The wind whipped my hair as I flew through the trees, my feet barely skimmed the forest floor as I ran with a speed not to be matched by anything humanly possible. There was no thrill like this feeling. I may be over 100 years old, but it refreshed me every time. Of course being a vampire has its ups and downs, and being able to run faster than a human could see is definitely one of the perks.

I had been running for no more than a few minutes when I smelled them, my favorite meal, mountain lions. Yes, I realize you are having the basic human reaction that vampires feed on humans and we all speak with Transylvanian accents and say things like "I vant to suck your blood!" While the majority of my species do indulge in human blood, there are a few of us who have tried to hold on to our humanity as much as possible, by being 'vegetarians.' By vegetarian, I mean that we survive off of animal blood instead of human blood. This gets us by just fine, even though our opposites (those who drink human blood) are always a bit stronger than us with red glowing eyes, while we (the vegetarians) try to blend in with the humans as much as possible and have eyes that are a yellowish gold in color.

I quickly changed my direction to south west toward the scent of my next meal. I could also smell the trails of bear around this area, well at least my brother Emmett would be happy. Finally, I spotted them, a male and a female. To humans, there may be fear mixed with awe by this sight, but to me… the beauty of the picture in front of me was lost as my throat burned and a low snarl escaped my throat. I crouched low, readying myself to attack when a sudden movement caused me to spin on the tips of my toes, my fingertips unnecessarily grazing the ground to keep my balance. A robin fluttered into the air from under a bush and I immediately turned to face my prey once again- knowing that they were aware that they were no longer along.

I didn't hesitate any longer, I lunged from my hiding place and landed lithely on the male, for a split second I hesitated on snapping its neck, just to see how it would react. The male reacted quickly attempting to claw my arms away from its throat, while the female paused startled then bolted away, her basic instincts taking over. Before the male could damage my shirt I grabbed the loose skin at the back of its neck and with a flick of my wrist, his neck was snapped and he hung limply in my arms. This kill took no more than a few seconds, and it took an equal amount of time for me to drain the animal of his life force. Once the male was drained I dropped the animal and immediately sprung after the female, she hadn't gotten far and I made quick work of draining her as well.

After quickly disposing of the bodies, I ran back the way I came, though not running at my full speed. I wanted to take in the scenery around me. It would probably be best if I left the house to the couples for a while, since they all knew I went out hunting. I know you're confused, so let me explain… I live with three other couples, they are my family. My adoptive parents are Carlisle and Esme, and even though I'm technically older than Esme they serve the parental role for the rest of us. And then there is Rosalie and Emmett, two completely opposite beings, yet perfect for each other. I've never known that kind of love and I see that they were made for each other. With Rosalie's beauty, and Emmett's brawn they mix well. Then we have the ever calm and quiet Jasper and the loud and flamboyant Alice. You would think that these two would clash something terrible, but they really are perfect for each other.

And then there's me… Edward Anthony Masen Cullen, the 'youngest' of all, and alone. We make a pretty good family, I'd die for any one of my family members and I know they would do the same. We've been together for a long time now, and I know they are all just waiting for me to find my mate, which doesn't seem very likely to happen anytime soon. I know they worry about me… being a mind-reading vampire can be good at times, but others, such as in a house of people who worry that I'll spend eternity alone- not so much.

Sorry, I'm sure you're confused again. Yes, I can read minds. Another perk of being a vampire is that there are some of us who develop special talents once we have changed. I hear people's thoughts, Alice has premonitions, and Jasper can feel and manipulate emotions. These talents are just magnifications of talents from our previous lives. I would count Esme's compassion, Carlisle's control, Emmett's strength and Rosalie's beauty as talents as well.

Still lost in my thoughts, I jogged leisurely past huge trees older than I and soon realized that I was nearing a body of water of some sorts. As I neared the water I listened closely for any thoughts of any swimmers, or stray fishermen. I really didn't need to step out into the sunlight and show a bunch of humans that I'm not technically normal (no, I will not burst into flames, it's just that our skin is made of a different material that sort of sparkles in the sunlight). I edged closer to the clearing, I couldn't hear any thoughts and for that, I was grateful. Just before the shadows turned into sunlight I paused, taking a moment to glance at my surroundings. It was a beautiful pond, very serene and calming. Satisfied at my discovery I stepped into the sunlight, and felt the slight warmth that my frozen marble skin could. I smiled as I lifted my chin and faced the sun, closing my eyes and basking in the warmth that I missed so often.

