Wild Things.
A/N: All typo's are my own, as I have no Beta. If the typo's that you see, and there will be many, bother you overly, let me know and I'll try to go back and spot them out. Bear with me on this one, it'll be a bit slow starting and a lot of it is coming directly from the books hopefully it'll be as close as possible to the actual storyline.
Chapter One: Reading Material.
"Goodbye Sunshine, I don't need you anymore
Goodnight Sunlight, I'm better off alone
Rip my spine, right out of my back
Goodbye Sunshine, Goodbye Sunshine"
Have you ever had a worry you couldn't shake. A feeling that you can't seem to get a grip on life, and so you merely stumble through it at all the wrong times and moments while those around you seem to glide through effortlessly. Bella did.
The air was cold and heavy with dew and smelled strongly of pine and fresh rain, Bella noted as she stepped out of the cruiser. As she stretched her travel cramped muscles, she took a quick look around looking hoping to catch a glance at the 'car' Charlie had purchased for her.
Movement out of the corner of her eye caught her attention. A grey blur that sped past the trees. Bella turned to follow the figure with her eyes through the dense forest but found it was already gone. Shrugging it off as a trick of the light, she turned back to the house.
Everything was still pretty much the same as the last time she had been here when she was thirteen. Charlie still lived in the same small two-bedroom house Bella remembered from her childhood. It was the house he and Renee, Bella's mother, had bought during the early days of their marriage. Funny how those were the only days of their marriage— the early days.
Still turning, taking in the house and everything surrounding, Bella saw it.
There, parked on the street in front of the house that never changed, was her new- well new to Bella at least- truck. It was love at first sight. Casting a quick smile to Charlie, Bella jogged over to the old girl and took her in. She was a faded red color with big rounded fenders and a bulbous cab. It also helped the trucks appeal that she was made from a sturdy iron that was made to never damage. Bella was sure that should she so desire, she could take on a tank in this truck and come out the victor. She wasn't even sure it would run and yet she could already see herself driving it.
"Wow." Bella managed to gasp after a minute, turning her head towards Charlie who had wandered over with an embarrassed grin on his face. "I love it, thank you C-Dad." She stumbled on his name a bit but made a quick recovery. With this monster in her arsenal, maybe tomorrow wouldn't be so horrid. Bella had previously been tossing up her choices of walking two miles in the pouring rain to school, or accepting a lift in Charlies Police cruiser. Neither had been particularly desirable.
"I'm glad you like it." Charlie said gruffly, swelling slightly with pride, but just as embarrassed as she was.
It took a single trip to get all Bella's things inside and upstairs into her room. She'd gotten the west room that faced out over the front yard. The room itself was familiar; it had belonged to Bella since she was born. The wooden floor, the light blue walls, the peaked ceiling and ancient yellowed lace curtains around the window. They were all apart of Bella's childhood memories. The only real changes made to the room was the bed that replaced the crib and the additional desk that had been added as she grew. It now held a second-hand computer, older then she was, with a phone line for the modem stapled along the floor to the nearest phone jack.
It had been a stipulation of Renee's, so that she and Bella could stay in contact easily. The rocking chair from Bella's nursery days still lurked in the corner; a fraying woven monstrosity still big enough for her to curl up in easily. Down the hall was the one, small bathroom that Bella would have to share with Charlie. A fact she was trying to very carefully not to dwell on.
Taking a moment to simply lose herself in the past, Bella was brought back to the present as Charlie cleared his throat, mumbled something and exited the room quietly. One of the best things about Charlie, he didn't hover. He had left Bella alone to unpack. Something which she was grateful for. It was actually one of the few things for her to do. Charlie had pretty much organized everything for her. He'd even enrolled her in a school already. Great.
With Charlie safely out of seeing range, Bella let the forced smile fall from her face with a sigh. It was nice to have a little privacy.
Something Renee would not have been willing to give Bella. While Bella loved her mother, she was also the first to admit Renee didn't exactly grasp the concept of 'space.' It wasn't something Renee did intentionally, Bella knew this. It was just that her mother was like… a perpetual child.
