Full Summary:

If you could be positive that all hardships, pain, and difficulties you encountered would lead you and the ones you loved to boundless happiness…to what extent would you be willing to suffer? How much would you be willing to surrender? How much would you be willing to lose?

My name is Isabella Swan. My answer is everything.

Twenty-year-old Bella and her family are forced to live a life in hiding after her father is killed by the Volturi, the immortal council that governs Amaranthines.

Bella and her family are only half Amaranthine and in the eyes of the Volturi, they are considered a disgrace to immortality and are in need of immediate eradication.

Bella spends her days with her longtime best friend, Edward Cullen. They've been in love for as long as they can remember but one thing stands in their way:

Amaranthines receive a special imprint and their soul-mate bears the other half. Bella and Edward's imprints do not match, therefore they are not meant to be.

When a stranger enters Bella's life, possessing the other half of her imprint, she is torn between following the rules of her kind and listening to her heart.

However, none of that will matter when the Volturi comes knocking at her door.

Chapter 1 – The Past

"For we live with those retrievals from childhood, that coalesce and echo throughout our lives, the way shattered pieces of glass in a kaleidoscope reappear in new forms and are songlike in their refrains and rhymes, making up a single monologue. We live permanently in the recurrence of our own stories, whatever story we tell."-Michael Ondaatje

I pressed the phone to my ear and listened to the ringing on the other end of the line. "Come on, pick up." I whispered as I cocooned myself in a heavy blanket, attempting to fight the cold of the basement.

I finally heard his husky voice after five long rings. "Hello?"

"Edward," I breathed, allowing my taught muscles to relax.

He chuckled. "Worried about me?" His playful tone calmed me as I pictured his crooked smile.

God, I missed him so much. "Always," I answered without hesitation. "Did you find somewhere safe to stay tonight?"

The shuffling noises in the background piqued my curiosity even more. "Yeah," his loud yawn echoed in my ear, followed by a soft snicker. "I'm in the penthouse at The Ritz."

"Very funny," I offered a fake laugh, pulling my knees to my chest. "You're probably ordering pay-per-view and room service while I'm stuck barricaded in this basement all night." I scrunched my nose at the thought.

"Don't forget the sexy maid that's waiting on me hand and foot." His teasing filled me with the warmth I lacked, but his comment didn't fail to make my jealousy rise. "I'm at some hole-in-the-wall motel, baby. No room service, unless you count the vending machine in the lobby. You have it way better than me."

"No sexy maid?" I raised my eyebrows, wishing I could climb through my phone and be with him.

"No sexy maid."

"Better not be. As long as you're safe, I really don't care where you are." I shrugged my shoulders, "But I wish you were here. I hate the idea of you being so far away, especially during a full moon."

Edward sighed from the other line. "I know. I do, too."

I tried not to overreact, but I couldn't help the mild irritation that bubbled to the surface. "How are you so calm about this? I'm over here freaking out."

"I'm far from calm, Bella. It's taking everything in me not to leave right now and come to you. But this is something I have to do. I need to go to their graves. I need closure."

"I know." I told him, completely able to relate. "I'd never take that from you. Just please make sure you keep your door locked tonight, okay?" I pleaded with him.

"You know a locked door isn't going to save me from them."

"Just promise."

"Of course, Freckles." He relented, patronizing me. "You just worry about yourself and get some sleep. I'll call you in the morning."

"Easier said than done," I muttered under my breath. It was impossible for me not to worry.

"You need to relax. The sun will be up before you know it and you'll realize all of your worrying was for nothing. Go to sleep, ."

"Okay, okay," I frowned at the thought of hanging up. "Sweet dreams."

"You too," The line went dead, leaving me feeling his absence. I let out a loud breath of air and tried to get comfortable in the unfamiliar bed while I willed morning to come quickly.

I expected to dream of the night my father died, as I so often did. I constantly relived his horrific demise. But tonight was different. I dreamt of someone else, a silhouette of a man I didn't recognize. Just the image of him stirred a strange feeling inside of me. A connection. A bond. A longing.

I found myself moving in the silhouette's direction, giving in to the overwhelming urge to be near him. However, with every step I took, it was as if he moved two steps further away. The silhouette was a mystery, elusive and captivating, keeping me hypnotized and entranced. Time stood still in his presence.

I tried to call out but couldn't find my voice. He was so close, yet so far away. As quickly as he appeared, he vanished and I was pulled from my dream by my phone ringing.

I blindly reached for the screaming object. "Hello?" I mumbled into the receiver, not bothering to open my eyes to check the caller ID.

