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Chapter 1.

Bella – a new start

High school; there was only one member of the family who did not view it as purgatory. Of course, she hadn't actually started yet.

As Nessie's parents, Edward and I had encountered many dramatic surprises. My pregnancy, her birth, the threat of the Volturi and the seven years we had spent watching her change at an astonishing speed. Her accelerated growth had dominated our lives, she had been unable to attend school, or mix with anyone outside the family or the pack. She would have been far too conspicuous.

When she finally stopped growing, it made her less noticeable, but at the same time she was still a little girl. However mature she was – both mentally and physically – it still seemed wrong to send her into the outside world, in the body of an adult, when she was just a child in years. She remained with us and took a number of correspondence degree courses. It was hardly ideal, but there really didn't seem to be a better alternative.

We often stayed in Forks, keeping a low profile. After all, the rest of the Cullen's were notable for their lack of aging. Edward and I still looked like teenagers and our school friends were edging towards their mid-thirties. Carlisle had moved east, as there was no way he could stay in Forks and pretend to be in his forties. The rest of the family had gone with him. Edward and I juggled most of our time between east and west.

It might have been easier to settle in one place, but there were too many other factors to consider. The Cullens could no longer officially live in Forks – though they still made surreptitious visits – but my dad still did. Charlie and his wife Sue adored Nessie; we had to make regular extended trips for their sake.

And then to complicate the situation, there was Nessie's friendship with Jacob Black. He still had a commitment to his pack and his job. Although he did sometimes travel with us, he couldn't always be away from La Push. Neither Edward nor I had the heart to inflict the suffering of long term separation on either Jacob or Nessie. The short times that they spent apart were bad enough, though Jacob was surprisingly stoical.

But, as Nessie's real age started to match her appearance, new possibilities opened before us. It became reasonable for her to mix with humans as a teenager. She could have the opportunity to be 'normal', maybe even go to high school. Edward had some pretty brutal opinions about high school so I was surprised how enthusiastic he was for her to participate. We discussed it one evening.

"It is an important human experience. I wouldn't want her to miss out entirely." He said thoughtfully. "I sometimes feel bad about how much she has missed, considering that she is half human. She's so social and all these years she's been stopped from mixing with other children. She may be ahead in some ways, but she still has a lot of growing up to do."

I felt this was true. "You're right; it would be an important learning curve for her. She might even have to go to high school with us one day. I guess it would be a good idea if she did it for real first. I don't want her to miss out either... even gym." I added darkly.

What I chose not to add was that it might be nice for Nessie to experience high school without her mind reading father. I knew that Edward would be hurt if I mentioned it, but sometimes I did feel for her. I couldn't imagine what it would have been like; to have Charlie read my mind when I was growing up!

"Bella, why are you pulling that face?" Edward looked bemused.

"I'm just remembering gym." I lied. He chuckled and – for the millionth time – I felt glad that Edward could only read my mind when I let him.

Once the decision to send her to school was taken, we had to make all the practical arrangements. She would need to stay in one place, so Forks ended up being the best choice. Edward and I planned to stay at the big house, but as we weren't technically supposed to be in Forks, it was decided that Nessie should stay with Charlie and Sue on weekdays.

The official story was that Edward and I were travelling all over the world for work, and he had sent his niece – our ward – to live with my father, to give her some continuity in her senior year. This way she was close enough for Edward and me to see her every day, but she would appear to be normal to the rest of the town. It was an added convenience that, because she was my ward, she could claim that Charlie was her adopted grandfather. No one wanted to make Charlie play a part, so this allowed him to carry on as 'Grandpa'.

Of course Charlie and Sue were wild about the idea. Nessie was Grandpa's little girl and Sue, despite her lingering hostility to vampires, absolutely loved Nessie. They were thrilled to have her for such a long stretch of time.

Jacob was pretty keen on the idea too. He wanted her around and I think he was glad to have her in a house where his pack member, Seth, also lived. He probably saw it as some sort of extra protection system. This was funny, since she was physically almost as tough as him. I did wonder if he wanted to keep an eye on her social life too, but I decided not to ask.

The Cullens – especially Rosalie – grumbled about having to travel to see Nessie, but they understood our motives. They all promised to visit often and we agreed to come out for some weekends and holidays.

As for Renesmee, she was thrilled. It was endearing really, how keen she was to spend time with a bunch of teenagers. She was so bright and talented, it was hard to imagine how she could find them interesting, but I could sympathise.

In real terms she was nearly sixteen years old, but she was physically about eighteen and had been for a long time. She had matured mentally at an even faster rate than she had grown, making her intellectually advanced and adult in her behaviour. In many ways she was very mature, but she had had a very sheltered upbringing.

