Authors Note:

Hey there!

This is my first story guys, I've always loved twilight and decided to write a story about it. Rosalie and Bella are endgame here, but it will be a slow burn with trails. Reviews are greatly appreciated, as this is my first story. Thanks!

-Ashley.

Update: I have taken the time to edit this chapter so that it reads smoother. Cheers to correct grammar.

Summary:

James bit Bella, and she the venom set in. If only she hadn't gone to play baseball with Vampires. If only she had the good sense to call his bluff and stay with Alice and Jasper. If only Edward had gotten there a little bit sooner. Edward tried to suck the venom out, but she tasted so heavenly. Good thing Carlisle was there to save her. His only hope was to bite her over and over, hoping she would turn instead of embracing death. It turns out she wasn't meant to die in the old ballet studio in Phoenix. She was meant to live a new life, but nothing about life is easy. Looks like she see's things differently with crimson eyes.

Chapter 1: The beginning? The end? Who knows.

My eyes opened to bright daylight streaming in a large window beside my bed. Was I on a bed? My vision was fuzzy, I could hardly make out the image of what was in front of me. It was too unnerving to let my eyes focus, I flinched them shut. I had no idea where I was or even if I was anymore. Trying to determine if this world around me was real or an illusion in death, I spread my fingers out to feel a fine threaded sheet. I was on a bed, that was confirmed. Under my head was a lumpy flat pillow. My fingers were stiff as they stretched out over the canvas of the bed. My body was a sort of surreal numb. I decided to attempt to move my toes. I felt the tension of the sheet on my toes as they moved. I still had toes, so this was a good sign. I had not had the courage to open my eyes long enough to let them adjust the hellishly bright surrounding. I could smell a strong scent of pine and honeysuckle. Somehow, I could smell that it had just rained; in fact I could hear the sound of condensation dripping from a leaf to the ground outside. What Kind of drugs were they giving me? It was a sensory overload and I hadn't even opened my eyes again.

"Edward?" I spoke expectantly. I could smell his strong fragrance. I knew he was there.

"Bella. I'm here, I am right here."

"Whe..where are we?" I felt a harsh burning in my throat. The kind of burning one get's from not drinking water for days. I moved my mouth, trying to swallow my spit to lubricate my throat. It offered no relief.

"I was too late, I just couldn't." He spoke low and soft. My mind flashed to a series of images. The car on the way to a hotel in the desert. Alice looking back at me with a worried expression. Jasper comforting her on the couch of a hotel room. My old ballet studio and the sound of my mother's frantic voice. I felt the phantom ache of my bones breaking. The stinging on my wrist. I saw his face, His angelic face as he leaned over me to take in my damage.

"It was my fault, I was stupid and I thought he had my mom."

"It wasn't your fault, If I were faster or stronger…"

"I'm okay now. I need to call mom and Charlie. They are probably so worried." I spoke as I allowed myself to open my eyes. I sat up; my body screaming for all it had been through with me. Every joint in my bones felt stiff. My muscles seemed tight and sore, I felt like I had just run a marathon holding weights. My eyes focused, it seemed that this accident had given me clearer vision. I knew my contacts weren't in but I could see so clearly. I felt like I was seeing Edward for the first time. Noticing the fine lines in his face, the specs in the honey of his eyes. He noticed my struggle and moved quickly to stop me from getting up.

"I don't think that's a good idea. We need to talk before you do anything." Edward persuaded.

Just then Carlisle came through the door and into the bedroom. I noticed just then that we were in the Cullen house and not in a hospital. Had I slept through a hospital visit and a drive here? Why was I not in Phoenix, or even at my house?

"Hello Bella, I'm glad to see you are up."

"Hey..." I said dumbly. My mind was still trying to catch up. "So what happened to me? The last thing I remember James was with me in the studio, there was just so much pain…" I scrunched my face trying to remember the details. The same images flashed through my mind. They all seemed so fuzzy now, like I was watching a memory on an 8mm film. Carlisle sat down on the end of the bed. Edward stood at the foot of the bed with an obvious distance. After however many hours or days I had been out, I must have had my own over powering musk, I couldn't blame him for his hesitation.

