[BamaFan121s]

Blackness, nothing more.
Eventually, I began to resurface. I was first aware of my lullaby being hummed slowly—muffled and distant at first, then growing gradually until it was closer and more distinguishable as it pulled me from the darkness. There was a slight pressure against my forehead and I was vaguely aware of something as smooth as silk and feather light slowly brushing my cheek repeatedly. Above the soft melody of the humming were soft, muted voices. At first I couldn’t make out their words, but eventually the fragmented sounds began to join together and form coherent words.
“It’s working Jasper. Relax, Edward…just a few more minutes.” Alice.
“She’ll come around when she’s ready.” Carlisle. “Her mind has had a lot to process today. This is her body’s natural defense and way of coping with it all.”
This situation was beginning to form an all too familiar pattern. Hadn’t I left that body behind long ago? How long had I been…out? Days? Weeks? Longer? The blackness that had engulfed me gradually began to fade to gray and was lightening. I slowly became aware of movement around me. The pressure against my head and the stroking of my cheek remained steady. My eyelids felt as heavy as lead as I blinked, attempting to drive out the remaining fog shrouding my senses.
On the outer edges of my vision, I detected the soft glow of sunlight sneaking its way through the blinds and into our suite. The tint and angle suggested that it was late morning, as did the lingering aroma of French toast and bacon. Being without my senses made me uncomfortable. Edward had explained before that we had a natural, defensive dependency on them. Grateful to regain them, I breathed in deeply to momentarily welcome even the unappetizing aroma of Renesmee’s breakfast.
My lullaby came to a halt and the fingertips on my face stopped mid stroke. I blinked again and focused my eyes on Edward’s face mere inches from my own. His forehead was pressed lightly to mine. “Bella,” he softly breathed. A weak, relieved smile appeared on his face as I slowly reached up to return his touch.
“I’m sorry,” I mouthed silently to him.
He placed his finger over my lips and shook his head back and forth. “No, I’m the one who should be apologizing to you. It was too much—I should have never expected or asked you to come here…”
“It was my choice, Edward,” I interrupted. He looked at me doubtfully, but let me speak. I shrugged. “You can’t shield me from everything forever. Besides, isn’t shielding supposed to be my specialty now?” I tried to make my words sound playful and teasing, but I could tell by his unchanged expression that he didn’t find humor in them. I suspected he’d berate himself for the incident later, just as he normally did.
Luckily, he didn’t have the opportunity to begin raking himself over the coals. Emmett and Rosalie walked into the room with Renesmee hopping along behind them. Emmett seized the opportunity to give me a hard time, “Well, welcome back to the land of the living, sis. Leave it to you to be the only vampire in history to find a way to make yourself faint!” Edward’s teeth snapped together and a low growl rumbled in his chest, but I was thankful for Emmett’s distraction.
I grinned back, ignoring the warning glare Edward was issuing for his brother. “Just trying to keep my track record.” I chucked a nearby pillow at him and he easily dodged out of the way.
It had escaped my attention that Jasper had remained still and quiet since I’d regained consciousness…or whatever it was I’d done…until he spoke up. “No…” His eyes were distant and unfocused, his face set in a mask of confusion. He slowly shook his head from side to side and his mouth pulled down into a slight frown at the corners. “No,” he repeated. “It wasn’t that…this was…something else.”
“What are you talking about, Jazz?” Alice asked as she placed a concerned hand on his forearm and looked at him questioningly.
“Bella I mean. She didn’t faint. This was something else.” He seemingly searched for the right words to explain. “I tried…for hours….to get through to her to calm her…but I couldn’t. It was like she wasn’t even in the room. I couldn’t sense anything at all from her. I’ve never had that happen before. The only time anyone’s even come close was when….” He trailed off and turned his gaze to Edward.
Edward furrowed his brow and leaned his head to the side. He appeared perplexed as he exchanged a fleeting glance with Carlisle. “Hmmm…” he surmised as he pondered whatever the two had conveyed to him.
Suddenly, another thought occurred to me. I groaned as I dropped my head in my hands ashamedly. Instantly, Edward had knelt in front of mean began rubbing my arms frantically. “What is it Bella? Are you alright?” His tone was one of concern.
“I’m fine,” I sighed. “Just embarrassed. What must poor Heidi have thought? I ruined her tour!”
Edward breathed a sigh of relief and shook his head slowly. “Relax Bella. You didn’t ruin anything. Alice saw what was happening with a few moments notice. She distracted Heidi and Rosalie and I brought you back here under the pretense that it was time for Renesmee’s dinner. Heidi was never the wiser to what transpired.”
“I took a few deep, relieved breaths. “And Aro?” I asked. Surely he would see through someone else’s thoughts that something was wrong…if he hadn’t already.
“Let me deal with Aro,” Carlisle reassured me. “Try to relax today and enjoy your outing that Alice has planned for you.”
I turned to Alice who was grinning widely and raised an eyebrow quizzically. “Shopping…in Venice!” she exclaimed, radiating with excitement. “Oh Bella, please say you’ll come. I really thought you might enjoy a day away from Volterra and Italy is one of the fashion capitals of the wo—“
I held up my hand stopping her before she could continue what I’m sure was a very well rehearsed, convincing speech. She twisted her fingers together eagerly waiting for me to reply. “Alright Alice, I’ll go.” I replied. Her eyes lit up as I agreed to her plan. “A day of shopping away from here actually sounds perfect.” For once, I meant it.