Chapter 21:
Remember Me

Lightning struck the ground and an evil laugh echoed behind it. She ran through a maze of buildings and dark side streets as the sky cried, and heavy rain bounced off the concrete. A storm surrounded the town and smothered the moon, darkening the world around her.

She couldn't figure out how she got to where she was but none of it mattered, only distance did. She knew who was chasing her and no matter how often she told herself that it wasn't real, she failed to stay strong.

Drops of rain beat against her skin like cold nails and her boots were caked in mud, but she wasn't fazed by it at all. The storm had battered her hair into a tangled mess and she couldn't tell if it were raindrops or tears sliding down her cheeks.

She could hear them all. Her victims screeching in pain and withering in despair. Guilt was what was chasing her. Guilt, shame, and punishment. This is what she deserved; to be afraid and chased to death.

Though, she was sure death felt better than this.

"You won't make it out alive!"

"Everyone you love will die!"

"Your blood is stained!"

It was all the same. Each word stabbed harder than the last. Her lungs burned and ached, she wheezed and coughed, sobbed and begged. All of her limbs weighed a thousand pounds, a thousand more with her wet clothes.

It hurt to feed the urge of survival but she would not give up. She could smell the end and she wanted it. The souls of her victims could not scare her from the goal, all they did was egg her on. But that was what they wanted. They wanted her to cave in and let go.

She ran and ran with strands of hair slapping onto her wet face. Her arms thrust forward and backward in sync with her shaky legs. She could see through the harsh rains and pitch blackness, and all she could see were her mistakes.

The scent was close by, really close by. She came to a halt in an alleyway, surrounded by brick walls and a dumpster beside her. She could smell the goal, the victory, her ticket to safety.

But there was nothing there. A street lamp hung overhead, it's light flickering in and out with each lightning strike. It was cold, she felt so cold.

"Just a little.... taste"

Then it happened. The rain drops of the storm were once clear and colorless, but now stained with red. The scent was euphoric and she couldn't help but accept it. She held her hands out and refrained from smiling at something so sadistic.

Her head slowly tilted up, a curious and fearful look entering her eyes. Up above, hanging from the fire escape of the apartment building, was a man strung on a rope. His throat and chest had been sliced up by what appears to be claws. The claws of an animal.

She wanted to stick her tounge out and accept the taste of the blood drops. She wanted to climb up the ladder and drain the rest of the warm liquid that flowed out of the deadman. She wanted blood. But there was a piece of her that felt regret. She felt guilty and saddened by this innocent man's death.

"Blood of my blood."

Hunter snapped her head down and in a flash, a hand reached into her chest and ripped her heart clean from her body. Her jaw dropped and a breathless gasp left her mouth.

She could see the ruby eyes of Willow Reed, the Volturi vampire that was capable of entering anyone's mind and altering reality. Her mother had her heart in her hands, a sinister smile on her cherry lips.

She could taste the blood now. It dripped into her mouth and licked her tastebuds. It was good, it felt good. Her legs bent and she fell to her knees, the concrete street meeting her fragile bones harshly. Her limbs thanked her when she seemed to relax and she fell backwards.

"You are weak." Willow hissed once more. The vampire let the heart in her hands drop onto the wet asphalt and she walked away, leaving her daughter to die.

Hunter wanted to scream for help but she was incapable of doing anything. She lay alone with a hole in her chest and blood in her mouth.

___

Being in a house filled with vampires was not in Hunter's favor.

The urge to transform was stronger than ever. Being in the living room with every vampire they have recruited, made her hands tingle.

Rather than retreating to her room until it was time, Edward forced her to be outside out of fear of her becoming bedridden again. He knew she's been having nightmares of her mother again, and he couldn't let the volturi vampire get to their strongest player.

"Here."

Hunter glanced up when Edward approached her and she frowned at the plastic bag in his hands. She had been outside for hours, listening to Jacob train new werewolf betas. "What is that?"

Edward scanned their surroundings before letting out a huff and reaching into the bag.

Hunter turned away before he could even show her. She knew exactly what it was. Her gums were already aching and screaming for her to take it. Hunter gripped her arms and she refrained from crying.

She was so hungry. Her mouth was filled with saliva and her nails dug into her skin. Edward found her reaction heart breaking. She was in too deep to turn back to animal blood, so deep that it was impossible for her to hold it down.

