Chapter 1
This Sounds Suspiciously Familiar
Forks, Washington. Of all the god forsaken places that Mulder had dragged Scully to in search of "the truth", this had to be one of the most miserable of all.
"Mulder, humor me. Tell me again, why are we here in one of the rainiest places in the Continental U.S.?"
Mulder smiled slyly, knowing that what was probably chapping her ass the most was the fact that the high moisture in the air made her hair frizzy.
"Well, Scully…" he drawled overdramatically. "We're here to help the local authorities investigate the murder of one Waylon Forge."
"And what is it about this particular murder than calls for our area of expertise?"
"The bite marks on his body, and the fact that it had been completely drained of blood." Mulder cringed at the explanation. He knew that a major hissy was about to be thrown by a certain redhead.
Scully frowned and even felt slightly feint. Not this crap again.
Damn it Mulder. There's good natured ribbing and then there's twisting the knife.
He was never going to let her live her little encounter with Lucius Hartwell down.
Several years prior, the two of them had been called to investigate the murders of some tourists in Chaney, Texas by so-called vampires. Same M.O. as now. They never really came to any one conclusion, their stories never quite matched up. She recalled him being his usual overly zealous self, ready to believe in the least likely explanation - vampires. He seemed to be in an alternate universe during the whole thing, recalling her as a vapid, dreamy eyed school girl with a serious case of lust for the sheriff.
While she did find the sheriff pretty damn hot, she was her usual scientific, analytical self while working with the man. She did her job as usual.
While noticing his bulging biceps and hot, dirty, NOT buck-toothed mouth.
She turned her head away from Mulder to hide her smile. It was hard to be mad about this latest, sure-to-be-a-dead-end investigation with memories like that.
"Are you with me on this?"
Mulder sounded impatient. He was itching to get started. He was puzzled that she wasn't stomping her little feet and demanding a plane ticket back to D.C..
"Do I really have a choice? Where do we start?"
"First I want to talk to the SHERIFF. Lucius… err, um, I mean Charlie Swan." he chuckled lightly when he saw the blush that immediately hit her cheeks. He would never get tired of that.
As he turned to walk away, Scully flipped him the bird and stuck her tongue out. She was already tired of this freaking town and this damn rain.
I'll never be able to control my hair with all this water everywhere.
Walking towards the car she looked across the main road and saw a little diner. Her stomach growled as she thought about mashed potatoes and gravy.
Places like that always have real mashed potatoes.
Just as she was about to suggest a bite to eat, Mulder saved her the trouble.
" I see the Sheriffs car at that diner. Let's see if we can catch up with him there."
Maybe I'll get to eat and maybe not. Like he gives a rats ass.
Her hostility towards Mulder was unusually high today. This place was affecting her in a totally unexpected way. She literally wanted to choke his neck until his big hazel eyes popped out of the sockets.
Let's just get this over with.
Rain sloshed into Scullys sensible black pumps as they made their way to the diner. She was wet, miserable and definitely hungry. Perhaps PMS'ing a little as well. Now her feet were freezing. Thanks Mulder.
Damn, damn, damn, damn, damn!!! DAMN!!!
More curses were about to rampage through her brain when she heard a quick laugh just to her right. She glanced sideways and saw a boy who looked to be about 17 or 18 sitting in a silver Volvo. He had the palest, most undeniably beautiful face that she had ever seen. Had he been laughing at her? Did she say something out loud instead of internally?
He smiled at her widely. She was caught off guard by the ferocious turn his face had taken when he showed his teeth. She shuddered almost imperceptibly and followed Mulder the rest of the way across the street and into the diner.
That was weird. Damn weird.
Edward hadn't meant to laugh out loud. The litany of curses that were running through her mind had caught him off guard. Alice had been right when she had seen that the FBI would send Mulder and Scully. Edward was amused and alarmed all at once. One more thing to worry about.
These two weren't strangers to Edward. He had heard of them while visiting some like-minded friends in Texas a few years back. Like-minded meaning that they were also vampires who had turned away from hunting humans and found alternate means to satisfy the thirst.
Lucius, the unofficial head of the Texas clan, had spoken highly of the pair. He had said that they were fair and honest. But he had added that Mulder was rabidly chomping at the bit most of the time and that Scully had damn near made him change his mind about his oath to never make another vampire. Hartwell had it bad for her then and there was a good chance that he was still keeping tabs on her to this day. He had told the Cullen Clan about drugging Scully so the whole coven could disappear. Sitting with her in the patrol car, watching her sleep, he had been highly tempted to make her one of them. She had appealed to him on many different levels. Seeing her in Hartwell's thoughts hadn't done her justice. Edward had thought that she was taller.
