A/N: Just a couple of things before we get the party started.

Do you like Jasper and Alice? Do you like smut? If so, check out the "Peenaters Alice+Jasper Smut Contest" entries, including one by yours truly.

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Click on Vote Now at the top to view entries and vote for your top five faves. Voting ends tomorrow, Monday June 15, so get on over there, (but, you know, after reading and reviewing Ch. 6 ).

Also, you can begin nominating stories for The Indie Twific Awards beginning Tuesday, June 16 and ending June 23. Only stories with an average of 30 or less reviews per chapter (or 1000 reviews all together if the story is complete) can be nominated, so these awards are really, truly for the stories that do not have a lot of readership. This means it is really up to you to nominate a story if you like it, you can't just trust that enough other people will nominate so you don't have to. So, get on over there next week and nominate your favorite little stories that could. (BTW, C+S does qualify, hint, hint).

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Thanks to Alyssa and jfairman of Project Team Beta for finding my goofs.

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. In other words, I do not own Twilight.

Chapter 6: We Can't Be Friends

"Billy's boy, Jake, checked out your truck last night. Says it's running as good as normal and is perfectly safe for you to drive, so you can take it to the station after school. Guess you wouldn't want me to pick you up in the cruiser again anyways, huh?"

Dad's voice in the otherwise quiet of the car broke me out of my stupor. My mind had been chasing itself all night, reviewing every moment I had seen Edward, every word spoken between us, castigating myself for not realizing that Edward was "other," too. Now, I was just left to mourn for what we could never have, even though he probably never even wanted it. I felt like a pathetic, boy-crazy fool, and I had no idea how I would gather the nerve to face him in class.

Dad pulled up next to my truck, carefully steering away from the remnants of glass left when Tyler's van was towed away. I stepped out of the car, waving with a promise to go straight to the station after my last class. I watched as he pulled out of the lot, driving down the highway, then turned back to my poor, damaged truck.

The side was dented in, but luckily the glass in the window wasn't even cracked. The door opened easily, well, as easily as it ever did, and actually closed more easily. I looked at the hinges and thought that Billy's son must have sprayed WD-40 on it while he was testing it out. I would have to thank him. I bent down to check out the dent in the running board where Edward's head had hit and noted with suspicion that it was straightened out.

I heard a wolf-whistle and snapped up. I looked across the lot to the silver Volvo, and it's tall, handsome owner standing next to it, paused in mid-stride. I should have known it wasn't him, he wasn't even looking at me. Instead he was glaring at something or someone several yards to my left. I stepped around the bed of the truck to see what had earned his wrath, but only saw my entourage walking my way.

My usual lunch buddies were joined by Tyler, his face covered in tiny bandages, and I felt bad, thinking maybe there was something I could have done to stop the van from hitting my truck altogether. "Hey, Bella!" he shouted, "Man, I'm glad I didn't flatten that ass!"

My mouth dropped open, and suddenly, I didn't feel so bad about not stopping the van.

Mike turned to Tyler, lightly punching his arm. "Crowley! Too soon, dude, too soon."

Tyler shrugged, smiling unapologetically. "Sorry," he murmured.

They had almost reached me and I stole one last glance in the direction of the Volvo, but Edward had already gone to class.

Mike walked me to English, but didn't walk me to Government like he usually did, because Tyler was waiting for us after class. He informed Mike that we had class together, and I rolled my eyes that either of them even imagined I needed an escort. Tyler sat next to me in class for the first time ever and cracked jokes through the entire class. I did my best to ignore him, but I accidentally let a growl slip out when he proclaimed, "I'll Sandra Day her O'Connor!"

He was quiet for the rest of the class and walked away without a word when Jessica met me to walk to Trig. When Mike met us after Spanish, I actually considered trying to convince him and Jessica to skip the rest of school with me, so I could avoid being in the same room with Edward, but I knew I couldn't skip half of school every day for the rest of the semester, so I kept my mouth shut.

We walked through the cafeteria doors and got in line, and I sharply exhaled when I saw that Edward wasn't at his family's table, though I could tell by the pull in my chest that he was near. My sigh turned to a groan, though, when I looked at my own table and found Tyler already sitting there.

I heard a chuckle behind me just before a smooth voice whispered in my ear, "If you object so much to your lunch companions, you're more than welcome to sit with me and my family."

I closed my eyes, relishing the timbre of his tones, and knowing that if I looked at him so close to me I would probably melt into a puddle at his feet. "You're family hates me," I whispered.

He started to protest, "No-"

I cut him off, "You're sister told me to stay away from you, and I do believe she would have threatened bodily harm if we weren't in a public place."

He sighed. "She just didn't understand then, but now…"

"What, now she does?" I looked over to the Cullens to find Alice watching us carefully with inquisitive, narrowed eyes and her lips pursed like she was plotting some grand scheme. "I don't even understand, Edward, so I certainly don't expect Alice to."

