New Beginnings.
"Honey, I think it's time..."
Alice, who was reorganizing her closet for the twelfth time that month, paused and stared at her husband.
"Are you sure?"
Jasper nodded slowly. "She's pretty bright for her age, and she's starting to ask questions. She needs to know. "
Alice gave a heavy sigh. "She's only eight, though!"
Jasper raised an eyebrow. "When do you plan on telling her, then?"
Alice sighed again and seemed to shrink a few inches under Jasper's gaze. She fiddled with the lace of one of her favorite skirts, staring at the floor. "I-I don't...I don't know..." she confessed in a small voice. Her and jasper never actually fought. True, they had their dissagreements, but they never once yelled at each other. Jasper's military training allowed him to reprimand her without violence-that and the fact that he could manipulate her emotions to make her submit to him. This, along with Alice's quiet stubborness and defiance, caused them to simply have to look at each other a certain way and say no more than a few sentences to get their points across.
After glaring at each other for a few seconds, Alice stuffed the clothes back in the closet and marched down the hallway.
Sarah was playing dolls with Nessie when they entered the living room.
"Hi Daddy!"
Alice laughed as her daughter launched herself into Jasper's arms.
"Sarah, we wanted to talk to you about something." she said hesitantly.
A strange look crossed Sarah's face. "You aren't human, are you, mom?"
Alice hung her head. "No sweety, I'm not."
Sarah smiled. "I knew that. What are you, then?"
They sat down on a couch, and Emmett respectfully turned down the television.
Jasper fixed his golden eyes on his daughter. "What your mother and I are about to tell you may scare you. You must believe us when we say that we would never, ever hurt you."
The child, who now looked slightly confused, nodded.
He took a deep breath, then began. "Sarah, everyone in this family is a vampire. You know what that is, right?"
She nodded, so he continued. "That's why we're never hungry. We only drink blood. But we are special vampires because we would never hurt a human. We only kill animals. We also never sleep."
They spent several hours explaining to sarah about vampires. Finally Sarah asked, "If you and Mommy and aunt Bella and everybody are vampires, Why arn't I?"
Alice sighed. "Because I wanted a baby that grew. And because I wanted you to know life. We saved your life, when you were tiny. You were thrown away by your real Mommy, and I saw it happen. I also saw that you were meant to be my little girl. So we decided to raise you ourselves."
Sarah seemed to ponder this last bit of information for a moment.
"Will I ever be a vampire?"
Jasper and Alice both nodded eagerly. "Of course!" They both cried in unison.
Sarah cocked her head. "How? When? What's it like?"
Alice beamed down on her pride and joy. "When you are eighteen years of age, we will turn you. It is a simple procedure. After your birthday party is over, we will take you into a private room. Grandpa Carlisle will sedate you so you don't feel so much of the pain-for the process is very painful-and then Mommy and Daddy will take turns biting you. That is how you get the venom we told you about into your body so it can start changing you. Three days after that you will wake up as a vampire."
Sarah sat calmly, and blinked up at her family. Her dead family.
"Are you frightened?" Her father asked, almost in a wisper.
She shook her head boldly. There was no way that little miss Sarah Clarice Cullen was going to be afraid of the people she loved so dearly. She stared down at one of her favorite Barbies, the one with the fair skin. She made a note to dress that one in all black-Vampire Barbie. It sounded awesome.
"Oh, and Sarah-Claire?"
She looked over at her mother. "Yes, Mommy?"
"You must promise us never to tell anyone about what we are."
Interesting. Were vampires bad? "Why not, Mommy?"
Her mom gave her father a strange look, and he cleared his throat before speaking.
"Well, not everyone is okay with the idea of vampires existing. You see, not all of us are nice. There are also very mean vampires, too. Ones that like to hurt people. It would be very dangerous for us if someone were to find out, so this has to stay our secret, okay?"
She gave a brief nod, then hopped up to go devour the grilled cheese Uncle Edward announced as complete.
