A/N: people have been telling me not to bring in Percy and not to worry he isn't joining! I have nothing against him but I always thought it was weird when people were brought in to read after they've got through some chapters already! That would mean thy have to start over again, right? Anyways, I'm babbling.

I'm trying to be better with my updates, so I'm glad to announce that the FOURTH chapter (or third if you're going by the Twilight chapters) is HERE!

Disclaimer: I do not own HARRY POTTER or any of the lines (which is the whole book) from TWILIGHT. They belong to the amazing JK. ROWLING and STEPHANIE MEYER.

Fred, with lightning fast reflexes, hid the book behind him as soon as Percy spoke. How long had he been here? Had he heard them reading? Was he going to join them? These questions ran through everyone's heads as they looked at Percy guiltily.

"What are you all doing here?" Percy asked, frowning as Ginny blushed as red as her hair.

"Hanging out." George said, shrugging nonchalantly, the picture of indifference and innocence. "Something you wouldn't know about dear brother."

Percy flushed and started to walk away. "Mum wanted to know if you wanted lunch, but seeing the scattered food, I'm guessing no." Ron gave an indignant gasp.

"Excuse me? No lunch? Have you not known me for the past fourteen years?" everyone started giggling, except the guys. They manly giggled. Or chuckled.

"Well are you going to come and get it?" Percy challenged. Ron stood up straight and puffed out his chest.

"You betcha." He started walking backs towards his house, and then turned around. "You guys coming or what?"

Fred quickly hid the book behind a large oak before following the others. "What was all that about?" Harry muttered to him, lagging behind the others. Others, meaning, Percy.

"Oh some long standing argument they've had. Something about too much food…" Fred frowned. "Actually no, maybe not enough food. I have no idea. You know how Percy is."

"Mmmmm."

An hour later, the six full and groaning friends made their way to the alcove of trees. Where, off course, they ran into another problem.

"I can't believe you can't remember which tree you hid it in!" Ginny exclaimed, as she looked around another tree.

"I do remember! It was a large oak!" Fred said defensively.

"THERE ALL BLOODY LARGE OAKS!"

Finally they found it and Harry flipped to the correct chapter. "Who wants to read?" he asked, and was met with silence.

"Why don't you, mate?" Ron suggested.

"But I'm blind!" Harry gestured to his glasses, but when nobody nobly volunteered, he started to read.

"Chapter Three. Phenomenon,

"When I opened my eyes in the morning, something was different."

"It was sunny?" Ron suggested.

"You were happy?" Ginny asked.

"You realized you were a man?" Fred added in. Everyone stared at him, even his twin. "What?"

"There was a line," Hermione said, drawing an imagery line in the air. "And you crossed it." she mimed crossing a line and then dying.

Everyone started giggling.

"It was the light. It was still the gray-green light of a cloudy day in the forest, but it was clearer somehow. I realized there was no fog veiling my window. I jumped up to look outside, and then groaned in horror.

A fine layer of snow covered the yard,"

Harry had to pause because everyone started yelling happily. "Snow! Snow! SNOW!"

"WE LOVE YOU SNOW!"

"WOOOOOOH! SNOW!"

"I'M YOUR NUMBER ONE FAN!"

"NO I AM!"

"SHUT UP! I WAS BORN INTO THIS WORLD FIRST!"

"PROVE IT!"

"SHUT UP!" Ginny yelled at her brothers with so much force that all the dancing people stopped dancing. "I'm snow's number one fan, so there." She crossed her arms and grinned smugly as the twins gaped at her.

"Close your mouth you're not a fish."

"dusted the top of my truck, and whitened the road.

But that wasn't the worst part. All the rain from yesterday had frozen solid — coating the needles on the trees in fantastic, gorgeous patterns, and making the driveway a deadly ice slick."

"I love it when that happens." Harry chuckled gleefully. "Dudley always slides on them into the road. Squealing like a pig…"

Hermione and Ron chuckled as well, since they had met (or seen) Dudley before and could imagine the site.

"I had enough trouble not falling down when the ground was dry; it might be safer for me to go back to bed now."

"NO!" Ginny screamed in dismay, making the others jump. "SHE MUST GO OUTSIDE AND FALL OVER!"

"YEAH! CLUMSY PEOPLE RULE!" Harry agreed and they slapped high-fives. Ginny sent Hermione a secret smile, and she winked back.

It was working.

"Charlie had left for work before I got downstairs. In a lot of ways, living with Charlie was like having my own place, and I found myself reveling in the aloneness instead of being lonely."

"I hate it when my parents leave the house and leave me." Hermione muttered. "I always turn on all the lights and put some music on loud, then hide under my duvet with my wand."

The others chuckled at the mental image she had provided for them.

"I threw down a quick bowl of cereal and some orange juice from the carton."

Ron made a sound of disgust. "What kind of breakfast is that?"

"Maybe she worries about her weight?" Ginny suggested, not that she ever worried about hers. She liked eating, like Ron, and suspected that it was because she had grown up with six older brothers.

"I felt excited to go to school, and that scared me."

Fred pretended to faint, and George started screaming; "KILL IT BEFORE IT LAYS EGGS!"

"I knew it wasn't the stimulating learning environment I was anticipating,"

Fred sat up and put on a relieved expression. "Oh, thank Merlin's underpants."

"Thank Merlin's gym shorts."

"Thank Merlin's left sock."

"Thank Merlin's right sock!"

"Oh, good one George! Let's add it to the repertoire!" Fred grinned, and they slapped high fives. Ginny turned to Hermione.

"It gets better."

"Does it?"

Harry and Ron laughed at the comical look of horror on Hermione's face.

"or seeing my new set of friends. If I was being honest with myself, I knew I was eager to get to school because I would see Edward Cullen. And that was very, very stupid."

Hermione and Ginny started giggling. "No it's not! He's smokin'!"

"Like a BBQ!"

They blushed and giggled some more.

"I should be avoiding him entirely after my brainless and embarrassing babbling yesterday. And I was suspicious of him; why should he lie about his eyes? I was still frightened of the hostility I sometimes felt emanating from him, and I was still tongue tied whenever I pictured his perfect face. I was well aware that my league and his league were spheres that did not touch."

