Welcome to my first Edward and Bella story. This is going to be an A/U story, but I'm not going to get into the specifics yet on whether it's an A/H story or not. You'll find out when it's time, and until then, you'll gather your own theories! I really hope you like this story, and go easy on me, it's my first! On my profile page, I have links to my playlist for this story and for my Photobucket page with pictures of the castle and England, the characters, etc. With that being said, welcome to Chapter One, and to the beginning of Bella's journey home.

Chapter One: 'Stole' Mates and Going Home

"Isabella."

The voice whispered to me, beckoning me to come.

"Isabella, walk with me."

The voice was comforting, and I was not afraid.

"Come."

His voice was the answer to every question. His voice was where I belonged. I knew it as certain as I knew my name.

"Come," he whispered again in that velvety voice.

I had known him all my life. Every night since I was little, he had visited me inside the violet staircases of my mind. Every night he had followed me, unseen, speaking to me.

Each morning I would remember almost nothing, but he was inside me; he was a part of me.

As if my heart were being ripped from my chest, I felt him slipping away from me as I lost his voice. The green rolling hills and gray skies spun and blurred into a myriad of colors, draining away from me.

I awoke to the sound of my Skype going off on my netbook across the room. My heart was aching for him, and I was once again forced to part with him for another few hours. My only solace was that I knew for certain he would be there, without fail when I closed my eyes tonight.

Throwing my comforter aside, I was met by a chill in the air. Autumn was only beginning, which meant winter was knocking on the door. I absolutely hated winter.

"I'm coming" I complained to no one as my feet hit the carpet and carried me across the room.

Glancing at the screen, I could see it was my second cousin, Rosalie. She lives just outside London, where I would be arriving tomorrow.

I clicked the icon to answer her call, and her voice pierced my quiet room.

"Charlie up yet?" she started in, not cutting any corners.

"I have no idea, I just woke up, Rose." I sounded tired, even to myself. Each morning when I woke, it took a few minutes to adjust to my alternate world: reality.

"Well make sure you get his arse up, my lovely. You have a plane to catch today."

"No shit, Rose. I have plenty of time." This time I sounded tired and cranky.

"Ahh, interrupted another wonderful dream, didn't I? Sorry."

I sat down at my desk and rubbed my face, thankful that the aching was slowly subsiding to a dull roar. His voice washed over me one last time for the morning, and then went silent.

"Yeah, I hate waking up."

Rosalie understood. She was the only one who knew about my dreams, about him.

She changed the topic mercifully. "So are you packed yet or are you procrastinating?"

I looked over my shoulder towards my empty closet and glanced around the rest of the room.

"I've got all my pictures scanned and burned to discs like you said, which helped lighten my load immensely. I let Angela go through my clothes last week, so I only have a week's worth of winter clothes."

"Good," she sounded pleased. "You and I will go shopping once you get here and get settled. Then I'll be taking you to your place. I can't wait to see it, Bella. The pictures looked amazing."

Ah yes, the inheritance. My grandmother Swan, who lived in Northern England, had worked for a wealthy family as a castle keeper, basically just keeping a warm body in the castle while the family was away.

She had been born and raised in England, and had refused to move when my mother immigrated to America as soon as she graduated from school. She had worked for the family up until her death last year.

"Rose, I gotta hit the shower and get cleaned up. I'll call you from the airport, okay?"

My mind was wandering, and I was wasting precious time.

"Sounds good. I can't wait to see you! It's been too long."

"Rose, it's been 8 months."

"Yeah, but that's a long time!"

I laughed and moved my mouse to end our call. "Later."

"Later Bella."

I powered down my computer and packed the cord up in my bag. Once I was satisfied I had everything ready, I grabbed the outfit I'd left out last night and headed towards the bathroom.

After getting the water nice and hot, I stepped in and closed the glass door behind me. Letting the hot water rain down over my head, my mind took me back to the first visit to my Grandmother that I remembered.

I was six years old. My books were the only things I insisted on bringing with me.

The castle had many rooms, and should have been forlorn and overbearing to a young child from America. It wasn't like your average hotel. There was no sheet rock, no televisions, but it felt more like home than anywhere I'd ever been before.

I had my own room with a fireplace and a window seat overlooking the green rolling hills of the English countryside and the tiny town below.

I spent many a days roaming the countryside with the family's huge Irish Wolfhound by my side, and many a nights in the window seat reading with the fire crackling a calming song.