He touched a hand to my shoulder, and I was surprised to feel a mixture of frustration, curiosity, and desire radiating from him. I stepped forward swiftly, breaking our contact, but trying to look like I was just moving forward through the lunch line.

"Bella, please…"

"I'm going to sit with my friends. They were concerned about me yesterday, and I'm not going to turn away from them to hang around people who can barely be civil towards me."

He started to argue again, but I finally looked up into his topaz eyes and continued.

"They're good people, and I want to sit with them."

We watched each other, unblinking, until an obnoxious voice spoke from behind him, "God, Bella, what's your damage? Dropped on the head much? Stop holding up the line!"

Our connection broke as we both turned to the source of the voice, and we glowered at Lauren as she pushed her way past us to cut in front of me. He looked back at me with a raised eyebrow as if she'd proven his point for him.

I shrugged. "Well, they're mostly good people."

I grabbed my usual soda and went to the cashier. He leaned down again to whisper to me, "You really should get more food, even if you're not going to eat it."

I looked down at his tray, full of food I was certain he wouldn't eat. "You so don't get to lecture me about my diet."

His lips twitched as he tried to hide a smile, and I pursed my lips as I grabbed a stick of beef jerky and paid for it too. "Happy now?" I asked.

"I'll be happy when you have lunch with me."

My traitorous heart fluttered, and I shook my head slightly. "Not today, Edward. I'll see you in class."

I went to my table, feeling emboldened, thinking that if I could maintain a safe yet polite distance from Edward, everything would work out. After all, it's not like he could force me to spend time with him. At least, I didn't think he could.

Lauren managed to distract Tyler throughout lunch, so I gave all of my attention to Jessica, who preened with happiness. She and Mike were discussing a beach trip they had been planning for when the weather warmed up, and somewhere between my random "uh-huh"s and "oh really"s, I agreed to go along. I wasn't too worried, though, because I figured that by the time the temperature was right, I could find an excuse to back out of it.

On the way to Biology, Angela talked about the beach trip too, but she was not thrilled about going along. She always felt like she had to be the responsible one in the group and keep everyone else from doing stupid things, like stepping on sea glass, or drowning. She told me that she spent enough time babysitting and didn't feel like doing it when she was supposed to be having fun.

I saw that Edward was already seated at our table and I slid into my seat. He was looking at me, but I kept my face turned toward the table top. I heard a projectile coming my way and looked up just in time for a balled up piece of paper to hit me on my forehead and land in front of me. Laughter was stifled from a few chairs in front of me. I unwadded the paper to read a messy scrawl: Smile Bella!

I looked up and Mike was turned to face me, his eyes crossed and his tongue out. I realized I was frowning, and had been ever since I saw Edward already in his seat. I smiled tightly and quickly stuck my tongue out in return, willing to act juvenile to keep Mike from worrying. From the corner of my eye, I saw Edward's hands tighten on his workbook.

Against my will, I turned to look at him, wondering what had upset him. His face was still and his voice controlled when he softly spoke, "Bella, do you have a romantic interest in Mike Newton?"

I couldn't decide whether to laugh or scream, so I did neither and replied calmly, "What makes you think you have the right to ask me that?"

"Are friends not allowed to inquire about each other's amorous pursuits?"

Any other time I would have giggled at his old-fashioned wording, but knowing that he was quite possibly several hundred years old brought reality crashing down on me. "We're not friends, Edward. We can't be friends."

I hadn't intended to sound sad and desperate, but I knew that's how it came out. I could tell he was struggling to maintain his calm façade, but his brows lowered and his lips tightened.

"Why, because my family and I aren't good people?" he asked bitterly.

I knew we were treading on dangerous ground. He probably already suspected that I knew what he was, but I tried to do damage control nonetheless. "I don't know you, Edward. You might be a wonderful person, or you might be awful. It doesn't change the fact that you would be better off not being my friend."

He smirked darkly, before turning his golden stare to me. My breath left me as he seemed to look straight into my thoughts. "Why do I get the feeling you just stole my line?"

"Please, Edward, don't make this hard on me," I begged, though I really wanted to plead with him to ignore my words, to sweep me off of my feet, to take me away someplace where we could be together.

He watched me, still trying to interpret my soul, then nodded briefly once and turned away.

I managed to make it through Biology without crying, so in P.E. I punished my opponents on the basketball court. Mike always insisted on being on my team, though whether because of my newfound sports skills or because of my teeny tiny gym shorts, (Really? What kind of perverts made up this uniform?) I honestly didn't know. At one point, I had riled myself up so much that when I passed the ball to Mike, the force of my throw knocked him on his rear.

"Whoa, easy there, tiger. Save it for the other team." He rubbed his tush as he stood.

"Sorry, Mike." I smiled apologetically.

After class I changed clothes quickly and pushed through the door to leave the locker room before the other girls. I was halted in the hallway by a small, cold hand wrapped around my arm. I concentrated and felt the girl's frustration, curiosity, and a hint of fear. I turned to her, not surprised to see Alice watching me in puzzlement.