"I've been calling you all morning. Are you okay?" Edward echoed in my ear, his loud voice causing me to wince.

I rubbed my eyes and sat up straight."I'm fine. Are you?" My heart began to pound in my chest at the urgency in his tone. My mind immediately went to the worst case scenario.

"No, I'm not okay. You scared the hell out of me." The worry in his voice was prominent. "Why didn't you answer? I thought," he paused, releasing a slow breath of air. "You don't want to know what I thought."

"The Volturi?" I whispered, lowering my head.

"Yeah," he admitted thickly. "The Volturi."

"I'm so sorry. I must've been in a deep sleep. I never heard my phone." I glanced at the clock, noticing the time. The sun had already risen over half an hour ago. We were safe until the next full moon. "Look who's worrying now."

He ignored my joke, obviously not finding it funny. "Too soon?"

"Just a little. Don't scare me like that again," He ordered, firm and assertive.

I bit down on my bottom lip. "I'll try not to."

"Thanks." He said as I pulled my blankets up to my neck for comfort. "Today's the day."

"Yeah, it is. It's been one year since the Volturi killed my dad and your parents. One year that we've had to live in hiding from them. One year since our lives forever changed. It feels like it's been so much longer." I acknowledged.

The mood shifted. "Promise you'll call if you need someone to talk to today? I might not be there physically but you know I'm always here for you." Edward assured me.

I nodded my head, believing his words with all of my heart and loving him all the more for it. "I know you are, just as I am for you."

He paused before he spoke again. "I bought yellow roses. They were my mom's favorite."

"They were," I smiled, staring down at my blankets. "She used to thread them together and pin them in my hair. She'd love it, Edward."

"Thanks," he replied as a beeping noise in the background caught my attention.

I rolled my eyes. "Put your seatbelt on. How many times am I going to have to tell you?"

He chuckled. "I'm immortal. The full moon is over and I'm no longer human, . I can't get hurt. Stop being so overprotective."

"Pot, kettle, color black, babe," I retorted with a shake of my head.

"Touché," The clicking sound in the background told me he buckled up. "I'm going to the cemetery now. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

"See you tomorrow," I ended the call and rolled out of bed.

I grabbed my duffel bag from the floor, packing my phone charger and book inside. I quickly escaped the tiny room, running right into my sister. "Good morning, sleepy head. It's about time you got up." She grinned at me, her tone light and airy. "Everyone's already up and out of here. You ready for our run?"

"Am I ever?" I grimaced, sidestepping her. Alice grabbed my arm, stopping me.

"Nope, but you do have a kickass body because of it." She shrugged and I playfully nudged her. She was the one with the killer looks.

Alice was the exact opposite of me. She got her looks from my mother and her personality was as confident as my father's. In other words, she was devastatingly beautiful and utterly confident about it. Her hair was a rich shade of chocolate brown that rested just above her shoulders; she had porcelain-like skin, which brought out her deep green eyes.

I shook my head with a laugh. "Alright, fine. Give me fifteen minutes." I stuck my tongue out at her.

"Ten," she called after me as I made my way up the stairs, finally free from the confines of the basement.

I quickly dressed in a pair of black shorts and a pink tank top. I checked myself in my bedroom mirror. I was the spitting image of my father, from my wavy brown hair to my dark brown eyes. I quickly pushed the image of him out of my mind and slipped on my running shoes.

I made my way downstairs and into the kitchen. "Morning mom," I deposited a kiss on her youthful cheek. She didn't look a day over twenty-three.

"Morning sweetie," she nodded her head. "I made a smoothie for you. It's in the freezer." She continued washing dishes in the sink.

"Thanks, I'll have it after my run." I told her, heading toward the front door.

Alice and I left the house and started at a slow pace down the street. The bright South Carolina sun beat heavily on my bare shoulders as I breathed in the salty scent of the ocean. I could already hear the waves crashing against the shoreline from miles away.

We picked up the pace, barely using any effort at all, taking care to make sure we kept at human speed.

There are many in this world, many who are different. We come in numerous shapes, colors, and sizes. Our lifestyle is relatively normal to everyone on the outside. We work nine to five jobs, go to school, raise families, and believe in different religions. However, my family and an unknown number of others just so happen to be extremely different. Without the proper precautions, we'd stick out among others. Though we try to blend in with our surroundings, camouflage is unfortunately a harder task than assumed.

My family and the others like us have special abilities. We're called Amaranthines. The only difference is that my family and I are only half Amaranthine.

