A Picture Paints a little over 1000 Words...

Bella's Dream

At first I saw nothing.

The air was damp and muggy around me, causing my clothes to stick uncomfortably to my skin. But as I floated through the forest, the heaviness of the air could not quash the exhilaration from the inhuman speeds at which I moved.

Edward held me securely in his arms.

I could hear trees rustling around me as we moved, and felt my hair blowing back behind us.

I opened my eyes, looking for Edward's face.

The scene was not as carefree as I originally thought.

Edward's eyes stayed on my face as we stumbled through the forest, his beautiful face troubled. Tears ran down his cheeks, splashing across my face. I tried to tell him everything was fine, but I felt my eyes closing again. My body felt limp, like I had no control over it.

"Bella, no... don't leave me!" I heard him cry.

And suddenly my perspective changed -- I floated above Edward as he carried me, watching as he ran. I made an effort to catch up to him with the purpose of reanimating my limbs. I wanted to hold onto him, but he moved much too quickly. I could only follow as he sped through the jungle, wondering where he carried my lifeless body.

We burst into a clearing.

Edward paused before continuing slowly forward. His body sagged with exhaustion, broken sobs rocking me gently against his chest.

In front of us sat our destination -- an old dilapidated building, a murky white blotch against the dark night. I would have thought it an old shed, if not for the cross that sat slightly askew on the top of the building. As Edward approached the porch, a gust of wind caused the whole building to shudder. The cross groaned and tilted forward, announcing our entrance.

We stumbled inside, into more darkness.

When the door shut behind us, the atmosphere changed completely. The large, single room church felt musky and cool. I could smell the dust and the cobwebs with each breath.

Old wooden pews lined either side of the church hall, and an ornately carved pulpit loomed at the head.

There was another door -- an exit -- on the far wall behind the pulpit, but my attention was drawn to an enormous pipe organ, off to the left side. Nobody sat at it, yet a lone note echoed from the pipes, as if trying to fill the empty hall, to bring back a long lost congregation.

As I listened to the rhythm, I realized each note sounded in unison with my breathing. Though I no longer inhabited my body, my lungs struggled along with the organ, trying to bring me back.

Edward carried me up front, kneeling slowly in front of the pulpit and laying me down on the floor. He held my limp hand in his own, trying to coax life back into it. He brought it to his lips, whispering my name in between kisses. I could feel his lips on my skin, but could do nothing to reassure him. I could barely keep my lungs moving.

His lips pressed fruitlessly against my own. I tried flying back to my body, but ended up flying through both of us, only ruffling my hair, and his with the effort.

Edward looked up, searching wildly around him for the source of the breeze. His eyes passed over me several times, but he did not see, and finally turned back to the scene before him.

A final wheeze from the organ signaled my last breath.

I watched, but could not feel as my hand dropped from Edward's grasp.

I was completely separated now.

With a cry, Edward prostrated himself over my body.

Dust settled around him in complete stillness.

After a few moments of hovering anxiously next to Edward, I decided to take up residence over the old organ bench, hoping to bring air back into my lungs with a few notes. But my fingers ghosted through the keys, and persistence did nothing to change this fact. I perched over the keys and rested my chin in my hands, frustrated at my current state.

The silence broke again as a gust of wind battered against the door behind the pulpit, blowing it wide open. Edward did not move from his spot, but I craned my neck to get a better view. Something blurred through the entrance and paused just behind the pulpit. And angel. It had to be. Its fierce beauty matched Edward's. An angel, or a cullen -- to me the two were synonymous.

The creature surveyed the scene, glancing first at Edward and my body, and then toward the organ. When our eyes met, I knew it could see me.

Instead of moving toward the tragic scene, the angel came toward me.

"Bella, what are you doing here?"

"I came in with Edward." I said glumly, despite the odd calming feeling that emanated from the angel.

"I know how you got here, silly. But why are you still here?"

I stared at the angel blankly.

What kind of question was that?

"You know you can leave, don't you? You are free to do as you wish. no one will stop you." The angel's mouth turned up slightly at the corners, to encourage me.

I began to shake my head, "I don't want to go anywhere."

Now only one corner of the angel's mouth stayed upturned.

"Even now you are stubborn."

It sighed and sat down on the bench. I felt jealous of its corporeality.

"What is keeping you here? That?" The angel jutted a defiant chin toward the still life at the pulpit.

I jutted out my own chin in response.

The angels features softened. "So you will stay with him then?"

"Of course," I said, turning to gaze at his lifeless form, "Wouldn't you?"

It laughed at my confidence. "Of course you would. I'm not sure what I would do... It was thoughtful of him to bring you here though. Don't you think?"

When I didn't answer the angel continued.

"He's given you a choice. I think you should take it."

"Take what?"

The angel nodded toward the door.

"Not many of us get a choice you know."

I nodded, barely grasping what the angel wished to convey to me.

"Can he come?" .

The angel followed my gaze, "Oh, if he were to look up anytime soon, I suppose we would let him follow you, but he's very stubborn too. He probably won't move for a century, at least."

I settled into the keys. "I can wait."

The angel rolled its eyes at me now. "I'm not just going to leave you here. I'm not that patient."

I felt panic creep into my eyes. "But you said I had a choice!"

"You do."

"And it has to be either or?" I asked.

"Hmm, either now, or later I suppose. But later might never happen." The angel laughed at this confusing logic. "I see! Your choice is quite clear to me now."

"I'm staying." I confirmed.

"Do you like music?" The angel changed the subject, pulling the bench a little closer to the organ.

"Edward does," I said, perking up a little.

"Well, lets play something for him then."

The angels hands moved through me toward the keys. The sound that emerged once its fingers struck was not a wheeze, but rang clearly through the building as if we sat in a cathedral, not a small shed. It was impossible not to be swept into the chords. I closed my eyes and began to sway until a heaviness settled over me, making it difficult to move. My eyes fluttered back open, to find the source of the weight.

My vision blurred a bit.

It was hard to focus on the angel's face in front of me. I could tell that it hovered close to mine though, only inches away. He moved toward me, and I was sure that he would pass through me. This time, my body put up resistance to his touch.

My body, under Edward's.

I took a deep breath, moving our bodies with the effort. With my exhale, his arms constricted around me. I desperately stretched my now animated lips toward his.

I no longer needed an angel.