I still felt that her lack of life experience did make her a bit juvenile underneath. There was the touch of the teenager about her. That funny mix of sophistication and innocence that was so typical of the age group.

She wasn't worried about the curriculum, unsurprisingly. I could tell that her whole focus was on making human friends. Unlike most of the Cullen family, Nessie had a strong connection with humans, but sadly she had not had the chance to befriend as many as she would have liked. She wasn't going to miss an opportunity like this.

It was a constant mystery to me, that two people as reserved as Edward and shy as me could have a daughter who was such a social animal. It was interesting that, as well as her unique communication by touch, many of her other gifts were also geared towards socialising. She could dance, sing and speak languages with complete ease.

I could not remember anyone meeting her and not liking her, except a few Volturi, who as far as I was concerned didn't count! Best of all she was very good at liking people back. She was so affectionate and friendly that she was almost impossible not to love.

It was probably lucky that she had grown up in a house with beauties like Rosalie. If she had been raised amongst normal humans, I can't imagine how she would have escaped becoming impossibly vain. As it was, she didn't seem to regard her looks as anything out of the ordinary, though in truth they were quite the opposite.

Nessie really was a startling beauty. She was slightly taller than me, with a slender, graceful figure. Her long hair had darkened to a rich auburn and cascaded in loose curls halfway down her back. Her warm, brown eyes and dark red lips stood out in pleasing contrast to her luminous ivory skin. The finishing touch to her perfect features was the soft blush of her cheeks. Emmett liked to joke that my red cheeks had refused to leave me, even if they just stayed with my daughter! The only difference was that, unlike me, she rarely blushed from embarrassment.

I was fairly sure that Charlie was going to find himself at the centre of a social whirl. The poor guy, I had never been extrovert enough to prepare him for sharing a house with a girl like Nessie. I could only be grateful that Sue, Edward, Jacob, Seth, and I would be in close proximity to assist him if it all got too much. The wolves and the Cullens could be called in as reinforcements if needed, I thought wryly.

So, everything was ready for the big day. Nessie was safely installed in my old room. Edward cryptically suggested putting bars on the windows; luckily Charlie was out of earshot. Of course we made some improvements. Edward sentimentally wanted to keep the old decorations, but Nessie pointed out that the wallpaper was peeling and shabby, and the bedspread was a relic from the eighties. I had to smile at his horrified face; he should have guessed that someone growing up in a house with Esme, Rosalie and Alice was not going to be satisfied with Charlie's décor.

We redecorated the room, bought a new desk and a few other bits and pieces. Edward drew the line at getting rid of the rocking chair and earned a kiss from me, much to our daughter's disgust! She brought her laptop, keyboard, stereo and piles of clothes in last. I felt slightly stunned; my little room had never been so stylish.

Nessie was so used to having expensive things that she didn't give it a thought. I had always tried to teach to appreciate how fortunate she was. I wanted her to understand how little some people had; I didn't want her to be completely selfish and spoilt. And for the most part I had succeeded, she was kind and generous. But sometimes the designer clothes and luxury goods, which Alice and Rose lavished upon her, made it difficult. I was thankful for Jake's influence. He'd never had much growing up and didn't let Nessie become too obnoxious.

Leaving her that first night was horrible, I knew that I would be seeing her the next day, but I could hardly tear myself away. Edward was even worse than me. I think he was planning to circle the house as she slept; I had to make him promise he wouldn't.

Jake would have been as bad, if he hadn't known that Edward could hear what he was planning. He just had to satisfy himself with the knowledge that Seth was in the house and would call him if needed. The only person, who viewed the separation as anything other than catastrophic, was Nessie herself. She was much too excited.

She just gave me a hug and smiled. "Bye Mom, see you tomorrow, ok?"

"I'll be here and you can tell me about your first day." I gulped and held her tightly.

Edward stuck to practical advice. "Try not to be too conspicuous."

She just laughed and hugged him.

The job of escorting her to school on her first day was entrusted to Seth, as Charlie's stepson. Of course Jake decided to oversee the proceeding and drove them. So Nessie turned up for her first day as a senior at Forks High School, flanked by two huge bodyguards. I assumed that this was just the impact that Jacob wanted. His presence was an intended warning to the males of Fork's High school to stay away! Personally I thought that it would take more than that to keep them away from Renesmee.

As soon as he dropped her off, Seth came by the big house to tell us how it went. In the years I'd known him, he had changed from a gangly kid to a man. He was now nearly as big as Jake, but one thing that never changed was his good nature. He was the same kindly soul that he had always been. I was lucky to have him for a step brother. I fixed him a snack and we sat in the kitchen hear about Nessie's grand entrance.