Needless to say, the Texas Coven was now somewhere in Montana and Scully and Mulder had never officially reported that there were Vampires roaming about the U.S. Her analytical mind refused to believe that such a creature existed and he refused to take an official stance against her.
Alice had said that there was nothing to fear from the Agents being here, that they wouldn't stay long. Carlisle already had a plan to throw them off track, just in case. Justice for James and Victoria would be dealt without having to involve the humans.
Back to Bella.
She was inside with her dad. Of course he could pick up none of her thoughts and her fathers mind was nearly as hard to read as hers. The waitress however was an open book.
"Charlie, the boys wanna know if you found anything down by the river today."
Edward knew that Victoria must be headed in any direction except where Charlie thought.
Charlie did his best to reassure the waitress and everyone else that was eavesdropping that the danger was headed out of town.
Edward could feel that Scully was one of the people listening to the "Official Explanation" and he couldn't help but to let his mind try to pick up her thoughts again. There was something about her that he found utterly fascinating. He could see how hard it must have been for Lucius to let her go. Her inner monologue was kind of like his own private reality show, a guilty pleasure.
He backed his car out of the space and drove one street over, to avoid Bella or Scully spotting him. He had a good lock on the agents mind as he parked again and settled in.
…..have your head so far up your ass and if you took one second to notice you would see that I have needs, idiot. I bet Lucius would know that I was hungry.
Wow. She was hostile.
I wonder what he had done to her.
Edward could see through Scully's thoughts that Mulder was wilting under the glare that she was bestowing upon him.
….evade, quick, must not let her make me cringe anymore….
Mulder was pathetic. She continued to glare at his back as he began the introductions.
"Sheriff Swan? I'm Agent Fox Mulder and this is my partner, Dana Scully. We were sent here by the FBI to help investigate the murder of Waylon Forge."
Edward could feel the resentment pulse from Charlie Swan as the news set in. His thoughts came is a jumbled rush.
Now I'll have to baby-sit these damn fancy-pants FBI turds while I try to find out who's responsible for killing my friend. All this and I find out from Bryan the EMT that my daughter showed up at the station with that creepy Cullen kid. Edwin, Edgar…. Damn, I can't remember... Did she really think I wouldn't find out that she was with him and not Jessica? I need to step it up, get her to date the Newton boy. But hey, red's kinda cute. I might be able to put up with her face for a couple days. But slicky-boy there, he is gonna work my last nerve. I can tell already.
Anger and jealousy surged through Edward as he read Charlie's thoughts about Bella's dating situation. He would kidnap Bella and take her to Borneo before he would let her settle for that boring chump Mike Newton.
Calm down.
He needed to remind himself that Charlie was Bella's father and only wanted what he thought was best for her. Even if he didn't outright know that The Cullen's were vampires, he was intuitive enough to know that there was something off about them.
Charlie's thoughts about Scully and Mulder, however, proved to be quite hilarious. Sheriff Charlie Swan seemed to be a lot like Sheriff Lucius Hartwell.
"Well, I guess we'll take all the help we can get but I hate to see you come all the way here for a simple case of animal attack."
It was an animal all right. An animal that used to be human at some point.
Charlie would never know how true that thought was.
Edward already knew that the Sheriff didn't think for one second that it was an animal that did Waylon in.
"Sheriff Swan…"
"Please ma'am. Call me Charlie."
"Charlie," Scully started again. Edward could hear the patience in her thoughts. "we don't mean to be any trouble. We'll just stick around long enough to get our evidence and we will be out of your hair."
Edward could hear what she was saying through Mulder's mind, but more than that, he could feel the sympathy emanate from her mind. Her thoughts were soothing , like warmth to his long cold body.
She's genuinely sorry for him, she knows that Waylon was his friend.
Listening to her thoughts was beginning to feel a little addicting. He pulled away from her mind, disconcerted.
Lets see what Mulder is thinking about.
….she's so damn endearingly sympathetic. How can she not know how the way she bites her lip like that drives me insane. What would it feel like to kiss her? I bet she's a biter….
WHAT?
The slow realization hit Edward like a ton of bricks. Mulder had almost zero interest in this case. He just wanted to get Scully away from D.C., to have her to himself. He was in love with her, no, obsessed with her. He felt like her protector, like without him, she would be a statistic in no time at all. But he was torn, he felt like he was holding her back from all that she could be. That his love for her was like an albatross around her neck. His anguish and guilt over wanting to keep her near but wishing she would run was painful to hear.
It sounded suspiciously familiar…..