Before Phil it had been Bella that cooked, cleaned and made sure there was food in the fridge and the bills were paid. Renee was in no way a neglectful for mother, she'd always been there for Bella. However when it came to remembering things, Renee wasn't exactly a shining example.
Dejectedly, Bella stared out the window at the sheeting rain and let a few tears escape. She wasn't particularly in the mood to break out the full on sobbing just yet, seeing as she still had to go down and cook diner.
Once more, movement from within the forest caught her eye. Too fast for her to trace with her eyes, but there none the less, trekking a silverfish blur through the pine plantation. Bella wiped the stray tears away and finished unpacking while continuing to look out the window lest she miss the blur should it make another round trip past the trees across the road.
When it failed to make a reappearance, Bella felt her spirits drop. Already she was seeing things and she'd only been back a few hours. A lone tear slipped out her eye and trailed a salty path down her cheek, meeting its end on the tips of her fingers as she wiped it away almost angrily. She wouldn't cry. Not now at least. Besides, Bella knew she would probably end up crying later that night while in bed, thinking of the day to come. School.
Forks High School had a frightening total of only three hundred and fifty seven- now fifty eight- students; there were more than seven hundred people in my junior class alone back home. All of the kids here had grown up together—their grandparents being toddlers together. Bella was horrified to think of what she would be. A new girl from the big city, a curiosity, a freak. She was going to stick out like a neon sign.
Maybe, if Bella looked more like a girl from Phoenix should, she could work it to her advantage. But physically, she doubted she'd fit in anywhere. Maybe Antarctica. Bella should have been tall, tan, sporty, blond— your typical volleyball player, or a cheerleader, perhaps— all the things that go with living in the valley of the sun.
Instead Bella was ivory skinned, without the excuse of blue eyes or red hair, despite the constant sunshine. She'd always been slender, but soft somehow, obviously not your wholesome sunbathed athlete. Both lacking the hand and eye co-ordination and the confidence to play sports without causing self-harm, or anyone who stood to close, or humiliation, it was no wonder Bella didn't come off as your tanned beach beauty.
With nothing else that needed putting away, Bella found herself venturing down the hall to set up her toiletries in the small bathroom, followed by a shower to wash away a day of travel.
The warm water did wonders on working out the knots of tension that had formed along Bella's shoulders and back. Once washed, Bella stepped out of the shower; towel dried off then stood before the mirror studying her reflection. Perhaps it was the light, but already Bella felt as if she looked sallower, unhealthy. Her skin could be pretty- it was very clear, almost translucent looking— but it all depended on color. None of which she had.
Facing that pallid face the in the mirror, Bella was forced to admit that she was lying to herself. It wasn't just physically that she'd never fit in. And if she hadn't couldn't find a niche in a school with over three thousand people, what where her chances here?
Truth be told, Bella didn't exactly relate to most people her age. Or maybe it was just that she couldn't relate to people, period. Even Bella's mother, who she was closer to then anyone in the world, was never in harmony with Bella, never exactly on the same page. Bella was starting to wonder if she had some sort of glitch in her brain.
The reason behind her inability to blend into a crowd was not of concern, not at the moment at least. The effect it would have was of concern however. And tomorrow would just be the beginning.
Bella didn't sleep with that night, not even after she was done crying silently into her pillow. The constant whooshing of rain and wind across the roof wouldn't fade into the background.
However it was the rare lone howl that had Bella sitting up in bed, heart thumping. A miserable, grisly sound that rattled Bella to her bones. It made sense that there would be wolves in Forks. The forest was certainly big enough to support a population of many species. But it didn't make it any less unnerving to hear them out there. They sounded so eerily. So close. And it was so hard to block the sound of them out.
She tried pulling the blanket over her head, and even later, the pillow too. No matter how she tried, Bella couldn't seem to fall asleep until well after twelve, when the rain and wind slowed to a measly drizzle and breeze and the longing howls had faded away.
Thick rolls of heavy fog was all she could see out her window the following morning, studying the grey mass outside as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes. Already Bella could feel the claustrophobia creeping in. You could never see the sun in Forks; it was like living in a cage.