"And yet they do." Hermione pronounced dramatically. All the guys of the grou looked at her in confusion.

"How do you know?" Ron asked.

"Because it's obvious! He's the vampire, and she falls in love with him, and vice versa!" Ginny exclaimed before Hermione could even open her mouth.

Fred and George exchanged identical looks, and then said to the girls, "You just don't know vampires."

"WE'RE RIGHT!"

"So I shouldn't be at all anxious to see him today. It took every ounce of my concentration to make it down the icy brick driveway alive. I almost lost my balance when I finally got to the truck, but I managed to cling to the side mirror and save myself."

Harry had to stop reading because he was laughing too much. Ginny was in hysterics on the floor, and they couldn't decide whether she was laughing or crying. Both had tears streaming down their faces.

"She didn't even fall." George said amazement.

"Mental… image…" Harry gasped out.

Reading was put temporarily on hold while the two sorted themselves out. Harry kept emitting manly giggles after every sentence, and Ginny was laughing silently next to him.

"Clearly, today was going to be nightmarish."

"That's not even a word." Hermione muttered, frowning at the book.

Harry giggled and continued.

"Driving to school, I distracted myself from my fear of falling and my unwanted speculations about Edward Cullen by thinking about Mike and Eric, and the obvious difference in how teenage boys responded to me here. I was sure I looked exactly the same as I had in Phoenix. Maybe it was just that the boys back home had watched me pass slowly through all the awkward phases of adolescence and still thought of me that way. Perhaps it was because I was a novelty here, where novelties were few and far my crippling clumsiness was seen as endearing rather than pathetic, casting me as a damsel in distress."

"I would totally be friends with her just for her clumsiness." Harry said loyally. "She has no other personality."

Ginny nodded and giggled. "She had some personality though."

"I haven't seen it."

"Harry!"

"Whatever the reason, Mike's puppy dog behavior and Eric's apparent rivalry with him were disconcerting. I wasn't sure if I didn't prefer being ignored."

"I'd much rather be ignored." Ginny muttered to Hermione. Harry overheard, and his stomach turned.

"My truck seemed to have no problem with the black ice that covered the roads. I drove very slowly, though, not wanting to carve a path of destruction through Main Street."

This made everyone, not just the clumsy obsessed people, laugh.

"She has a way with words." Ron grinned.

"Just not outside her head." Fred muttered to George, who nodded.

"When I got out of my truck at school, I saw why I'd had so little trouble. Something silver caught my eye, and I walked to the back of the truck — carefully holding the side for support — to examine my tires."

"What are-"

"Seriously Ronald?" Hermione asked in exasperation. "You don't know what tires are?"

Ron blushed. "Never mind. Stupid question."

"There were thin chains crisscrossed in diamond shapes around them. Charlie had gotten up who knows how early to put snow chains on my truck."

Fred looked at uncomfortably at Hermione before opening his mouth. "What are snow chains?"

"A mesh of metal chains that are fitted around tires to give extra traction in snow." Hermione recited. Ron stared at her in shock.

"What? So you don't bite his head off?"

"He didn't ask a stupid question!"

"My throat suddenly felt tight. I wasn't used to being taken care of, and Charlie's unspoken concern caught me by surprise."

"Awwwww!" the girls cooed. "That's so nice of Charlie!"

"Has she never been taken care of?" Ron asked in exasperation.

Harry sighed and shook his head.

"I was standing by the back corner of the truck, struggling to fight back the sudden wave of emotion the snow chains had brought on, when I heard an odd sound."

"Aww-" they started to coo again, but George cut them off.

"If I hear one more word about how 'sweet' or 'adorable' she is, I swear to Merlin, I will hex both of you into the next school year." He said dangerously, bringing his wand out to emphasize his point.

Hermione and Ginny shut their mouths. The boys looked at him in shock.

"What? Someone had to do it." George shrugged. "I was manly and did it."

Fred scoffed. "Manly? I'm the manly one in this relationship."

"What relationship?" Harry asked, unsure if he wanted an answer.

"TWIN RELATIONSHIP!" they shouted in union.

"It was a high-pitched screech, and it was fast becoming painfully loud. I looked up, startled.

I saw several things simultaneously. Nothing was moving in slow motion, the way it does in the movies. Instead, the adrenaline rush seemed to make my brain work much faster, and I was able to absorb in clear detail several things at once.

Edward Cullen was standing four cars down from me, staring at me in face stood out from a sea of faces, all frozen in the same mask of shock. But of more immediate importance was the dark blue van that was skidding, tires locked and squealing against the brakes, spinning wildly across the ice of the parking lot.

Hermione started breathing heavily. "Please don't die, please don't die, please don't die." She muttered quietly to herself.

Fred and George were muttering quietly as well, but less kind towards Bella. "Please get injured, please get injured, please get injured."

Ginny looked at both of them. "Why do you guys hate Bella so much?"

"We don't hate her." Fred said.

"Hate is a strong word." George said.

"It was going to hit the back corner of my truck, and I was standing between them. I didn't even have time to close my before I heard the shattering crunch of the van folding around the truck bed, something hit me, hard, but not from the direction I was expecting."

Hermione screamed, and Harry dropped the book in shock, rubbing his abused ears. "Hermione." He said, irritated. "I'm sitting right next to you! Scream quieter next time."

Hermione blushed. "Sorry. It just happened, you know? My opened, and a scream just appeared out of nowhere. Like a tree, or a massive gummy bear."

Ginny looked at Harry in shocked disbelief. "Is she okay?"

Ron nodded, and Harry shrugged.

"Yeah she's fine."

"Define 'okay'."

Each one said something different.

"I'm sorry I asked." Ginny muttered, shaking her head at their weird yet wonderful friendship.

"My head cracked against the icy blacktop,and I felt something solid and cold pinning me to the ground. I was lying on the pavement behind the tan car I'd parked next to. But I didn't have a chance to notice anything else, because the van was still coming."