That's just ridiculous to think. His situation with Bella was nothing like the odd reluctance of Mulder and Scully to admit their feelings. They were both human. Fox wouldn't kill Dana if he grabbed her by the face a little too roughly when he kissed her. She wouldn't crumple like a piece of paper if things got passionate and led to….
Stop it.
Edward couldn't afford to entertain thoughts of a physical relationship with Bella. It was hard enough to be in the same room with her, smell her blood, ache for her like he did. It could never be. He would have to be happy with what they had now. A cautious, tenuous, whatever.
His body and his mind were on fire with imagined impossibilities. Maybe he would just have to live vicariously through the FBI agents. Maybe there was something that he could do to help them out.
Edward Cullen. Do not meddle. Their path is set in stone and they do NOT need you to intervene! And Borneo? Really?
It was Alice and she sounded angry with him. How could she be so self-righteous when she was constantly trying to meddle in his affairs with Bella?
She's my friend too, Edward. Well, she will be.
Edward wished that he could make Alice understand that the vision she had of Bella as immortal could never happen. He loved her way too much to let that be. He couldn't bear to think of her face, cold, never blushing again. He would still feel the same way about her if she were to become what he was, but he would always feel like a demon for changing the course of her natural life.
…daughter huh? She doesn't look like she just moved here from Phoenix. She looks like she's never had a good day in the sun in her life. Skin that pale, maybe she's the vampire! …..
Mulder was apparently sizing Bella up. And knowing Bella, she was all to aware of his scrutiny, even if she couldn't read minds. She would be blushing and trying to lower her head, using her hair as a shield.
Urges that made Edward jump surged through him again. How could the mere thought of her blushing cheeks send fire through every part of him that way?
Poor kid. She just gets in to town and she already has a stalker.
What the …..?
What did Scully mean by that?
He was absolutely gorgeous, granted, but there was something frightening about him. He wasn't sitting outside in that car for the hell of it. He was definitely watching this girl. I wonder if she knows him at all.
Edward really didn't see how this could NOT turn out to be problematic.
…guess it'll be me, 'Plan Nine From Outer Space' and the Jergens again.
Edward couldn't believe what he had just heard Mulder thinking. Plan Nine From Outer Space? Was that some sort of ….porn?
Although he usually found listening to most human thoughts boring and mundane, these two were like the best sitcom/drama/romance that had ever been written. He would have to get with Alice and see more specifically where this was headed. He had a strangely urgent need to know.
….mashed potatoes, brown gravy, meatloaf, peas. Sooooo hungry…
Edward sincerely hoped that poor Scully would get her dinner. He felt ravenous too. It was well past time to hunt. He had been so involved in trying to keep Bella safe that he had denied his own hunger. Her life meant so much more than satisfying his own needs right now.
Now if he could convince himself that that applied to ALL his needs, he could feel safer around her.
He started his Volvo and whipped into the street, not bothering to look behind him. He needed to hunt, NOW.
Chapter 2
Bella Meets Mulder
Bella couldn't help but to stare at the tall dark-haired man in the trench coat.
He looks completely out of place here.
She felt a surge of heat flood her cheeks as she realized the woman behind him had seen her lingering look. She lowered her head and pushed the remains of her spinach salad around in the bowl.
The man began introductions. Of course, that's why he looked out of place. Forks and FBI didn't seem synonymous in any sense. Even with her as yet unconfirmed suspicions about Edward.
She had formulated an idea about what he was last night as she watched Bryan and another paramedic wheel Waylon's body out to the ambulance. She had not entertained for one second that Edward was the one responsible for the murder. But she could feel a undercurrent, something telling her that Edward was more of a predator than she could ever grasp. She knew what Edward was just as surely as she knew that right now, Agent Mulder was staring at her unabashedly.
She could tell that her father was not amused at the thought of having to share anything with these two. Well, at least not with Mulder.
"….my daughter, Bella. She just moved here from Phoenix. I'm hoping that she decides to make it permanent. Wink, wink."
Charlie looked at Bella with a semi-comical face. Deep down she knew that he really did hope that she stayed for good. She couldn't picture herself leaving at all. There was a mystery here. A beautiful, perfect, god-like mystery named Edward Cullen.
Okay, now he's just being rude. Why does he keep staring at me like that?
"How's the spinach salad here, Bella?"
Now why the hell would Mulder wanna know that?
Scully knew that Mulder detested vegetables as much as he detested any sci-fi movie made after 1980.
"S'okay, I guess. I'm not real hungry." Bella pushed her plate away, as if to emphasize that she was ready to leave.
She could swear that off in the distance she heard the rather distinct sound of a Volvo engine being gunned.