As if on cue, from within the roiling blankets of fog, twin glowing orbs of gold caught Bella's eye followed by slow stealthy movement which had Bella up and out of bed, stumbling over to the window. Frowning, Bella watched the dense cover of mist for a moment, hoping to catch another glance at the illusive blur. She waited for a solid ten minutes before giving up and heading down stares broodily.
Breakfast was a quiet affair. Bella grilled up some French toast for Charlie while the coffee pot heated. Charlie ate in silence while she ambled around the kitchen cleaning up after herself, nibbling at a granola bar as she did so. Before leaving for work, he wished Bella good luck on her first day. Unwilling to sound rude or ungrateful by telling him his wish would be in vain, since luck seemed to avoid Bella like the plague; she thanked him and wished him a good day.
Seemingly pleased with their brief exchange of civilities, Charlie left. He peeled out of the drive in the cruiser, off towards the Forks Police Station, his wife and family. Once alone, Bella sat herself down at the old oak table in one of the three mismatching chairs and examined the kitchen. It featured dark paneled walls with bright yellow cupboards and white linoleum flooring. Nothing had changed. Bella's mother had painted those cupboards eighteen years ago in attempts to bring some sunshine into the house.
Over the small fireplace in the adjoining tissue-sized family room was a row of pictures. The first was a wedding picture of Charlie and Renee in Las Vegas, then one of the three of them in the hospital when Bella had been born, taken by a helpful nurse. The following pictures contained a progression of Bella's school years up till last year. It was a tad mortifying actually. Bella would have to see what she could do about making Charlie, if not take them down then at least relocate them. Just while she lived there at least.
Siting there surrounded by the evidence, it was impossible not to realize that Charlie had never gotten over Renee's abrupt leaving. It made Bella a little uncomfortable.
Despite her former intentions of not arriving to school early, Bella found herself unwilling to sit in the house. Donning her new coat, which felt like it was made out of some sort of bio-hazard material, Bella headed for the door. Keys in hand, back pack slung over one shoulder, Bella stepped out into the rain, slipping briefly on the slick porch with a yelp of surprise.
'Note to self. Water. Dangerous. Avoid at all costs.' she thought idly, straightening and brushing herself off.
Holding into the door-frame for support, Bella locked up, then turned and headed towards her truck.
The sloshing of her new waterproof boots was unnerving, she longed for the sound of gravel crunching beneath her feet. As she neared the truck a piercing howl cut out through the forest. It was close. Too close. For a second Bella simply froze with panic. The howl sounded again, closer still, breaking Bella out of her spell and hurling her towards the truck, all but diving into the passenger side before slamming the door closed with a shuddery exhale. The swirling mist that lurked outside the Chevy clung to her clothes and hair. Already she could feel it frizzing beneath her hood. But at that moment, Bella didn't care. Scared half to death and trembling from the cold, she sat in the cab of her truck and waited. She wasn't sure what it was she was waiting for though.
Inside the truck was warm and dry. Somehow soothing, and even though either Billy or Charlie had cleaned it up, the tanned upholstery still retained the lingering smell of tobacco, gasoline and peppermint. Bella soaked up the comforting smells, firmly assuring herself that she was safe. The big bad animals of the forest couldn't get her here. Not in the safely of her Chevy. Once her shivering had subsided and she was sure no wild snarling dog was going to spring from the trees, Bella inserted the key and turned the ignition.
The engine started quickly, to Bella's relief, but loudly, roaring to life then idling at top volume.
'Well, at least my truck sounds mean enough to scatter any potential animal threats' she smiled to herself, unconsciously petting the steering wheel beneath her hand. She was seriously starting to love this Chevy.
Bella found herself marveling that most of the truck's gadgets were in mint condition. Even the antique radio worked. A perk she hadn't been expecting. Knowing full well that she was stalling, Bella pulled out of the drive and headed for town, deliberately shoving away all thoughts of the ominous howl from mind.
