Author's Note: So it's been ages. I know. And I apologize for keeping everyone waiting, and I thank all of you wonderful people who have sent me such lovely messages inquiring after my stories. As of this point I have definitely started writing again, but as I have to have my cat, my baby boy, my best friend of 13 years, put down at the end of this week, it might take me a bit to crawl back out of the bottom of the bottle of Jack I plan to dive into so I can't guarantee exactly how often I'll be updating. It will be coming though - I actually have several chapters already fleshed out as I speak. Still, here's the beginning of Questions of Belief. Until next time! :)

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"You think you saw a what?" Bella wasn't sure she'd heard him properly, but the stunned light in his eyes and the reverence with which he'd spoken led her to believe she had.

"I think...I'm fairly certain I saw an angel."

"Like, an angel angel? Where?"

"In the backyard. Just inside the treeline."

"You're serious." He nodded, and she felt her mind whirling. Even though she wasn't religious at all, she knew Carlisle was a very spiritual person. If he thought he saw an angel, she was inclined to believe him. More than she would have believed almost anyone else, in fact. Still, an angel? She knew he felt her skepticism as well as her desire to believe him, and without letting go of her he walked them backwards to the couch. She acquiesced to his obvious need for quiet and simply held him. Within her mind she could feel his wonder, his own questions of belief, his faith, and she found herself wondering.

"What did he look like?"

"She," Carlisle corrected. Bella nodded her understanding.

"Okay, what did she look like?"

"Petite. Silvery hair. She was wearing jeans and a sweater, I think."

"Angels dress casually these days?" she teased gently, not wanting to push where it concerned something so obviously important to him. Carlisle snorted wryly.

"This one did." He paused, then grasped her upper arms and turned her to face him.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing, but I must apologize - we're going to cut your training this weekend a bit short, I'm afraid. Alice has probably already seen my decision and called the rest of them to come back. I'd expect them to show up any moment, in fact."

"So this is serious, then?"

"Serious enough. Thankfully we've got Caralla coming tomorrow. If anyone I know might be able to definitely identify a celestial being, it would be her." The mention of the ancient vampiress brought Bella's thoughts back to the reason for her visit.

"Do you think this...angel...could have anything to do with my dreams?" He met her eyes with his gleaming golden ones, his expression serious.

"I think there's a very good chance that such is the case."

"Me too," interjected another voice. Bella looked up as Alice, immaculate as always, walked into the living room and placed a dozen or so designer bags on the floor next to the couch. Bella raised an eyebrow as Alice dropped gracefully down beside her, leaning in to kiss first her then Carlisle deeply before speaking.

"This has changed a few things - we obviously didn't go to the concert because Carlisle called us all back. But we did have time to buy some baby stuff for Jess, as well as some new clothes for you." The human rolled her eyes at her friend's explanation and sighed.

"Good. I was wondering how I was supposed to gush over a concert I hadn't seen." Alice grinned at her.

"Oh, it would have been fine. He wasn't going to ask anyway. But now it's a non-issue. Carlisle, what can you tell me about this girl? I still have that fog in my mind whenever I try to look forward. It's stronger now. I can't see anything beyond our family, and not very far on that." Bella relaxed a bit and listened to the two of them talk. Casting her thoughts over the past few days, she found herself wondering if or when her training would continue, but immediately dismissed the question. There were far more important things to think about. She faded back to the present at the tail end of something Carlisle was saying.

"...I've never seen hair that color, that silvery-white. And her eyes...I'm not sure if they were blue or grey or purple - they seemed to change back and forth - but it was as though she could see clear into me. She knew what I was."

"Wait, you're saying she knows you're a vampire?" Bella couldn't keep the note of worry from her voice, a worry that grew when he nodded.

"She called me bloodsucker, almost vehemently, but then she seemed sorry for intruding when I told her this land belonged to our family." Something about hearing this person/thing/angel/whatsit described had been tickling Bella's mind, and it suddenly came to the fore.

"I bet she's Jake's mystery girl!"

"The dog has a girl?" Emmett's booming voice filled the room as the remaining family members strode into the house, Emmett and Esme about fifteen seconds before Edward, Jasper, and Rose. Bella leapt to her feet and charged at Edward, who lifted her into the air with a grin before returning her embrace.

"Miss me?" he murmured. She nodded and laid her head against him. "So, Alice and Carlisle couldn't keep you occupied?" She couldn't hide her blush but she was able to keep her voice steady, not letting any inkling of exactly how occupied she'd been come through.

"Yeah, but they're not you," she said, smiling up at him. They took their seats, and Carlisle waited until everyone was settled before explaining his experience. Bella noticed he skimmed over the reason Jake had appeared, stating only that the wolf had wanted to talk to Bella, and that while he'd left the two of them to chat he'd happened across the angel-creature in the forest. He related their brief conversation and her sudden disappearance, which cause no little amount of shocked murmuring amongst his audience.

"And then I came back here. Now Bella, what was that you were saying about Jake and a girl?"

"Yeah, didn't think the mutt had it in him to stop sniffing around you," Emmett joked. Bella threw a pillow at him - more for her enjoyment than anything - and sat up a bit straighter on Edward's lap.

"Jake said there's been a girl showing up out at the rez. She never sticks around long enough to talk to him, and he's been unable to track her. Billy's told him it's his responsibility to find out who she is and what she wants. They're not too happy with strangers on the land." Esme nodded and spoke, her soft voice thoughtful.

"Understandable. Did he say anything else about her?" Bella paused, unsure whether she would be violating a confidence, but she decided that they needed all the information they could get.

"He said...he believes she's a shifter, of sorts."

"Of sorts?" Jasper asked. "What does that mean?" Bella took a deep breath. ~I'm sorry, Jake,~ she thought.

"He says she can change into a white wolf. A white WINGED wolf." As she'd anticipated the room quickly filled with voices, but Bella's attention was fixed on Esme as the woman turned even whiter than she'd been before and darted out of the room. She returned a split second later clutching a book and flipping through its pages like a person possessed. After a moment she thrust the book at Bella.

"Did she look like this?" On the page was a photocopy of a woodcarving depicting a massive canine-like beast with wings decapitating a normal man with its teeth. Bella shrugged apologetically.

"I don't know - I wasn't the one to see her. Jake just mentioned it while we were talking this morning." Bella took a closer look at the print. The book was obviously old, which meant the carving had to be ancient. She began to skim over the text, but unfortunately it was written in a language she couldn't understand. The only thing she noticed was the single word beneath the picture, and she assumed it was the creature's name.

"So who's this Marchosias person?" she asked. Esme thought for a quick moment.

"If I'm remembering correctly, he's a demon lord of Hell. Responsible for commanding legions and one of the highest ranking lords under the God of Hell himself."

"So what might he have to do with this strange person?" The room was silent, Bella leaning back against Edward as they all mulled over the confusing lack of information.

"I don't know, but even not being able to see anything, I'd bet we'll have answers to at least one question tomorrow." Everyone turned to look at Alice, who shrugged. "Anyone want to lay odds that the new person tomorrow is our mystery girl?" Perhaps the least shocking thing of the morning was that no one wanted to take that bet.