My dreams had begun when I was six, on my first visit to England. It was there in that king sized four post bed that I first heard him - when he found me.

He had sounded exactly then as he had sounded last night, some ten years later. Our exchanges were limited to very few words, but there was a calming presence he brought, as though he were my own guardian angel.

I woke the next morning feeling as though I had just said goodbye to a very good friend, and remember to this day feeling sad. The next night, however, he found me again.

There was no sexuality to our relationship then. He had been merely someone, something very near and dear to me in an inexplicable way.

I never spoke of him to my mother, but my grandmother and I had many chats together on the hills that summer.

I told her that I'd had a friend come to see me in my dreams, and that I didn't know who he was, but that I felt like I was very special to him. She had listened without scoffing, as my mother would have.

She told me that in all the years she'd lived at the castle, she'd heard and occasionally seen some things that she would never talk of, but that anything was possible.

I pressed her, as any child would do, to know more about what she'd seen and heard.

"Isabella, my little reader, do you understand what "destiny" means?" She'd wrapped a blanket around me and pulled me towards her chest as I sat on her lap, looking across the sprawling green pastures.

"I've heard if it, Grandma." I was an old soul even then.

"Yes, but do you believe in destiny?" She was speaking quietly to me, just over the sound of the wind whistling in from the south. The darkening gray clouds meant there would be rain later that evening.

"I don't know, maybe?" I looked up at her blue eyes as she smiled down at me.

"Do you believe in dragons and fairies? Witches and gnomes?"

I thought seriously about her question, and answered her as best I could, sensing that she was being serious.

"I don't believe in everything, but some things, I guess. I know Santa isn't real, because I saw Daddy putting my presents under the tree last year."

She laughed and hugged me. "Yes, your father is Santa, I'm afraid." She said nothing more for a moment, and then nudged a little further into her inquisitive questioning.

"Do you believe that there are things that could be real, when others say they're not? Like fairies?"

"Sure, I suppose. Why, Grandma? Have you seen a fairy before?"

I remember her pausing for a moment before hugging me tighter.

"Something like that, yes. But this stays between you and I, young lady, understand?" I looked from the gray clouds rolling in to her serious face.

"I won't tell anyone, Grandma. Cross my heart and hope to die." I crossed my chest, and her face softened.

"I believe that true love is more real than anything else in life. Love, Isabella, is stronger than anything else in this world. Do you believe that the love your Grandpa and I had could be so strong, that I could still feel him even now?"

"Of course, Grandma. Mama told me how he was your stole mate."

She laughed, her chest shaking my little body as I leaned against her. "Oh Isabella, your mother meant 'soul mate', dear."

"What's that, Grandma?"

"A soul mate, Isabella, is someone is a part of you. You feel him everywhere you go, and even after he's gone. Does that make sense?"

"Like the wind, Grandma? I know the wind is real, but I can't see it or touch it. Like the wind?"

"Very good, Isabella. You are such a smart girl. Like the wind, baby girl. You can't see it, and you can't hold it, but it's there. You know it's there. No one could tell you otherwise, because you feel it."

"I get it Grandma. I like our talks."

She laughed again. "I love our talks, too. So if you believe in the wind, then you believe in soul mates, right?"

"Soul mates are real, Grandma. You feel Grandpa still, don't you?"

I looked up when she didn't answer right away. Her eyes were shining, and I realized she was sad.

"Isabella, I can feel him always. He comes to me in my dreams sometimes, and I can feel him all around me. Do you believe that love can be like that?"

"I believe it, Grandma. Love is always with you."

"Yes, it is. And, love will be waiting for you when it's time to be with your soul mate again. Do you believe that Grandpa is waiting for me someday, and that he is with me now to keep me company while he waits for me?"

I scrunched up my nose and thought hard.

"Mama says keeping boys waiting makes their heart grow fonder, bigger. Do you think Grandpa's heart is growing for you while he waits for you?"

She looked down at me and kissed the top of my head. "Isabella Marie Swan, you are smarter than anyone I know. His heart most certainly grows fonder while he waits. Mine does too."

"Remember this, Isabella, for one day I will go away to be with Grandpa again. I will be very happy, but you will remember our conversation. Promise me that you will always believe in everything we've talked about, no matter what anyone says."

