A/N's: Thank you all for your continued support and lovely reviews, we may well get Spellbound past 400 tonight. Thank you AcrossTheSkyInStars, for being so wonderful and patiently waiting for my chapter, I love you babe. Also sarahlutz and Christy, thank you for your reviews too, I always reply to my reviews but can't to yours as they come up anon, I just want you to know I sincerely appreciate them.

Disclaimer: The information regarding Halloween and its symbolism with regards to witches comes from Earth Magic Productions.

Ch15 Knowledge

Edward's note had not only eased my worry, it had also flowered a feeling of longing inside me. I felt full of need, and throughout the day I found myself searching every crevice, every shadow for the slightest glimpse of him. He was never visible to me, but I was sure I could feel him.

It was like a presence constantly near me. I was so sure of it, that at times I found myself turning, words already escaping my lips to speak to him, to tell him how much I missed him, but each time I stopped short, realising it was my own shadow I had caught in my peripheral.

I would just have to wait till the evening came, and hopefully with it, my love.

I spent the day with Charlie. We were allowed to walk in the gardens but always under the watchful eye of James's guards.

We strolled arm in arm and talked about the last few months and our time apart. It reminded me how much I had missed him, just as much as I missed Edward, and I wondered if there would be a time in my life when I would, at last, feel complete with the two most important men in my life.

Charlie and I dined in our rooms. Afterwards, I watched with eager anticipation as the sun set whilst Charlie dozed by the fire. I shook him awake and told him to go to bed; he agreed and I helped him up and kissed him goodnight. I went to my own bedroom and dressed for bed in a nightgown that was long, from throat to floor, with five small Mother of pearl buttons at the neck. The chest section was embroidered, but other than those tiny details, it was modest and adequate sleeping attire.

I left the buttons undone and welcomed the gentle breeze blowing in through the open window. I sat on the bench clutching Edward's note in my hands. I had read the small sentence over and over again, memorising every swirl and dip of the pen strokes, imagining his long, tapered fingers clutching the quill and slowly dipping it in the ink, then flowing the nib across the page with care and attention. I smiled at my musings and wondered when my fantasies about Edward had become so tame. To feel such a rush from a simple sentence was bizarre, to say the least, but I had so little of him with me, I was going to take what I could and cherish it.

I rested my head on my arms and watched the forest for any sign of movement. It was a while before the small glimmer of light dancing through the trees caught my eye.

It was a single glow and it moved so fast, one minute it was close to the ground, the next it was high in the branches. But with the motion it blinkered on and off, and each time it disappeared, I scoured the bleakness trying to catch sight of it again. When I did, it was always further along through the trees than I had anticipated.

The light came to a stop at the edge of the wood and simply glimmered in the darkness. I tried to work out if it was a firefly, but pondered that such a creature would not merely stop in mid flight and pause.

The light moved forward slightly, and as it did so, the simple glow from the torches adorning the fort walls illuminated its origin.

The light had been from a single band worn on the left hand of a man. He was large and his face still remained in shadow. His arms hung by his side, his feet shoulder width apart. He breathed easy, with no evident exertion from his run through the forest. I couldn't see his face but I knew it was not Edward.

A dog emerged from the trees and sat by his side. It was like no animal I had ever seen before. Sitting almost as tall as the man's shoulder with long fur, I was sure a smaller person would be able to sit on its back and ride it like a horse. They were both immense.

I watched in awe as the giant of a man reached out and patted the head of the huge dog, both perusing the fort but no longer approaching.

None of the guards seemed to notice their voyeurs and I too watched, amused as one guard attending to his rounds walked straight past them, barely glancing into the shadows. No sooner had the guard turned the corner, the man and the dog both crouched, and to my further amazement, leapt over the wall and into the courtyard.

The man landed on his feet; his knees bent with both hands to the floor and his head bowed. The dog's paws padded softly on the ground, no noise emitted, but it didn't pause like its comrade, it kept moving and disappeared behind a wall of the building.

I had no idea where it had gone but I craned my neck out of the window to see if I could catch another glimpse. I gave up looking for the animal and turned back to see the man, still crouched, one hand in front of him, knuckles pressed to the floor, the other stretched behind him. He was looking up at my window.

