Asteraceae

FIFTY FOUR

As Alice straightened her hair, she stared back into the mirror at her own reflection just taking in her new appearance. No more did she have those threatening red eyes or that deadly pale skin like she had grown accustomed to after living for so long. She was flushed, pretty, and her eyes were a green color that she knew wasn't there when she was human.

"Looking really nice, Evangeline." Alice giggled; her little joke funny as Victoria scoffed at the new little name Joshua had presented to her. Evangeline was an old name she knew was probably immensely popular when she was human, but in this day of age it was just horrible. "Kim Evangeline." She felt far older than she looked.

"I don't see why I had to change my entire appearance for this." She looked good, or at least more alive and her face wasn't as defined as it was when she was a vampire, but she was still very pretty. She was also hungry but wasn't allowed to move until Alice finished dressing and styling her up like a doll.

"Red eyes are a little too much for the humans to just ignore." Joshua was sitting back in one of his armchairs, facing away from the two vampires and just enjoying the book he had laid out on his lap, Yeontan cutely kicking his feet up against the back of the book as he sprawled out on his lap. "And you have an appearance to keep up when you're with me." He had reluctantly given her his last name, eyeing her hard and daring for her to tarnish his reputation with any silly little arguments with pathetic humans.

"But still, making me look human? Are you sure anybody would believe that I'm related to you?" She didn't even look like a distance cousin, and she just knew the judging was going to be serious as everyone took in, the appearance standing next to a man like him. She was gorgeous, still very much a vampire but next to Joshua she could barely even call herself basic.

"Of course not, but you still carry my last name and a 'relationship' with me therefore you must hold your head high." He glanced up just to see their process. He had long since finished forging paperwork for the girl and now all that was left was to get her started in school despite only a month being left until summer break. "You'll get do well to get along with the Cullen's. I hear anything about you being anything other than pretty, rich and stuck up than your head is coming off. Stick to the plan and drive that bitch crazy." She was a girl, and while he had no sisters, he imagined that they would be much worse than Christian who believed the world revolved around him and his fat ass at times.

"So, no fighting?"

"Or bitching, I better not hear anything other than jealousy and envy. We Kim's are everything that those mortals wish they could be, and now that you are one temporarily or not you will follow the Kim code." He snapped his book closed and relaxed back into his chair to give his cat all the attention they deserve, a calm smile on his face as his fingers raked through the soft fur.

"I'll be right beside you!" Alice giggled, "We'll be best friends, and you might just meet that special someone." She grinned, already more energized than before since sleeping wasn't something she usually could do. She felt a tad bit overwhelmed, but the feeling was gone the second she remembered it was because she could do the unthinkable...sleep now.

"What blood? What if I get thirsty?"

"Seduce her husband and suck the life out of him if you wish, though make sure your teeth marks aren't left on this one." Joshua shrugged, he could care less if she ate one of the students, for he had eaten one not too long ago. Victoria didn't say much, still focused on her reflection as Alice brushed her cheeks pink.

She felt like some science experiment as Alice worked, but she didn't really have the heart to say anything about it since it was obvious that the vampire was enjoying herself. She wondered if Joshua could do this with her appearance, then why hadn't he done it with Alice? Did he think she was perfect the way she was, or was it something else to it that had him reluctant to give her a more human like appearance from what she got now...it wasn't her business no matter how curious she was, and she wasn't going to ask and risk getting her head ripped off for the second time for the first was enough to have her receding back into the deepest part her head in hopes of escaping whatever torment he barely brought down upon her.