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There were few times in Carlisle Cullen's existence that he had ever been surprised. Truly, honestly surprised. He could add the moment Charlie Swan walked into his office two days ago as one of those moments. He knew the chief of police, mostly by reputation, was a good man. An honorable man. You'd rarely find anyone in the small town of Forks, Washington who had anything bad to say about the man, and those who did were often on the other side of the law.

So when Charlie walked into his office and asked him to change his seventeen year old daughter into a vampire, one could imagine how shocked and surprised Carlisle was.

And intrigued.

Of course, there was a lot to consider. Repercussions if he agreed to change the young Bella Swan. As he told Charlie, they would have to take the girl and leave Forks. The treaty they made almost a century ago made it clear what would happen if they changed anyone in the area. The Quileute's were protective of their people, and the people of Forks, and with good reason. Most vampires weren't like his family, and would have picked them off one by one, but his family was different, and he'd managed to convince Ephraim Black to sign a treaty, which made Carlisle's decision that much harder to make. They could flee, take the Swan girl with them, and change her; or they could let her die and stay in Forks for a short while longer.

Carlisle could respect the Quileute's stance, seeing as he was protective of his own family. Which was why he hadn't shared the odd request from Charlie Swan with anyone inside his family, and that was not easy, considering Edward's ability to read minds, or Alice's pension for seeing the decisions that affected their futures, and boy, would this decision affect their futures. Though, if he were honest, he had noticed the way they watched him, clearly knowing that he was holding his thoughts back. Even Jasper seemed to feel his anxiousness, and would send calming waves in his direction, most likely because Alice needed to know what he was hiding.

Of course, Carlisle hadn't made a decision either, because he needed to see the girl for himself, know for himself that she was worth changing. No, not worth. That wasn't the right word. Willing, maybe? Carlisle had delved into her medical history. It hadn't been difficult for him to access her medical records out of the hospital in Arizona. Charlie had been correct, of course. There was nothing left to do for young Bella Swan. The girl was dying, and he might be the only person who could save her. But was changing her truly saving her? As he parked in front of Charlie Swan's house, he closed his eyes, turned his focus toward the house. It was quieter than most human houses, he thought. He hear could breathing, and heartbeats, but that was all. No music, no television, nothing but soft breathing and delicate heartbeats.

Carlisle opened his eyes and climbed out of the car, shifting his eyes around him, almost expecting Billy Black to jump out of a tree and try stake him. As if that would work, he laughed to himself. Still, he expected something, yet nothing happened.

Carlisle turned and headed up the front walk, softly knocking on the door. He turned and looked around again, just to turn back toward the door a moment later when it slowly and quietly crept open. He found himself face to face with a beautiful woman with dirty blond hair, bright blue eyes that were sad and heavy, filled with heartbreak.

"I'm Carlisle Cullen. I believe you're expecting me."

"I'm Renee." She tried to smile, but it came off forced as she took a step backward and said, "Please come in."

Carlisle kept the front of his body facing her, thinking it would make her feel more comfortable around him. She shut the door softly, wincing as her eyes shifted from him and into the living room. He followed her gaze, finding a small, fragile girl curled up in the corner of the living room. They curtains had been drawn to a close, the blinds turned to keep as much light out as they could. Still, Carlisle had no trouble seeing her, or smelling her.

She smelled of death.

Humans on the brink of death often had an aura about them, but it was more than that with Bella. There was something else around her, something that Carlisle could tell in an instant was important.

"Dr. Cullen, thank you for coming," Charlie whispered, hurrying out of the kitchen. Though he spoke softly, the girl still winced, and Charlie flinched. "Sorry, baby girl."

"S'okay," the small, fragile girl in the corner whispered, tilting her head backward.

Carlisle managed to cover his . . . surprise, but the girl was beautiful, even if she looked ill. Her hair was long, dark and greasy, he eyes sunken in, heavy from the lack of sleep. Her lips were dry and cracked, her cheeks shallow. She looked like death, and in that moment, he knew what he would do.