I extricated my arm and raised an eyebrow in question. "May I help you?"

"I don't understand you, Bella Swan."

"That makes two of us, Alice Cullen."

A couple of girls came through the door and rushed past us, and we silently waited for them to exit the hall.

"What I mean is, what are you trying to do to my brother?"

I couldn't believe she had the gall to ask me that after she practically railroaded me the previous week. "I'm doing what you wanted, staying away."

She narrowed her eyes at me. "Don't pretend you care a lark for my desires. I do feel that everything would be so much easier if you had never come to Forks, but you did, and I doubt you plan on leaving anytime soon. So, why don't you just play nice with Edward so the rest of us can get on with our lives."

She really knew how to woo a girl. "Look, I don't really know what your brother expects from me, nor do I care."

Liar, my brain responded. Shut up, brain. No one asked you.

I continued, "It would really be best if Edward chooses to ignore me, just like you all ignore every one else. The status quo would be upheld, peace would rain down from the heavens, all that jazz, okay? Feel free to tell him that for me."

I walked around her and left the building, walking straight to my truck without even a glance at the Volvo, and I ignored the incessant pull coming from the other side of the lot. I reached the police station in just a few minutes, and Dad was already waiting for me outside. I got out of the truck and he put an arm around my shoulders as we walked into the station. Were you able to avoid them today? His voice softly whispered in my head.

For the most part, I concentrated on projecting to him.

He slowed and looked at me questioningly. "Did you get that?"

"Yeah," I responded, "I heard you, but I guess you didn't hear my answer. It was alright. Maybe we can change my middle name from Marie to Avoidance."

He nodded, and then changed the subject. "We'll keep working on it. I think you'll get stronger with practice, both with hearing and projecting."

We went to his cramped office, and I limberly stepped over several piles of paper to reach a folding chair that was leaning against the wall. I moved it in front of his desk, being careful not to set it on anything important. Obviously, he hadn't had any visitors in a while. He shut the door behind us and walked behind his desk, taking a seat in an office chair that had seen better days.

"Okay, Bells, I thought we'd start in here for now, since it can be a little awkward until you get used to it. First, I want you to close your eyes and concentrate on feeling the energies of everyone in the building. Start with me."

With my eyes closed and focusing I could sense Dad's energy, or aura as Renee would call it. It was off-putting, like a bolt of lightning hanging out in the room with me, just waiting to strike. "I sense your energy. It's too hot and… I don't know, sharp?"

"Good, Bells, you've probably been distinguishing energies for a while, without realizing it."

"Renee made me take a class with her on seeing people's auras. I never saw anything, but I did realize I could kind of feel the difference when someone was healthy or sick or excited, you know?"

"Your mom was just trying to help, in her own way."

I opened my eyes to see him frowning sadly. "Yeah, I guess that makes sense now."

He nodded and spoke again, "Go ahead and close your eyes. I want you to think about the energies in the processing room."

I focused and gave him my results. "Five energies, four are very warm, like heated blankets, the other is a little dimmer? Like a regular old quilt?"

He chuckled. "That's Annie, she's a little under the weather. Okay, now go to the holding area. Can you distinguish between the officers and the prisoners?"

"There are three officers outside of the cells, and they all have the same kind of comforting warmth as the ladies out front. Three prisoners are sitting inside, and they're all agitated. Two are just slightly fired up, like hot griddles, but the other, the one that's alone… he's about to boil over."

"Very good, kid. Now, try to pull that energy into you. Try to bring their levels down to those of the officers, but try to stop before they get sick like Annie."

I opened my eyes, quirking an eyebrow. "Ummm, Obi Wan, just pull that energy into me? You can't give me any more instruction than that?"

He smiled at me. "This should be as natural as drinking water, Bells. Heck, for you, it should be even easier. Now, close your eyes and do it."

I focused, and as I watched in my mind, their energies broke apart, like dandelion fluff blowing on the wind. Little particles floated to me, and I inhaled. They each had their own distinct taste, one greasy, like fried chicken, one hearty, like beef stew, but the other burned, like alcohol going down my throat.

I finally knew what had happened with Tanya in that snowy field in Alaska; she had forced her energy on me. I became distracted, wondering how she knew how to do it, and it took me a moment to realize that the man whose energy was once boiling was now quickly fading, his energy far dimmer than Annie's, about to blink out.

"Shit!" Two voices hissed as Dad slapped a hand on my arm to break my concentration. We both hopped out of our chairs and sprinted out the door and down the hall to the holding cells. We slowed to a human dash when we saw the officers, and Dad continued past the drunk tank to the solitary cell, where the man inside was twitching on the floor, his mouth foaming.

"Call an ambulance!" Dad shouted, before turning to me. "Go on home, kid. I'll have to stay here tonight while a couple of guys accompany him to the hospital. Will you be okay alone?"

