In Which We have Q&A for the next 3 Chapters.
Edward can drive fast. Bella doesn't like it. For the record, Ms Meyer, most people would assume Vampires are more dexterous, stronger and faster than humans. It's pretty much established in the mythos that you're ... er... borrowing from. You can just drop a fact like driving fast out there in the text once and you really don't need to spell it out for the reader. No need to constantly go on and on and on and on about it. And on. But you're going to.
So here we have Edward and Bella alone and aside from the infatuation stuff, it's a straightforward dialogue of questions.
Now if I were a vampire and I had a person alone with me who now knew in absolute terms that I was a vampire and had detailed knowledge of my life.. I'd kill her. Isn't that what Vampires do? Isn't that a logical self-defense position? I mean, I'm certainly not a killer in real life, but being a blood-drinking parasitic killer of fantasy pretty much rewrites the laws of moral behavior. So keep that in mind, friends and family, that's how close you are. Anyway, in my mind this is exactly when vampires should kill people. OR if Edward wanted to cover his tracks completely, he should take her home, make sure Charlie has a good look at her home safe, then whisk her out of her bedroom and end the threat. SHE'S A THREAT YOU IDIOT. SHUT YOUR STUPID MOUTH HOLE.
Fine. We are thus burdened with Stupid Romance Novel Rules.
So, Bella. You're alone with a supernatural murderer who seems to have some bizarre fetish for talking/staring at you. That infatuation is what's apparently keeping you alive. What do you want to discuss? First, of course, let's just toss Jacob and his whole family onto the fire. Guess what, Edward? Jacob told Bella that you're a vampire. Jacob told her that Ed eats wildlife to not go blood-frenzy in the street type crazy. Did you know Jacob? Son of Billy, lives on the reservation Jacob, that guy? He's also maybe a werewolf. Yeah, that's not 100%, but in case you needed another reason. By Walden's Eyes, girl. Why don't you just go kill Jacob yourself? Of course, I'm assuming some sort of rational response from Edward. Something like self-preservation or a sense of betrayal. Instead he marvels that the Tribe remembers any of this. You know, like a whole hundred years after the truce with the local vampire family was set up.
ARGH.
Highlights of the conversation:
Bella: It doesn't matter to me what you are.
Edward: You don't care if I'm a Monster
Bella: No
Correct Edward Response: You're psychotic and I'm going to bleed you dry and go kill that blabbermouth Jacob now that the truce is over. So help me I'm going to muzzle you and drain every drop of blood from the both of you.
Actual Edward Response: Yep. You're right. I'm a big old vampire. What to know all the rules of Vampires in this universe? You know, so you can figure out a way to kill me or buy me some garlic-filled pizza some time? Love garlic. Good stuff.
We learn they're good vampires and that there are bad vampires (i.e. REAL vampires) that actually hunt + kill people. The Cullen clan call themselves vegetarians. They can but don't go out in sunlight for reasons undisclosed but which we already know (SPARKLES!). So ultimately Twilight Vampires = not really vampires seeing how they ignore all the rules of vampires that make them anything except superhuman parasites. I'm going to dub them WAHMPIRES.
Bella and Edward all but confess some kind of weird co-dependent need for each other and Bella cries and Edward drops her off at home. By romance novel rules we need to have a little more love develop (or whatever this facsimile is) and then there'll be a separation and reconciliation at the climax with much PG-13 kissing... or that creepy stroking thing these two keep doing. Maybe we're not on that ride, but I'm not seeing a lot to suggest otherwise.
SumUp C
It's a road trip with lots of talking. The conversation, insipid as it is, flows along and we get some details on what Wahmpires do and don't do. We learn that Bella and Edward think their annoying co-dependent need to be near each other is some kind of love. We emphasize Bella = Special which = stupid. We might also remind ourselves that Edward is not a 17 year old boy going through first-time love. He's a murderer and a monster and what part of him is actually human is many times older than our alleged protagonist and narrator. Nothing about this makes him a mysterious loving statue for Bella to swoon over, despite what SM insists in the text.
Aside from the illogical amount of revelation Edward does, the main problem I have with this conversation is the amount of "dear reader" text involved. Conversation is a good means to get information to the reader, but there's always the risk of forcing a character to ask questions or say things that aren't really normal so the reader can learn things. It makes the discussion choppy and disjointed. There isn't any big block of it here, but I keep losing any sense of immersion every time Edward goes off on a narrative trail just so we as readers get the full picture.
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