"FOR MERLIN'S SAKE STOP HYPERVENTILATING IN MY EAR!" Harry yelled, and Hermione stopped. "Thanks."

"No problem." Hermione said coolly, and then sent a wink at Ginny. The plan was working.

"It had curled gratingly around the end of the truck and, still spinning and sliding, was about to collide with me again. A low oath made me aware that someone was with me, and the voice was impossible not to recognize. Two long, white hands shot out protectively in front of me, and the van shuddered to a stop a foot from my face, the large hands fitting providentially into a deep dent in the side of the van's body."

"IT'S EDWARD!" The girls screamed as one. "HE'S SAVING HER FROM DEATH!"

"Remind me never again to read with girls." Ron said Harry.

"When are we ever going to be in this situation again?" Harry asked incredulously.

"Good point."

Fred butted in, a thoughtful look on his face. "I don't know, I think this is a great way to see how a girls mind works."

"Exactly my dear brother," George agreed. "And now we can use these moves on them."

The boys laughed, unaware that Hermione and Ginny had been listening to every word they had said.

"Excuse me?"

Harry, Ron, Fred and George paled.

"Then his hands moved so fast they blurred. One was suddenly gripping under the body of the van, and something was dragging me, swinging my legs around like a ragdoll's, till they hit the tire of the tan car. A groaning metallic thud hurt my ears, and the van settled, glass popping, onto the asphalt — exactly where, a second ago, my legs had been."

Everyone gaped at the book in disbelief. "Is he inhumanly strong?" Fred asked.

"Bitten by a radioactive spider?" Hermione wondered.

"Steroids much?" George rolled her eyes.

"HE'S OBVIOUSLY A VAMPIRE!" the three who had bet that Edward was a vampire yelled.

"YOU HAVE NO PROOF!" the twins yelled back.

"It was absolutely silent for one long second before the screaming began. In the abrupt bedlam, I could hear more than one person shouting my name. But more clearly than all the yelling, I could hear Edward Cullen's low, frantic voice in my ear."

"A low voice is sexy voice." Ginny giggled.

"You should not be thinking of sexy voices, you're thirteen!" Fred said in serious voice, which he saved for his little sister.

"And you won't be thinking of sexy voices when you're thirty either!" George added in.

Ginny nodded. "I won't." The twins brightened. "I will definitely be married by then, so I would be hearing a sexy voice, not thinking of it. Obviously!"

The twins bright looks dimmed and turned mischievous. "Who says you're going to have a boyfriend, let along get married?"

"YOU DON'T CONTROLL MY LIFE!" Ginny yelled. "And you leave Hogwarts in two years, so what are ya gonna do?"

They were thoughtful for a minute. "It goes down to Ron."

"We trust you will do a good job of protecting our little sis's virtue." They looked at Ron solemnly.

"I promise." Ron answered back, looking as equally serious.

Hermione leaned towards Harry and whispered in his ear. "I feel sorry for Ginny."

"Mmm…"

Ginny was looking angrily at the ground, refusing to look at anyone.

"Bella? Are you all right?"

"I'm fine." My voice sounded strange. I tried to sit up, and realized he was holding me against the side of his body in an iron grasp.

"Be careful," he warned as I struggled. "I think you hit your head pretty hard."

I became aware of a throbbing ache centered above my left ear.

"Ow," I said, surprised."

Ginny laughed. "I love it when that happens, to other people obviously. To me it's just bloody annoying." She had overcome her anger at her overbearing brothers.

"She doesn't seem hurt…" Hermione mused.

"That's what I thought." His voice, amazingly, sounded like he was suppressing laughter."

"Probably because she looks funny." Fred chuckled.

For once, George wasn't following his brothers train of thought. "Um… how?"

Fred sighed in exasperation. "Because she only realized she was hurt when he told her, and she's acting stupid about it."

George's face brightened, and he laughed. "I see you my brother!"

"That's what I'm talking about!" they slapped high fives, laughing manically.

"How in the…" I trailed off, trying to clear my head, get my bearings. "How did you get over here so fast?"

"I was standing right next to you, Bella," he said, his tone serious again.

"NO YOU WEREN'T!" Ginny yelled.

"YOU'RE ARE A VAMPIRE!" Ron cried.

"YOU'RE SUPER SPEEDY!" Harry exclaimed.

"It's all lies!" the three people opposing them called out, hissing and booing. Ron leaned over and whispered in Harry's ear,

"I can't wait to prove Hermione wrong." Harry nodded, grinning.

"It's going to be a beautiful day in the world of wizardry." He agreed.

"We should owl the Daily Prophet now so they can get their facts right." Ron chuckled.

"Be sure to add in that Fred and George were wrong too."

They both feel about laughing, while the others looked on in amusement. None of them had heard the whispered conversation, they had been too busy arguing.

"Are you okay to go on?" Hermione asked Harry.

"SHH I'M READING!"

"I turned to sit up, and this time he let me, releasing his hold around my waist and sliding as far from me as he could in the limited space. I looked at his concerned, innocent expression and was disoriented again by the force of his gold-colored eyes. What was I asking him?

Hermioine groaned. "She's such an idiot! He's purposefully distracting her with his godly god looks."

"Those are the kind of looks that make you stop in the street and get hit by traffic." Ginny agreed, ignoring the first part of Hermione's statement.

Harry laughed. "Nice Ginny, I see what you did there… hit by traffic…"

"What?"

"She almost got hit by a car…"

Ginny beamed at him. "OH! RIGHT! Yeah I totally did that on purpose."

"And then they found us, a crowd of people with tears streaming down their faces, shouting at each other, shouting at us.

"Don't move," someone instructed.

"Get Tyler out of the van!" someone else shouted.

There was a flurry of activity around us. I tried to get up, but Edward's cold hand pushed my shoulder down."Just stay put for now."

"But it's cold," I complained."

"You almost died woman!" George cried.

"She needs to sort out her priorities." Fred agrees. Ron looked scandalized.

"Hey! That's my line!"

"No little brother," George started.

"Your line is," Fred continued.

"BLOODY HELL!" they yelled together.