Finding the school wasn't particularly difficult despite the fact she'd never been there. The school was, like most things, just off the highway. It wasn't overly obvious that it was a school, but the sign out front declaring it the Fork's High School sort of made Bella stop. It looked like a collection of matching houses, built with maroon colored bricks. There were so many trees and shrubs that at first Bella couldn't see it.
Where was the feel of the institution? She wondered nostalgically. Where were the chain link fences and metal detectors?
'Too under the radar for teen rebellion, obviously.'
Frowning, Bella pulled up in front of the first building, which had a small sign over it announcing it as the Front Office. Judging by the way no one else had parked out front of it; Bella could only assume it was a no park zone. But since she only wanted directions to save herself the humiliation circling around the lot like some sort of creeper, she pulled on her hand brake and slid out. Stepping reluctantly out of the toasty confines of the truck's cab, Bella made her way towards the office with a sense of urgency. Then promptly froze with her hand on the door.
'Breathe, just breathe, Bella.' she mumbled to herself, and then ripped open the door before she lost her nerve.
Inside it was brightly lit and warmer then she could have hoped. The office was small; a little waiting area with padded folding chairs, orange flecked commercial carpet, notices and awards cluttering the walls, and in the corner, skulking within the shadows of the room, a big clock ticking loudly. Potted plants had been strewn about the room in no apparent order or particular placement, seeming completely superfluous considering the greenery that propagated just outside. Bella said nothing about this and instead moved her attention to the counter, long and overly cluttered with papers and various other stacked items, which split the room into two sections.
There were three desks behind the counter and only one of which was manned. Bella made a cautious approach, eying the red-head dubiously. The redhead looked up, eyes blinking behind bottle-cap glasses that clashed with the purple top she was sporting. Bella felt very suddenly overdressed.
"Can I help you?" the red-head asked, nudging her thick glasses up her nose.
"I'm Isabella Swan." Bella informed her, shuffling closer another step, pointedly ignoring the light of awareness that gleamed in the woman's eyes now. As expected, Bella's arrival had been a hot topic of gossip. Daughter of the Chief's flighty ex-wife, come home at last. Bella could feel her shoulders start to droop. Today had barely begun and already she wanted to go home and hide in bed.
"Of course." The receptionist chirped, digging through a particular precariously stacked pile before tugging out the few items of interest she had obviously been hunting for. Bella waited for the leaning tower of paper to give into gravity. It didn't. It stood, wobbling on the desk merely. Unconsciously, she felt herself beginning to glare at the mass of papers.
"I have your schedule right here as well as a map of the school." The red-head laid out several sheets before Bella, high-lightening a few things here and there in bright neon pink. After walking Bella through her classes, where what was, safety precautions, fire exist and any other tip Bella could have needed, she handed over a slip of paper that would need returning by the end of the day. After smiling at Bella radiantly and hoping, like Charlie, that she would enjoy herself in Forks, Bella was shuffled on out of the office and back out into the cold.
By the time she'd made her way back to the truck, other students had starting arriving. Following the line of traffic, Bella managed to drive around the school along with the others and find a car park. She was glad to see that most of the cars were like her own. Nothing overly flashy or new. Back in Phoenix, Bella had lived in one of those lower-income neighborhoods that were included in the Paradise Valley District. It had been common back home to see a new Mercedes or Porsche in the student lot.
The nicest car here was a shiny Volvo and it stood out considerable more than Bella's beat up old Chevy. Still, as soon as she found a spot to park Bella killed the engine so to not draw further attention and merely sat there, bag open, papers splayed over the steering wheel. Her intention was to try and memories as much as possible now so she didn't have to walk around the school with the map in hand like some sort of tourist.
When done, Bella stuffed it all back into her bag, slung the strap over her shoulder and took a deep breath.
'Come on, Bella. They are just kids, they won't bite. You can do this.' The lie sounded feeble even mentally, but Bella still opened the truck door and slid out into the cold. She kept herself pulled back within the jacket and hood as much as possible as she followed the throng of students, happy to note that her attire didn't stand out. Once Bella had rounded the cafeteria corner, building three was easy to spot. The big three painted on the side of it helped greatly.