"Well, Agent Mulder, Agent Scully. I need to get the girl home. My office is about two miles from here. A straight shot to the west. We can meet there later this evening and go over what I have so far, if you'd like."
"Great, sheriff. I'm anxious to get started. Say, around 6 okay?
Mulder was practically foaming at the mouth.
"Fine by me. Bella, you ready?"
"Sure, I have some studying to do."
Scully watched the father and daughter head out to the patrol car. She felt a pang of sadness, seeing the way he opened the door for her. She had lost her dad so many years ago and yet the pain was still so fresh.
Enjoy him while you can Bella. You'll only ever have one daddy.
Mulder did not miss the wistful sad look that crossed Scully's face. He knew she was thinking about her own father. Best to not let her dwell on that.
"Alright, lets go have a look at the scene."
"Hold up Mulder. I can't go any further without food." I'm not leaving this diner without eating."
Scully crossed her arms and sat down in the booth that the sheriff and his daughter had just left. Her look was one of iron resolve. No need to argue, he'd already lost.
"I'm sorry, Scully. Not thinking I guess. We haven't eaten since early this morning and…."
She cut him off with a dismissive wave of her hand.
Jerk.
In the patrol car, Charlie was debating on how to bring up the subject of the Cullen boy. Bella was almost an adult, true. She hadn't lied to him. She hadn't said anything at all and he didn't appreciate her lack of forthcoming about how she had gotten back from Port Angeles. Maybe it was just infatuation. Maybe she was enamored of him because he had pushed her out of harms way.
Charlie felt a rush of anger. He really had felt like throttling that damn Tyler. He had come so close to taking Bella away from him forever. Stupid, reckless teenagers.
Maybe I should feel a little kinder towards Ed-whatever.
The boy had saved Bella's life. If it weren't for him, parts of her would still be smeared all over the school parking lot. Why was his most primal instinct that of worry then? Why did he feel that she needed to be protected from him?
Maybe it was because all of the Cullen's seemed altogether too perfect. Never a hair out of place, wearing clothes that you definitely wouldn't find down at the local Wal-Mart, driving cars that seemed too expensive, even for a doctors salary. He vaguely remembered some rumor that had been circulating around town a while back. Someone had mentioned that they heard from so-and-so who knew someone who(yada, yada, yada) that the good Doctors wife was old money. Some huge inheritance from her parents who had it handed to them by their parents.
Esmirelda? Was that her name? Sounds like a witch.
Watching that whole strange family, one would soon realize that their smiles were usually veiled and guarded. But once Charlie had seen the big one, Emmet, (he remembered a name! wow) smile so widely that it looked like he could've bitten a horse in half. It had scared him. He might as well have had gore and blood dripping from that gaping maw. It couldn't have made him any more frightening. Charlie never could put his finger on why the sight had upset him that way. The whole family set his teeth on edge. Even the father. Carlisle. As much as Charlie admired and respected the man, he got uncomfortable whenever he was near him and couldn't retreat fast enough.
Charlie shuddered at the memory, suddenly wanting to forget this whole train of thought.
"Char… I mean Dad, are you alright?"
Bella had seen the look that had crossed her fathers face. She wasn't sure exactly what it had been about, just that it had looked like he was recalling something very unsettling.
I'll bet he's thinking about the accident at school again.
Charlie cleared his throat and shook his shoulders, as if to shrug off something cold and unpleasant.
"Bella, there's something that I want to talk to you about."
Uh-oh. This can't be good….
"I was talking to Bryan this morning and he mentioned that he saw you get out of Edwin Cullen's car at the station house the other night."
Stupid small town. Stupid big-mouthed, nosy EMT.
I hope he gets hepatitis.
What an odd thought.
"So what's the story? I thought that you had gone with Jessica and that other girl."
He sounds pissed.
"Dad, his name is Edward."
"What did I call him?"
"Edgar. You called him Edgar." Bella laughed at the thought of a name like that being hung on a face like that. It really wasn't that far off the mark. I mean, Jasper? Not a name you hear a whole lot these days.
"That's beside the point. What I'm trying to say is that I think he might be a little too old for you."
"We're both juniors. And it's nothing, we're just…. Friends."
Bella knew in the pit of her stomach that the last part was a lie. While it might be really the truth for the moment, she knew that she could never be "just friends" with Edward Cullen. It was all or nothing and she planned to confront him at school tomorrow.
Where there will be plenty of witnesses, she thought wryly.
"What about that Newton kid? He seems to be interested in you."