Ron blushed and crossed his arms. "I can have two lines."

"Only we get two lines." They chorused together.

"It surprised me when he chuckled under his breath. There was an edge to the sound.

"You were over there," I suddenly remembered, and his chuckle stopped short. "You were by your car."

His expression turned hard. "No, I wasn't."

"LIAR LIAR PLANTS FOR HIRE!" Ginny yelled out, smiling triumphantly at using a 'Muggle' phrase. Hermione and Harry laughed at her mispronunciation, they were the only ones who understood.

"Ginny is 'liar liar pants on fire'." Hermione explained.

"Oh…" Ginny blushed red and didn't say anything.

"I saw you." All around us was chaos. I could hear the gruffer voices of adults arriving on the scene. But I obstinately held on to our argument; I was right, and he was going to admit it.

"GIRL POWER!" no not Hermione, not even Ginny, but George yelled. Everyone was stunned into silence before bursting in peels of hysterical laughter.

"Bella, I was standing with you, and I pulled you out of the way." He unleashed the full, devastating power of his eyes on me, as if trying to communicate something crucial.

"How do eyes have so much power?" Harry asked, pausing in his reading. "I mean, they're just eyes."

Ginny shook her head. "You have no idea." She mumbled, having been lost in Harry's emerald eyes many times.

"No." I set my jaw.

The gold in his eyes blazed. "Please, Bella."

"Please Bella." Fred mimicked.

"Listen to me Bella." George guffawed, putting on a husky deep voice.

"Jump rope for me Bella."

"Jump of a cliff for me Bella."

"GEORGE! WHAT HAPPENED TO THAT LINE THAT YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO CROSS?" Fred bellowed.

"I bet you 10 galleons that she will jump of a cliff and it will have something to do with him." George challenged.

"Done." Fred said, and they shook hands. "But how do you know it will happen in this book?"

"It wont."

"There are more?" Ron wailed.

"This is definitely the type of series that will span four books and a movie franchise." George said knowledgably

"Huh..."

"Why?" I demanded.

"Trust me," he pleaded, his soft voice overwhelming.

I could hear the sirens now. "Will you promise to explain everything to me later?"

"Fine," he snapped, abruptly exasperated.

"Fine," I repeated angrily.

"Why are they angry?" Harry asked no one in particular.

"UST!" Fred and George yelled.

"And that is…" Ron asked.

"UNRESOLVED SEXUAL TENSION!" they bellowed to the world, some birds flew away in panic.

Ginny grinned. "You know, in saying that, your admitting that he's a vampire."

Fred and George gasped in union. "NO! MERLIN WE TAKE IT BACK! WE'RE SORRY FOR DISAPPOINTING YOU!"

"You're so weird. How are we related?" Ginny asked. No one answered.

"It took six EMTs"

"What's a EMT?" Ron asked.

Hermione and Harry shook their heads. "No idea. Must be an American thing."

"Cool, cool."

"and two teachers — Mr. Varner and Coach Clapp — to shift the van far enough away from us to bring the stretchers in. Edward vehemently refused his, and I tried to do the same, but the traitor told them I'd hit my head and probably had a concussion.

Everyone chuckled when she thought the words traitor. "I want to be able to read minds." Ginny cackled.

"No you don't." all the guys said. Hermione and Ginny turned green.

"EWWW!"

"I almost died of humiliation when they put on the neck brace."

"A neckbrace is something that goes around your neck when they think your head is damaged." Hermione said.

"We know." Fred said.

"We aren't idiots." George added.

"Why do I bother?" Hermione asked a squirrel that was on a tree.

"I don't know." George squeaked, pretending to sound like the squirrel. It send him a withering look and scuttled up higher.

"Wooooow."

"It looked like the entire school was there, watching soberly as they loaded me in the back of the ambulance. Edward got to ride in the front. It was maddening. To make matters worse, Chief Swan arrived before they could get me safely away.

Harry scoffed. "'Chief Swan', doesn't even call her Dad 'Dad'. What is wrong with this girl?"

Hermione thought for a second. "Maybe it's because she has never had a close relationship with her Dad, so she doesn't see him as one."

She was given no reply.

"Bella!" he yelled in panic when he recognized me on the stretcher.

"I'm completely fine, Char — Dad," I sighed. "There's nothing wrong with me."

He turned to the closest EMT for a second opinion. I tuned him out to consider the jumble of inexplicable images churning chaotically in my head. When they'd lifted me away from the car, I had seen the deep dent in the tan car's bumper — a very distinct dent that fit the contours of Edward's shoulders…as if he had braced himself against the car with enough force to damage the metal frame…

"VAMPIRE!" they yelled. "You may as well pay us now and get it over with."

Fred, George and Hermione all shook their heads. "There is going to be a vampire called Edward."

"How many Edwards are you expecting in this book?" Ron asked in exasperation.

George looked at him seriously. "A lot."

"And then there was his family, looking on from the distance, with expressions that ranged from disapproval to fury, but held no hint of concern for their brother's safety."

"Because he just gave away their secret." Ginny said logically.

"What? You think the whole family is a bunch of vampires?" Hermione asked, aghast. Ginny nodded, and her brothers chuckled.

"My dear little sister, you are seriously under educated in the world of vampires." Fred said condescendingly.

"Why?"

"Because, vampires can't live together. It's not in their nature. They would rip each other's heads off in an instant." George supplied helpfully.

The girls paled and turned a light shade of green. "Nice."

"I tried to think of a logical solution that could explain what I had just seen — a solution that excluded the assumption that I was insane."

"You are insane! He was standing next to you! He is not supernatural!" Fred and George shouted as one at the book.

"DENIAL!" Harry yelled back.

"Naturally, the ambulance got a police escort to the county hospital."

"Naturally." Ron said sarcastically.

"I felt ridiculous the whole time they were unloading me. What made it worse was that Edward simply glided through the hospital doors under his own power. I ground my teeth together."

"She totally likes the pants off him." Ginny snickered. Hermione started giggling hysterically.

"What are we gonna do with them?" Harry asked Ron, who shrugged.