Still, Bella couldn't help the sudden wave of hysteria that had begun to creep in. Breath coming out in short bursts as hyperventilation snuck into the mix as she neared the door.
The classroom was small. The people in front of Bella stopped to hang up their coats, and without thinking, she moved to copy them. The two in front of Bella were both female, one was a porcelain-colored blonde while the other had light brown almost ringlets.
Bella couldn't help but notice with pride that her pale skin and dark hair wouldn't stick out here. Stumbling over a stray backpack or two, Bella made her way towards the teacher. He was a tall, balding man whose desk identified him as Mr. Mason.
When she handed over the slip of paper the receptionist had given her, the teacher gawked a little. Not exactly a good sign and of course, Bella blushed beat red. However, to his benefit, he sent her to an empty desk without further introductions, for which she was glad. It was harder Bella's new class mates to stare at her while she sat right towards the back, yet somehow that managed. Bella kept her eyes down, flicking over the assigned reading list with piqued interest. The list was basic.
It contained Brontë, Shakespeare, Chaucer, Faulkner. She was surprised to know she'd read everything. It was also a little disheartening. Bella briefly considered asking her mom to send her some of her old essays. She could just imagine the argument in her head. Hiding a small smile, Bella shifting through some of the responses Renee might have while the teacher droned on.
When the bell, a nasal buzzing sound, Bella immediately made a bee-line for the teacher's desk. Upon her approach, Mr. Mason looked up with a slight smile and arch of his grizzled brow.
"Something I can help you with, Miss. Swan?"
Bella attempted to skirt the issue with care.
"Sir, I was actually wondering if there was, perhaps, another book I could read for the essay." She started in a rush, horrified that it had come out so untactfully. The teacher lifted his other brow in response, peering at her curiously.
"See, It's just that… back in Phoenix I've done these before, I would be happy to have my mother send you the essays of you like, but I figured it would be like cheating if I didn't say anything and well I—" She cut herself off with a bright blush when it looked like the teacher might laugh. Smiling down at the blushing Bella indulgently, Mr. Mason gave a sage nod of his head and thumbed his chin with his thumb and forefinger.
"Alright. How about I loan you a personal book of my own to read. It's a bit of a thick read I admit, but a girl that's read an entire semesters worth of literature ought not to have any trouble with it. Consider it… a welcome back if you will. Plus it will give you a chance to get to know your new home a bit better." He offered Bella a thick, tattered, leather bound almost binder looking book which she happily tucked away in her bag, and just like that she felt herself relaxing just a little.
Smiling back shyly, Bella took the now signed note back from the teacher and turned to exit the classroom along with the other students.
Just as she reached the door, a gangly boy, with skin problems and greasy black hair stepped into her line of vision.
"You're Isabella Swan, Aren't you?" He looked like the overly helpful, chess club types.
"Bella" She corrected automatically, ignoring the way everyone's head seem to turn and tune into the conversation.
"Where's your next class?" he asked.
Bella had to actually check her schedule. "Um… Government, with Jefferson, in building six."
There was nowhere to look without meeting curious eyes. Unconsciously, Bella shrank in on herself a little.
"I'm headed toward building four, I could show you the way…" Definitely the overly helpful, Bella inwardly thought. "I'm Eric by the way." he added quickly and jabbed a hand towards Bella, who reluctantly took and shook it, following him out of the classroom with her jacket now tossed over her left elbow.
"Thanks." Bella smiled tentatively. They shrugged into their jackets and headed out into the rain, which had picked up. Bella could almost feel the breath on her neck from the people who were walking close enough behind her to eavesdrop. She hoped she wasn't getting paranoid.
"So, this is a lot different than Phoenix, huh?" Eric laughed. Bella found herself thinking back to the howls and the blurs in the trees. With a shiver she responded.
"Very."
"It doesn't rain there much, does it" He continued, oblivious to Bella's increasing frown.
"Three or four times a year." She mumbled perfunctorily, eyes wandering to the dense plantation of trees just yonder.
"Wow. What must that be like." He wondered. Dragging her attention away from the trees, Bella responded smoothly.
"Sunny."