His phone rattled the instant he made his choice. The girl grabbed the sides of her head, clamping her hands over her ears as he swiftly silenced Alice's call. He turned his phone off, knowing she would keep calling if he didn't.

"May I sit?" he asked, keeping his voice low enough not to hurt Bella, but loud enough that Charlie and Renee would hear.

"Yes, please, of course," Renee said, gesturing toward the worn down sofa. He moved slowly as not to startle Bella, who watched his every step. "It's okay, honey."

"Who are you?" she asked, her voice just as soft and fragile as she was.

"My name is Carlisle Cullen," he told her. "I want to help you."

She groaned and shook her head. "No more doctors!"

"Not help you like that," he said, smiling.

"Then how can you help me?" she asked.

Carlisle shifted his eyes to Charlie and Renee, who both seemed too wrapped up in themselves to explain anything to their daughter. Carlisle turned back to Bella. "I can take all the pain away. Give you a new life, a different life."

"How?" she asked, wetting her bottom lip as her fingers loosened from her hair, and dropped between her legs and the rest of her body.

"Bella," Charlie said, moving so that he was kneeling next to her. She looked up at him with so much adoration and pride it became clear to Carlisle that she loved her father. "Carlisle is . . . He's a vampire."

Her eyes shifted from her father to Carlisle, widening but she didn't say anything.

"Did you hear me, honey?"

She slowly nodded, but still she didn't speak.

"He can change you into . . . into a vampire, Bella."

Still, she simply stared at Carlisle. How he wished he could read her mind like Edward would have been able to, if he were there. "Do you believe your father, Bella?"

She smiled, her lips pulling against her teeth as she nodded.

"How you feel about being changed?" he asked.

"I don't."

"You don't feel anything about the possibility of being changed into a vampire?"

She shook her head.

"Why not?"

She shrugged her shoulders.

Carlisle slid off the couch, moving so that he was kneeling next to her father, who cringed away from him. Bella, however, simply stared at him. "Do you know what being a vampire means, Bella?"

"Not really."

"It would mean you'd never die," he said, staring her in the eyes, searching for any type of understanding.

"Everybody dies," she whispered.

"Not everybody," he disagreed. "You would live pain free, Bella, forever. Physically pain free, I mean."

"Hmm," she hummed, still staring him down.

"You'd be like me," he said, flashing his teeth toward her.

Still nothing, no fear, no happiness, nothing.

"You'd drink blood, Bella. Animal blood," he clarified, when he noticed the way Charlie and Renee grimaced. "Like the rest of my family."

At the word family, Bella tilted her head backward and started laughing. Not a soft, gentle laugh, either. But a full belly laugh, deep from her gut. And in a move that surprised even Carlisle, Bella scrambled to her feet and took off through the living room, out the front door. They followed of course, noticing the way she stood in the yard, the pouring rain all around her. She turned her face to the sky, a smile spreading over her lips.

At that moment, Edward's silver Volvo screeched to a stop across the street. As he and Alice climbed out, Bella turned and looked directly at him. Edward's shoulders tensed, Alice shifted her attention from him to her, smiling before she simply looked at Carlisle and nodded.

"I'll be back for her tomorrow," Carlisle said, tearing his eyes off Alice and Edward, looking back at Bella, who was simply staring at Edward with a smile on her face. "Noon. If she agrees, I'll change her. But only if she agrees."

"Okay," he heard Charlie mutter before he hurried off the porch down to his car, sliding in behind the wheel. Just before he started the car and left, he saw Bella turn and hurry back into the house as Alice wrangled Edward back into his car.

Carlisle gathered himself as he shifted his Mercedes into drive, pulled away from Charlie Swan's house, and prepared to fight for Bella.

Thank you so much for all of the AMAZING reviews. I am truly blown away by the response this story has gotten. Let me a few more words, and let me know what you think.