"Their girls mate, a lost cause."

"HEY!" they so called 'lost causes' yelled at them indignantly. Ron cowered away from the glares.

"It was Harry!"

"Excuse me?"

"Take one for the team, mate."

"They put me in the emergency room, a long room with a line of beds separated by pastel-patterned curtains. A nurse put a pressure cuff on my arm and a thermometer under my tongue. Since no one bothered pulling the curtain around to give me some privacy, I decided I wasn't obligated to wear the stupid-looking neck brace anymore."

George started singing the Jaws theme tune under his breath and Fred started wailing dramatically. "She's gonna DIIIEEEEE! She's gonna DIIEEE! We're gonna throw up, and then she's gonna DIIIEEEEE!"

"I take back what I said earlier about Bella being an overdramatic bimbo." Harry said between laughter. "You guys have taken that away from her!"

The twins stopped their dramatics to stare at Harry in disbelief. "Say that to our faces."

"You guys are overdramatic bimbos." Harry said seriously.

"Forge," said Fred.

"Yes Gred," replied George.

"There is a third option to this problem called Harry Potter."

"And what is that?"

"It involves…" Fred paused dramatically. "… MURDER!"

"I think options one and two will be more proactive." Harry said.

"When the nurse walked away, I quickly unfastened the Velcro and threw it under the bed.

There was another flurry of hospital personnel, another stretcher brought to the bed next to me. I recognized Tyler Crowley from my Government class beneath the bloodstained bandages wrapped tightly around his head. Tyler looked a hundred times worse than I felt. But he was staring anxiously at me."

"Yes because she's so ill that she needs special attention from everyone." Ron said sarcastically.

"I hate it when people at me anxiously when I'm in the hospital wing…" Harry muttered, more to himself then anyone.

"Yeah but mate, it's usually because you've fallen off a broom or something equally as life threatening." Ron grinned, clapping Harry on the shoulder.

"It's not my fault that I'm a danger magnet!" Harry wailed dramatically.

"And he called us over dramatic bimbos." Fred murmured to George.

"Tell me about it… hypocrite."

"Bella, I'm so sorry!"

"I'm fine, Tyler — you look awful, are you all right?" As we spoke, nurses began unwinding his soiled bandages, exposing a myriad of shallow slices all over his forehead and left cheek."

The girls made faces at this.

"Cars are dangerous inventions." George said knowledgably.

Hermione scoffed. "Like you'd know anything about them."

"My Dad owned a flying car that almost got Ron and Harry expelled and killed." George threw back. "Beat that!"

"In that order?" Harry whispered to Ron.

"And I thought Hermione was the one with the messed ideas about dying and being expelled." He muttered back, and they both started laughing.

"He ignored me. "I thought I was going to kill you! I was going too fast, and I hit the ice wrong…" He winced as one nurse started dabbing at his face.

"Don't worry about it; you missed me."

"How did you get out of the way so fast? You were there, and then you were gone…"

"Umm… Edward pulled me out of the way."

He looked confused. "Who?"

Ginny giggled. "Oh you know, the incredibly sexy guy that every girl wants. Probably makes you guys feel insecure about your own looks." Hermione started laughing.

"Did I mention he's ludicrously sexy and good looking?" she added in.

"Edward Cullen — he was standing next to me." I'd always been a terrible liar; I didn't sound convincing at all.

Ginny frowned. "But isn't that sort of true… I mean, that's not even a lie."

"Bella is never going to be able to play poker." George said sadly, bowing his head.

"May there be a moment of silence while we pray for our fallen brethren?" Fred said, humming slightly.

Hermione turned to Ron. "What in merlin's name are they doing? And how do they know about poker?"

It was Ginny who answered her. "A Muggle girl in the town closest to us." She frowned, and blushed. "She likes their 'magic' tricks."

"Cullen? I didn't see him… wow, it was all so fast, I guess. Is he okay?"

"I think so. He's here somewhere, but they didn't make him use a stretcher."

"LET IT GO ALREADY!" everyone shouted at the book.

"I knew I wasn't crazy. What had happened? There was no way to explain away what I'd seen."

"It's okay Bella, we know you aren't crazy. There's a simple explanation to why you can't explain what's happening… he's a vampire, and you don't believe in vampires, but you will, so just hang it there." Ginny said condescendingly, looking at the book like it was baby.

Harry was freaking out because it looked she was looking at him, which was just weird, since he was a year older.

"They wheeled me away then, to X-ray my head. I told them there was nothing wrong, and I was right. Not even a concussion."

"What's an X-ray?" Ginny asked brightly.

"Something that can see into your body, so doctors can see if you have broken a bone or something to that effect." Hermione said.

All the wizards gasped in excitement. "Take me to one!" Ron exclaimed.

"Break a bone." Was her amused response.

"I asked if I could leave, but the nurse said I had to talk to a doctor first. So I was trapped in the ER, waiting, harassed by Tyler 's constant apologies and promises to make it up to me."

"I have a theory!" Hermione said in excitement. "He almost ran her over to give him an excuse to talk to her. And take her out on a date."

Every boy laughed. "Smooth Tyler." Fred and George chuckled. "There are easier ways to get a girls attention."

"Like what?" Hermione asked, genuinely interested.

They shared mischievous looks but said nothing. Hermione was about to open her mouth to ask again, when Ron butted in.

"Men's secrets."

"No matter how many times I tried to convince him I was fine, he continued to torment himself. Finally, I closed my eyes and ignored him. He kept up a remorseful mumbling."

"Dude what's the point? She's asleep!" George exclaimed.

"Annoying her isn't the way into a girl's heart." Fred informed them.

"Is she sleeping?" a musical voice asked. My eyes flew open."

"But for sexual Edward, who has annoyed her since the beginning of this book, she opens her eyes immediately." Hermione and Ginny cackled manically.

"I don't like seeing them like this…" Harry whispered to the guys.

"When did Ginny become like… this?" Fred whispered back, frowning in brotherly disapproval.

"Edward was standing at the foot of my bed, smirking. I glared at him. It wasn't easy — it would have been more natural to ogle."