Amaranth comes from the Greek word meaning never-fading-flower. The Greeks regarded the Amaranth flower as a symbol of immortality because of the length it stays fresh. They believed it to be eternal, which is why we've been named after it.

Most people don't know of our existence. We live eternally, unless killed during a full moon, when we turn human for one night. Aside from being able to run at abnormally fast speeds, our senses are all magnified. Not only is our speed enhanced, but so is our sense of smell, hearing, and strength.

"You ready?" Alice asked, getting down to stretch.

I glanced at the seaweed and bark that had blown to the shoreline, scattered along everywhere from the storm last night. The end of the beach led into a six hundred and forty three acre campground called James Island. It wasn't as big as we preferred – but we could somewhat let loose in there and run. It was covered in deep green moss with trees strewn everywhere. We wouldn't be seen through the thick brush.

I quickly stretched along with her, "Ready."

The moment we crossed into the forest, we took off as quickly as our immortal abilities would allow. It was invigorating. I put every ounce of myself into it, using it as a form of therapy for what I was sure would be a hard day.

We had been running for about ten minutes when my sister called me out on my silence."What are you thinking about? You're so quiet."

I slowed my pace so we could talk. "Nothing, why?"

She scoffed, "You're my sister, . I've known you your entire life. Something's up with you. Is it because Edward's gone?" She raised an eyebrow.

"I'm fine." I cursed her perception.

She placed her hand on her bony hip. "You're insulting me. Is it because of dad?"

I shrugged my shoulders, coming to a stop. "I don't know, Alice. Maybe it's a little of both."

"Go on," she encouraged with a nod of her head. "Talk to me about it."

I groaned and gave in, deciding it would be easier. "I've never been away from Edward during a full moon since dad died. It just bothers me that he was out there alone and vulnerable and human. Then add that today is the anniversary…it's just a lot to take in."

She nodded her head. "I know it is. I've been avoiding it all day, trying not to think about it, pretending today isn't what it really is."

"Everything reminds me of him," I confessed. "Sometimes it's a smell or I'll see a blue truck driving down the road and I'll think it's him. It's like he's everywhere and then nowhere at all." I let out a long breath of air and tightened my pony tail. The memories were just too much for me. "Can we please just run?"

"Of course," She answered just as Jasper, my brother-in-law, sprung from the trees above.

"Mind if I tag along?" He asked, nearly giving me a heart attack. He loved the element of surprise. I didn't find it as amusing.

I clutched my chest as Alice let out a deafening scream. "Have you lost your mind?"

He chuckled, wrapping his arms around my sister. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you."

"Hey baby," My sister kissed his lips affectionately.

I raised an eyebrow. "What are you doing here?"

"Well hi to you, too," He gave me a smug grin.

"Hi Jasper," I turned my head to the side with an exaggerated smile. He just laughed and ruffled my hair. I slapped his hand away.

"You know I never turn down a good run. Come on, I'll race you both home," He taunted. Jasper was very fast. Before I could object, he and my sister had already taken off.

Instead of following them, I figured I'd stay a while and collect my thoughts. I sat down on the tree stump nearest to me, lost in my head.

I traced my fingers along the contour of the tree, following its pattern and ridges. It reminded me so much of what my imprint looked like. I reached around to the right side of my back and lifted my shirt. I ran my fingers over my imprint, feeling the tiara-like swirls. It was raised ever-so-slightly and looked more like a tattoo than anything. Just like every swirl in a tree trunk counted for each year of the tree's life, every imprint had its very own story, too.

Our story begins when an Amaranthine reaches full maturity and we receive our imprint. An imprint is half of a tattoo-like mark that appears on our body. Our soul-mate bears the other half, guaranteeing a life of true love. I couldn't help but wonder about the unknown man that possessed mine.

I had spent years hoping that when I received my imprint it would match Edward's. We were both devastated when we realized we weren't meant for each other, that we weren't each other's soul-mates. I ended our relationship, fearing that if we chose to be together, we'd bring my grandparent's fate upon ourselves.

My grandfather married a human after his soul-mate was killed in a freak accident. My father was born half Amaranthine and half human. Because of this, the Volturi has taken the lives of the ones I love – my grandparents, my father, and Edward's parents.

My father was murdered on the night of a full moon by the Volturi, a council of Amaranthines who set and enforce the rules. The organization consists of the strongest and most gifted of our kind and they've been after my family for centuries.

We've lived in Folly Beach for less than a year now. We have had to frequent different locations. We're at constant risk of attack and have lived our lives in fear, hiding ourselves away on the night we're most vulnerable, when we're completely human.