How could Bella ever make her dad see that dating Mike Newton would be like dating someone you baby-sat? He was way beneath her on the maturity scale. She liked him as a friend but he was tiring. Sometimes it was physically painful to be around him, having to pretend all the time that she didn't notice the doe eyes he was making at her, the thinly disguised hints that he liked her. It was all too immature.
"Mike is a friend too. Just a friend too."
Charlie heard the resolve in her voice. It was useless. Billy Black had warned him about this. The iron-clad stubbornness of the teen-ager. They were going through the same thing. Billy's son Jacob was just a couple of years younger than Bella. Maybe there was an opportunity there. How cool would it be to have his daughter date his best friends son?
Bella didn't like the look that flashed across Charlie's face. It looked rather devious.
"Okay, I give. You're a smart girl. I know you'll always make the best decision. Just be careful around Ed-ward. There's something about him that sets my teeth on edge."
They were silent for the rest of the trip home. Bella practically broke her neck trying to scramble out of the car and into the house. Seriously, stupidly dangerous for someone as clumsy as her to do. She was mortified that she had just been forced to talk to Charlie about boys. And not just any boy, but Edward. Her dad obviously didn't like him and that really peeved her. He wasn't going to make any future that involved Edward easy.
There was a trig exam the next day. She pretended to study but her mind was aimlessly wandering. Thinking about hazel eyes. Wait… Edward had golden brown eyes. At least he did here recently. When she had first seen him, his eyes were black, obsidian.
Who the hell has hazel eyes?
Mulder. What in the world would make her think of him? She didn't find him overly attractive. He was no Edward, that was for damn sure. His confidence, boldness, maybe that's what had her thinking of him. He seemed sure of himself in ways that she never would.
And then there was the other one. Scully. She seemed nice enough but she visibly stiffened when she had heard Mulder ask Bella about her salad. It sounded innocent enough but it had upset the woman for some reason.
It was time getting late. Almost 5:30. Daydreaming has pushed the clock forward faster than Bella could believe.
Wearily she set off to the bathroom to shower and brush her teeth. Tomorrow was not something that she was looking forward to, but she knew that confronting Edward was unavoidable if she wanted to go any further with him. He had told her at the restaurant that he couldn't stay away from her anymore. She felt the same and then some.
Across town at the Forks Holiday Inn, Scully was brushing her teeth.
Damn mashed potatoes are like napalm.
She couldn't shake this foul mood. Even though her stomach was full and she had already efficiently unpacked, Scully was still irritated. She felt like someone had been trespassing in her thoughts, whatever the hell that meant.
There was a knock on the door.
"Scully, it's me."
Well, who else would it be dumb-ass? Maybe that scary cute boy in the Volvo?
A shock went through her. She wasn't sure if it was pleasure or fright at the thought of Volvo-boy waiting outside her hotel room.
"Coming."
She opened the door and Mulder couldn't be bothered to say hi, ask how she was, no niceties. He just went for the kill.
"So, are you ready? We need to head over to the Sheriff's office. I wanna get started on this ASAP. Daylights wasting."
"I didn't know there was daylight here in good old Forks." she mumbled lowly.
"Did you say something, Scully?"
"Nope." she didn't try to hide the irritation in her voice at all.
Mulder pretended not to notice. He just stood there looking at his watch as she shrugged her coat on.
In the rental car, Mulder eyed her warily. He wanted nothing more than to ask her what was wrong, to find out why she had that look of anger on her face. He was scared that he might find out that he was the cause of it.
"Just spit it out Mulder. I can't take anymore of those loaded looks that you keep throwing my way."
The venom in her voice was deadly. If looks could kill, she would be guilty of totally evaporating him instantaneously.
"Scully, what the hell has gotten in to you?" It was Mulder's turn to be angry, exasperated,…. Confused.
She had been angry with him before. Peeved, upset, whatever word you wanted to call it. She had always melted when he gave her the puppy dog eyes and slightly trembling lip. Today, however, this seemed to infuriate her more which was now making him feel like someone was pissing in his Cheerio's. He looked at her again to try and gauge her anger but instead saw a look of horror.
"Mulder!!! Look out!"
He had a split second to react to what he saw. In the middle of the road was a large wolf. Not a wolf, a man…. No not a man…. A wolf man? It looked like a man shifting into a wolf. And in the time it took him to realize he was about to make impact, the figure blurred and disappeared.
The sound of screeching tires echoed in Scully's ears long after they had actually stopped.
"What in the name of Jose Chung was that?" Mulder looked pale. He looked to Scully to see if she was in shock like he was.
"Which one?" Scully asked, voice trembling.
"What do you mean which one?"
"I mean are you talking about the wolf or the woman with the long red hair?"