My breath hitched. I stared at him in horror. His face was still partially shadowed, but I could just make out one eye lit by the torches, and it was narrowed and concentrated on me. He straightened and sniffed the air.

I remain stoic, too scared to move. He had scaled a fort wall in one bound, I had no doubt he could reach my window in no less.

To my relief and curiosity, his attention swept to another window, a few down from mine. He smiled, then glancing back at me, was gone. He was so fast I didn't even see which direction he had taken, and I sat mesmerised by the courtyard, staring at the spot he had briefly inhabited.

I quickly got up and blew out the candle illuminating my room. The flames in the fireplace had died, leaving behind the warm glowing embers, neither radiating warmth nor offering much light to the room.

I took a robe from the foot of the bed and went back to the window bench. I didn't see the strange figure again and finally I gave in to my tiredness. I curled up on the bench, and with my head near the window I closed my eyes and fell asleep.

The breeze from the window had turned chilly and I shuddered in my nightgown and robe, pulling it tighter to my body, seeking warmth.

My hair flowed beneath my head as I felt myself moving through the air. No sooner had I realised I was airborne I felt a chill from under my legs and across my back.

I raised my head and looked into the smiling eyes of Edward.

He looked different. His eyes were no longer black but glowed with an amber hue that warmed me from the inside. I lifted my hand and traced his eyebrow.

"You came," I whispered.

He smiled down at me as he carried me from the bench to my bed. Laying me atop the sheets, he slowly pulled his arms from under me. The motion shifted my gown and robe and Edward glanced down at my bare legs.

He may as well have touched me. I tingled as his gaze roamed over my body and eventually reached mine. My hair fanned out on the pillow around me and I breathed deep and fast, he had yet to speak but he took my breath away.

"Your eyes," I started to say but Edward lifted his finger and pressed it against my lips.

He nodded towards the door, indicating the guard beyond. I acknowledged him and lowered my voice. "You look so different."

"Shush," he murmured, bending low so his mouth brushed along mine. "Don't speak, just feel."

I wanted to talk to him. I had so much to say, but like he just said, I should feel first, and talk later.

Edward smiled again and traced the line of my face with his finger. His eyes held so much longing, so much love I felt my heart swell just looking at him. His finger followed the curve of my jaw and down my throat, slowly caressing my collarbone and over my chest till it rested above my heart. I felt its rhythm increase and my breath hitched; my entire body broke out in goose bumps as I felt only his palm touching me.

He applied pressure to his hand, not enough to hurt me, for Edward never would, but just enough to savour the rise and fall of my chest. He closed his eyes as he counted the beats of my heart. The simple sight of his long lashes affected me deeply, and I felt my nipples pucker. It was always the simple things with him; I felt it, inside me, every time I looked at him or thought about him. In his kiss, his touch, even the taste of his blood. Edward Cullen owned me.

He opened his eyes and through the thin fabric of the gown, he watched my body's reaction to him.

"You smell like honey," he murmured, "so sweet, so decadent." I breathed deeply as he licked his lips. "And the sound of your heart is like music to my soul." He lowered his head and rested his ear to my chest. "It guides me, night and day, like a beacon. I can hear you anywhere. I could never mistake this sound for another's. You are my guiding light."

I lifted my hand and ran it through his hair, so thick and long; always messy, always divine.

"I love you, Edward," I whispered and he answered by turning his head and capturing my nipple in his mouth. He licked till the fabric of my gown was wet and I could feel the cool dampness press against me. I moaned and arched closer; I needed more.

Using his teeth, he tugged slightly and my moan became a gasp. He didn't bite down hard, just enough to tease me. He was holding back, I could sense it, but I knew why. Edward couldn't allow himself to be as free as he desired, we knew I was also immortal and it would be near on impossible for him to kill me, but he still couldn't release his inhibitions.

As much as I loved his tenderness, for he made me feel fragile, delicate and cherished, sometimes I just needed to feel.

I clutched at his head, holding him closer. Edward moved his hand down my body, and raising my gown over my knees he nudged my legs apart and found me, ready for him.

"So warm," he murmured as he rested his thumb on my clit and pushed his finger inside. I lifted my hips and moved against him; I needed friction, I needed release. It felt so good.