I reopened my eyes and noticed that the water in the pond was extremely clear, I could see the fish near the bottom, and it seems that nobody has ever stepped foot into this area. I made my way to the edge of the water and sat down and just stared… I don't know what I was looking at … or for. I was simply sitting there, gazing into the deep depths of this beautiful and clear pond. I wish I could be as pure as this water. I'm not thinking pure that way, I'm a monster. I've taken lives countless times, just for my poor excuse for an existence, and yet I must continue on.

Sighing and shaking away my thoughts of self loathing, I slipped off my shoes and socks and rolled up my pant legs. As I stepped into the water I tried to image what it might have felt like to be the first person on the planet, alone, but not knowing what anything is… to feel water against your skin for the first time, or to listen to the birds song. I know if there was anybody near me, and could read minds, they would think I was a prissy emotional blob, or something like that… but have you ever truly wondered what I would be like? Possibly not, but you know, I've had over 100 years to think of such things, I could probably come up with tons of questions that would stump you.

I waded about a foot in the water and just stared down at my feet waiting for the sand at the bottom to settle. Finally it did, and I was able to see the extreme whiteness of my feet. When I looked up I saw a magnificent butterfly fluttering my way. When it got about 2 feet away I held my hand out, palm up towards it. I figured it would keep its distance from me, since most humans and animals alike tended to shy away from me. But to my surprise the delicate creature landed gracefully into the palm of my hand and stretched out its wings. This was not a butterfly that I had ever seen before. It was a bluish color, with light yellow, and black swirls all over its wings. And it was so light that if I wasn't looking at it right now, I wouldn't have known that it was sitting on me. I slowly raised my other hand, and I gave a silent prayer that I would not crush this breathtaking creature, but as soon at the tip of my index finger touched its wing, the butterfly disintegrated…

Not into dust that landed in my hand, or even a tiny mangled body, just as soon as I touched it, it just seemed to fade away, and I saw it's particles fly apart and swirl around my hand before there was nothing left but my empty hand and a dumbfounded expression on my face. I glanced around to see if my eyes were just playing tricks on me, and the butterfly had really just flown away. Though, that was quite impossible.

And that's when I saw it… truly, most beautiful thing I had ever seen. If I had thought that the lake was beautiful, or that the butterfly was magnificent they were nothing compared to what my eyes have laid upon now in this instant. There standing in the shadows of trees, and surrounded by wildflowers that paled in comparison, stood the most beautiful, most awe inspiring woman I had ever seen. There were not enough words in the whole world, in all written language that could explain the sight before me. She had long flowing dark brown hair, so dark it was nearly black, but in the faint light I could see an underlay of red, that just seemed to shine through. Her body was flawless, so perfect that Rosalie would be insanely jealous. Within her heart shaped face, I saw a pair of full red lips that just called to me. My eyes roamed slightly upward to an adorably cute button nose, that still made her look mature. But her eyes, there are what got me the most. They were a beautiful golden color, so I knew right away she was a vampire, which would explain why I didn't hear her footsteps as she approached, but not the silence of her mind; but the golden of her eyes was just that, golden, now my, and the eyes of my family we have topaz eyes, which are more yellowish… and hers held such depth, such emotion, that I felt that even though her mind was blank to me, I would still be able to understand her through her eyes.

Our eyes locked, and her face broke out into a breathtaking smile. Of course I had no use in breathing, but it was breathtaking non-the-less. She swept her hand around gracefully into an arc and soon butterflies were swarming around her, she nodded once towards me, and said in a melodic voice that could rival any singer, "Life is worth the sacrifice, we choose to believe what we want. But that doesn't mean it is right. And of course Beauty is in the eye of the beholder as they always say," she paused and then continued with the butterflies still fluttering around her, it only added to her beauty, if that's even possible, "Oh and by the way, I don't think you're strange for thinking such things, I have too on many occasions." She smiled once again, and before I could even utter one sound, the butterflies swirled tighter around her before all breaking apart into small particles and swirling around in the wind before disappearing, along with this mysterious girl.

I stood awestruck for what felt like eternity. My mind was blank for the longest time before a plethora of thoughts began to swarm my mind… Who was she? What did she mean? How could she have caused such a reaction to me? How did she know what I was thinking… wait… she heard my thoughts. But how did she hear my thoughts and do that butterfly trick? Is it possible to have more than one talent? I'll have to speak with Carlisle about all of this, he would help me dissect this situation into something I could understand.

I began to run back in the direction of the house, I skidded to a halt a few dozen yards from the water and dashed back quickly grabbing my shoes. I burst back through the cloud of dust that risen from my quick shuffle, completely aware of the effect this woman has had on me and my building desire to know more about her.