I swallowed my tears back and pulled my phone from my pocket. I needed Edward. He picked up instantly. "Do you remember when we were seven years old and you convinced me to let you paint my nails?" He answered cheerfully and I wanted to cry out of happiness because he was just what I needed.

"How could I forget?" I grinned at the memory, so incredibly thankful for the distraction.

I heard him snicker, "I must've had it bad for you even then because there is no way on earth I'd ever let anyone do that again."

I blushed, "It was glow-in-the-dark polish. Please, you totally enjoyed it."

"I'll never admit to it," he remarked. "I decided to get some things from my old house and stumbled across a picture from that day. You're wearing pigtails and had tons of freckles all over your cheeks, hence my nickname for you, Freckles." I inwardly groaned at my childhood nickname. I pretended to hate it but deep down inside, I loved it when he called me that.

"Bring it back with you?" I requested, picturing our child-like faces. Home was over a thousand miles away from Folly Beach. We'd lost so many sentimental items in our haste to abscond from the Volturi.

"You bet," Edward accepted. "It's tucked away for safekeeping. How are you doing?"

I shrugged, not really sure if I felt like going in to detail. "I'm okay. Your distraction helped a lot."

"I figured it would."

"How'd you know I needed one?" I inquired, playing with crumpled leaves from the ground.

"I don't know, I just felt it. Besides, I needed one just as badly," he answered distantly. We were always tit for tat, had this unexplainable connection.

I knew that being home would be hard on Edward. Home was a constant reminder of our losses. Edward was surrounded by them and the worst part was that he had gone alone. He said it was something he needed to do, that he needed closure and going by himself would provide that.

It was my turn to reciprocate. He needed me just as much as I needed him. "Have you gone to the cottage yet?" I deflected, picking at the grass around my feet.

"More than once," I could hear the smile in his voice and I knew my tactic was successful. "That's where we first kissed." It was also where I told him we couldn't be more than just friends.

"Speaking of distractions," he drawled suggestively, his voice deep and rich. "I wouldn't mind reliving that memory." I could still remember how his lips felt like on mine, soft and sensual, but masculine and strong at the same time.

I raised my eyebrows in response, blushing again. "I think you made a wrong turn on Memory Lane."

"I never have been one to follow directions," Edward pushed and I snorted, rolling my eyes.

"Don't I know," I chuckled, recalling memories of the trouble he'd get us into. "Thanks for talking with me," I changed the subject, hoping Edward would follow. It was always hard talking about when we were together. It made me wish I'd never broken up with him to begin with.

He didn't miss a beat. "I'd do anything for you. Not a problem."

"You always know just what to say," I added honestly.

He laughed. "Of course I do, I'm perfect." I bit on my tongue to refrain a sarcastic remark. "Besides, we're like milk and cookies, baby. Our souls just jive together."

I let out a laugh, "More like salt and pepper."

"Keep telling yourself that," he chimed. "Either way, we're a package deal. You can't live without me."

"It would be a fate worse than death," I released a dramatic sigh, earning a chuckle from the other line.

"Damn straight," Edward agreed whole-heartedly and I ended the call with a smile spread widely across my face. "

Edward was the one person I could let in. It's difficult to truly show another person all of you – the pieces you're ashamed of, the portions you're proud of. It's easier to pick out the pretty pieces and camouflage our imperfections with false hope and happiness.

Hiding who we truly are is like committing suicide against ourselves, convincing ourselves that it's easier to choose not to deal with the reality, all the while losing ourselves in the process. Placing what we struggle with most in the dark is perhaps the biggest sin we could commit against ourselves.

While the rest of my family hid their mental and emotional pain and damage, Edward and I took the opposite approach. We wore our emotional vulnerability like a mantle, offering ourselves to one another openly. We were each other's best friend, protector, confidante, comforter, encourager, and kindest critic. He took the edge off my trauma and I, his.

I'd sacrifice anything for him to have a normal life and for my family to as well. We'd gone through so much the last year.

If you could be positive that all hardships, pain, and difficulties you encountered would lead you and the ones you loved to boundless happiness…to what extent would you be willing to suffer? How much would you be willing to surrender? How much would you be willing to lose?

My name is Isabella Swan. My answer is everything.

Author's Note:

It's been years since I've written on Fanfic and I can honestly say it feels really good to be back! I hope you enjoyed my first chapter. Many more to come for this story!

This will be very different and out of character. Alternate universe. No vampires. But there will be immortals.

-Chelsea