I breathed in, shaken, but trying to play it cool in front of my dad's co-workers. "Yeah, I'll be fine."

He breathed deeply, too, darting a glance around the suddenly crowded room before giving me a look filled with parental concern. "Call me if you need anything, or if you just want to talk."

I nodded, knowing he would want to discuss my near manslaughter in private. "Sure, will do."

I drove home, my hunger completely banked, and my stomach uncomfortably full. Once there, I quickly finished my homework then watched some television, but nothing remotely interesting was on. I wanted to leave the house, to go listen to Edward play the piano, or watch him reading the newspaper, anything really, as long as I was near him. I stayed home, though, knowing my dad's request that I stay away from the Cullens was for my own safety.

I went upstairs, intent on going to bed early, but I paused in front of my window, looking across the street, where Dad saw Edward waiting the night before. I knew he wasn't there now; the pull was telling me he was somewhere near his own house, but I couldn't help wishing he was looking back at me.

I started to turn away from the window, when I noticed that there was something different about it. I ran my hand along the frame, and touched the locks that hadn't been on the window in the morning. I slowly walked downstairs to get the portable phone, and then I took it back upstairs with me. I dialed my father's direct line, looking at the window again, realizing that more than just the locks were new.

He answered on the third ring. "Bells? Is everything alright?"

"Yeah, I suppose so, it's just… Did you have a new window installed in my room?"

He was quiet for a second. "Yes, I took a couple of hours off this morning and had a guy come over to install locking windows upstairs."

I messed with the window while he spoke, opening and closing the lock, pushing the window open for a little while. "Don't you think you're going a little overboard? I doubt his curiosity is going to inspire him to climb through a second story window," I said more bitterly than I intended.

"Whose curiosity, Bells?" Like he didn't know.

I was quiet as I shut and locked the window again, so he continued, sincerely. "You really have to get better at reading minds, and soon."

After hanging up, I showered and went to bed, quickly falling asleep like I'd eaten a complete Thanksgiving dinner.

The following weeks passed slowly in a dismal fog of longing. At lunch and in Biology I did my best to keep from looking directly at Edward, not wanting him to see me staring at him like a love-starved puppy, but I couldn't help the occasional glance. Out of the corner of my eye I would catch him pinching the bridge of his nose, like he was in pain, and I watched the dark circles under his eyes become more sunken, and the gold of his eyes turned to black as the weeks dragged by.

I put all of my effort into learning to read minds and projecting, but by the beginning of March I had only managed to progress to reading emotions a little more clearly, and only while touching someone, and I could still only hear my dad's specific words or see images if he was concentrating on sending them to me and we were touching. He could still only feel my emotions, no matter how hard I concentrated on projecting my thoughts to him.

I had mastered siphoning energy from people without harming anyone again, so everything wasn't a total loss. We even had a class assembly on Valentine's Day, and since everyone was hyped up on candy and V-day induced lust, I was able to have a veritable feast while the school counselors and nurse discussed abstinence and teen pregnancy. By the end of the hour, I wasn't the only one about to fall asleep in my chair.

My e-mails to Renee had become even shorter and more clipped than before, which I felt bad about in a way. Dad kept reminding me to be nice to her, that she had sacrificed half of her life for me, but I just didn't have much to tell her. I didn't think she wanted to hear about my lessons in the supernatural, and I didn't want to mope to her about my unrequited crush on someone of a different species, so my e-mails became very basic: I'm fine, I ate chicken last night (I failed to mention that it was still alive at the time, figuring she didn't need the details), I bought a new blue shirt at the consignment shop down the street.

She was convinced I was angry at her, and started calling several times a week, almost always as we were heading out to catch food. The first Tuesday in March, just as I heard Dad's wings flap as he left out of his window, the phone rang. I had the handset upstairs with me, assuming Renee would call, so I answered before the second ring.

"Renee! We're just on our way out, can I e-mail you later, please?"

"Bella?" a girl's voice questioned on the other end.

"Oh, guess you're not my mom. Hello?"

"It's Jess, I didn't mean to interrupt anything. You can call me back later if you want."

I kept in a sigh, hoping she would be quick. "No, it's okay if it won't be too long."

"Well, as you know, the Turnabout Dance is coming up in a couple of weeks, and I was thinking, if it's alright with you, that I might ask Mike to go with me." She sounded nervous, like she actually expected me to care and was genuinely begging my permission.

"Yeah, you should ask him! But, why wouldn't it be alright with me?" I had noticed in the past that Jess tended to defer to me when it came to my opinion on matters, but I didn't have a clue why she would ask me anything when it came to her own personal social affairs.

"I just wanted to make sure you didn't plan on asking him yourself."

"Jess, I have no interest in asking Mike, or anyone for that matter, to the dance. Even if I did, it would be my own fault if I didn't ask him before you did." She was making sputtering noises, so I decided to appease her. "But it was sweet of you to ask me, I guess."

"Bella! You have to go to the dance!" It was the first time I had ever heard her sound forceful with me.