With his hand working its magic on my core, his lips tugged and toyed with my nipple, moving his head from breast to breast. I could smell my response to him in the air and it was so sexy and raw, and mingled with the scent of Edward, I considered this the distillate of perfection.

With the combined movement of his finger inside me, his thumb caressing my clit and his tongue sweeping over my nipples, he kept my crescendo building and building till all I could do was clutch at his hand, and throw my head back, letting it all wash over me.

As I lay panting on the bed, he lifted his face to mine and kissed my jaw, allowing me to catch my breath.

Pulling away from me, he grinned and then nodded to the bedside table. Sitting atop it was a pile of strawberries. Bright red and plump, and still stalked from where he had foraged for them and brought them straight from the forest floor to me.

"Edward –" I tried to speak but he captured it in his kiss. He tasted sweet.

"Do I taste good?" He asked with a mischievous grin.

I nodded and returned his smile. "You ate a strawberry?"

"Not really," he laughed. "I chewed it, didn't swallow." He shrugged. "It's better than purging later."

I sat up and slid my hand around his neck, tugging on his hair at the nape. "I liked it, I think." I pulled him back down to me, and lifting my leg, I gripped his calf and entwined it in mine.

"You think?" He raised his brow.

"Yes, come here." I pulled him closer and murmured against his lips, "I need to try again, just to be sure."

This time it was Edward who groaned, and sinking into me he gathered me in his arms and deepened his kiss. I felt like I was drowning; he stole the air from my body, and finally, I tried to break away to fill my lungs again, but he refused to let me go. I struggled slightly and opened my eyes to look into his.

The golden hue stopped me momentarily. I watched his soft gaze as he held mine and then he breathed air back into my open mouth.

He blew it so softly but it still reeled me. The air was tinged with the very essence of him, and my eyes rolled back as I gulped. He was cool, like fresh winter air on a snowy day and I drank him down, greedily. I felt stunned and as he pulled away from me, I lay still, the room spinning around me.

Edward stretched out next to me and pulled me close to his side. I closed my eyes and prayed for the spinning to stop.

"What have you done to me?" I asked.

Edward chuckled and caressed my side softly.

We lay together, embraced in each other's arms for a while, but eventually the cool temperature of his body pressing against mine became too much. I shivered and hated my body's need for warmth. If I was indeed immortal, why did I need the basic necessities that humanity required?

"You're cold." Edward shifted and pulled the blankets from under him. He wrapped them around me like a cocoon and pulled me safely back into his arms.

"Have you found Rosalie?"

"No," he replied. "I've been watching for her, hoping she'd come to the forest like she said she does, but there's been no sign."

"Edward, Ava is sick," I told him. I felt him pull away from me and kiss my forehead.

"Do you think that's where she is?" He asked me.

I tried to shrug but was wrapped so tightly, I couldn't move. I nodded. "It's possible. Mary Alice says she may not survive." I hated to be the one to tell him this, she was part of his family after all and he had already seen so many of them come and go before him.

"Edward, I saw something tonight –"

"What was it, my love?" He pulled away and smoothed my hair from the sides of my face.

"I saw a man; at least I think it was a man, and he had a dog but they were both huge. They seemed non-human, he moved so fast –"

"What did he look like?" Edward leant up on his elbows.

"I couldn't see him very clearly, he was in shadow. He wore a ring, I couldn't see much else."

Edward moved upright and after a moment he stood and walked to the window. Leaning over, he searched the night air, sniffing and listening, cocking his head occasionally to the side.

"Edward?" I whispered and struggled a little in my cocoon. I managed to loosen its hold slightly and lifted my arms free.

"I can still smell him," he spoke quietly. "But he's gone now."

"You believe me?"

Edward turned to face me. "Of course I do. Why wouldn't I?"

"I speak about what I saw and it barely seems real to me." I shrugged.

Edward walked to the chair by the dying fireplace and patted his knee. I lifted the blanket from my feet, and wearing it like a sari, I walked over and made myself comfortable, nestled against his chest with my head tucked under his chin.

