Beyond The Dawn - A Twilight Fan Fiction

Book 3 - Carlisle - Chapter One

                                                                       1

                                                           "Orientation"

It didn't take long to catch up to Charlie. I followed his scent beyond the front yard, through the forest, and around into the hills nearby. I found him at the base of a giant old tree, his head in his hands. At my approach, he jerked into a standing position; I came to a dead stop a few yards away from him, just to be safe. He let out a long snarl, and I put my hands up in a submissive gesture, to show him that I meant no harm.

"Easy, Charlie. I'm not here to fight."

His eyes darted back and forth. I knew how confused and overwhelmed he felt. "I know you."

He sounded uncertain, so I nodded. "You do know me. I'm Carlisle Cullen."

"And you're a vampire, just like I am." His voice rang out like a combination of sharp bells and metallic screeching.

"That's right. Just like you are. And just like Bella is."

The sound of her name calmed him considerably. "Just like Bella. Why didn't she tell me? Why didn't you tell me?"

I took a step backward, readying myself for another angry outburst. But his expression didn't change in the way I expected it to. He looked sad, disappointed that I hadn't let him in on the secret sooner. I figured I'd better speak before any anger resurfaced. Despite all that happened, he was still taking this way better than I anticipated.

"Charlie, at the time that Bella was changed," I replied thoughtfully, "And even up until three days ago, it was too dangerous for you to know the whole story. If I had known that Demetri..."

It took a millisecond for Charlie's hand to fly up to his throat, his expression pained. "Carlisle, my throat is burning! What's happening to me?"

"You're thirsty," I answered simply.

Charlie let out an agonized groan. "It's so dry. I need to...no I CAN'T!"

I kept my voice calm and even in the hopes he would follow suit. "You do know what you need, don't you?"

Charlie nodded, his movements so quick and frantic, they wouldn't have been noticeable to the mortal eye. "I don't understand why I did it. Isn't Nessie a vampire too?"

Though his thoughts and spoken word weren't quite connecting rationally, I knew where he was going. He was torn between acknowledging his thirst for human blood and his guilt of going after someone he felt love for, though I wasn't sure if he even knew why he loved Nessie enough to run from her.

In my quest to keep him lucid, I explained Nessie's situation. "Renesmee was conceived while Bella was still human. She is half-human, and half-vampire."

"Why did I go after her? She smelled so..."

Before he could allow himself to complete that thought however, he let out a guilt-ridden moan and covered his face with his hands, reaching up and pulling at his hair. The fact that he almost attacked Nessie was eating at him.

In an attempt to get him to re-focus, I asked, "Why are you worried about Nessie?"

My question made Charlie pause. His eyes focused into an intense stare. "She's my granddaughter. My family."