"Noooo, no, no, no. I am a hazard on the dance floor, my friend." or at least I used to be when I tripped over flat surfaces.

"But it's just not going to be the same without you," she whined.

"Sorry, Jess, not this time. I've really got to go, now, but I'll talk to you tomorrow."

"K, bye," she said despondently before she hung up.

I expected her to be happier in the morning, at least her usual chipper self, maybe even bouncing off the walls if she had already asked Mike to the dance. Instead, she hung back from the crowd before school, and barely spoke during Trig or Spanish. Lunch was awkward as she and Mike sat at opposite corners of the table, as far from each other as possible, their bodies turned slightly away from the center of the group. I started to worry that Mike might have turned her down, but I didn't understand why until he and I were walking to Biology.

A large puddle on the sidewalk blocked the entrance to the science building and as I leaped over it, Mike put his hand on my elbow. Determination, excitement, and fear of rejection entered my mind from Mike's, and I winced.

"Oh, sorry, did I grab your arm too tight?" he wondered.

I shook my head, trying to decide what I could tell him to convince him to go to the dance with Jess without hurting his feelings.

"So, Bella, have you asked anyone to the dance yet?" he asked as we walked into the classroom.

Crap, too late. I sat in my seat next to Edward, whose head had tilted towards us at the word 'dance.'

"No, I'm not going," At the spur of the moment I came up with an excuse that seemed suitable at the time. "I'm going to Seattle that day with my dad. I need to shop for some things I couldn't bring with me from Phoenix."

I wanted to pat myself on the back, but Mike's face fell. "Oh."

"You're going with Jess, right?"

He shifted uncomfortably.

"Mike, you better not have said "no" to that girl."

He looked up at me sheepishly, "Well, I had kind of thought-"

I cut him off. "Look, Mike, tell anyone I said this and I'll make sure you never have any little Newtons. Jessica is crazy about you, and everyone but you seems to know it. No other girl is going to ask you to go unless she wants to hurt Jess. Got it?"

He nodded, but looked like he wanted to say more. "You're really not going to ask anyone?"

I shook my head.

"Well, we'll miss you then."

I smiled, and he walked back to his seat. I sensed that Edward was still watching me, though he was disturbingly still. I glanced at him, and he blatantly stared back with a look of curiosity. He turned his gaze to Mike, then back to me, all the while looking like he was working a complex puzzle. I looked to my desk in avoidance, letting my hair fall like a curtain between us, a habit I had made use of in the past few weeks almost every day.

After gym, Eric was standing next to my truck with a determined look on his face. I groaned when I saw him across the lot, but charged forward, prepared for what was coming. He opened his mouth to speak, but I interrupted. "I'm so glad you're going with Ang to the dance! You'll be really cute together, I'm sure. Too bad I won't get to see it."

His mouth had dropped open with my first words, and he struggled to respond now. "Why not?"

"My dad and I are going to Seattle that day. Still have some things to get to settle in, you know."

I made a mental note to myself to ask Dad to take me to Seattle, since everyone in town was going to think we were there at the rate I was spreading the rumor. I supposed I also needed to talk Angela into asking Eric to the dance, and I felt a twinge of guilt. Hopefully she wouldn't mind.

I was climbing in the truck when he said, "Oh, okay, have fun then."

Once I had my seatbelt on, I backed out of my spot to get in line to exit, but Edward's Volvo was blocking my way, the passenger doors opened as his siblings casually strolled across the lot to the car. I wondered what he was up to, and desperately wished I could read his mind at the moment. I concentrated so hard that I nearly jumped out of my skin when I heard a sharp rap on my window.

I rolled down my window, seeing Tyler standing by it with a determined look I was becoming all too familiar with.

"You and Lauren going to the dance, huh?" I started before he could even breathe, "I haven't seen her this excited all semester." Lie accomplished, and I didn't even feel guilty for throwing Lauren under the bus.

Unfortunately, Tyler wasn't as quick on the uptake as Eric. "I'm not going with Lauren, I want to go with you."

I tried to calm down, telling myself that he probably hadn't heard my Seattle story, "Sorry, but I'm going to Seattle with my dad that day."

"I was hoping you just told Mike that get out of going with him." I could drain him in just a few seconds, with just a thought. Must not use powers for evil, Bella, must not use powers for evil.

"Nope," I bit out, "I'm really going to be gone."

"That's too bad," he responded as he started to walk away. "Guess we still have prom," he shouted over his shoulder as he got in his car.

Foul words filled my head as I turned to face forward again, hoping the Cullens had left. Rosalie was the last to climb in the car, and I saw that Edward was laughing so hard his shoulders shook. I couldn't help feeling that he was laughing at me, so I slammed both hands down on my obnoxious old horn scaring a group of girls as they walked past, and they turned to glare at me. Edward took off as soon as Rosalie's door closed, and I would have peeled out behind him, except my truck couldn't accelerate faster than a turtle.