"You should have seen her," he grinned. "When she stepped out of the car, the rest of the kids in the parking lot looked at her like a movie star had just arrived. They didn't know what to do; they just stood there with their mouths hanging open."

I could imagine, I remembered how I felt the first time I saw Edward. I smiled at the memory and Edward raised eyebrows questioningly. I leaned across the table and took his hand in mine.

"That brings back memories of my first day at Fork's High."

"You did create quite a stir!" He smiled ruefully.

"Not me! I was remembering seeing you across the cafeteria. I couldn't believe that you were real," I looked at him lovingly.

Edward's eyes met mine for a moment and then abruptly turned to Seth. Whatever Seth was thinking caused Edward to throw him an apologetic smile.

"Sorry! Rose and Emmett have the same effect on me." He then continued briskly. "Anyway, you were saying?"

"Oh yeah… so everyone's looking at her. The girls couldn't believe their eyes and the guys, well…!" I had to assume that what the guys thought was beyond words. But, by the grim look on Edwards face, apparently it was not beyond Seth's comprehension. He caught Edward's eye and choked slightly, before continuing.

"I thought she might be nervous or embarrassed, but she just looked around the parking lot, with the rain pouring and everyone looking boring and wet, and she just gave a really happy smile and said loudly, 'this is so exciting; it's a proper school with students and everything!' You should have seen their faces, it was hilarious. I mean nothing could have made that school yard exciting at that moment, except for her.

"So then Jake decided to walk her the whole way to the admissions office. He looked like a bodyguard," I knew it! "But Nessie didn't seem to think it was weird that everyone was staring. She just carried on like everything was normal. And Jake was just glaring at people – mainly the guys – and Nessie was smiling at everyone! I don't think they knew what to think." He laughed at the recollection.

"Well, we got to the admissions office and signed her in, by the way," Seth turned to Edward. "Mrs Cope says 'hello!'" Edward rolled his eyes.

"So Nessie was all ready for her first class and I thought I was going to have to literally drag Jake away. He looked like he was never going to leave. I swear he had tears in his eyes. But in the end Nessie just touched his cheek and whatever she said, he pulled himself together and we finally got out of there." He grinned.

I didn't know whether to be amused or exasperated. Jake was worse than me. I was going to have to say something if he didn't let up. Thank goodness Seth was there.

"Anyway, I promised Nessie that I would leave work early, and collect her after school. I expect Jake will come too."

"Thanks Seth, that's really nice of you. I know Charlie will be grateful too."

Seth me gave a self-conscious smile and then distracted himself by finishing his sandwich in one bite. An anxious thought suddenly occurred to me. I turned to Edward.

"Do you remember how the other kids reacted to your family at school? You don't think that they would be frightened of Nessie do you. What if they avoid her?"

Seth snorted and even Edward laughed and squeezed my hand.

"Bella, that's just your worry talking, you know that she never scares humans. She's not venomous and she likes them. Those barriers just don't exist for her."

"Maybe, but most of the humans she knows, are ones who've known her since she was a baby. They have never been afraid of her. These people could be different."

Edward raised his eyebrows sceptically and shook his head. Suddenly my fears seemed silly. I laughed and went to make Seth another sandwich. Like the rest of the pack, he never refused food.

An hour or so later, after Seth had gone, Jacob showed up. He must have run over, because he was only wearing his shorts. I guessed that he had found the morning stressful and needed to relax in wolf form. Edward was playing the piano and I was reading in the living room when he arrived.

"Hey, Jake!" I called. "Aren't you working today?"

"No, I took the day off," he came in and kissed me on the cheek and nodded to Edward, "Hi."

"So, how did it go with Nessie?" I asked eagerly.

"Fine," Jacob scowled. I caught Edward trying to bite back a smile.

"Jake, what's wrong," I asked innocently. "Didn't Nessie like it?"

"Sure, she liked it." He said frowning again.

"Don't you think that they liked her?" I was enjoying myself.

"Oh they liked her alright." He snapped, sitting down with a huff. I caught Edward's eye and he joined in.

"Isn't that a good thing?"

Jacob threw him a suspicious look.

"You should be more worried. You've sent her to school with a bunch of sharks." He accused grumpily. "I mean, those guys, can't they see she's just a kid?"

The thought of the hapless teenage males of Forks being described as sharks sent me into a fit of giggles. Jake ignored me and continued complaining to Edward.

"I mean, are you sure that you want her hanging out with them?"

Edward understood the devotion that caused Jake's extreme overprotectiveness, so he managed to keep the impatience out of his voice.

"She could be more dangerous to them than the other way around." He said lightly.

"That's not what I meant. They might be a bad influence."

"Look, I know what you mean, but I wouldn't like to take her away now, she'd be so disappointed." Edward worked on Jacob's weak point; he never liked to refuse Nessie anything.

