Familiar Strangers (A Twilight Fanfic)

Chapter 14

Familiar Strangers

Chapter Fourteen

Gabriel

I was growing ever more inpatient with Bella at the Cullen’s, but I told myself that I would not interfere in this part of her life unless she asked that of me. I paced the room waiting for Aniya as I truly needed a friend to speak to about what is happening not only with Bella, but with me. Since hearing Bella that night in the cemetery I have become foreign to myself. Something that I couldn’t quite recognize fully and…Aniya…

I opened the door to my old friend and supposed Foe to the rest of our race. With her arms open wide, she greeted with me a much needed embrace,

“Gabriel Dubois, how long it’s been. You look delectable as ever.” She murmured as she had always done.

“It’s about time Aniya. This time I may not let you leave. I am curious about your appearance though. Whatever prompted you to mirror your real age or close to it?” We broke our embrace and walked to sit on the davenport, “I would think that you may have guessed that on your own; however I could provide reasoning for you I suppose. I was afraid that your human girl might be here so I thought it best to come in my normal form. We wouldn’t want the young child to become jealous of me in my other form now would we?”

My grin stretched widely when I thought on her statement, “Of course, I understand.” Aniya’s gaze quickly swept the living room for any signs of Bella and upon not seeing here her, she allowed her old haggard form to become that of her youth.

“Ah, much better don’t you think?” she asked with a ruby smile.

I snickered in her direction and asked, “So how old were you at this stage of your life?”

“Oh I would say somewhere around eighteen; fitting isn’t it, for your human girl is close to that age herself is she not?”

“Her name is Bella so please refer to her as such alright. And no, Bella is in her early twenties. You are beautiful in any form Aniya. You have no need to try and over exert your pleasantries with her. She isn’t that kind of person…”

“That’s neither here nor there my friend; we are woman by any means.”

Aniya was a beautiful human in her days. I was sure that she had many men that wanted to court her in her village, but she never fully trusted a one of them enough to give a go. If she wasn’t a dear friend to my father and I hadn’t grown up around her as a child, we very well could have made a wonderful couple, but she was always a sister to me and nothing more. Her beauty always had my mother in knots when she came by.

From her long thick and slightly wavy auburn hair to her permanent ruby lips with piercing emerald eyes and a milky skin tone, it all screamed Ireland heritage which I knew she was from. She stood five eight and proportionate width wise. When I stayed hidden a time or two in her home; she had no problems keeping company over although she hated uninvited guests but with her beauty it always brought the unexpected over.

I once stayed overnight up in her, what you would call now a days a loft. I always stayed out of her space when we knew a guest was coming. It was nineteen thirteen, I remember that day clearly,

****

Aniya vaguely knew the older gentlemen that walked in her door, “Good evening to you Emerald.” The man stated. In those days the men called her that because she felt it better that they did not know her name.