He lifted my face to his and kissed me softly and slowly. I returned it with equal fervour. There was no passion in this kiss; it was only laced with affection. It was beautiful and memorable and meant just as much to me as his more arduous kisses, for kissing Edward was like walking through a dream.

He eventually pulled away and held me close to him, his cheek pressed against the top of my head. We sat a while, just breathing and being together and for the first time in a very long time, I felt a little peace.

"What's on your mind, Bella?"

"Hmm?" I lifted my face to him and smiled. "What makes you think I have something on my mind?"

"I can just tell."

"It's nothing now. I was just a little concerned about you. About my accepting James's proposal; I didn't want you to hate me, or think I lied to you about how I feel."

"Bella, you forget I told you to do what you had to. I knew he was going to ask you that, he showed me, in his mind. It was all he kept thinking about as he walked into the cells."

"Oh Edward."

"He imagined you in his bed, he pictured you wearing his ring and then he even tried to show me an image of you in your wedding dress. I wanted to rip his throat out!"

"Shush." I caressed his cheek and traced the line of his bottom lip with my thumb. "Don't think of that, it won't happen. We'll find a way to stop all this before it gets that far. I won't be that man's wife!"

"That isn't the part I focus on." Edward dropped his head back against the chair, his eyes still holding mine.

"What is it?" I asked.

He didn't answer me at first, and I worried that he wouldn't share this with me. I needed him to tell me, to make us equal in body and mind. His concerns were my concerns and I wanted him to know that.

He swallowed then closed his eyes. "The image of you in your wedding dress changed to one of you in a tomb. Your dress was no longer white but dyed with the crimson stain of your blood. It covered you and –"

"What?" I pressed his cheek again. "What Edward?"

"And your head had been severed." He stopped speaking and waited for my response.

"Why would he imagine that?" I was suddenly afraid. Immortal meant just that, but I had no idea if a witch could live through decapitation, it didn't seem likely. I had so much to learn.

"He was showing me what your punishment would be for turning him down, Bella. If you marry him you will be safe, or as safe as you can be with him, but if you'd declined his proposal, he wouldn't have hesitated in murdering you."

"Can he do that? I'm immortal, you said so yourself."

"Can we take that chance?"

"Charlie said so too."

"He did?"

I nodded.

"Tell me."

So I did. I recalled Charlie's tale of Renee and the farmer and how she and Irina had powers beyond what my dad could understand. I explained how my powers were dormant for now and that Irina believed when I finally harnessed them, I would be more powerful than any other witch she'd ever known.

When I finished speaking Edward was smiling. "I always knew you were special."

"Edward, this isn't funny. Not really." But despite my words, I smiled too. "It means I will never be able to have children, not unless I relinquish my birthright and chances are, now that I cursed myself instead of James, I'd die immediately anyway."

"Then we'll just have to make sure you never relinquish it then, won't we?"

"Is it enough, to be able to stay with you for always?"

"It's enough," he whispered, kissing my nose.

"There are ways to kill a vampire, aren't there?" I asked him. He nodded. "And there are ways to kill a witch."

"Yes," Edward agreed.

"But you wouldn't be able to change me." He didn't reply. "You said you think I'm immune to your venom, so I may be able to live my life with you but if anything ever happened to threaten my humanity, I could never be saved, Edward. You won't be able to change me."

"I'd find a way."

"How? You said yourself –"

"It was a theory, Bella. I barely gave you enough to make you feel it, and yes, it's true your body fought the effects and you didn't suffer for long, but we don't know what would happen if I drank you dry."

I cringed at his description but understood its necessity.

"If I left you drained and weak, verging on death, then possibly my venom would have a chance. Your body would be too weak to fight it."

"But it's just another theory," I whispered.

"Yes, but it may never come to that."

"I'm sorry for this," I said to him. "I ruined our evening together with my concerns. You're right. It may never come to that."

"You didn't ruin anything," he said softly. "You have questions, worries, of course you do. I feel humbled that you tell me these fears, it means so much that you turn to me."

"Who else would I turn to?" I murmured, pressing my lips to his.

"No one," he whispered back, "I'm all you'll ever need."

He deepened the kiss and I shifted my body, trying to feel him. I needed more. I needed him to touch me.

