A/N: My first update of the New Year! Thanks for all the comments you've given me in the one week or so of 2008 that I've posted things. Don't forget to keep commenting because that's the only way I get any better.

Wishing you all a good year!

-Wish

Chapter 11: Rebellion

A year passed and Esme lost the newborn bloodlust. In the time, she killed one other time, a man who was stupid enough to try to attack my angel.

As Esme lost the newborn's irresistible bloodlust, her more human feelings presented themselves. We came to love each other. Esme was my angel. My light I the darkness. Everything about her was perfect to me. I adored her, and sought to spend more time in her presence. Edward enrolled at the local university, taking courses in music and art. They occupied him during the day and helped him develop his self-control.

As Esme's second vampire birthday drew near, I began to think about a major decision. I loved Esme, and wanted to be with her forever. I knew that much.

And I also knew that she loved me. So, after talking to Edward about it, I went out and bought a ring. A 1 carat diamond ring, square-cut with absolutely no flaws, like her.

That morning, Edward and I threw her a party, each giving her gifts. Edward gave her a song he'd composed. He played it for her on the piano, in addition to giving her a copy of the sheet music. Esme gave him a long hug, preferring to pass on her thanks mentally, rather than trying to put her feelings into words. When she finally let Edward go, we went out in the backyard for my gift. It glinted off our skin, making it sparkle and throwing off pink rays.

"Esme," I said. "You know that I love you more than anything in the world. And if you'll have me, I will spend eternity with you." I knelt at her feet, pulling the ring in its velvet box from my pocket. As I opened it, the sun's rays glinted off it, much like our skin.

"Will you marry me?" I asked.

Esme looked shocked, looking between Edward, the ring, and I. "Absolutely," she replied, breathless and smiling.

A grin broke across my face and I can honestly say it remained there through the wedding, two months later. Edward was my best man and Esme asked a neighbor friend of hers to be her brides' maid. The day of the wedding, we all gathered in the local church's chapel, the two of us, Edward, the neighbor, and a few colleagues from the hospital. Esme wore a stunning, pale blue dress, silk and simple, yet elegant. Though, I was pretty sure she would have looked just as beautiful to me if she'd been wearing the same over-sized clothes I'd lent her on the first day after her transformation. That day, Esme Evenson became Esme Cullen, the vampire wife of a vampire, though only she, Edward, and I actually knew it.

We honey-mooned on an uncharted island, not caring if the sun or the moon was out. I held her close the entire week we were away, never once letting go. It was the happiest time of my 283 years.

But upon returning, we found Edward in less than perfect shape. While we had been away, Edward had succumbed to his thirst and killed a girl one late night. Her death was featured in the newspaper because it was so baffling to police. Edward had done a good job of covering his tracks.

Esme and I were disappointed, but forgiving. Esme herself had killed two already. Edward had made a mistake, a horrible mistake, but Esme and I still loved him. We mourned the death in private.

As time drew on, we prepared to move again. We decided to keep this house, in case we ever returned. It was 1927, four years after I married Esme, and almost ten years after Edward joined me.

And Edward was having a hard time. He was lonely, now that Esme and I had each other, but he was also growing tired. Not tired in the way a human could grow tired, from lack of sleep, but tired in the vampire way, mentally and emotionally. He was more inclined to moodiness, more like a teenager. He often snapped at Esme and me, creating tension in our family. Come summer time, in 1927, the tension came to a head.

Edward, Esme, and I were hunting elk in the forests north of our home, a simple hunting trip to sustain us for the coming week. It was easier to control our thirst when we had plenty of blood. The trip started out fine, all of us catching relatively large prey. But as we fed, I could almost feel Edward's disgust radiating from him. Edward shoved the elk away, halfway through feeding, a feat not easily done.

"I'm sick of this!" he growled.

Esme and I pulled ourselves away from our own kills. "What's wrong Edward?" Esme asked, concerned.

"I'm sick of always denying what I am! I'm sick of feeding off this lesser blood when we all know what will really quench our thirst is human!"

"Edward!" Esme was shocked, and so was I. Edward always seemed to understand why we fed from animals. He could read my mind and understand why we abstained from human blood. He had felt Esme's turmoil when she had killed both of those men. He had been upset himself after killing the girl while we were away. I never thought I would have to explain any of this to Edward.

"Edward," I said calmly, "It's not right. Feeding from humans is murdering innocent people."

"But what if they weren't innocent?" he countered. "How many serial killers, rapists, child abductors roam the streets? Hundreds, if not thousands! What if we only fed from them? They aren't innocent, and we'd be saving others!"

"Who are you to decide who is innocent and who is guilty? Who am I?" I asked him, my Anglican background shining through. "Only God knows what is truly in a man's heart."

"But I know what is in his head," Edward replied, tapping his own temple in emphasis. "I can know their true motives."

I shook my head still. "It still isn't right. I will not be a judge over others."

Edward's expression hardened. "Then I will go save others without you." He turned and sprinted away, and though Esme and I chased after him, he was faster than both of us and soon left us behind.

Esme wept her dry tears that night at the loss of Edward. We were reluctant to move that fall, as we'd planned to, not sure if Edward would be able to find his way back if we did. But we couldn't stay in Ashland; people were starting to ask us about our ages. We were becoming conspicuous. So we settled on a short move, west to Minneapolis, Minnesota. We were still close enough to check if Edward came home, but far enough away to avoid suspicion.