A/N: Hello dear reader, I received two questions from you all: ´Is this Bella x Edward?´ (Yes) and ´Is this all-human?´ (No)

Princess Bella - Chapter Two

¨She must have seen a spider,¨ Jacob stuttered.

¨Why would she run that far if she only saw a spider?¨ my other brother Paul asked. ¨And jump in a lake, nonetheless. It doesn't make any sense!¨

¨You know how scared she gets when she sees one,¨ Jacob responded.

Even though he was the eldest son, he wasn't a great liar and Paul knew that. I opened my eyes to spy on my two brothers, hoping they would leave my room.

They didn´t. Jacob even noticed me.

¨She's awake, thank goodness.¨

I smiled at both my brothers to let them know I was alright, but none of them smiled back.

¨You missed the ceremony,¨ Paul said harshly. ¨King Carlisle and Prince Edward have left our Kingdom. You´re in big trouble.¨

¨Leave her, Paul,¨ Jacob said to him. ¨She's awake for only a second and you´re already alarming her. How are you, Bella?¨

I looked at my oldest brother and thought about the woman in the lake. I must be alive thanks to her, but why didn't she drown? I had heard stories about mermaids, but those weren't real and weren't as beautiful as that woman. But then, what would that woman be and why had she saved me? It didn't make sense at all.

I wondered if my brothers would believe me if I told them I chased after my little, paper rabbit. Jacob had already seen Sophia and knew she existed, but would Paul believe me as well?

I figured I needed to be as honest as possible.

¨I´m fine, because a woman in the lake saved me.¨

Jacob and Paul exchanged looks.

¨A woman?¨

¨Yes.¨

Paul shook his head. ¨She must have inhaled some water, making her brain foggy. We have to alarm Father.¨

¨I´m fine!¨ I exclaimed. The hard sound of my voice alarmed something besides me. I moved my hand a bit, and Sophia found my outstretched hand. Oh thank goodness, Sophia was alright! My little rabbit had found her way back to me!

¨It was a beautiful woman, with bright red hair and red eyes,¨ I continued when both my brothers stayed silent. ¨She came to me before everything went dark, so she must be the one that saved me.¨

I smiled, hoping they would listen to me.

Paul only shook his head again. ¨I don't have time for this. Thanks to you, King Carlisle has left. Do you have any idea how much trouble you´re in?¨

My smile faded. Oh no, Father will be furious with me!

¨What are you´re going to tell Father?¨ Jacob asked, probably noticing my face went white thinking about my upcoming punishment.

¨That I saw a spider and ran away. And then, a woman saved me. She must have been a mermaid or something like that.¨

It sounded even sillier out loud than in my head.

The sound of footsteps approaching formed a knot in my stomach. It must be Father.

The door opened, and there he was. King Charlie Swan. He was feared among most, even feared among his three children, but always tolerant enough. Next to him stood our mother, Queen Renee Swan. She was always friendly and needless to say, I prefered her company over Father´s.

But, even she was angry.

¨I´m sorry,¨ I whispered, unsure if it would help my case, but desperate to try. If I could only make Mother smile again, then my punishment wouldn´t have to be so large, I hoped.

¨Be quiet, Bella,¨ Father harshly interrupted me. ¨You have no idea what shame you've brought upon this family.¨

¨But we´re happy to see you´re not injured,¨ Mother said quickly, while Father shot her an angry glare.

¨Still, we're disappointed in you.¨

I nodded and looked down at the ground. Both Paul and Jacob did not dare to speak, didn't dare to interrupt our parents as their disapproval of me filled my room.

¨King Carlisle was humiliated today,¨ Father continued. ¨And for that, you´re to blame. What were you thinking?¨

¨I wasn't,¨ I stuttered.

Father sighed. ¨Why did you jump in the lake then?¨

¨I thought I saw a spider,¨ I lied, still looking down. I felt a hand on my shoulder and almost didn't dare to look up, but I smelled my mother's perfume, so I did look up.

¨Still, you don't have any damage on your body. I was so scared you were drowning and I couldn't see you. How did you swim so quickly?¨

I didn't want to lie about that, so I stuttered. ¨I saw a woman and she must have helped me.¨

Mother frowned. ¨A woman?¨

¨Yes, a beautiful one, with red hair and red eyes.¨

Father interrupted us, but I knew I saw something in my mother's eyes. She believed me, I knew it for sure.

your actions have negative consequences, and for that, you need to sew a suit for Prince Edward. You are not allowed to attend any pleasant activities outside or inside the castle. You are only allowed to sew, and that suit will have to suffice as a peace offering. Let's hope you have not offended prince Edward with your behaviour.¨

I nodded. I absolutely hated sewing, but I hated being engaged to Prince Edward even more. Besides, if I would sew very slowly, I could even delay this unfortunate wedding.

I smiled wickedly and tried to hide it. Jacob saw it, and he shook his head. Okay, maybe my plan wasn't completely foolproof, but it seemed better than a whole new betrothal ceremony.

Father and my brothers left my room, but Mother sat down next to me. My rabbit Sophia hid herself in the palm of my hand and I closed it, afraid she would leave again.

¨Tell me more about this woman,¨ Mother demanded, although it did not sound alarming to me.

¨I only saw her briefly. She was so pretty, and I think she saved me. I know it sounds silly, but I really think she is the reason I´m still alive.¨

Mother nodded, and I knew for sure she believed me. ¨If you ever see her again, you need to know that you can't trust her,¨ she whispered and frowned.

¨Why?¨

¨She is evil,¨ Mother explained and I leaned in to hear more about this. Why would that woman be evil if she saved me?

¨She uses magic,¨ Mother elaborated further and I grasped. Mother didn't know that I also used magic once, to bring my paper rabbit Sophia to life, while magic was strictly forbidden in Forks. Did that mean I was also evil in her eyes?

I didn't even want to do it, it just happened! I folded a rabbit out of paper, wished that rabbit was real and boom, she came to life.

I wasn't evil!

¨Hush darling, I didn't want to startle you,¨ Mother calmed me. She must think I was afraid of what she told me, but she didn't know I was afraid of something else.

¨So, does magic exist then?¨ I asked. I hoped Mother would not think something was weird about that question, as I both asked if the woman from the lake was real, and if I really had magic running through my veins.

¨Yes, but not here. Not in Forks. Here, it´s strickly forbidden. You know that, right?¨ She looked at me and I nodded. She stood up.

¨Good, then we understand each other.¨

As she walked across my room to the door, Sophia bit my finger. I held back a curse and angrily looked down at my hand.

¨What's in your hand?¨ Mother asked.

¨Nothing.¨

¨Princesses do not lie, Bella.¨

I sighed. ¨It's just a paper rabbit.¨

I opened my hand and Sophia understood the hint. She didn't move and lay lifeless in the palm of my hand. I was so proud of her, because she acted like any normal paper rabbit out there.

She looked normal.

Mother came to me. ¨Silly Bella. You do not need a paper rabbit, you silly girl.¨

She took Sophia in her hand and ripped her apart. My mouth fell open and I wanted to scream.

That was my rabbit! That was my friend! The only friend I had besides my brothers, was gone! The only magical thing I had ever created was gone. I had brought her to life. Me. Princess Bella Swan, and now she was gone.

Dead.

¨It's for the best,¨ Mother smiled at me, while I fought back the tears that formed in my eyes. ¨Besides, you´ll be a married woman soon. We don't want to make Prince Edward jealous of a silly paper rabbit, now do we?

I´ll see you in the sewing room once you´re done cleaning this mess.¨

And with those words, Mother left and I hated her.

But I hated Prince Edward even more.