Burning Horizon

Burning Horizon: The Expected Visitor

[AN; Hey, so here is Chapter Two. I imagined this would be set in a very dense forest littered with raging rivers and with a deep lake set in the middle nearby where the Cullens camp. This is not one of the best chapters but I hope you enjoy reading it anyway! Thank you!]

Chapter Two; The Expected Visitor

We circled the second group. They had no hope of surviving our attack. I still couldn't bring myself to look into the petrified eyes of the meal. There was no need, ten quick-flying seconds and it was done. The sweet, lush scent of blood drifted gently into the air as we drank from their snapped necks. Golden colour slowly drained into our eyes, replacing the intimidating, ravenous black that arrived with hunger. One of the worst sights for me was seeing the bodies we left behind in the fires, drained of blood, drained of their innocent lives. After my first hunt, my hair was matted, my clothes ripped and my face covered in blood. Now I could just about manage a hunt with just a few droplets of blood on my lips and my chin and my hair a little tangled. I was still lacking behind Edward, who looked as perfect as always after his hunt, even more perfect when his eyes were back to a shimmering golden colour.

"Hmm," Edward licked his lips as we reached camp again, tracing his finger around my mouth. He slid his finger between my lips, letting me suck the blood from his solid skin. "Not much of a game, no fun, but it was tasty enough."

I shot him an icy glare.

"Sorry Bella, I forgot you still have a conscience," he chuckled, retracting his finger from where my teeth dug into his skin.

"Oops." I hadn't realised just how hard my teeth had been pressing as he spoke. Killing wasn't an easy topic for me.

"No problem, love..." He froze, never ending his sentence. Alice followed suit as a new scent trickled into the air, not a scent I knew, but one of our kind for sure. If it had been a human smell, they would have seriously wished that they had not decided to take this path through the forest. Not while we were in hunting mode. If human blood made itself known to my senses at this moment, I don't think I would be able to resist it.

"The visitor." Alice mouthed as Jasper tensed in front of her. It was then that I realised where the scent was coming from.

"She's in the tent?" I whispered, answered by a certain nod by Carlisle. His expression was calmer than ours; I'd never known someone as trusting and well, as innocently nice as my father in law.

"She means no harm. She's just upset," Edward murmured, approaching the tent cautiously and pronouncing his words clearly in a soft tone. "Um, hello. I'm Edward Cullen."

His voice reminded me of the first time we spoke. An unforgettable conversation, no matter how boring it sounded to others around us in that biology classroom.

A rustle sounded from inside the humongous tent and a small, slender figure emerged. She was young looking. Older than Renesmee's appearance age though. I would estimate that she was sixteen when she had been changed. Her dark blonde hair went well past her shoulders in a neat set of gentle waves. Her skin was pale and vulnerable looking and her black lashes framed her golden coloured eyes perfectly. However, distracting me from her perfect and innocent appearance was something on her cheek. A silvery scar of a recent bite gleamed in the light. She was upset, but from the expression on her face I would describe it more as utterly heartbroken.

She spoke in a voice even girlier than Esme's. "I'm Aymie. Sorry for intruding into your camp. I haven't had any shelter for two weeks. It was...somewhat irresistible."

"Whatever is the matter, Aymie?" Esme's motherly instincts kicked in almost immediately.

"I've heard about you, the Cullens." Her expression was so pained that it was uncomfortable to look at; her gaze fell to the floor as she spoke her next words. "You're 'vegetarians'." She sighed again, bringing her gaze back up to us. "I wanted to be like you, I wanted to be good, it's taken me four years to attempt to get a grip on myself. I don't want to be a life sucking monster, it's not who I am or who I want to be."