Gifted

Chapter 6: Cullens

Bella smiled when she reached the stream. It was like something out of a fairy tale. She set down her things and quickly refilled her water supply. Then, in a spontaneous move so unlike her, she took off her shoes and socks, rolled up her pants and dipped her tired feet into the crisp water. After the initial bite she relaxed and laid back into the damp earth.

"Mmmm," she moaned.

She kept her eyes closed and focused on the sounds nature shared around her. The water trickling downstream would have put her to sleep if she wasn't so focused. As always, she listened carefully to the soft breeze for anything it might tell her.

She didn't fully understand how this gift worked. Nonetheless she understood how to use it. Everyone could feel when the wind blew against their face, could hear when it rustled through leaves or blew against a window. Bella could too, but she could also interact with it like it was a physical object. She could manipulate it to move other objects for her. It was how she could float down from impossible heights-the wind simply did as she asked. It wrapped itself around her and protected her from harm, slowing her down as she descended. The same way, she could levitate any object in any direction she fancied.

Bella could also communicate with it. Not exactly talking...but if there was a train heading towards her she would be able to pick up the wind's interaction with it, and immediately understand what was coming, where it was coming from, and how fast it was moving.

It was a benign gift. She couldn't imagine how she could lose control and cause harm with it. Her other gift, though...that was something else.

She flexed her toes and sighed loudly again. Nothing but small animals stirred around her. There was no one nearby.

She smiled. Then, though she would stay like this for hours if she could, she quickly left the water for a few moments only to return undressed in order to wash off the grime of the road. She laughed aloud as she imagined going into town covered in the dirt that was now running through the water beneath her. Three weeks was much too long to go without a bath.

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A large house stood a couple of miles to the east of Bella's campsite. The occupants were obviously wealthy and possessed immaculate taste, judging by the home's decor alone. Inside the house, three of its occupants were spread out doing various things. Edward was, as usual, brooding over his piano. Rosalie was sprawled on the living room couch, flipping through French Vogue. Jasper sat hunched over a dozen books in Carlisle's library. And Alice-well, she was flipping through cartwheels on the Cullen home's rooftop. Absent from the gathering, Carlisle, Esme and Emmett were away hunting for the day. A typical day in the Cullen household. Except something was about to happen that no one expected, not even Alice.

Alice heard it first. A small, musical, obviously very human laugh. She tripped in the middle of her cart-wheel and landed on her butt.

Immediately after, Edward heard her thoughts, and through Alice he inhaled his first breath of Bella.

Rosalie looked up at Edward who had suddenly appeared in the living room beside her, shocked at the outward signs he was displaying.

"Edward!?" She exclaimed, more confused than outraged. Before his name escaped her lips however, Jasper was on top of him.

"Rosalie!" He cried out. "Help me! We need to restrain him!"

Rosalie only hesitated for a moment, still shocked at Edward's behavior, but stepped forward with Jasper and pulled Edward back from the huge widow he had just opened. Alice jumped through the open window and shoved back against Edward.

"Absolutely not!" She exclaimed in her high sing-song voice, playful even now in the face of possible catastrophe.

With the window open, Rosalie heard (and smelled) what had gotten Edward so excited. A small voice humming in the distance-of course with their hearing it may as well have been right in the room with them. She heard the voice and smelled her scent at the same time. It was...profoundly delicious. She tried to come up with a better adjective so as not to fuel Edward's blood lust. The girl's scent was divine. As was her voice. All four of them fought down the venom that was dripping in their mouths. But whereas Rosalie, Jasper and Alice could clear their mouths and focus on the situation, Edward continued to be held hostage to his urge to bite the girl that was making him feel like this.

"Alice," said Rosalie through clenched teeth. "Call Emmett and Carlisle. We can't hold him down all day."

Alice had, of course dialed the number and started speaking before Rosalie finished her request. Rosalie rolled her eyes and focused on keeping Edward from inching toward that window, all while trying to not think of that heavenly voice herself.