Out of fear of being weak to her mother or the rest of the Volturi, he stole a blood bag from the hospital for her. He knew the risks but he needed Hunter. He couldn't lose her for anything.

His hand laid on her shoulder and she flinched, "You know I can't have that." She whispered.

Edward stared at the blood bag too. It sat in his hands, warm and red, everything that was good for vampires. But not his kind. "You can't take anything else and I'm not gonna let you starve."

"My eyes will change and everyone would know the truth. I can't see that look again." Hunter breathed with tears finally escaping her eyes. She didn't want to feel what she felt before, that emptiness and depression.

"What look?" Edward pondered, inching closer to her. He felt horrible. She was so afraid of herself.

Hunter turned to him again. The veins in her eyes had reddened though he couldn't tell if it was because of her tears or her hunger. Either way it made his stomach drop in dread. "The look of disappointment and disgust. Especially from Bella."

Edward sighed and reached for her face. The pad of his thumb wiped away the stray tears and a small smile spread onto his lips, "Don't worry about everyone else. Your health is important and we all need you to be strong if a fight breaks out."

"But what if this isn't enough? Or what if it just makes it worse?" She sighed. The days she lived off bagged blood, she slowly progressed to an insatiable beast.

Edward grabbed onto her hand and placed the bag in it, "I'll be right here to help you." Hunter didn't want to move her sight from his. If she looked down at the bag that felt heavy in her hands, she would black out.

His words were sincere, she could see that. But it didn't make her feel any better about what would come next.

Her free hand twitched, something he noticed. "Go on." He assured her, "Before the others come."

Hunter shakily reached for the nozzle and tube. Her heart thumped loudly in her ears, its quick pace raising the anticipation. She could imagine it, the taste. It made her want to cry even more.

She ripped off the nozzle and raised the tube to her lips. She could smell it instantly and so did Edward. His nostrils flared eagerly and he watched the blood swim up the tube.

Then it happened. It touched her tounge and her eyes helplessly shut. She couldn't feel anything else around her. She didn't care for anything else. The metallic taste danced on her tastebuds and slid down her throat.

It was warm and sweet, gentle yet forceful. Everything she's been wanting was there.

A groan left her throat and she pushed down on the bag, quickly forcing more blood up the tube. She had been starving for months and this was her reward.

"Hunter." Edward spoke. His voice was slow and distorted to her. He sounded far away but she didn't care. It tasted too good and felt even better for her to pay attention to anything else.

Her hand movements were frantic, she pushed up every last drop until nothing was left. It was gone as soon as she started and she wanted more. "How do you feel?" Edward questioned.

His eyes held no judgement, only restraint. He found himself wanting to rip the bag from Hunter's hands but she needed it more than he did.

Hunter met his gaze and fought the smile that threatened to reveal itself. She wanted to scream for more, to run away and help herself to every blood bag there was. But instead she shrugged, "Better."

In truth, she did feel better. She felt less tense and more alert. Still, there was guilt and fear lurking.

Edward smiled, "Good."

His voice was the sweetest melody, something she could fall asleep to and feel anything but fear. Perhaps that's the attraction but it felt so deep, as if she was free falling off the highest cliff into an endless void of excitement.

   "Come. I wanna show you something." Her hand gravitated into his and she followed him further into the woods. She didn't question where he was taking her, she didn't care enough to ask. She just wanted to stay beside him, to continue feeling the way she felt right now.

Edward wasn't the guy she expected to end up with. The way they met and their relationship after that filled her with dread and resent, fear and defense. She always used to feel like he was an enemy more than anything, like he would be the reason for her and Bella's suffering. She was right, but she was wrong too.

Edward saved them both countless of times. He saved Bella from death and saved her from herself. It was the fact that he was willing to put the entire world on hold just to keep them alive that helped Hunter warm up to him. It was the time they had alone all these years, all the little moments that made her fall in love with him.

She stared at him like he was the night sky. The stars lived in his golden eyes and his skin was as cold as the moon. But she loved it, she adored it.

   "Remember this place?" Edward asked her. They came to a halt and only then did Hunter smell the roaring ocean that crashed below. They were on a cliff, a grassy and cozy one. It was a lot smaller than La Push cliff.

