To Florence, this was completely new. She had only been in America for a few months, and still she wasn't used to it. She wasn't used to the lack of courtesy people gave each other on the street or the lack of queues or the weird new money. She had lived in England for her entire life, all 168 years of it; she was used to people keeping to themselves and being polite, and she hated the change that American had brought.
Now, in Forks, she was almost afraid to ask for directions. All of the things she had lived through, and she was utterly afraid. She was on foot, too shy to catch a cab and had no idea where she was going, but she decided to walk anyways. He sense of smell was strong - maybe she could follow the familiar sweet scent of vampires to their home.
She was looking for the Cullens, of course. They were the only other vampires in the civilised world that she knew to have a hybrid like herself. She would have stayed in London, with her father, but that wasn't an option now. He was dead. It had been his own sorry fault, too, but she still missed him, and of course her mother had died as well. She was alone now, and she couldn't fend for herself. Not yet, anyways.
She found herself in the woods, having caught the familiar, homely scent of vampire that made her feel sad in the pit of her stomach. She followed it for as far as she could, trying not to lose it along the way - the woods was filled with other smells; the earthy tone of the soil, the fresh green scent of the vegetation around her and some other, musky smell that she couldn't quite place, but that smelt animalistic, raw and frightening. It was all a lot to take in, but Florence felt better for being out of the human eye, and was happier to amble through the trees than to walk sluggishly along the side of the road.
And then, eventually, she found it - the house in the middle of the woods that was so secluded, and so massive, but so safe and warm looking that Florence felt herself speeding up just to get close to it. It was all quiet, and there were no signs of life out on the porch or in the house beyond, from what she could see, but she knew they could hear her. They would have been able to hear her for a while now, just as she could hear their almost silent breathing from where she now stood, on the edge of the trees looking out onto the house, wondering if going up to the door was actually a good idea or not. What if they wouldn't accept her? What if they thought she was lying? What if this wasn't even the right house after all - she didn't know what any of the Cullens looked like. How could she be sure that this was them and not some hunter or recluse?
Shaking the harsh black thoughts from her head, Florence stepped out onto the smooth tarmacced road and stepped cautiously but quickly towards the house. She heard the breathing stop, as if everyone inside was anticipating something awful, wondering whether or not she was a threat. She ignored it, pretended to be oblivious to it, and walked up the porch steps to the front door. She knew they were expecting her to knock, and so she didn't hesitate - the person behind the door however, who had probably been there since they had heard her coming, paused before opening the door. It was a long enough pause not to be suspicious to a human, but short enough to tell Florence that whoever was in there was anxious to see her.
The door opened to reveal a young man, maybe in his early thirties, she guessed, wearing a navy blue jumper and a pair of dark black pants with hair that looked almost golden in the pure light from the surrounding forest. There was a woman behind him, too - small, sweet, with a heart shaped face and caramel hair. They both looked at her with concern and worry, but who it was for she didn't know.
"I- I need your help." Florence said, her pale hands clasped in front of her as she turned and twisted the thin golden ring on her finger; she was nervous, and it was apparent.
The blonde haired man - Carlisle? - exchanged a look with the petite woman behind him. Both vampires, of course. But she couldn't tell them that she knew that.
"Come in." He said, standing back to allow her through the door.
With a gulp and a long look at the inside of the house, Florence nodded, stepping inside and feeling her heart miss an incredibly quick beat at the feat she had just accomplished.