in a city as large as Los Angeles, and it was more uncomfortable than he'd like to admit to be surrounded by people again. But the trail had led him here, and he was dedicated to following it until he reached it's source.

It had been almost a year ago that Edward had made the decision for his family to leave their home. And he hadn't even stayed with them after they had made the move from Forks to Denali. He had stayed long enough to greet their friends in Alaska, then he had left his family behind and wandered. At first it had been aimless. Simply moving constantly from place to place. Running from his feelings, from the pain, from the hole in his heart where she had once been. But then he had come across a familiar scent when passing through a small town down south. It had been the woman named Victoria...the mate of the vampire that had tried to kill Bella last spring. And so he decided to try his hand at tracking. For the last few months he had been following her. From the southern United States, all the way down to Brazil, and now she was headed back north. Every once in awhile, he'd lose her for a few days, and then he would pick her up again. But when he followed her scent into Los Angeles, he lost her. He'd been wandering the city for a few days now, trying to pick up the scent again. It seemed she had evaded him pretty well this time.

As he lingered on a street corner, he caught glimpses of himself in the minds of a group of young girls a few shops down from him. They thought he was cute, interesting, and maybe they could go and talk to him. They held no interest for him however. He didn't think anyone would again. Turning away from them, he moved down a side street, keeping to human speed to avoid being noticed, but moving quickly enough that the group of girls quickly lost sight of him, and moved on with their night without another thought towards him.

As he moved through the heart of the city, he was suddenly caught off guard by a hauntinly familiar smell. Only it wasn't the one he had been searching for. It assailed his senses and drove every other thought from his mind. It was coming from a restaurant on the other side of the street. But it was a few hours old. He warred with himself, trying to decide whether or not to follow it. It would be glorious to see her again, but he had left her behind for a reason. He wanted her to move on, to live a normal life, to be safe. Safe...Victoria had been in the city. Could she have picked up on the scent as well? That was all it took to make the decision for him. The only problem now was which way to follow the scent. It went off in seperate directions from the restaurant...one coming, and one going. Only he didn't know which was which. Making a choice and taking a chance, he allowed the scent to fill his senses, and followed it out of the city.

Author's Note:

Yay! A (short) chapter up 3 days early! I'm so proud of myself. And if all goes well, we'll have another one of Friday to keep with the regular schedule.

Alright...so we have Edward! Huzzah. Please Read and Review!

Tony: "Wait wait wait...I'm not in this chapter? At all?"

Erik: "Sorry Tony. The fans have spoken. They wanted Edward. Don't worry you'll be back next chapter."

Tony: "Yeah yeah."

Bella: *squeeeee* Edward!

Tony: *sulks*

Erik: *hugs Tony* "I still love you."