She shook her head. She didn't remember the site at all. He moved in front of her and held her face in his hands, "It was the beginning of senior year, I left, you were mad at me, things were said, and you ran here." His eyes were as calm and sweet as his voice was. She felt like a butterfly finding nectar in a blossom, blissful.

"You ran here and you screamed louder than you've ever screamed before." He continued, letting out a soft chuckle, "You had tears streaming down your face and so many demons in your mind."

Hunter thought back to that time and she sighed. It wasn't much different than it is now, she still struggled with her thirst and nightmares.

The only difference; Edward.

"I was just watching and hurting. I couldn't feel you, I couldn't do anything. But I stayed because I needed you." Edward's eyes wandered. They scanned her face and hardened at the sight of his feet. She was receiving his message. His words were pure and perfect. It made her happy.

His thumbs caress her cheek bones and his eyes steady on her's, "Do you remember now?" Hunter nodded vigorously, a smile spreading on her cheeks. She remembered clearly. That day she hated him more than anything. He had left her when she needed him.

She hated that she needed him.

"You told me that you would always be there for me." Hunter whispered. Even over the loud sounds of the ocean, he heard her clearly.

"I have kept that promise, right?" He asked, brushing her hair behind her ears. Hunter let out an awkward laugh. Edward was always there for her, he has been. But the times when she couldn't go to him were torturous.

She couldn't breathe before, and when Winston died, so did she. But Edward brought her back to life even when she didn't want him to. So she nodded. He was always there to catch her.

   "Always." Edward whispered. Hunter let out a laugh and pushed herself onto her toes. Her arms wrap around his neck and their lips connect.

There's that static again, that crackling in the air that's always happened whenever they got within a foot of each other. Even when he was the most annoying person she ever had to deal with, it didn't stop the little hairs on her neck from standing up.

But now it was enough. The feel of his frosty skin set her on fire and she loved it. She couldn't live without it even when she swore she could. His lips are delicate and warm. She felt like her's were a bit chapped but she didn't care because right now, in this moment, she felt as if she was floating in space and everything around her has turned to dust.

___

"Aro will want us incapacitated before he attacks. Jane and Alec will try and take me out first because I can anticipate their moves." Edward spoke. Hunter stood beside Bella in the living room, the two girls barely glancing at one another. It wasn't awkward between them as much but it still felt wrong.

"Jane and Willow will also go for Hunter. They'll want her gone fast. It'll make it easier to kill the rest of us." Edward added. He stared at her lovingly, reassuring her that he would never let her die.

Hunter shuffled anxiously and leaned against the table. "Too bad we don't all have your shield." Garrett, a vampire Rosalie and Emmett recruited, said.

Edward had filled her in on Bella's gift; the ability to block out other gifts. She was immune to Edward's thoughts, Aro's mind read, and Jane's torment because of it. Hunter found it interesting.

His gaze focused on Bella and she shrugged, "Doesn't help me fight though."

"No, but you could help the rest of us, if you could project it." Tanya suggested.

"What do you mean?" Bella wondered. She was happy to help in anyway she can to protect her family.

Tanya shrugged, "I mean shield someone other than yourself."

Hunter held back a laugh, "Is that even possible?" She was able to force things off herself, like Jane's gift, but she didn't know how she did it or if she could ever do it again.

"Gifts can be developed." Carlisle jumped in, "Overtime." Bella looked awestruck. She was finally able to actually help and she couldn't get enough of it.

"At first, mine was just in my palms." Kate, the electric woman, said, "Now I can radiate it all over my body."

Bella glanced at Hunter with a smile before turning back to Kate, "How do you do it?" The blonde woman looked skeptical, afraid even. Bella shot her hand up and gripped Kate's hand, bones clenching beneath the pressure. "Tell me."

Hunter snickered and held back her comments on Kate's discomfort. Bella was happy and that made her happy.

"Let's go outside for this, shall we? I need some fresh air anyways." Hunter mumbled. She nudged Bella with her elbow and lightly bit her lip, "Too many vampires in one room for me."

___

"You need to visualize it." Kate started.

Bella stood in the center with determination. Her face was hard and her fists even harder.

"See how it moves. What color it is."

Hunter stood between Kate and Edward, her face the complete opposite of Bella's. She was worried. If Bella couldn't work her gift, she would be devastated.

"Now picture it expanding. Will it to go beyond you?" Kate finished, a smirk playing at her lips.

