Disclaimer: I, of course, do not own Twilight nor any of the characters mentioned in this story outside of my own OCs, such as August and Mei.
Over time, the phrases that people live and shape their life to morph just as anything else.
For example, "Curiosity killed the cat," is a phrase commonly used to warn people about sticking their nose where it doesn't belong.
That was a phrase that Mei had always wrestled with.
Her unending curiosity had he in a constant state of questioning, of wondering and seeking to learn.
Through that, she uncovered the full saying which is one that she much preferred.
"Curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back."
Though there was little satisfaction in the questions that she pondered due to the usual impossibility of uncovering answers, she still wondered.
Now, Mei pondered art.
Not just what a piece meant, though the thought itself had been brought on by a rather odd looking statue they had come across in the last town they passed through, Mei was ruminating over whether or not mortals even understood why the sought to create such beauty or such oddity.
As she thought, the woman sat on the bank of a small stream, elegant olive fingers digging into the damp earth at her sides as she watched a small water bug skim its way across the surface of the slow-moving brook.
The area in which she had been staying within for the past few days was quickly turning out to be one of Mei's favorites.
Her small coven comprised of no more than two spent so much time moving from place to place that she often forgot what it was like to truly enjoy being where you were.
Sure, they often took trips to remote tourist destinations such as famous mountains or canyons, but the grandeur of those places didn't compare to the gentle babbling of the stream at her side.
At least not to Mei.
Contentment in life came from enjoying the little things- that was what her father had told her many times as she grew older.
Her father had been as good of a man as any immortal could be expected to be. How long he had walked the Earth was a number that Mei had a hard time grasping herself, but it ultimately meant nothing.
He lived so long just to die to keep her a secret.
Truly, there was little surprise there. His adoration for his only child was well known by anyone who actually did know the pair, and conclusively, it had been his downfall.
Mei often wondered what would be her's.
The damp sound of leaves sliding over one another reached Mei's ears a moment before she sensed the hot white energy approaching her.
Mentally she caressed the pulsating edges of the force, gently soothing it before speaking.
"I thought you would have taken longer in town." She commented, not turning to look until a body was lowering itself down next to her in an impossibly graceful manner.
"Hunting was easy tonight. This town... it leaves much to be desired."
Finally raising her dark eyes to her companion, Mei searched her friend's expression. She took in his crimson irises and his easy smirk. That smirk was as familiar to her as his energy was, an old friend like himself.
There were many reasons that the woman disagreed with her friend, but there was a specific reason that she rolled her hazel eyes at his words.
"You picked this location, August." Mei reminded him, but that did nothing to damper the ebony skinned man's smug nature.
He was proud of the town that he chose for a very distinct reason and she already knew the question that was going to come next.
His lips parted and she flicked a long strand of her raven-colored hair over her shoulder, fixing him with a look.
"It would make you stronger, Mouse," August said, his words said in defense for an argument that he hadn't made yet made, but at this point, he didn't need to.
She was already well aware of what he wanted.
August had been trying to convince Mei to prey on humans since the day that her father had taken him under his wing as barely more than a newborn.
Still, Mei resisted. It was too much to feel the drain of their mortal energy onto her tongue. It wasn't something she could swallow- pun intended.
Nor was it necessary for her survival as it seemed to be for his, though she had heard whispers otherwise.
A coven in America with eyes like liquid amber due to their steady diet of animal blood.
August didn't believe the tales, he spoke of the tempting song of human blood in a way that made Mei lean more towards his beliefs as well.
Though she had never experienced such a thing, her friend and father had spoken of it in a way that made it sound as painful as it would be for a mortal to hold their breath or walk through a flame.
"I'm doing fine as is, thank you," Mei told him, her tone a bit sharper than it had been before.
She was exhausted by this familiar argument already.
Her lifestyle had been this way since shortly after her birth when her father found her sitting quietly beside of the human boy he had knocked out and brought to her.
He had a line of blood dribbling down his neck, the proof of her attempted feeding smeared like crushed berries across her lips, but she sat beside of him as still as a stone apart from the steady trail of tears flowing down her cheeks.
She couldn't stand feeding.
Her father brought her a wooden box only hours later that was filled with mortal rations.
"If the Volturi-" August began, but the male didn't get far as Mei spoke over him.
"The Volturi know nothing about me, about either of us." She reasoned, but the worry that creased August's ebony skin showed that he wasn't soothed.
"We could cross paths with someone, Mei. We've been running for longer than I care to keep up with. We are bound to run across others at some point. Your father-" August tried again.
"My father died to keep my existence a secret. He found you, saved you, to help me do the same." Mei hissed, her kind tone now replaced with something darker.
It was a tone shaped from years of fear, of sorrow.
It was her tone that had her friend backing down, his ruby irises regarding the dirt beneath him now that he had been properly scolded.
Watching him, Mei felt a tug in her chest and couldn't stop the sigh that pushed up from her lungs before she reached out to wrap slender fingers around his wrist, her skin in stark contrast to his.
"Making sure that his sacrifice was not in vain... that is the most important thing. I am sorry for suggesting otherwise." August said, his voice low while his words pulled a gentle smile on to the Japanese woman's lips.
"The most important thing is keeping us alive and safe from the critical eyes of others, Auggie. Honoring my father comes through that." She told him, her voice back to its usual gentle cadence as she gave his wrist a soft squeeze, not caring about the slight chill of his skin under her fingers.
Retracting her hand, Mei and August paid no mind to the smear of soil that she had left in her wake and instead, they both rose to their feet, Mei's movements slower than her companion's.
"Shall we move on?" Mei asked and August regarded her for a moment.
He knew that she had been enjoying the place that they were currently staying, but still he was reminded of his thoughts only moments before.
He had to keep Mei safe.
They had to keep moving.
"I'll grab our things. You think about where you want to go next. I am partial to South America." August said and before Mei could blink, let alone respond, he was only a blur racing through the trees.