"I will, Grandma. Will I ever have a soul mate too?"

Something passed across her face that my young mind couldn't comprehend as she teared up again.

"Your soul mate is out there, Isabella. He is waiting for you. He will find you when it's time."

"When will it be time, Grandma? I want to grow up fast so I can meet him!"

She laughed and helped me up, as we headed back to the castle for dinner.

"Don't be in any hurry, baby girl. Life goes so fast, sometimes. You wake up, and you're old like me. And don't sit around waiting on your soul mate. You'll meet nice boys that you like spending time with. But when you do find your soul mate, listen to your heart and no one else."

She tapped her finger over my heart as she finished our conversation, and then grabbed my hand as we started walking.

As I pulled myself out of the memory of one of my most treasured days of my life, I hurried through toweling off and getting dressed.

Just as I was about to go get my father up, I heard him downstairs fixing breakfast. I grabbed my laptop bag and purse, and headed downstairs to add them to the pile of luggage by the front door.

"Morning dad" I greeted him with a kiss on the cheek. "Where's Mom?"

He set a plate of eggs and bacon in front of me and went back to the stove to fix his own plate.

"She's at the church helping out with the cooking for tomorrow's chili dinner. She'll be back anytime now." He pulled out a chair and sat down to eat, glancing up at me periodically. He was looking for any signs that I was going to regret leaving the States, but he wasn't going to find any.

"Dad, stop looking at me like I'm going to burst out crying. I'm going. I want to go. I miss Rosalie, too, and Jasper. This is really what I want."

He looked at me and shoved another fork full of eggs into his mouth, scowling a bit at the realization that nothing had changed this morning. I was going.

I giggled as I noticed the little yellow flecks of egg in his moustache.

"What?" he grumbled, as I motioned over my lip. He swiped under his nose, as egg crumbs rained down on his plate. "Oh, thanks."

He eyeballed me again. "So, are you sure you want to take online courses instead of attending school in person? Seems strange to learn like that."

"Dad, that's because it's a new thing. Telecourses are just as good as sitting in the classroom. The teacher can see and hear you, and you can see and hear her. It's very interactive; there's just more writing involved. But since I'm going to major in English, there's bound to be a lot of writing anyways. It'll be fine."

He grunted something as my mom came bursting through the door, looking like nine kinds of hell. Her eyes were red and she'd obviously had another bawl session on her way home just now. She smiled and hung her purse on the back of a chair and started fixing herself a plate of food.

"How are you this morning, honey? Did you get any sleep? You must be so excited." She was talking with her back to me, but I knew she was having a hard time with me leaving.

"I'm good, and I always sleep good." I smiled at myself and looked down at my plate, forking another bite. Of course I always slept good. He was there.

She sat down and looked a bit more composed than when she's came in a few seconds ago, so I decided not to say anything. We ate in silence, occasionally glancing at each other as we ate.

Dad washed off our plates and set them in the sink, refusing to let me clean up. "We'll get that later today. Trust me, your mother will need something to take her mind off everything." He grabbed my luggage and headed out to load up the car.

My mother was upstairs 'freshening up', also known as, having another cry.

I put my coat on and grabbed my bag and purse, took one look around the living room at hideous childhood pictures of me plastered everywhere, and turned to walk out onto the front porch. The screen door swung shut behind me with a clatter, and I clomped down the wooden steps.

I climbed into the back of the new Malibu Mom had bought and shut my door, waiting for them to get me one step closer to where my heart was pulling me.

I closed my eyes and thought of the last time I'd seen England, and the beautiful area that I would now call home. It was 8 months ago, and Grandma had just passed away. Mom and I had taken the first flight we could over, and at the family's insistence, we had stayed at the castle as always.

I got my own room, which no one slept in but me when visited. It had somehow been set aside for me. It was a somber occasion, but as soon as we walked in, I felt at home. I felt close to everything that mattered.

It was the first night that I'd almost seen him in my dream. I couldn't see his face, but I'd seen glimpses of his body as he knelt next to me in by the bed. It was also the first time I felt something more between him and I than comfort and completeness. I felt immensely attracted to him.

I wanted to touch him, and to be touched. I'd asked him to show me himself, and he hadn't answered me. I felt that he wanted to, but couldn't.

It was the most amazing dream I'd had yet. Each night after that, I'd merely heard him again. I'd felt at a loss that we seemed to be going backwards in my dreams from that night forward. I wanted more than his voice.