Jessica called me that evening to tell me that Mike had called her to say he'd like to go to the dance with her. She was finally as chipper as I expected her to be. I told her that I had heard that Eric wanted to go with Angela, and Tyler hoped Lauren would ask him, and she promised to spread the word. She started begging me to change my mind and go with them, telling me that the guys would still dance with me if I wanted to. I didn't tell her that was what I was worried about but told her about the Seattle trip instead, which is when my dad walked through the door, looking at me with a smile and a raised eyebrow. I curled my lip, rolling my eyes and got Jess to hang up.

"Seattle?" he asked curiously.

"Yeah, I might have kind of told several people that's why I couldn't go to the dance the Saturday after next."

"Why don't you go to the dance? It would be a good opportunity to feed, all those hormones floating around."

I grimaced. "Eh, I don't have a date, and I don't want to be a fifth wheel or anything."

"Honey, I'm sure any boy would be happy to go with you, just ask someone."

The real problem, that I had of course not told anybody, was that there was only one boy I wanted to dance with, and I knew my dad would change his tune if I asked Edward to go, whether he said yes or not. So, I pulled out the big guns. "Dad, the Cullens will probably be there."

I knew they probably wouldn't, they weren't big on school functions if the rumor mill was true, and I couldn't blame them. After all, it must be hard to not eat a classmate or two when they're all crowded in a tiny room in low cut dresses, gyrating all over the place.

His lips tightened. "Okay, Seattle it is. I'll have to make sure there are enough guys at the station that day so I won't get called in."

That night, after hunting, I went to sleep and dreamed, though I wouldn't remember much of it in the morning.

I was dancing a cotillion, lined up with several couples, facing a young, black-haired man with twinkling blue eyes, whom I felt great affection for. He wore knee high boots that showed off his trim calves, tight breeches that showed off his other assets, a military coat with tails, a bright blue sash across his chest, and a large metal star proudly displayed over his heart. I laughed when he swayed close enough for me to see that the star was decorated with tiny cherubim, their fat baby faces framed by wings.

"Is that your idea of a joke, my Lord?" I questioned, still laughing.

"No." He smiled, his deep voice rumbling from his wide chest. "It's my king's idea of an honor."

The King of Sweden was thrilled with him. First he had handpicked a successor for the monarch, a French soldier who was well liked by all. He had followed up his diplomatic quest by announcing his engagement to a French woman. Of course, only our family knew that I wasn't any more French than he was, and we had been married for all intents and purposes for many millennia.

Also, only our family knew that no amount of political games would really stop Napoleon's desire to own all of Europe, at least, not until we decided to make it stop. Our blood-thirsty sisters in France would continue to goad him on, just as they had goaded the puppets of the revolution not too long ago. Their greed was a bit distasteful even to me during that time. Surely they could have stopped after the first ten thousand deaths or so. On our side of the fracas, my Lord and I, and the family members who had travelled with us, would continue to rile up the enemies of the Empereur Petit. We would feed their vengeance, and feed off of their emotions and their dead in return.

We continued to dance, our gloved hands barely touching at rare moments, my empire-waist dress swirling around me as I spun towards him. A new dance, the waltz, was sweeping the continent, but was still considered impolite in public. I wanted to be in my Lord's arms as we danced, but alas, we must subscribe to propriety for the time being.

"Issy, you seem to have acquired yet another admirer," he said with a charming smile. The knave couldn't even be bothered to pretend to be jealous.

"Finally, maybe someone will rescue me from your evil clutches." I tapped his arm lightly with my closed fan and he lightly chuckled.

The song ended and he stepped close to me, whispering above me, "It's the British Commodore. Work your magic, my darling, convince him to continue to fight on our country's side." he pressed a kiss to my forehead and then walked away.

I turned, expecting a paunchy, middle-aged peacock of a military man, and instead found a tall, handsome, bronze-haired rogue, striding toward me with confidence. The glistening epaulets on his shoulders emphasized their breadth and his tight, white breeches hugged his muscular thighs. I felt even warmer than normal as my gaze travelled up to his emerald eyes.

I had seen this man before, many times, in fact, in many different incarnations, but before, he was always dead or dying when I found him, and he was always young, a mere boy forced to die in wars he had no way of understanding, to feed the insatiable hunger of me and my family. Now, he was a full grown man, in his late twenties by the look of him, practically a miracle in this time of war. He had always been fated to die a child, before, and I pondered why my sisters would let him live so long this lifetime.

"Mademoiselle Cygne, I presume?" I had never heard him speak before, but his voice was smooth and rich, pulling at me in strange ways.

I almost looked behind me to see whom he was speaking to before I remembered my new alias, Cygne, French for swan. My Love's sense of humor strikes again. "Oui, Commodore…?"

"Masen, though you may call me Tony."

He lifted my gloved hand to his lips, his eyes lowering, and even though no skin touched skin, a frisson of electricity went through me, causing me to gasp. His eyes flew open, and I felt trapped in their verdigris depths.

