Hello everyone, and welcome to my newest creation, "Tattooed"! For those of you who have followed me here from my story "Vendetta", thank you so much for sticking with me, and I promise Vendetta will be finished eventually. For now, just sit back and enjoy my newest creation. I hope you all like it! -SNO

Disclaimer: Twilight and all of it's characters are all property of Stephanie Meyer.

"A Lost Package"

Edward stared at the tan package in his hands, the same one he had held just days ago. But now there were bright red letters jumping out at him like a warning. "Return to Sender. Attempted, Not Known."

It had been 3 years since Edward had left the love of his life, Bella, in a misguided attempt to keep her safe from harm. But there wasn't a day that went by that his undead heart didn't ache for hers, that he didn't miss the deep pools in her eyes, or the fiery touch of her skin. His family was, disheartened, to say the least, about leaving Bella and their lives in Forks behind. But, they were supportive, and had tried their best the past couple of years to keep him occupied with other things.

Living in Boston seemed to help; attending Boston University while simultaneously keeping their family's secret was as consuming as Carlisle had hoped it would be. The sun shined more in Boston, but they only took classes during the fall and winter semesters at the university. Carlisle worked the graveyard shift at Boston University Hospital, never having to worry about exposure during the sunlight. Even if he was, for some reason, stuck at the hospital into the brighter hours of the morning, the parking garage was below the hospital, where no sunlight could ever creep through. Esme spent her days writing her memoir; she hoped to one day share their family's story with other vampires and prove to them that being a vampire did not have to mean being a monster as well. She missed her would-be daughter from time-to-time, but to please Edward, she left Bella and her relationship with their family out of her book.

Rosalie took the transition the easiest, though she was rather upset about not having another graduation cap and diploma to add the their collection. Leaving Forks was easy for her; she never wanted Bella to be a vampire and she never wanted her family to be put at risk. She preferred the status quo, and was relieved that things could return to the way they were before. Emmet was not as easy to convince, however. He had grown rather attached to the idea of having Bella as a sister, and Edward knew it had saddened him to leave her the way they did. But he respected Edward's choice, and busied himself with school and Rosalie, as well as the occasional wrestling match with Jasper.

Jasper's time after the birthday incident had been riddled with relief, sadness, guilt, and a little bit of heartache. He knew he was the reason that his family had to uproot themselves once more; though Alice insisted the decision was Edward's alone, he knew that Edward never would have done so had he not tried to kill Bella during their last encounter. But that's also where Jasper felt some relief. As much as he felt guilty over setting the past three years into motion, he also felt relieved that a huge amount of pressure had finally been lifted off of his shoulders. It was nice to not have to worry about whether or not he was going to kill Bella everyday. But that's about where his relief ended. He felt the sadness of all of his family, his empathic abilities now seeming a bit of curse to him. What was worse was that he couldn't help but feel responsible for the emotions he had but his wife through.

Alice fought vehemently against leaving Bella, but eventually bowed out due to her loyalty to Jasper, Edward, and the rest of her family. But that didn't stop Jasper from feeling every ounce of sadness and regret that poured out of Alice in the days following their departure. She ached for just one more minute with her once best friend, for a chance to explain why she needed to leave, for a chance to say goodbye. Jasper knew Alice did not blame him for what had happened. If anything, her animosity was more geared towards Edward, who only made it worse by forbidding Alice to look for Bella's future anymore. He scolded her each time he saw her looking for it, and eventually Alice grew tired of the constant fighting. So she yielded, allowing herself and the rest of the family to fall into a comfortable state of complacency.

But Edward couldn't help himself. It had been three years since he had last been in contact with his Bella, and he could no longer resist the urge to have some form of interaction. He saw her 21st birthday as a perfect opportunity to remind her that someone still cared for her. He didn't leave his name anywhere on the package or the gift; he had listed the return address as a P.O. box in Boston. Bella never would have known where it had come from. He tore open the packaging and removed the little blue box from its bubble wrapping. He lifted the lid to reveal the Swarovski crystal swan still sitting neatly in its holder, the delicate neck chain tucked gently behind the protective cardboard. It was clear the package hadn't been opened prior till now and that the necklace had been untouched.

A sense of panic began to creep its way into Edward's mind. He tried to silence each irrational question with a more rational answer. Why was the postal service unable to deliver the package to Bella's home in Forks? Because she's graduate high school already and is probably off at college. But then why wouldn't Charlie just take the package and pass it along to Bella? Why doesn't he live there anymore? Because maybe he's retired. He probably felt unsafe about sending his accident-prone daughter off to college without him. Maybe they moved somewhere together and she commutes to college. There were too many unanswered questions.

He had almost resolved himself to going back to Forks to find her, to seek out the one thing he had been missing for the past couple of years. And then he felt the hard, cold pressure on his shoulders, as the pixie-like vampire spoke, or rather thought, to him.

"I think it's a little unfair that you forbid me from monitoring Bella's future, when you sit here and plan to entangle yourself in it," Alice hissed inwardly. "I kept my mouth shut when I saw you sending the present, but I won't let you go back to Forks and to Bella, after you've pushed so hard for the rest of this family to let her be."

Edward turned to face her, his mouth already open to produce a rebuttal argument. But he was never given the chance.

"Let it go," she begged, her eyes so sad and downcast. "Don't make this family go through knowing her and leaving her again."

She turned her eyes upwards now, to directly stare into his.

"Please, let it go."

Edward's resolve quickly vanished. He couldn't bear to torture Alice like this. He dropped his head in defeat and let out an anguished sigh. It was, after all, best for Bella if he stayed away.

"You're right, Alice," he said as he ran his fingers through his hair. "I'm sorry."

"All is forgiven," she replied lightly, her happier personality returning to her, "but only if you still plan on buying me that car when we get to England. Just a heads up, by the way, get the red, not the blue."

He managed a smirk as she walked away, remembering the car he was intending on buying Alice when they reached their vacation home in England. The weather was warming up now in Boston, and the sun was starting to come out more often. This was their cue to head for their timeshare in England, where the clouds were an ever-present friend to those who wished to hide themselves from the sun.

However, Edward would not let Alice or the trip to England distract him completely from his goal. He would find a way to learn where his Bella was, not so he could see her, but just so he could know he was safe. Whatever manner he chose to accomplish this with would have to wait till they arrived in England though, so Alice would be more occupied and less likely to see any last minute decision he made.

A/N: I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter, I know I didn't give much away yet, but I like to take my time setting up the foundation for a story. Keep your eye's open for more updates throughout the week! -SNO