The sound of the car doors opening snapped me back to my alternate reality, as I liked to think of it these days. Back to reality.

"Are you sure you have everything?" my dad asked, closing his door.

"I'm positive." I said nothing more, anxious to be on that plane.

"Alright then, let's get going." He threw his arm over the back of my mom's seat and started out on our drive.

Three hours later they were hugging me goodbye, and I was trying to peel myself away from them.

We said our goodbyes, and I walked away feeling like I could hardly contain myself. As much as I loved my parents, I felt like I was not leaving anything behind, but running towards something – something that was pulling me, making me very impatient.

After getting my bags checked and getting through security, I set my laptop bag and purse down on the floor and plopped into a chair, overlooking the tarmac of planes. The windows gave passengers a chance to see their planes land and take off, but I wasn't interested in watching.

I glanced at the digital clock showing the time, and realized I had twenty minutes before boarding. I opened my cell and dialed Rose up, long distance.

"Hey cousin, almost boarding?" Rose answered on the first ring.

"I got twenty minutes. Just wanted to call you like I said I would and let you know I'm on my way. Well, in a few minutes I will be, anyways."

"Awesome, hey, Jasper wants to take you out to our favorite local pub tomorrow night. You game for that? He's bringing his girlfriend, and his new lab partner. Says I'll love him."

"Jasper's actually found somebody he approves of introducing you to? That's a first." I had never known Jasper to like any guy who was interested in his sister, let alone set them up to meet.

"Yeah, weird huh? Anyways, I know it's eating up serious dinero calling me, so I'll just tell you that we can't wait to see you, and have a safe flight."

I laughed. "What exactly does that mean, anyways? People always say that, but what, I'm trying to have a dangerous flight?"

"Smart ass" Rose teased. "See you soon. Have a safe flight."

"I'm virtually flipping you off right now." I laughed and closed my phone. I powered it down and shoved it in my purse, wanting to save my battery for when I land a few hours from now.

I had a layover on the east coast, and then it was a few more hours of flying. This was going to be one long ass trip.

As they called my flight, my stomach started getting serious butterflies. I got in the A boarding group, and filed in the line towards the gate. The lady ripped my ticket and tucked the rest in my little folder.

She smiled as I walked past her, down into the little tunnel towards the plane door. I grabbed the first open seat, four rows back and plopped down next to the window. I fished out my iPod and immediately put my earbuds in.

You didn't want to be on a plane by yourself without being inaccessible. Otherwise, someone would chat you up the entire flight. I knew better.

I shoved my bags into the overheard compartment and settled down in my seat, buckling my belt tightly. I smirked as I thought of my friend Mike's favorite George Carlin routine.

His words on 'preboarding' and 'getting on the plane' made me shake my head as I thumbed through my song list. I felt someone sit down next to me and looked over for a quick polite glance. It was a woman, looking to be in her fifties. Yep, thank God for the iPod.

I smiled politely at her and went back to looking at my song list. Best to nip that in the bud early on.

I was still trying to find something to fit my mood when I felt the plane shudder, signaling movement. I looked out the window and saw that we were indeed rolling backwards, backing away from the airport.

When we jerked forward and started slowly rolling towards the runway, I let out a huge breath I didn't realize I had been holding. Just as we came to a stop, waiting our turn to taxi down the runway for takeoff, I found exactly what I wanted to hear.

I pressed play and leaned my head back into my seat, looking out the window as I left Seattle behind.

Chris Daughtry's voice sang to me as I relaxed further. I truly felt like I was going home, somehow.

As the plane started rolling and quickly picked up speed, I found myself smiling like a silly girl. Usually takeoffs were a little exhilarating for me, but this felt different. I simply felt relaxed and at peace.

The plane jolted as the wheels left the ground, and my heart felt as though it were growing two sizes. I turned up the volume over the engines growing louder and watched everything get smaller and smaller.

As the plane banked, I closed my eyes and settled in for a nap. I'm going home.

A/N: I hope you liked it. I have to give you the background, so I hope it wasn't too boring for anyone. I felt it was important to take some time with setting up some things, so you'll get a better feel for the story. Sometimes I feel authors who write fanfic are in too big of a hurry to get them in bed together, or cause drama, that they skip over what could have been a delicious background buildup. Here's hoping you'll stick with Bella on her journey!