"MORE PROOF!" they yelled out loud together.

"I really wanna meet this guy…" Ginny sighed, and Hermione nodded. While the boys exchanged disgusted looks, Ginny and Hermione winked at each other.

The. Plan. Was. Working.

"Hey, Edward, I'm really sorry —"Tyler began.

Edward lifted a hand to stop him. "No blood, no foul," he said, flashing his brilliant teeth. He moved to sit on the edge of Tyler 's bed, facing me. He smirked again. "So, what's the verdict?" he asked me."

Harry gaped at the book, then looked up in excitement. "See that? Did you see that comment? He is a vampire! PAY UP!"

Ron and Ginny, quickly catching onto what he was talking about, starting dancing around the gathering. "WE WIN! WE WIN! WE WIN!"

The other three tried to keep their cool. "How have you made this conclusion?" Hermione asked.

"Because, if he wasn't a vampire then he wouldn't care about blood… therefore HE IS A VAMPIRE!" Harry informed them in excitement, laughing.

"Maybe he was talking about Tyler not killing Bella…?" George suggested, desperately wishing he could go back in time and change his bet. It was so obvious that this author had got her vampire information totally messed up.

Ginny shook her head adamantly. "No, no, no. He's talking about the fact that there isn't any blood for him to go crazy on!"

"Tyler's bleeding." Fred pointed out.

"His are covered up." Ron threw out, pausing in his victory dance.

Hermione frowned, recalling everything she knew about vampires. "Even if his wounds are covered up, he can still smell the blood. Therefore, not a vampire."

"Maybe he has built up a resistance to the smell of blood, I mean he goes to school for Merlin's sake." Ginny retorted, looking pleased with herself.

"WHAT KIND OF VAMPIRE GOES TO SCHOOL?" George roared, which effectively killed the debate, since no one could answer that, without contradicting their bet. Harry went back to reading.

"There's nothing wrong with me at all, but they won't let me go," I complained. "How come you aren't strapped to a gurney like the rest of us?"

"It's all about who you know," he answered. "But don't worry, I came to spring you."

Then a doctor walked around the corner, and my mouth fell open.

He was young, he was blond… and he was handsomer than any movie star I'd ever seen."

"Cue Edwards Cullen's adoptive father." Hermione said. Everyone looked at her. "What?"

"How do you know that?" Ron asked.

"His whole family is attractive, makes sense for the Dad to be to." Hermione shrugged.

"More vampirisms." Ginny muttered under her breath. Only Harry heard, and he shot her a grin.

Her heart nearly stopped beating.

"He was pale, though, and tired-looking, with circles under his eyes. From Charlie's description, this had to be Edward's father."

Hermione jumped up and started doing her own victory dance. "OH YEAH I WAS RIGHT!"

"No one doubted you 'Mione." Harry said calmly, and she sat back down, still beaming.

"You guys are just jealous that you didn't come up with it first." She said smugly.

"So jealous." Fred deadpanned.

"I'm practically crying with disappointment." George said sarcastically.

"So, Miss Swan," Dr. Cullen said in a remarkably appealing voice, "how are you feeling?"

"I'm fine," I said, for the last time, I hoped.

He walked to the lightboard on the wall over my head, and turned it on."Your X-rays look good," he said. "Does your head hurt? Edward said you hit it pretty hard."

"It's fine," I repeated with a sigh, throwing a quick scowl toward doctor's cool fingers probed lightly along my skull. He noticed when I winced.

"Tender?" he asked.

"Not really." I'd had worse."

Harry and Ginny started chuckling, imagining all sorts of 'Bella-falling-over-and-hurting-her-head' moments. They were very funny.

One involved her tripping over a cordless phone and hitting her head on the side of the fridge. How did she do that? You will need to ask Harry, since this was his idea.

Ginny's was very different. Bella was just walking along the road, casually, when she slipped on a banana peel – like in cartoons – and fell over, onto a skateboard, which then started speeding down a massive hill, while Bella screamed and tried to stay on. Finally it ended with Bella diving for safety into a nearby swimming pool, and hitting her head on the shallow end.

None of them happened.

The others wished they could share in on the joke.

"I heard a chuckle, and looked over to see Edward's patronizing smile. My eyes narrowed.

"Well, your father is in the waiting room — you can go home with him now. But come back if you feel dizzy or have trouble with your eyesight at all."

"Can't I go back to school?" I asked, imagining Charlie trying to be attentive."

"Don't you mean caring?" Harry asked, not annoyed exactly, just frustrated. Ginny wished desperately she could take his hand again, but she wasn't sitting next to him anymore, so it would be weird.

"Maybe you should take it easy today."

I glanced at Edward. "Does he get to go to school?"

"Someone has to spread the good news that we survived," Edward said smugly."

The others laughed at his answer.

"I like this guy." Ron said.

"Mmmm, he's funny, attractive and nice! What more could you want from a guy?" Ginny mumbled to herself, and Hermione giggled in agreement.

"Actually," Dr. Cullen corrected, "most of the school seems to be in the waiting room."

"Oh no," I moaned, covering my face with my hands."

Harry groaned along with her. "That is always so embarrassing!"

"Just because your famous." Ron said back.

"You try being famous." He challenged.

"Dr. Cullen raised his eyebrows. "Do you want to stay?"

"No, no!" I insisted, throwing my legs over the side of the bed and hopping down quickly. Too quickly — I staggered, and Dr. Cullen caught me. He looked concerned.

"I'm fine," I assured him again. No need to tell him my balance problems had nothing to do with hitting my head."

Harry and Ginny hadn't laughed when she stumbled out of bed, because they had thought she was hurt. Now they busted some guts laughing so hard.

"Oh… merlin… balance… problems…" Harry gasped out.

"Never… heard… it… put… like… that…" Ginny agreed between giggles.

"Should we send for help?" George asked in a faux scared voice.

"Naw, they'll live." Fred comforted. "For how long I don't know." The twins broke into maniacal laughter.

Ron turned to Hermione. "We are the only sane ones left."

