In Which I Tolerate Eclipse: Chapter 20 -- Compromise · 2:24pm Jun 2nd, 2018
In the opening paragraph, it’s mentioned that the youngest werewolves are only thirteen. Why didn’t anyone wolf out while the Cullens were hanging around? Maybe it’s not vampires that triggers the change, but hostility, since they started changing when the murderous Victoria started hanging around Forks. But that would be attributing intelligence towards this series.
Anyhoo, the army’s coming in forty-eight hours. Bella’s anxious about it, but Edward tries to reassure her. The two of them go to the Cullens’ house, where Bella will spend the night, and Edward reminds her of the hand-me-down gift he wanted to give her. It’s a heart-shaped crystal, inherited from his mother. It’s exquisitely carved, which makes me wonder if that part matches up with the bits of Edward’s human past that we know of, but I don’t care enough to go back and check. Edward says he wanted it to remind her of him, since it’s cold and hard and throws rainbows in the sunlight.
“You forgot the most important similarity,” I murmured. “It’s beautiful.”
It’s also useless outside of being beautiful, utterly soulless, and very forgettable due to its characterless flawlessness. Can’t forget that.
Bella accepts the gift and, now that Edward’s in a good mood, tries to negotiate with him about his “marriage” condition for vampirism. To be more precise, she wants to know his prerequisites. She’s a little worried about what will happen after the change.
“All of you seem so convinced that the only thing I’m going to be interested in, afterward, is slaughtering everyone in town,” I confessed, while he winced at my choice of words. “And I’m afraid I’ll be so preoccupied with the mayhem that I won’t be me anymore… and that I won’t… I won’t want you the same way I do now.”
CM + 1 for that last part, but otherwise, existential dread about a loss of identity? Fear of the unknown? Could this lead into some philosophical character exploration?
Of course not, this is Twilight. Bella’s worried she won’t want sex anymore.
Really. Bella says there’s something she wants to do with Edward, Edward offers her anything, and Bella starts unbuttoning his shirt before he stops her.
This is pretty much the first time sex is mentioned in the series, by the way.
Really? All the things you could miss from being human, and that’s what you’re worried about? That’s it? I guess nothing else has meaning for you if you don’t get to bang your boyfriend. I know it's a normal human emotion, but I find the whole “sex is so important” thing to be so damn trite. And you know, before you consider having sex with Edward, you should remember that there’s a certain part of his body that’s important in the act that’s going to be cold. Very, very cold. (shudders)
A ping pong conversation about whether or not they’re going to have sex. Bella’s worried that she’ll be different because, physically, she’ll only want blood.
“So I will be different,” I concluded unopposed. “Because right now, physically, there’s nothing I want more than you. More than food or water or oxygen. Intellectually, I have my priorities in a slightly more sensible order. But physically…”
CM + 1
Edward’s worried that he’ll lose himself during the act and hurt her. Couldn’t you just get creative with your positions? A little more increasingly emotional back and forth, as if this is so important, and suddenly they’re kissing.
He was too beautiful. What was the word he’d used just now? Unbearable — that was it. His beauty was too much to bear…
CM + 1
Edward makes a compromise: sex after marriage. Bella freaks out for some reason, but eventually grudgingly accepts. There’s even more talk about nothing consequential.
“You can’t make me go somewhere you won’t be,” I vowed. “That’s my definition of hell.”
CM + 1
They talk a bit about the marriage itself. Edward says it doesn’t need to be extravagant.
“I just want it to be official — that you belong to me and no one else.”
“It couldn’t be any more official than it already is,” I grumbled.
CM + 1
Then Edward shows Bella his ring, another hand-me-down. It’s perfect and beautiful and dazzling, naturally. I once heard a story about two industrial engineers who got married and had wedding bands of tungsten carbide. One day, one of them was at work when something heavy fell on their hand. The tungsten absorbed most of the impact and, instead of bending and cutting off their finger, snapped in two while keeping its shape and protecting the finger. That ring had more character than Bella ever will. Anyway, Bella likes the ring, which makes Edward happy.
He was so glorious that it knocked me breathless.
CM + 1
Finally, Edward proposes to her, and didn’t he do that at the end of the last book and it sucked? Well, he might’ve done it at the end of the last book. If he did, it definitely sucked. Whatever. End sappy chapter. Holy crap this is uneventful for a vampire throwdown on the horizon.
Clinginess Meter: 33
The tungsten carbide ring story is strangely heartwarming in a way the Twilight Saga never will be.
According to my research, Meyerpires have had all their bodily fluids, including blood and prostatic fluid, replaced by "venom". This being the case, any and all intercourse, especially that which leads to pregnancy, should be impossible. At this point, I am convinced that Meyer has abandoned any semblance of scientific plausibility in favor of "magic".