I pulled his face closer to mine, not a sliver of light could've penetrated the space between us. He picked me up and carried me back to the bed, then opened the blankets wrapped around me. His hand reached the hem of my gown, and pulling back from me, he swiftly pulled it over my head, and I lay naked.

I blushed but didn't try to cover myself, as my blush stemmed from excitement not discomfort.

I watched him stand, and with his eyes never leaving mine, he pulled off his shirt. My eyes feasted on his chiselled perfection, his beautiful V that tapered from his irresistible stomach to the hidden delights inside his trousers.

But Edward didn't undress any further and show me his hidden treasure. Instead, he positioned himself at my feet and lifted my foot to kiss the arch.

I giggled for I was ticklish.

He raised a brow at me and smiled cheekily, but continued to move up my leg from the underside. The tickle changed to a tingle and I felt goose bumps pepper my skin.

I moaned. I couldn't help myself; Edward pushed my legs apart, and leaning forward he kissed my knees, then delved straight in to my centre. His tongue flicked out and licked up my entire slit. I bucked off the bed, almost succumbing to the pleasure of that single touch, there and then.

Gripping my hips, he continued to lick and dip his tongue around me, inside me, touching me slightly with just the tip, then sucking me in his mouth, and all of it was so very, very good.

"Edward," I moaned, gripping the sheets at my side. I arched my back and lifted my bottom off the bed, pushing myself closer to his tongue. I needed him to move faster, he was so good but I was greedy and the tension was building and building. I wanted it, no, I needed its release so desperately.

"Edward," I called to him again. He liked when I said his name and I wanted to provoke him. "Oh Edward." I changed it this time to murmur and he let go of my hips to grab at the mattress. He was so strong he feared his lack of control may injure me.

But when all I could feel was his tongue, I didn't care. It drove me closer to the edge. It was the only part of his body that touched me now and I thrust against it, opening my legs wider, willing the sensation to spill over and take me with it.

Finally it came and took me with it, and I ended up squeezing Edward's head with my thighs as wave after wave shook through me, making me feel even more sensitive to him.

He chuckled and pulled away from me, removed his trousers and then he was back, his body above mine. He hovered on his arms and kissed my neck. I lay unmoving, trying to regulate my breathing again but he didn't wait; he pushed himself at my core, and without hesitation, thrust inside. I moaned as I felt him enter me and gripped his arms, feeling the strength of his biceps beneath my palms. He moved long and deep, and I met him, thrust for thrust. I was so wet; he glided in and out of me with ease and I was once again lost in the sensation of him.

Edward held his body off me, pushing up onto his arms, his hips pressed into mine but it felt so good. He lowered his head and kissed my neck and I liked it. I turned my face to his and kissed his neck too and Edward groaned, quickening his pace. I guess he liked it too.

I curled my arms around his neck and continued to drag my lips and tongue across his throat. He lifted his chin to allow me to pass from one side to the other without breaking apart from him. He pushed harder into me and I hooked my legs around his back and dug my heels into his bottom, guiding him in, as if he needed any help.

"Bella," he murmured as he moved faster and I knew he was close. Daring, I bit down on his skin, and although I couldn't penetrate, Edward could still feel it. He gripped the bedclothes and with one last thrust he held himself still as his own orgasm rocked him.

He looked magnificent. I watched his reactions, the beautiful facial expression as he let the pleasures confound him, and I couldn't help but smile. He eventually opened his eyes and looked down at me, smiling too and moving to lie beside me. He held me close; making sure the blankets offered me some protection against his cool skin.

"I love you," he whispered.

We lay in silence for a while, and I wished he could stay.

"Why are your eyes golden brown?" I murmured, feeling sleepy but also curious.

"When we feed on the blood of humans our eyes become red, with animals, its brown."

"Brown is not the colour of your eyes," I told him. "Brown sounds non-descript, this colour is luminous."

"Brown is not non-descript," he argued. "Your eyes are brown and they entrance me." He pulled me closer as if to convey his meaning.

"Why were your eyes black, when we first met?"

"Because I was hungry," he replied. "I hadn't tasted blood, animal or human, in over a year."

"You can survive that long without feeding?"