Hermione laughed. "I'm the only sane one left."

Ron gaped at her in outrage.

"Take some Tylenol for the pain," he suggested as he steadied me."

"Tylenol?" George asked.

"Pain killer." Harry replied before Hermione even opened her mouth. "WHOA! BET YOU 'MIONE!"

Hermione huffed and crossed her arms in faux annoyance.

"It doesn't hurt that bad," I insisted.

"It sounds like you were extremely lucky," Dr. Cullen said, smiling as he signed my chart with a flourish.

"Lucky Edward happened to be standing next to me," I amended with a hard glance at the subject of my statement.

"Oh, well, yes," Dr. Cullen agreed, suddenly occupied with the papers in front of him."

"He's in on it!" Ron shouted out in excitement. "He's probably a vampire too!"

"I think we've through with that already…" Ginny said, giggling.

"Then he looked away, at Tyler, and walked to the next bed. My intuition flickered; the doctor was in on it."

Ron made a smug noise at the back of his throat. "See? Even the book agrees with me."

"We never doubted you, Ron." Harry sighed.

"I'm afraid that you'll have to stay with us just a little bit longer," he said to Tyler, and began checking his cuts.

As soon as the doctor's back was turned, I moved to Edward's side."

"The side you will stay at." Ron said ominiously.

"For the rest of your eternal life." Ginny added in in a spooky voice.

"She's a Muggle, Ginny, she won't be living forever." Hermione told them.

Ginny and Ron rolled their eyes. "Obviously Hermione, but since Eddie is a vampire, she will get turned." Ginny explained.

"Oh how silly of me." Hermione said, faking a laugh. "Except he's not a vampire!"

"HE IS!"

"Can I talk to you for a minute?" I hissed under my breath. He took a step back from me, his jaw suddenly clenched.

"Your father is waiting for you," he said through his teeth.

I glanced at Dr. Cullen and Tyler.

"I'd like to speak with you alone, if you don't mind," I pressed.

He glared, and then turned his back and strode down the long room. I nearly had to run to keep up. As soon as we turned the corner into a short hallway, he spun around to face me.

"What do you want?" he asked, sounding annoyed. His eyes were cold.

His unfriendliness intimidated me. My words came out with less severity than I'd intended. "You owe me an explanation," I reminded him."

"He saved your life, he doesn't owe you anything." Ron said sarcastically.

"But he promised her an explanation." Hermione reminded him.

Harry was too busy laughing to say anything. "Oh Merlin you guys, you have to hear this…"

"I saved your life — I don't owe you anything."

Ron's mouth dropped open with shock as the others laughed at him. "I… what…"

"You're like Edward!" Ginny giggled.

"So I'm a sexy guy?" Ron asked smugly, getting over his shock. Ginny paled and turned green.

"Ugghhh…" she shuddered. "I don't even want to think about that. You've ruined Edward for me!"

Ron shrugged. "He was too old for you anyways."

Harry laughed. "Way to old, seeing as he's probably like 400 or something."

Everyone blanched at that thought, even the ones opposed to the theory.

"I flinched back from the resentment in his voice. "You promised."

"Bella, you hit your head, you don't know what you're talking about." His tone was cutting."

"Ouch," Hermione winced. "That's cold."

"My temper flared now, and I glared defiantly at him. "There's nothing wrong with my head."

"That issue could be debatable." Fred said.

"Seeing as you think he's 'supernatural'." George said sarcastically.

"And her clumsiness…" Harry whispered to Ginny, who giggled and nodded.

"He glared back. "What do you want from me, Bella?"

"YOUR BODY!" the girls yelled outloud.

"I want to know the truth," I said. "I want to know why I'm lying for you."

"What do you think happened?" he snapped.

It came out in a rush.

"All I know is that you weren't anywhere near me —Tyler didn't see you, either, so don't tell me I hit my head too hard. That van was going to crush us both — and it didn't, and your hands left dents in the side of it — and you left a dent in the other car, and you're not hurt at all — and the van should have smashed my legs, but you were holding it up…" I could hear how crazy it sounded, and I couldn't continue. I was so mad I could feel the tears coming; I tried to force them back by grinding my teeth together."

Hermione shook her head sympathetically. "So embarrassing when that happens."

"You know…" Harry said slowly, his eyes scanning over the last paragraph. "She's surprisingly accurate, given the circumstances."

"Oh no…" Hermione whispered, paling as a sudden thought hit her. Harry looked at her in amusement.

"It's not that bad."

"He was staring at me incredulously. But his face was tense, defensive."You think I lifted a van off you?" His tone questioned my sanity, but it only made me more suspicious. It was like a perfectly delivered line by a skilled actor."

They all laughed.

"I merely nodded once, jaw tight.

"Nobody will believe that, you know." His voice held an edge of derision now.

"I'm not going to tell anybody." I said each word slowly, carefully controlling my anger.

Surprise flitted across his face.

"Then why does it matter?"

"It matters to me," I insisted. "I don't like to lie — so there'd better be a good reason why I'm doing it."

"Can't you just thank me and get over it?"

"Thank you." I waited, fuming and expectant."

"Bella, that wasn't very sincere, say it again, with more 'thank you'ness in it." Fred said in the perfect imitation of his mums voice.

George laughed. "Mum used say that to Ginny all the time when she little." Ginny blushed.

"I don't like apologizing." She muttered. "It's like backing down."

Harry grinned. "Think of it as a tactical retreat."

"You're not going to let it go, are you?"

"No."

"In that case… I hope you enjoy disappointment."

We scowled at each other in silence. I was the first to speak, trying to keep myself focused. I was in danger of being distracted by his livid, glorious face. It was like trying to stare down a destroying angel."

"Yes, I guess that would be hard." George deadpanned.

"Why did you even bother?" I asked frigidly.

He paused, and for a brief moment his stunning face was unexpectedly vulnerable."

The girls cooed. "Aww, I just love a man who shows his feelings." Ginny sighed.

"Them looking vulnerable is just the hottest look ever." Hermione agreed.

"I don't know," he whispered.

And then he turned his back on me and walked away.

