Overview

Florence Whalen Hale is the second vampire to join Carlisle Cullen’s Coven after Edward joined.

Turned in 1920 (20 yrs)

Early Life

She was born in New Mexico to rancher parents. They moved westward during the time of the Oregon trail, originally from Massachusetts. From a young age, she loved tending to the farm and joined her father and older brother on their cattle move every year. Christopher Whalen had chased her down for years trying to get her to marry him, but she always refused. In fact, she was more focused on trying not to get killed by a stray donkey than she was on attracting boys. Her attitude was usually standoffish and quiet, mostly letting her other family members speak for her. You could usually find her working on some knots or stitching something together in a corner of the function. For the longest time, the townspeople believed that she was mute due to her general quietness. She was forced into marrying Christopher Whalen when she was 18 years old, shutting her off from her family’s cattle run and trapping her at home. With no more ranching to do, Florence began working for the local saloon, making drinks and brewing coffee and tea.

Getting Turned

After an intense fight with Christopher, she ran off on her horse towards the Midwest and swore to never come back. She’d taken the path several times before when moving cattle, but it didn’t take long for her to get lost. Soon enough, she found herself nowhere near Alabama, landing in Illinois instead. Florence tried to create a new life for herself in Chicago, getting a job in a butchery and working at the bar next door. She lived in peace for only a few months before Christopher and his friends found her and tried to take her back to New Mexico.

She fought long and hard against them, but it was no use. As a last resort, Florence told him:

“The only way you’re taking me home is in a body bag.”

And so then they tried to kill her, because why would anyone refuse Christopher Whalen’s advances? He decided to not fully kill her, “giving her the choice” to take him back and spare her life. When she refused again, he left her for dead in a back alley and went back to New Mexico telling everyone that she’d died of sickness.

Carlisle came across her on his walk home from work and took pity on her. She knew he was a doctor, so she asked him to save her. However, no modern medicine could help her at this stage of her injuries. He explained to her that at this point, her choices are to turn or die. She decided to become a part of his coven, saving herself from death.

Life after Turning

Esme joined only a year after her, and soon the four of them (Carlisle, Edward, Florence, and Esme) could pass as a family. She acted as a much needed sibling to Edward, helping him take off the edge of being a teenage vampire. As the years progressed and more people joined the coven, it became clear that she had no intentions of passing as a high school student like the rest of them. Instead, she played the role of the older sister who took classes at the local community college or university. This was easier to manage towards the turn of the century.

Despite being a founding member of the coven, she often would spend extended amounts of time on her own, acting like a distant family member to the Cullens. Florence appreciated the help that Carlisle gave her in her first years after turning, but she felt that she could handle herself on her own. It didn’t help that she and Carlisle had a falling out in the late 60’s, which had her dropping the Cullen last name and any association with them. She moved out to San Francisco, where she truly let herself go, finally feasting on humans. Florence would attend music festivals and war protests in search of unassuming victims for her to feed on.

She lived this transient lifestyle up until the early 90’s when the fear of STDs spread through the United States. Good human blood was harder to come across, and she didn’t know how the illnesses affected vampires. Out of desperation and fear, Florence tried to reconnect with the Cullens, have them help her go back to her animal-feeding ways. They agreed to help her out, and she rejoined the coven, this time as herself, rather than pretending to be related to any of them. She would move into a new town a few weeks or months before the Cullens to scout the area, then they would make the move themselves. It was great; she had her independence while still having a steady group of friends who understood her struggles. She’d get odd jobs here and there, working as a barista, retail worker, server, dentist’s assistant… she did everything.

Moving to Forks

Florence was glad to have a change of scenery after living in Alaska for what felt like an eternity. Much like before, she moved there first, scoped out the vibe of Forks, and reported to the Cullens. She instantly fell in love with the rainy atmosphere and the quietly unassuming people. After visiting for only a few days, she secured an apartment near Main Street and started applying for jobs at the diner and library. Florence got the job at the library and gave the “all-clear” for the Cullens to move there.

Relationships

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