"There was an accident, you were losing a lot of blood. James had bitten you, and you were dying. I'm not sure if you would have died or if James's venom would have been enough to turn you. It only felt appropriate that Edward try to save you, since you two share a connection." He paused to consider his son. "He attempted to suck the venom out, however…" He looked down at the bite on my arm; he regained focus and continued, not breaking eye contact with my scar. "Your blood is a singer for him."

"What do you mean?" At this he met my eyes again.

"Your blood called to him. It is very difficult for even the most mature vampires to drink a human's blood without killing them. Edward had to consume your blood along with the venom, for it had mixed with your blood." He sighed. "It was too much for him to handle. I should have done it myself. I made a bad judgement call. For that I am sorry." He placed his hand on my shoulder.

Understanding began to take hold. For good measure I asked the question on the tip of my tongue. "What what happened?"

"Erm…" Carlisle turned his head to look at Edward. The two shared what seemed to be a conversation without a word. Edward nodded his head to Carlisle and paced to the wall. He leaned on the far side wall near the window. He didn't look at me anymore, only out the window.

"Edward was able to get the venom out, but in the process, he began a frenzy. Like I said, your blood is a singer to him. It took all my strength to get him off of your wrist. At this point, we were sure you would die. I had no supplies, no blood to treat you with. Your consciousness had drifted and I was left with no other option."

"I don't...?"

"I had to bite you in every major vein you have. You'll notice the scars glisten from all the areas I worked on. I wasn't sure that even with all the venom I gave you, that you would take it on and turn. I had to try, I couldn't let such a wonderful, selfless, young life pass because of the vengeance of one vampire and the mistake of another." He paused looking down at my hand. He reached for the top of my hand and clasped my grip. I could feel nothing by the sensation of touch. No cold, no heat, he was the same temperature as myself.

"Bella, you are a vampire." Edward said abruptly as he turned to face me for the first time since his positioning. His face showed disappointment and hatred. He turned away again once more to the window.

"I gave you a sedative once I was able to get the medication and we got you out of the studio and into a safe space. After that your heart continued to beat, weak as it was, until this morning. I hope you are at peace with your fate, there was no time to consider your will in the matter."

"I don't know what to say." My mind mulled over the events of the last few days. I wondered if I were living a dream, but the aching of my stiff body made me believe it was real. "I am more than okay, I mean, I …I wanted this. Edward, you don't have to be upset. I'm fine with this."

He moved from the window towards the door, he turned the brass knob and began to make his way out, stopping half way through his exit.

"I've stolen your soul, Bella. Nothing will ever change that. Nothing will ever make me stop hating myself for what I did to you." With that he was out of the room. Carlisle sighed and turned back to me.

"I think it would be best if you do not contact Charlie or your mother until we figure this out. I'm not saying forever, It's just not safe for them or us right now. I hope you understand."

"Okay, but what does he think happened to me?"

"I'm not sure, I will send Alice to ask about you. She can pretend to have not heard from you. Maybe she can gather some answers. In the meantime, I think you should eat. I'll have Edward go with you to show you how to hunt."

As soon as he mentioned hunting a strong fire lit in my throat. It was as if I had strep throat and I drank boiling water, all at one time. I gripped the sheets, they tore under my pressure. Emmett burst into the room like a bull. His face had the widest grin I had ever seen on it. I would have laughed had my throat not been on fire.

"Bells! I am so happy you are awake! I heard you Carlisle talking about the hunting, there is no way I'm not going to be there to see that. This is the day I've been waiting for! Bells learning to hunt! We can totally grab a couple bucks to ease you into it, but I want you up to a mountain lion by the end! This week we have to hunt bears! We can run up to the Canada border and hunt here. There are way less people in the Rocky's, maybe we should head over there."

He spoke so loudly and fast he didn't give me a chance to process anything. It's a good thing he didn't need oxygen, because he would have passed out.

"I don't care where Emmett, my throat is killing me, I need something now." I said with severity.