Jacob sighed in resignation, but I had an ominous feeling, that this was not going to be the last time we had this conversation with him. I knew it was going to be tough on Jake. To him, she was still a little girl. It was strange really; I would have thought that with the imprinting, he would have been dying for her to grow up.

But somehow, the years he had spent with Nessie – protecting and guiding her, watching her grow – had had the opposite effect. He still saw her as a child. He hadn't started to see her in any other way. I was glad, she was still so young. But he was still fiercely possessive of her. Apparently, just the inkling that anyone else saw Nessie in that light brought out his most protective streak.

So it was unsurprising, that when Edward and I ran over to Charlie's after dinner, we found Jake there with Seth, Sue and Charlie. I was glad to find that Nessie was helping with the dishes. I had tried to impress upon her the importance of being obliging with the chores.

She was chattering excitedly as we entered the kitchen. The others were sitting around the table listening to her account of the day. When she saw us she dropped her dish towel and hugged us both.

"I've had the best day!" She exclaimed, "I've got so much to…" She was interrupted by the kitchen phone ringing. Sue answered it. Charlie and Seth exchanged a look.

"Nessie, it's for you." Sue held out the phone with a resigned expression. Nessie grabbed the phone and trailed it into the hall. I could hear her talking enthusiastically to a girl whose voice I didn't recognise.

"How many calls is that now?" Seth chuckled. Charlie just shook his head, half amused, half bewildered.

"I think that just about the whole school has called this evening." He glanced up at me, his eyes wrinkled. "I don't remember you being like this, Bells. Were you normal, or is she?"

I leaned down and hugged him. "I'm not sure either of us are, but I guess she's already doing better than I ever did."

Edward leaned against the counter and smiled at me.

"It seems like your worries were needless after all."

"What's that?" Nessie's head popped around the kitchen door as she hung up the phone.

"Bella was scared that you might not make any friends." Everyone looked so surprised that I started to justify myself.

"That's not quite what I said, I was just wondering if the kids would be friendly to you, as you're a stranger to them… and it is a small town." I quelled Edward with a look.

"Are you kidding? Everyone was so friendly, Mom."

She swanned into the room and I noticed what she was wearing. I realised that her interpretation of the words 'dressing down' was slightly different to my own. A pair of close fitting jeans and a glamorous rose sweater looked more like Rosalie's idea of school wear. No wonder everyone was so friendly.

I heard Jacob give an irritated cough, Nessie ignored him. We all knew that he would have been more troubled if they hadn't been friendly.

"This really nice girl called Kristy was sent to take me to my first class, even though I had a map." Nessie touched my face briefly to show me her memory of Kristy. Charlie was still unaware of Renesmee's gift, so she was subtle about using it in front of him. She had a way of disguising communications with casual touches.

Kristy was a friendly looking girl with light brown hair, short and slightly overweight. I could tell from the tone of the memory that she and Nessie had hit it off immediately.

"She was so nice, she showed me around all day as well, though quite a few other people offered too."

"I'll bet they did." Jake muttered under his breath.

"But she was the funniest, so I wanted to stay with her."

Charlie decided to lead the conversation into more serious territory.

"How did you like your lessons? What were the teachers like?"

Nessie grinned and tilted her head in thought. "Well… they were pretty funny too. I'm not sure that they know very much!" She concluded cheerfully. Edward tried to disguise a laugh with a cough and Charlie frowned. I felt a lecture coming on.

"That's no way to talk about your teachers," he said firmly. "Bella, I hope you've been teaching her to show her teachers some respect." Great! He'd decided to blame me! "Manners never cost anything you know."

"Come on Dad, when have you ever seen Nessie be rude to anyone?"

Nessie breezed over his disapproval with a skill that I had yet to acquire.

"I was very polite Grandpa. Anyway, I liked them and they all said that they were very glad to have me in their classes," she added smugly.

"Humph," Charlie gave up and tried another avenue. "Did you see any of your Mom's old teachers?"

I was curious too. There must be one or two still working at the school. I mean, Mrs Cope was still there.

"I'm not sure, maybe a couple. But," she added triumphantly, "I definitely had your old biology teacher, Mr Banner." I raised my eyebrows in surprise.

"How did you know he was my teacher?"

"We had a chat, when he realised who I was, he told me that he taught you." She explained.

I found myself lost in my human memories. Mr Banner could never have guessed how, for a few short months, his class had become the focal point of my existence. It hadn't been his teaching that had obsessed me. I looked up and my eyes met Edward's. Although no one else noticed, for a moment electricity hummed. Nessie continued obliviously.

"He sent you his best regards. He said that you were his favourite student." Edward smirked. I would have to ask why later.

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