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And Yet They Shine

Chapter 17 - Bitter

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"I release her from her bond. Let her go."

The halls echoed the collective gasp of all within. Emmett stared at Edward with disbelieving eyes. Carlisle met the eyes of his wife, and the two of them seemed to be having some private communication. Alice stared into the distance, and furrow between her eyes, and Rosalie offered the room a slight, heart-achingly beautiful smile.

Edward stared at the ground.

Isabella stared at him.

She held her wrist, the one that had been broken, in her hand and was rubbing the spot lightly.

When Edward dared to peek at her, his eyes were riveted to her hands…small things, like broken birds, fluttering, but not free. His voice was low when he spoke, still not meeting her eyes.

"What you said before, in the tunnel, you were right. Just because I fixed it, doesn't mean it's okay. Does it…you're not hurt?"

Bella tried to make sense of his words. She knew that they meant so many things – he was talking about her wrist, which had throbbed, but now felt fine. He was talking about more though, about his trickery and how he'd deceived her.

Just because he fixed it, didn't mean it was okay.

"It doesn't hurt," she said, her hand rubbing at her wrist once more before letting her arms fall to her sides.

Edward nodded, but didn't peek at her face.

Carlisle cleared his throat then, and came forward to Isabella.

"You're sure then…this is what you want?"

Bella nodded. She pictured her bedroom, her small apartment and the streets lined with magnolia trees. She thought of the collection on her dresser of glass flowers, a girlish hobby her mother had introduced to her. She thought of the way her mailbox would stick in the cold weather and how her old truck was always sweltering in the sun.

She thought of the sun.

"I want to go home."

"Very well."

Carlisle took her hand in his and peered into her eyes. She felt him then, looking into her heart, her brain. She wanted to know what he was looking for, and if he'd found it.

"Alice?" Carlisle beckoned the slight girl, then turned to Bella.

"Alice will see you home. It…it was a pleasure meeting you." He let go of her hand and patted her shoulder. She felt that she'd been dismissed by someone who was disappointed in her, but she couldn't make sense of the emotion.

The nymph took her hand and led her down the hall. None of the doors were open to her, and she wondered what might be inside of them. Things that would amaze and delight her? Or frighten her? She didn't know which she'd prefer.

"Alice?"

"Hmm?" The girl didn't spare a look at Bella, just steered her down the never-ending corridor.

Isabella foundered. It felt like everything was happening so quickly, and she couldn't get a hold over what she wanted to say, but there were words, choking her throat, clogging her brain. It was all going too fast.

Alice paused before a grand set of wooden doors. They were carved with pictures, similar to the doors that led to her bedroom in Edward's palace. Bella felt a pang, somewhere between her heart and her stomach. She would never see them again, never take the time to trace out their stories, never brush the raised ridges, feeling the contrast between cool gold and warm wood beneath the ridges of her fingertip. She missed them already.

"Come on now," Alice said. "It's best not to linger." With that, she drew Bella into a soft, tender hug. Bella laid her head against the smaller girl's shoulder and wished for more time.

"Shhh." Alice whispered the sound into Bella's ear, and when she opened her eyes, she was home. She was standing in the entry to her apartment. It looked and smelled exactly the same: boring brown carpet and wall painted apartment white. It had an unused air to it, that of something abandoned, but that was true before she'd left. She'd always been a ghost there.

Alice turned to her. "I'll be going now. Don't worry, Bella. You won't see any of us again."

"But what if I want-"

Alice shook her head, a sad smile on her face. "It wouldn't be fair, Bella. Not to anyone. You know that."

Again, Bella felt the sting of chastisement, but was unsure why. Yes, she'd made a choice to leave, but really, what other options were there? To be tricked into a life in hell? To be forced to be someone's bride, just because he'd taken a fancy to her?

And what about the other one? What about Jasper? When she closed her eyes, she could feel his warmth on her skin.

"Bella?"

She opened her eyes to see the small girl staring at her. "I understand, you still need to say goodbye, to him, to us. When you're ready, take this draught. When you wake, it will be as if we'd never existed."

She'd heard those words once before, on a cool beach with the soothing sound of the ocean, ringing in her ears. She'd felt it in her bones, in her blood, the rhythmic pulse of the earth itself. She'd felt primal and exotic on that beach. Fearless. What had happened?

Edward had taken her hand in his, and he'd touched her so soft, so gentle. He'd promised her a kingdom…hadn't he?

It was a bitter taste, to twice have held the favor of a god, and to twice know his absence.

Had she wanted to be a queen? Or had she only wanted to be loved? What was the difference? Fealty or affection?

Looking down at the small silver vial in her palm, Isabella was tempted to uncork it and drink it down that moment. The disappointment that stung her heart, the fleeting moments of feeling wanted and adored, all of it, she wanted to forget.

Bella opened her mouth, tried to say something to the girl, but in the blink of an eye, she was gone.

In her wake though, soft, whispered words echoed through Isabella's home. "Sometimes stars fall down, Bella. And yet, they still shine."

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AN: I'll try to update again tomorrow, but no promises. If not, don't look for anything until Monday or Tuesday. I'm brewing my first batch of beer this weekend, and getting a jump on my holiday baking. Thank you for reading!