In Which I Suffer Through New Moon: Chapter 17 -- Visitor · 3:12pm Apr 4th, 2018
The vampire waiting for Bella is Alice. Naturally, Bella’s ecstatic about this.
I locked my arms around her, gasping to inhale as much of the scent of her skin as possible. It wasn’t like anything else — not floral or spice, citrus or musk. No perfume in the world could compare. My memory hadn’t done it justice.
CM + 1
Alice is there because, being the seer that she is, she saw Bella jump off the cliff.
Alice shook her head. “I told him this would happen, but he didn’t believe me. ‘Bella promised,’” her voice imitated his so perfectly that I froze in shock while the pain ripped through my torso.
Geez, Bella, give me some time between latchings-on. CM + 1
Random thought: how come Bella’s immune to Edward’s mind-reading and no other vampire powers yet seen? Shouldn’t she be a blank spot in Alice’s visions? (I once wrote a story where a minor character’s “power” was immunity to magic, and since seeing the future involved magic, Seers saw visions of the future that played out as if she never existed. Naturally, she fucked up enemy Seers’ plans with a gleeful vengeance.) And by the way, Edward not being able to read Bella’s mind is still never explained, which might be interesting if the characters had more of a reaction to it than, “Huh.”
Anyway, Alice chews Bella out for doing something so stupid. Bella clarifies that she wasn’t committing suicide, it was for “recreation”. However, Alice is surprised when she hears that Jacob pulled Bella out of the water; she never saw him in her vision. Bella explains that Jacob’s a werewolf. Alice thinks that Bella hanging out with werewolves is dangerous, despite Bella’s protests to the contrary. Still, Alice has seen that Bella’s okay — for now, at least — and decides it’s best if she leaves.
I could feel the blood draining from my face. My stomach dropped. “Don’t go, Alice,” I whispered. My fingers locked around the collar of her white shirt and I began to hyperventilate. “Please don’t leave me.”
CM + 1
Alice changes her mind, but says that if she stays, she needs to go hunting first. Bella feels much better, preparing dinner for Charlie while Alice is out. When Alice returns, she mentions that Edward doesn’t stay much with the other Cullens and doesn’t know she’s here now (Carlisle and Esme don’t know Alice is here either, for that matter). Charlie gets home from work and allows Alice to stay at their house. He doesn’t ask questions since he’s still reeling over Harry’s death.
The next morning, just after she wakes up, Bella overhears Charlie and Alice discussing what she was like after Edward left, and it’s pretty tragic. The first week — the first whole week — Bella was so unresponsive that a doctor describe her as “catatonic”. Charlie tried to get her to go to Renee in Jacksonville, and that woke her up; she went into a tantrum, throwing stuff around. She got “better” after that and insisted on staying in Forks, but was empty, lifeless, and unresponsive. He says it was like someone had died.
It was like someone had died — like I had died. Because it had been more than just losing the truest of true loves, as if that were not enough to kill anyone. It was also losing a whole future, a whole family — the whole life that I’d chosen…
CM + 1, and up yours, Bella. All this because her boyfriend left her. I’m sorry you had to deal with that, Charlie. (Although shouldn’t you have gotten her professional help before four months had passed?)
When Bella comes downstairs after Charlie leaves for Harry’s funeral, she and Alice talk a little about what’s up with the Cullens, except for Edward. Alice found her birth name — Mary Alice Brandon — and the asylum where she was committed. But no one’s cared much about that, so neither do I. However, as Bella and Alice are deciding what to do that day, Alice says she needs to step out; she can smell a werewolf, probably Jacob. But she didn’t have a vision of him, so apparently, she can’t see werewolves. Since it wouldn’t be a good idea to stick a vampire and a werewolf in the same room, Alice quickly leaves as Jacob rings the doorbell.
Clinginess Meter: 60 x 4
A slow chapter, mainly because dammit Alice where’s your Pinkieness?! That was the best part of you! It showed you had personality! Even though they discuss some serious topics in this, I would’ve liked to see some black comedy, at least.
Was Bella sad because Edward wasn't there, or because Alice wasn't there? c.c Because it seems like she's being awfully clingy at the latter.
4832701
That Alice wasn't there. Aside from Edward, Alice is the vampire Bella clings to the most.
Hmm... Lycanthropy guards against at least some perceptive vampire powers...
Bella may be a case of a supernatural hybrid par excellence. I wouldn't be surprised if she has a little bit of everything in her genome. Possibly including vampire if the venom actually has retroviral properties.
Look, if the book isn't going to be interesting, then I'll make my own entertainment.
4832721
But if her immunity to mind-reading was the result of lycanthrope genes, wouldn’t that also apply to Alice’s foresight?
4832723
Depends on whether or not Edward can read werewolves. The psychic opacity may only apply to certain applications/frequencies/what-have-yous.
4832728
In any case, IIRC, there actually was a reason given in-universe for the werewolves’ anti-precognitive defense. Something about the inherent duality or the ability to become something different, or something along those lines. Try to predict somebody’s behavior, and suddenly the thing you’re trying to predict doesn’t exist because it’s something else now.
4832740
Ah. Then it's likely a case of Bella existing, but lacking sufficient mind to read.
What story is that? MLP or something else?
4832746
No! I’ve got it! It’s an extension of the idea that vampires lack reflections! She just thinks about Edward all the time, so he can’t see anything!
4832747
It was original fiction. Never published, on the Internet or otherwise.
Random thought: how come Bella’s immune to Edward’s mind-reading and no other vampire powers yet seen? Shouldn’t she be a blank spot in Alice’s visions? (I once wrote a story where a minor character’s “power” was immunity to magic, and since seeing the future involved magic, Seers saw visions of the future that played out as if she never existed. Naturally, she fucked up enemy Seers’ plans with a gleeful vengeance.) And by the way, Edward not being able to read Bella’s mind is still never explained, which might be interesting if the characters had more of a reaction to it than, “Huh.”
The reason why Edward can't read Bella's mind is explain in the fourth book. And the reason Alice can see her can be deducted from that.
Want me to ruin the surprise, or you want to find out by yourself?
4832746
Nah, Bella has a mind; there's just a reason it's unreadable.