I was so angry, it took me a few minutes until I could move. When I could walk, I made my way slowly to the exit at the end of the hallway.

The waiting room was more unpleasant than I'd feared. It seemed like every face I knew in Forks was there, staring at me. Charlie rushed to my side; I put up my hands.

"There's nothing wrong with me," I assured him sullenly. I was still aggravated, not in the mood for chitchat.

"What did the doctor say?"

"Dr. Cullen saw me, and he said I was fine and I could go home." I sighed. Mike and Jessica and Eric were all there, beginning to converge on us. "Let's go," I urged."

"GET OUT BEFORE THE MOB GETS YOU!" Harry yelled at the book.

"GET OUT BEFORE YOU EMBARRESS YOURSELF BY BEING SENT BACK INTO THE HOSPITAL BECAUSE YOU TRIPPED DOWN THE STAIRS!" Ginny hollered and laughed.

"That's to long…" Ron mused. "Needs to be shorter, more catchier."

"Umm… how about…" Ginny thought for a minute. "DON'T TRIP AND DIE!"

Everyone laughed. "I can see the headlines now…" Fred began, spreading his arms wide.

"GIRL TRIPPED ON HOSPITAL STEPS AND DIED," George continued, and they laughed some more.

"How ironic."

"Charlie put one arm behind my back, not quite touching me, and led me to the glass doors of the exit. I waved sheepishly at my friends, hoping to convey that they didn't need to worry anymore. It was a huge relief— the first time I'd ever felt that way — to get into the cruiser.

We drove in silence. I was so wrapped up in my thoughts that I barely knew Charlie was there. I was positive that Edward's defensive behavior in the hall was a confirmation of the bizarre things I still could hardly believe I'd witnessed.

When we got to the house, Charlie finally spoke."Um… you'll need to call Renée." He hung his head, guilty."

"Who's Renée?" George frowned.

"Some old friend?" Hermione suggested.

"I swear she didn't have any 'old friends'." Ginny giggled.

"I was appalled. "You told Mom!"

"Sorry."

I slammed the cruiser's door a little harder than necessary on my way out.

My mom was in hysterics, of course. I had to tell her I felt fine at least thirty times before she would calm down."

"What an adorable mother!" Hermione and Ginny cooed, staring at the book with adoring eyes.

"Um… guys… your freaking me out." Harry said uncomfortably.

"She begged me to come home — forgetting the fact that home was empty at the moment — but her pleas were easier to resist than I would have thought. I was consumed by the mystery Edward presented. And more than a little obsessed by Edward himself. Stupid, stupid, stupid."

"Smart, smart, smart." Hermione whispered. Everyone heard and looked at her. "What?" she asked innocently. "If she wasn't, then there wouldn't be a story line."

"Smooth." Ginny muttered to her after they looked away.

"I know." Hermione beamed back and Ginny shook her head in amusement.

"I wasn't as eager to escape Forks as I should be, as any normal, sane person would be."

"It seems like a nice place." George said, trying and failing to sound serious.

"Yeah, nice and boring." Fred agreed.

"Everyone needs some boring-ness in their lives." Harry countered, who had had way to much excitement in his short fourteen years.

"Wonder what it's like to have a quiet life?" Ron mused, and Harry elbowed him. "OW! You have sharp elbows!"

"Man up!" Hermione said, to both of them.

"But Hermione-"

"He was mean-"

"No right to do-"

"Doesn't have to-"

"Puny guy with specks-"

"OI!" Harry yelled at Ron, and then they both fell about laughing.

Hermione looked at Ginny, Fred and George's faces. "It's normal, don't worry."

"Wasn't worrying!" Fred said happily.

"They need to go to the loony bin…" George muttered, and Fred shushed in.

"Hush now Georgie, no need to say those things out loud." They started laughing too.

Hermione turned to Ginny. "We are the only sane ones left."

"May merlin be with you."

"I decided I might as well go to bed early that night. Charlie continued to watch me anxiously, and it was getting on my nerves.

I stopped on my way to grab three Tylenol from the bathroom.

They did help, and, as the pain eased, I drifted to sleep.

That was the first night I dreamed of Edward Cullen."

Harry threw the book down. And that was the end of chapter three!" everyone yelled and started dancing around.

"She's dreaming of her love!" Ginny grinned happily, and for once Hermione wasn't.

"No! Nuh uh, she's not a loud to dream of him, she needs to save herself for the vampire!" she said.

"That is the vampire!" Ginny said.

"No it isn't!"

"Yes it is!"

"You're wrong!"

"No, you're wrong!"

"I'm never wrong!"

"You are this time!"

"I-" Hermione's retort was cut off by George's voice.

"YOUR MUMS WRONG!"

Hermione and Ginny turned to look at George in shocked amusement.

"Whose Mum?" Ginny asked sweetly.

"Yours." He answered back promptly.

"We have the same mother."

"Aw damn…"

Everyone else started laughing at George's dismayed face. Ron looked down at his watch, and screamed. Everyone jumped.

"What? What?" they yelled, looking around wildly for the thing that would make him scream.

"We are late for dinner!" he yelled, and started running towards the Burrow. Everyone else exchanged amused looks and followed Ron at a much slower pace.

A/N: YES! Finished this chapter! I am so proud of myself, like seriously. This is a much quicker update than last time… haha.

Oh yeah, and I don't mean any offense to any clumsy people out there, I myself am clumsy so I'm making fun of myself. Also, to the Twilight Lovers, I don't hate Bella, and they don't hate her either. Just thought I'd clear that up!

Thanks for everyone that reviewed, favorite, alerted etc. THEY MEAN A LOT! I really do love them reviews, seriously, keep 'em coming!

I don't know when my next update will be up… I've started it, but I've got some hospital appointments coming up, and those results will tell me when I can next sit down at my laptop and PLEASE MY AWESOME READERS!

Please REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW! I love reviews so much!

And thanks for reading, and waiting around for the next chapter, since I'm so crap at updating… constructive criticism is wanted! Tell me what I need to improve on… everything! Thanks!

Eaglewings2peace

xoxo