"Longer, but it makes us weaker. It was torture to be near you, it was all I could think about; the warm rush of your blood spilling over into my mouth as my teeth punctured your skin. I could smell you, so sweet and warm. I crave that warmth, it comforts me."

"I like that," I told him, referring to him craving my warmth. "What changed for you? How did you stop craving me?" I sounded disappointed and it surprised me. I shouldn't want to be bitten by a bloodsucker, but to be bitten by Edward was unlike anything I had ever known.

"When you fed me from yourself, saving me, you showed me that I meant something to you, that I was worthy of your love, and in that single drop of blood, you awakened me. I could never hurt you. I could never end this," he pressed his hand to my heart again, "but you are more to me than just a life force, Bella. Don't be mistaken in believing I love this about you and nothing else because since knowing you, you have shown me compassion, understanding, acceptance, and love. In a world as dark as mine, you became my light. I have never known anyone like you."

I turned slightly, so I could look up at him. "Nor I you."

He kissed my face, over my cheeks and eyes, my nose and chin, and finally my neck, pressing harder on the puncture wounds he had left that first time he'd bitten me. He always came back to that and I wondered at his affection for that spot. He seemed to enjoy reminding himself by acknowledging the mark he had left on me.

I closed my eyes and fell asleep with the sensation of his lips against my skin.

I awoke and sat up, searching the room for Edward. It was still dark outside but he was gone. The blankets had been pulled over me and I clutched them to my bare chest. He'd re-lit the fire before leaving so the room was warm again.

I stood and wrapped the blanket around me, and walked to the window. Lying on the bench was a single sheet of paper. That oh so familiar writing was scripted across the page.

I have tasted fruit so sweet and pure, but none are as sweet as you.

I will taste you on my tongue till the morrow, my Love.

Enjoy your gift

I smiled and blew a kiss out into the night, having no idea if he'd even see it. I walked back to the bedside table, and taking the strawberries back to the window bench, I sat and ate them, savouring their sweet flesh as I watched the clouds shift past the moon. It was almost 3 quarters full which meant the day after tomorrow it would be a full moon.

The significance of the new moon rising suddenly registered on me, as that same night would be Halloween. I remembered some tales told to me by Aunt Irina. She was obviously trying to prepare me for my fate, but at the time, as a child I had believed her stories to be for entertainment only.

I recalled she had told me Halloween had a deeper meaning in magical traditions. It not only heralds the coming of Winter as a time when the sun retreats, and darkness approaches in the form of longer nights and colder days, but also in nature, this is a time of death; leaves, plants, and insects die and disappear into the ground.

Halloween may focus on death, but it does so by celebrating the eternity of life in general and reincarnation in particular. She'd told me that on this night, the "veil between the worlds" is said to be thin, and we are able to communicate most easily with ones who have moved on to the other side.

I wondered how I could possibly learn what I needed to about my birthright without the knowledge of others. I needed Aunt Irina here but I had no idea where she was right now. I wanted to ask my father, so stepping quietly into his rooms I went to his bedside to wake him.

He slept so soundly, and despite his bruises, he looked peaceful. I thought it best not to disturb him but as I turned to leave, my foot stubbed a chair by his bed and his bag fell to the floor.

It was a simple carpet bag that held his few belongings. Because Charlie had not fastened the ties, the contents spilled to the floor. I bent to stuff them back inside, but seeing my name scrawled across a cheesecloth package made me pause.

I looked up at Charlie, and was relieved to see he was still sleeping, so taking the package with me I quietly closed the door and went back to my fireside.

I opened the cheesecloth and inside was a book. Its cover had once been deep red, but now was a faded orange, and covered in scratches so the design of a pentagon on its cover was almost gone.

There was a pouch resting on top of the book and I opened it to find twelve crystals inside. I had no idea what type they were or what they represented, but I imagined I would find answers inside the book.

I opened the cover and found an inscription.

Isabella, I love you and will always be with you. I give to thee my knowledge and my ability, this book is your bible. Use it with care and consideration and more importantly, with wisdom.

R

So my mother would be my teacher. I turned the page to the beginning of the first chapter, and so began my first lesson.

End A/N's: So? Who do we think the mystery man & dog are? And who has James gone to collect to aid him in his plans for world domination?