Archive of Our Own

Adult Bella (X-army) X Carlisle

• The setting is the same as canon just instead of the story starting in 2005 it starts in 2009

• Bella is born September 13th 1986

• Bella's backstory is essentially the same as canon up until the following year after she turned 16 the only meaningful difference being Bella is smarter than in canon, so smart in fact she graduated and received her high school diploma at 16

• Her mother remarried to Phil in the same year she graduated high school and after some persuasion from Bella agree go on their honeymoon a honeymoon they never come back from, as they are killed in a fatal accident on their way to the airport 

• Bella can't cope with the loss of her mother and stepfather and in the last few months leading up to her 17th birthday the funeral takes place and she sells or donates everything except a few small items (like the first book her mother got her) which she can take with her, as once she turns 17 she joins the army in form of escapism, as she may or may not have forged her mother's signature to let her enlist (I don't know how realistic this is, but for plot's sake it works)

• She stays in the army for over 5 years during which time she served as a combat medic in either the war in Afghanistan or the Iraq war (can't decide which)

• Bella (now 22) eventually leaves the army to go to Forks in the first half of 2009 when she’s informed that her father has been seriously injured while on duty at work, but by the time she gets there he's already passed away

• In her heist to escape the pain she felt from her mother and stepfather's death she neglected and forgot that she still had her father (Charlie) who still loved and cared about her but now she has nothing and must suffer the consequences of her actions alone (that is until she meets Carlisle)

• Bella with no more distractions now suffers from the combined grief of losing all three of her parents all at the same time, the guilt from pushing aside/ignoring and forgetting Charlie who was still there for her and PTSD from her time in the army, she also suffers from depression and is somewhat suicidal, as every so often she will walk into the Woods behind her fathers house (Which is now hers) with her father's old revolver and one bullet Which when she gets to a clearing loads the bullet spins the chamber randomly and points the gun at her head and pulls the trigger and let's fate decide (I was thinking the only time that it actually chambers and fires that one bullet is when she is in a life or death situation and uses it as a distraction or as a way of alerting the others of her location if she is out of hearing and smelling range)

• She first meets Carlisle by going to the hospital to get a job as she has medical experience from her time as a combat medic and meets Carlisle then, when they first see each other they both feel an instant connection to each other which Carlisle understands what it is and is shocked by it while Bella feels a sudden warmth and a sense of belonging which she's never felt before 

• Angela takes Bella's place as Edward's mate as the Cullen kids are still in school as of when Bella arrives in Forks, as she is the only character aged up as everyone else remains the same age as canon except the vampires who are just a couple years older than in canon as when they were turned into vampires remains the same but that doesn't really make any difference

• I like the thought of Carlisle and Charlie being good friends when Charlie was alive so he would probably mention Bella to Carlisle on occasion and I imagine Charlie being quite proud of her when he learns that she joined the military and I doubt he would hold any resentment or hard feelings towards her as he can understand why she did what she did 

• I don't know what to do about Jacob as I don't know if I want him to have a crush on Bella or see her as another big sister or possibly even resent her for never coming back much like Billy and Harry probably do

• Esme is a sister/best friend to Carlisle and more of an aunt to the rest of the Cullen's then a mother, as Bella will gradually take on that roll

• I don't know whether or not to give Angela a gift or not but Bella still has her shield (but it could be modified to help better fit the story or her character) and everyone else's gifts will be the same

• Rosalie won't be as harsh or bitchy to Bella as she is older than in canon and instead directs it at Angela as she takes Bella's place 

• Alice is Alice what more is there to say 

• Esme will be like a sister to Bella and is often another shoulder to cry or lean on when Bella needs one, it helps that apart from Carlisle she is the closest to Bella's physical age than the others are, this makes her easier to relate to

• Angela I can see her looking up to and admiring Bella and probably feels a kind of kinship toward her as they have both just begun a relationship with a vampire, the only difference being she is still a teenager and Bella being fully grown adult though that doesn't stop her from seeking guidance and advice when she needs it apart from that she is same as canon

• Like Alice Emmett is Emmett nothing more to say

• Jasper and Bella will connect and understand each other better than the others as they are both veterans and have seen the horrors of war and the battlefield first hand

• I can see Edward growing quite close to Bella and like Angela would on occasion ask for advice when he wants it especially when it comes to things in his relationship with Angela 

• Edward or Alice would probably be the first to see and accept Bella as their mother figure

• Carlisle and Bella are both inexperienced when it comes to matters of love as their only knowledge and experience would be what they've been told/heard or what they've read as Bella never had the time to care about relationships and never got close to anyone (or wanted to for that matter) to have a physical relationship, as for Carlisle is much the same except he had the time but it essentially went against his beliefs and he is quite old-fashioned as he won't lay with someone if he isn't courting them

• Bella is still a clumsy and accident prone person even in her adult life though she isn't nearly as bad as how she was when she was a kid, she still has her love for books and reading it's just that since the death of her parents she never had much time to really let herself gets absorbed in a book and the fact that she got rid of most if not all of her old books (except the first one her mother gave her which she often reads whenever she has the time) didn't help, so now that she's in Forks she can delvage in her love for books and reading again especially after she meets Carlisle as he is as big as a bookworm as she is 

• I don't know if she should get pregnant like in canon or not but it might make things more interesting but like canon at the end of her pregnancy she would have to be turned into a vampire as she wouldn't be able to survive the birth 

• I want Bella to get a motorcycle as I believe it would fit with her character, and as my personal favourite motorcycle was released 3 to 4 years after the start of canon I thought “why not” and moved the start of the story up to 2009 instead of 2005 that's it that's the only reason (and it doesn't make much of a difference anyway) The motorcycle I want her to get is a 2009 yamaha r1 in White with a red frame

(This one)

•  The premise for the story is essentially a hospital drama, vampire-human romance and drama as in just swap out cannon Bella for an older version and instead of high school it's a hospital that's it and as Bella is older giving her a tragic backstory and some personal issues that she will struggle with (which will gradually get resolved throughout the story with the help of Carlisle and the rest of the Cullen's) and as for making her smart enough to graduate high school early and having her join the military I think it makes her character more interesting, unique and overall, a bit of a badass in comparison to how she's depicted in canon and other fan stories as for making her a combat medic it gives her the qualifications to get a job at Forks hospital and to give Bella and Carlisle something more in common with each other and make them more relatable to each other (well as relatable as a 22-23 year old human woman with a tragic past and an over 300-year-old vampire can get)