Bella stared at the ground, her mind twisting and pushing. She imagined what it would look like, a clear yet visible wave of energy. One that would surround her and anyone she wanted. It would push out from her mind and stretch as far as she desired.

Hunter's eyebrows raise in surprise when she saw it. The force field pushed out of Bella and moved slowly. Her breaths were fast paced but she exhaled deeply and the shield disappeared. Her eyes fell onto the hybrid's and she let out a sigh.

"I think she needs something to motivate her." Kate conveyed. Her blonde hair was straight and long, and it flicked to the side when she smirked down at Hunter.

Hunter squinted her eyes at the blonde woman and let out a snicker, "I am not a test dummy." She wasn't afraid of the electricity Kate carried, she just didn't want to make a fool of herself.

Kate shrugged her shoulders, "I would suggest Edward but you know." Edward cleared his throat and Hunter refrained from tossing Kate across the forest. Her face hardened and she stepped forward.

Bella let out a laugh, "Yeah there's no way I'm letting her get hurt." Kate simply rolled her eyes.

Hunter held her hands up, "It's okay Bella, I can take it." In reality, she knew she couldn't. The last time she endured the electric shock, it was too strong for her to even think.

"She says that now." Garrett joked.

"Focus Bella," Emmett sneered, "Or she's gonna be hurting."

Hunter let out a sigh and turned to Kate. Her eyes were a sugary gold, much different than Edward's. They seemed mischievous and haunting, it creeped Hunter out but she held out her hand. Kate wiggled her fingers playfully and inched closer to the hybrid, "I've never encountered anyone like you."

"Yeah well welcome to the club." Hunter replied spirtless.

Bella moved closer to Hunter, her eyes wide in fear, "Hunter, I'm not ready to do this yet-"

Kate's hands connected with Hunter's and she jolted in shock. A groan came out from her mouth and she crumbled to the ground. Her body felt numb and hot, like she was struck by lightning.

"I'm sorry!" Bella called out, "I said that I wasn't ready."

Edward helped Hunter onto her feet and she inhaled sharply, "Yeah well you better be. Cause I'm not doing this all day."

"Dude, you're not motivating her." Emmett told Hunter. His arms were crossed against his broad chest but Hunter could see right through him, "You wanna try?" Emmett held his hands up in surrender, a sly smirk covering his lips.

Hunter brushed herself off and nodded to both girls. She wasn't ready for the next voltage but she needed Bella to do this.

Bella stared at Hunter anxiously and readied herself. She envisioned her gift working and for a moment, it did. Hunter could see the blurring movements and she smiled before Kate's hands touched her neck and her eyes widen in pain. She let out a scream of surprise and her legs give out beneath her. "Kate!" Bella yelled.

"You seem to lack incentive. Shall I go see if Renesemee's awake?" Kate urged.

Bella glared, "Are you crazy?" Hunter quickly got onto her feet and brushed her hair out of her face. This was the worst pain she's ever felt in a while, it was almost as worse as Jane's gift.

Kate held her hand up, "This one's on full power." Hunter glanced at Bella crazily, silently begging her to concentrate.

Bella wanted to scream in frustration and go back to her daughter, but then she remembered that all of this was for Renesemee and she relaxed.

Hunter held out her arm for Kate to hold and shut her eyes. The last two shocks were extreme but she knew this one would be the worst. She prayed for Bella's gift to work. She prayed she wouldn't have to edure more lighting bolts.

A few moments passed and Hunter felt Kate's hand attatch to her arm. There were small jolts of electricity, it tingled and ached but it wasn't painful compared to the last two.

A smile spread onto Hunter's face and she opened her eyes. The shield surrounded her and Bella, she kept the maximum pain from touching either of them. Kate released her hand and Bella retracted the shield.

"I could feel it, but it was bearable." Hunter beamed. Bella was proud of herself. She could protect herself now and that's all she's ever wanted. She bounced on her toes happily, a smile stretched on her lips. "We should go again." She said.

Hunter let out a huff followed by a chuckle, "Emmett?"

He shuffled in his step and scoffed, a chill running down his back at the thought of enduring Kate's shock, "I'm good."

¡Author's Note!
If you don't remember, the scene where Edward is explaining the cliff to Hunter, happened in Monster. I don't remember the exact chapter but that isn't the point. If you remembered that scene, you're the best reader ever <3