"You don't look very tan."
"My mother's half albino"
After a moment of him studying Bella's face apprehensive, she sighed, unconsciously reaching into her bag. One of Bella's greatest sources of comfort, a tatty old copy of Wuthering Heights, was normally she carried on her immediate person. Instead she felt her fingertips brushing the spine of the leather bound book, neatly tucked away from the rain. Her fingers seemed to tingle and twitch over the foreign feel. Where normally dog-eared paper resided, slightly crumpled and very wrinkled, was the smooth, butter-soft lick of leather.
"Well, good luck then." Bella snapped back to herself at the sound of Eric's voice. "Maybe we'll have other classes together." He sounded very hopeful. Waving him off, Bella turned and headed towards her class with a speculative scowl on her face.
The rest of the morning seemed to pass by Bella in a blur. Her Trigonometry teacher, Mr. Varner, who she would have hated regardless due to the subject he taught, was the only one who made Bella get up in front of the class and introduce herself. Bella had stammered, blushed and tripped over her own boots on the way to back to her chair.
After two classes, Bella began to recognize several of the faces in each class. There were always those few extra bold one that would wander their way over to Bella and introduce themselves as well as ask her a few questions about how she liked Forks so far. At first, Bella had tried to be diplomatic; however after the first two seconds mostly found herself lying. A lot. At least she never actually needed the map though.
One girl sat next to Bella in both Trig and Spanish, and she also walked with Bella to the cafeteria for lunch. She was tiny, several inches shorter the Bella's five feet, four inches, but her wildly curly hair made up a lot of the difference between their two heights. Bella couldn't actually remember the girls name, so she merely nodded and smiled as the other prattled on about teachers and classes. Bella didn't try to keep up with the conversation.
Bella ended up being sat at the empty end of the table surrounded by the girls friends. She had at one point introduced them all, but Bella had forgotten their names almost immediately. They all seemed rather impressed by the short, frizzy haired one for her courage in talking to the 'new girl.' The boy from English, Eric, waved to Bella from across the room. After the initial introductions where done, Bella found herself drowning out the others while she dug out the book, Mr. Mason had given her for English.
The book itself was large, and heavy, smelling of pine and musk and something wild that had goosebumps prickling her skin. The cover had a wolf's head carved into the leather and was decorated in a distinct way Bella couldn't but her finger on. Unable to help it, Bella lifted the leather and sniffled carefully, reveling in the smell before untying the bind and flipping it open. A plaited leather strap, with a feather tassel, fell down the middle of the book, marking a particular page. It was the table of contents. As Bella read down the page, she could feel a glower of confusion begin to pull at her features.
Her finger skimmed over chapter titles like "Legends of Forks" and "Stories of Forest."
Bella wasn't sure if what she was reading was fiction or not, but found herself flipping through the pages until one chapter in particular caught her interest.
Just as the cafeteria flooded with noise and hushed whispers, Bella found herself muttering words within the book out loud in confusion.
"Cold-ones?"
A sudden noise had her jumping, looking up startled into midnight black eyes that stared at her almost angrily from across the cafeteria.
End Chapter.
Well guys. Hopefully you liked it. I don't want to give away too much yet, but as you can tell, there will still be a vampire mix to this Ficcy as well as the wolf overlay. As I've already stated this is an imprint fanfic. Hope to read your feedback and suggestions. Let me know what you thought and I'll get working on Chapter Two. :3 Oh and to just point out. No I am not sure which wolf is going to imprint of Bella. I have an idea but to be honest I'd like to know which of the following you think Bella should end up with.
Sam Uley:
Paul Lahote:
Jared Cameron:
Embry Call:
Jacob Black:
Quil Ateara:
Leah Clearwater:
Seth Clearwater: (BooBoo is so adorable)
(Brandon or Collin? Young much? Lol)
Anyway, let me know in your reviews and I'll take a tally to see which is the more desired couple. I won't lie though. I do love a good Paul/Bella.
Disclaimer: Twilight, the Books, Movies and any Characters therein or related to, belong to Stephenie Meyer. I make no profit in writing this.