Alice, who was reorganizing her closet for the twelfth time that month, paused and stared at her husband.
"Are you sure?"
Jasper nodded slowly. "She's pretty bright for her age, and she's starting to ask questions. She needs to know. "
Alice gave a heavy sigh. "She's only eight, though!"
Jasper raised an eyebrow. "When do you plan on telling her, then?"
Alice sighed again and seemed to shrink a few inches under Jasper's gaze. She fiddled with the lace of one of her favorite skirts, staring at the floor. "I-I don't...I don't know..." she confessed in a small voice. Her and jasper never actually fought. True, they had their dissagreements, but they never once yelled at each other. Jasper's military training allowed him to reprimand her without violence-that and the fact that he could manipulate her emotions to make her submit to him. This, along with Alice's quiet stubborness and defiance, caused them to simply have to look at each other a certain way and say no more than a few sentences to get their points across.
After glaring at each other for a few seconds, Alice stuffed the clothes back in the closet and marched down the hallway.
Sarah was playing dolls with Nessie when they entered the living room.
"Hi Daddy!"
Alice laughed as her daughter launched herself into Jasper's arms.
"Sarah, we wanted to talk to you about something." she said hesitantly.
A strange look crossed Sarah's face. "You aren't human, are you, mom?"
Alice hung her head. "No sweety, I'm not."
Sarah smiled. "I knew that. What are you, then?"
They sat down on a couch, and Emmett respectfully turned down the television.
Jasper fixed his golden eyes on his daughter. "What your mother and I are about to tell you may scare you. You must believe us when we say that we would never, ever hurt you."
The child, who now looked slightly confused, nodded.
He took a deep breath, then began. "Sarah, everyone in this family is a vampire. You know what that is, right?"
She nodded, so he continued. "That's why we're never hungry. We only drink blood. But we are special vampires because we would never hurt a human. We only kill animals. We also never sleep."
They spent several hours explaining to sarah about vampires. Finally Sarah asked, "If you and Mommy and aunt Bella and everybody are vampires, Why arn't I?"
Alice sighed. "Because I wanted a baby that grew. And because I wanted you to know life. We saved your life, when you were tiny. You were thrown away by your real Mommy, and I saw it happen. I also saw that you were meant to be my little girl. So we decided to raise you ourselves."
Sarah seemed to ponder this last bit of information for a moment.
"Will I ever be a vampire?"
Jasper and Alice both nodded eagerly. "Of course!" They both cried in unison.
Sarah cocked her head. "How? When? What's it like?"
Alice beamed down on her pride and joy. "When you are eighteen years of age, we will turn you. It is a simple procedure. After your birthday party is over, we will take you into a private room. Grandpa Carlisle will sedate you so you don't feel so much of the pain-for the process is very painful-and then Mommy and Daddy will take turns biting you. That is how you get the venom we told you about into your body so it can start changing you. Three days after that you will wake up as a vampire."
Sarah sat calmly, and blinked up at her family. Her dead family.
"Are you frightened?" Her father asked, almost in a wisper.
She shook her head boldly. There was no way that little miss Sarah Clarice Cullen was going to be afraid of the people she loved so dearly. She stared down at one of her favorite Barbies, the one with the fair skin. She made a note to dress that one in all black-Vampire Barbie. It sounded awesome.
"Oh, and Sarah-Claire?"
She looked over at her mother. "Yes, Mommy?"
"You must promise us never to tell anyone about what we are."
Interesting. Were vampires bad? "Why not, Mommy?"
Her mom gave her father a strange look, and he cleared his throat before speaking.
"Well, not everyone is okay with the idea of vampires existing. You see, not all of us are nice. There are also very mean vampires, too. Ones that like to hurt people. It would be very dangerous for us if someone were to find out, so this has to stay our secret, okay?"
She gave a brief nod, then hopped up to go devour the grilled cheese Uncle Edward announced as complete.