He stood straight, stepping closer to me than was proper, still holding my small hand in his much larger one, but for once, I did not care what others thought. The intoxicating man before me swept away all sense of propriety. He leaned near me, so only I would hear. "Shall we step out on the balcony?" he breathed, his voice a sensual rumble.

I nodded once, subtly. He turned us and moved his hand up my arm, to my shoulder, then back down to the small of my back. I almost stumbled in surprise, but he caught me, leading me forward and out the doors into the night. As soon as we were out the doors and out of sight of the crowd, he wrapped his arms around me and maneuvered me so that my back was pressed against the stone wall. One of his hands moved to my hip to hold me in place and the other tipped my chin up so he could see my expression, though if I really wanted loose, I could break both of his hands before he could blink.

"How dare…" I began, momentarily forgetting my faux-French accent.

"Who are you?" He gritted out, his lips mere inches from mine, his breath hot against my cheek.

"I am Isabel Cygne, affianced to Baron…"

"Do not lie to me," he interrupted. "I am no foppish courtier to be so easily tricked, and you are no newly betrothed, simpering maiden, fresh from a nursemaid's teat. I dare say you are not innocent at all, so who are you?"

I gasped, pretending to be enraged, though really I was quite intrigued. He was right, I was by no means innocent, but I looked like a seventeen year old human girl, so how he knew the difference was beyond me. His grasp tightened on my chin, and I could read in his thoughts the desire to kiss me, so I let my eyes flutter closed.

Before his lips could touch mine, however, I heard a throat clear, and a familiar, and at this moment terribly annoying, voice called "Issy?"

Without opening my eyes I called back, "Yes, Charles."

"I need your assistance."

I let my eyes open, and though the memory of his touch still lingered on my skin, the Commodore was now several feet away. I looked to the door where my brother, Charles, stood, lightly scratching the patch of hair below his lip that he was not yet used to. He called it a royale, in the French style, though I reminded him we were not actually French.

I pushed away from the wall to walk to Charles, raising a brow in question. "I believe Lyssa is about to cause a disturbance," he muttered cryptically.

I watched him, discerning that he meant more than just the usual disturbance. Lyssa had taken on her role as a French expatriate whole heartedly, behaving like a hoyden and blaming it on her supposed Gallic ancestry. The look on Charles' face, though, led me to believe she was up to more than tying ribbons into phallic shapes or singing bawdy songs at the dinner table.

I turned to the Commodore, standing silently in the corner, and I sincerely hoped we would run into each other again soon before he left. "Commodore," I dipped my head and dropped into a slight curtsy.

He bowed in response and I turned to leave, following my brother. "What is it this time, Charles?" I asked, irritably.

"She's found her pet again," he mumbled.

I stifled a groan, quickly calculating the years since he had last appeared. It had been twenty-five years since we had last disposed of him, and he had turned up again, like a bad coin. I saw them across the room, my Lyssa teaching her pet to waltz. The fashions of this time suited her, the thin material of her French empire-waist dress floating around her, her black hair cut short with little curls framing her delicate features, making her grey eyes look impossibly wide. She always looked tiny, being several inches shorter than most women, but next to the tall man she danced with, she truly was a sprite.

He was blonde, and lean, like he always was, and he wore the uniform of a Lojtnant of the Swedish army, which also came as no surprise as he was always a military man. I walked up to the couple, firmly grasping Lyssa's arm from behind, noticing she wasn't wearing her gloves, probably so she could more easily read minds. "Lyssa, my sweet, would you come with me for a moment?"

She looked up at me, tears swimming in her eyes. "No, Issy, please, not this time, let me have him, just this once, I will even leave him human," she pleaded desperately as I steered her away.

I looked behind us and saw that Charles and my Lord were already leading the man away. I hoped they could convince him to leave, to go fight the war he was meant to die in, but I knew from experience that once he met Lyssa, it was almost impossible for him to tear himself away from her. They might have to kill him, again, like they had done so many times before, and neither wanted to kill a healthy soldier before his fated time.

I stopped us when we entered the empty powder room. "You know he is fated to die in the next year or two. If we let you have him now, would you honestly be able to let him go then?" I asked, reminding her of her responsibilities.

She buried her face in her small hands, trying to hide her grief from me. I tried to pull her to me, but she jerked out of my arms. She lifted her tear streaked face and glared at me, her hands fisted now at her sides.

"You know, I cursed you once," she whispered, deadly serious.

I shuddered, knowing the power of a curse made by our kind. "What are you talking about?"

"I vowed that you would never be able to keep your true love until I could keep mine," she smiled bitterly.

"You are being silly. I have my Lord, so obviously that boy is not meant to be with you."

She laughed disconcertingly. "That is probably the saddest part in this whole farce. You have lost your true love almost as many times as I have lost mine, but you are so wrapped up in your thirst for vengeance, so hungry for power, you can not even tell the difference between the fondness you have for our brother and the love you should have with the man you are meant to be with."