"Yeah, I remember that! You get used to it. Well, let's go! Hey Edward, Rosie! Let's go!" He turned and shouted unnecessarily. I could hear the sound of Rosalie brushing her hair in her room and Edward pacing in his room. I'm pretty sure they knew our conversation already.

"I'm not going to go chasing after her if she tries to kill a hiker or a group of brownies. She is not my responsibility." Rosalie spouted out from her room coldly. I heard her door slam as she exited her room. Her footsteps were loud on the floor as she made her way down the stairs.

Edward was suddenly outside the door, He stood against the frame as he spoke.

"Nothing will happen. We will all go and make sure that there are no casualties. I think we should start in the national park. Its close by, she won't have as much of a chance catching human scents on the way to hunt and its secluded."

"Eddie, I'm getting so tired of Elk and mountain goats. That's almost all that area has." Emmett whined.

"They have black bears too, you just have to be a better tracker to find them." Edward half teased.

"I do find them, I'm a hunter Eddie, it's just that I don't think Bells will be happy with goat. They have a lot of mountain goats." Emmett said.

"She won't even know the difference right now. C'mon." Rosalie shouted impatiently from the front door.

I stood up for the first time. Although my muscles were sore, my body felt weightless. We glided down the steps, each so effortless. Either the drugs were still in my system or being a vampire was going to take some adjusting. I could hear Carlisle sit back down at his desk in his office. I heard no other sound. The house was empty aside from the four of Carlisle and us.

"Where are Alice and Jasper? And Esme?" I questioned.

"They went to Seattle to shop for clothes for you. Well, Alice did, Esme needed some things to decorate a room for you. Jasper is supposed to be there to keep them in check. I doubt Jasper will do much to deter them from splurging." Edward said in a way that seemed more like the Edward I knew. He had been so quiet and pensive, I wondered if he had transformed into something else too. I was glad he was still my Edward.

"So, you are giving me my own room?" I said.

"We don't know how well you will integrate with the humans of this town. We need to be prepared to have you away from them until we are sure you wont hurt anyone." Edward said.

"Why can't I stay with you?" I spit out as if that would have been the obvious scenario that the Cullen's somehow overlooked.

Edward opened the door for me as we shuffled out of the house. Emmett followed. Rosalie did too. She remained quiet and expressionless in the back of our pack. Emmett did little to hide his emotions of excitement.

"Nothing has changed in that aspect Bella. You may be a vampire now, but that doesn't change that I am committed to keeping your virtue in tact, as much as possible." Edward stated in a strict tone.

"I thought before it was just that you didn't want to…. you know…Kill me." I struggled with my worlds.

"Can we talk about this another time Bella?" Edward said as he pushed past the rest of the group. Without another chance to speak he was making distance towards the park without the others and I.

Being out in the forest was so different from how I remembered it. Its like the world had become much more fragrant, the colors of the trees and the moss were richer. Birds flew in slow motion when we ran, the trees should have been a blur, but my focus was unbreakable. I had never felt so light and graceful. What happened to my two left feet? I found myself bouncing from log to rock to ground with no tripping, no scraped knees. This was a dream I didn't want to wake up from, and I wouldn't. This was my life now, and it was incredible. I was in my own incredible world when Emmett stopped on a dime. My newfound reflexes did not betray me, I stopped to take in what he was sensing.

Not more than a mile away, a mountain climber was mid climb in the national forest. He was alone with only 20 feet or so to the top of his obstacle. He attempted a ledge almost out of his reach, when his hand grasped the rock ledge he trusted his grip too much. His hand gave, his stance slipped, and his knee scraped against the rock. Blood immediately tickled down his leg; he hold was too fragile to allow him to wipe his leg. The blood started falling from his leg to the forest below.

My newfound reflexes did not betray me, I stopped to take in what he was sensing. A strong smell assaulted my nose. It was like nothing I had ever experienced, my mind was whirling with thoughts, observations and commands. The scent lit a fire in my throat; I all had ever desired was dull in comparison to this. My body only wished to follow the scent. Blood.