Chapter One

Dear Readers,
Hey! This is my second fanfic, but my first Twilight one, so I hope you enjoy it! (Disclaimer: I do NOT own Twilight or any of its characters; only the BRILLIANT Mrs. Meyer does)
Please read, then review, so I can see if this fanfic is rubbish and that I should give up... or if you like it, that I should write more!
Also many thanks to vivelarevolution, a close friend of mine, who has helped edit this chapter somewhat, and made brilliant suggestions – Alice, thank you!
Also, a quick note – I have NOTHING against Bella in Twilight, so before I get hundreds of notices complaining about this story, please do NOT take it personally. 

Thanks, Xanthemj.

How should I start this off?

My name is Victoria – that's all I've ever been called; at least, from what I can remember. I have scarlet eyes, and red hair. I am a vampire.

I could be standing right behind you, right now, and you wouldn't know. Or you could see me, and then blink, and I wouldn't be there. You could fall deeply in love with me, and then, when I lured you in, BAM! The end of your life. That's the beauty of being a vampire. We are designed to make you come to us, not the other way around.

I once travelled with two other vampires, James and Laurent, in a small coven. James was my lover, but he was killed by beings who have no right to be called vampires. And they are the reason why I am here now, running silently through the forest in Surrey, England. They are the reason why I am so bitter: one of them killed my Laurent. Perhaps because I killed one of their snacks. A human, by the name of Bella.

We stood there, James, Laurent and I, watching as the small group of vampires left their game of baseball to come and greet us. Doubts were running through my mind; they smelled strange, like flowers but without any scent. One of them smelled... delicious, like a human, but I couldn't make it out; there were too many confusing smells. James and the males talked – I made out names. Carlisle, Esme, Emmett, Jasper, Alice, Rosalie, Edward, Bella. I noted the one called Edward standing protectively in front of the one called Bella. She had a cute little baseball hat on. I smiled, looking into her eyes, and she shifted nervously, looking away from me, trying to focus on one of the others. I kept staring at her. I felt powerful, making other people nervous, making them look away from me. I was in control. Then James sniffed the air, looked at the Bella girl, and tilted his head.
"Hey, you brought a snack!"

That was when I became so uncontrollable, even my beloved James could not stop me. As I realised that the girl was human, my instincts had kicked in. I had launched myself at her...

"NO!" The boy called Edward yelled, pushing himself towards the girl.

My body was on top of hers, she was writhing, screaming, begging. I could see the pain in her eyes, and I began to enjoy myself. This puny little human smelt so... irresistible. She was wriggling furiously under my grip, like a worm in the grasp of a hungry bird. Totally helpless, but still fighting for life. Pitiful, really.

I am passing fallen trees, covered in moss, and startled deer and small birds. I'm not thirsty – not yet, anyway – so these all pass me in a blur. The trees, still very green, remind me of that stupid little town in America. Forks, it was called. That was where it was done.

My mouth was on her neck, she was screaming, but her volume lowered as I continued sucking the life blood from her body. It was so warm, so sweet, and so delicious! It smelled like freesias, or lavender... I couldn't stop myself; it was so addictive, so wonderful...

I was pulled from her still warm body by Laurent. My mouth was covered in red liquid, and as I wiped it off on my sleeve I looked around. I had been oblivious of my surroundings as I drank, and now let my eyes turn from the body on the ground to the landscape around me. The strange family had left, apart from the one called Carlisle.

"You shouldn't have done that", he said quietly, staring me straight in the eyes.

I felt slightly ashamed, but still completely satisfied. "I'm sorry, Carlisle. But I couldn't resist it..." I fluttered my eyelashes seductively.

He didn't take the bait. "Bella is... was Edward's lover. He won't take kindly to her being dead. Because of you."

Damn. I hadn't meant to kill her... well, not completely, anyway. I looked over to her now lifeless body. She was sprawled over the ground, her head tilted to the right, her arms sprawled over the ground.

"Yeah, she looks a bit... pale." I admitted.

I realise now that that was the most stupid thing ever to say. However, now is a little too late. It is because of my actions that I am here now, and not sitting in a nice warm cafe somewhere looking for my next meal. My actions. Mine.

I am still running through the woods, but I slow down as I reach a small clearing in the green green woods. It's full of flowers and grasses, and I stop for a rest, lying myself down in the grass and allowing myself to become perfectly still. We vampires don't become tired, but some of my remaining human instincts command me to rest (at least for a minute or two) to catch my breath. Which I don't technically need.

I lay in the long grass, too long to scratch against my stone skin, closed my eyes and listened to my surroundings. I could hear a stream gurgling not far from where I lay, and some blue tits and sparrows tweeting sweetly nearby. I frown in my trance-like state. Those birds are kinda annoying. I don't get up, though: the sun is warming my body very nicely.

I lie there in the grass for a while. It's relaxing. I listen a little more to the sounds around me. That's when I hear the shuffling, too far away to be a threat, but still making my brain kick into gear. I listen harder. Something is running, trying to flee – or hunt.

I take a breath and push my body into an upright position. I'm standing now, my hair reaching the top of the grass but my waist starting below the top of it. I listen again, my perfect ears straining to hear the tiniest sound.

It's someone running impossibly fast, maybe even faster than me. It's my tracker. He's found me. Again.