A chill went down my spine at her words, but I told myself she must have seen me with the Commodore earlier and was just using my reaction to him to enhance her tale. She sank onto a bench and pulled her legs to her chest, resting her forehead against her knees. "You do not have to believe me, now, but I know some day you'll realize the truth. I just hope you will allow us all to be happy then."

I woke from my dream, crying, holding myself like I thought I was about to fall apart, but I didn't know why. All I could remember was being pressed against a wall by an older version of Edward.

I drove to school, still needlessly upset, and parked next to the silver Volvo, determined to confront Edward for deliberately engineering the previous day's traffic jam. As soon as I took the key out of the ignition, my door opened, and a pale hand unlatched my buckle and gently tugged on my hand before I even looked at them.

I slid out of the truck, pulling my bag behind me, and as I looked up, my back was pressed against the side of my truck, reminding me of the previous night's dream. Edward leaned down, his hands on either side of my waist, his forehead against mine, causing my skin to tingle, and his emotions to jolt straight into my mind: desire, frustration, desperation.

"What are you doing to me, Bella?" Edward whispered, his eyes closed an inch from mine.

"You're the one who's trapping me." I responded, too overwhelmed to think beyond the obvious.

He laughed sardonically. "If only I could trap you, keep you in a cage like a little bird I don't want to fly away…"

I shivered at his words, disturbed by how close he was to the truth, and how much I wanted to be kept by him.

He opened his eyes into narrow slits, just a touch of gold visible in a ring around otherwise black orbs. "I've tried to stay away from you like you wanted, oh how I've tried…"

His long fingers barely ghosted over my ribcage, but my body reacted like he was stroking much more intimate parts of me, and I clenched my hands into fists to keep myself from pulling his hips to mine. The desire in his mind was increasing, which fueled mine in return. He gazed intently into my eyes before stepping back.

I gasped with his loss, suddenly aware that I hadn't breathed in several minutes. My body trembled, wanting to touch his again, to throw itself on him, but I held back. He closed his eyes again and lifted his hand to pinch his nose in a gesture I was beginning to find endearing. "I'm sorry," he muttered, "I shouldn't have done that. It seems I can't even control myself around you anymore."

"So don't," the words popped out of my mouth of their own volition, but I didn't regret them.

He looked at me, his brows drawn, "Pardon?"

I didn't know where I was getting the courage from, but I continued, "So don't, Edward. Don't control yourself, don't stay away. Do what you want to do, what we both want."

He slowly reached out a hand to my face, carefully moving a piece of hair behind my ear with the barest touch of his cool fingers. I wanted to turn my face into his hand, to inhale his scent and kiss his palm, but I refrained. The first bell rang for class, but I couldn't look away from him.

"I want to buy you a hair clip, or some barrettes, or whatever it takes to keep you from hiding your face from me behind your hair ever again," he whispered fervently.

I smiled. "Go right ahead, but I'll warn you, my ears are too big for my face. They're really, freakishly huge. You'll probably regret your purchase."

He smiled back at me and traced my ear with his finger; I wanted to coo. "Liar, they're perfect."

I could have died of happiness right then, if it weren't for his next words.

"Bella, ask me to the dance."

My heart stopped. Alright, where are the hidden cameras? Where's Ashton to tell me I've been punk'd?

I knew he had heard me turn down at least one boy yesterday, and quite possibly heard me turn down all three, so what was he playing at now?

"I can't, I'm going to Seattle with my father that day," I reminded him.

"Reschedule," he stated, like it was that simple.

I shook my head, my face finally rubbing against his cool hand. "He would be too suspicious."

"Suspicious of what?" he asked incredulously. "That you have a date? Introduce me to him, parents always love me. I'm a very polite young man, or so I've been told," he said with a smirk, still playing with my hair.

I shuddered to think of my dad meeting Edward, knowing someone would end up maimed, or worse. "That's not a good idea. He's very protective of me. Besides, I don't know if going to the dance would be a good idea."

I could just see myself becoming overcome with lust while dancing with him and attacking him, doing naughty things to him in the middle of the dance floor. Maybe we should go to the dance after all.

Suddenly, he was holding something in his hand, and I realized it was my cell phone. Before I could say anything, he handed it back to me, and I saw I had a new entry, Edward Cell.

He stared at the phone as he spoke, his hands clasped in front of him. "I think the first time we spend time together should be in public. It would probably be safer all around, I would think, so call me if you change your mind." He looked up. "Or call me if you don't. Call me whenever you want anything from me, anything at all. Just call me."

He walked away from me before I could remember how to speak, and just as I remembered how to walk, the second bell rang, indicating I was late for class.

E/N: Please review! Got any questions, something(s) not making sense? Let me know! I'll either clarify right away or incorporate it later, or both! Also, if you want to discuss the fic, or the mythology behind it, or anything Twi related really, visit the thread on the Twilight forums.

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