The journey back to forks was a long one, I was glad. I wasn't sure what was awaiting me when I finally returned.
I'd been gone for years and in that time, I'd done things; Things I knew my family was bound to have heard by now. 'Maybe not,
I thought to myself. I wasn't sure how Alice not being able to see me would affect her sight of the Volturi when I was with them.
I hadn't even explained to them why I left, I know Daddy would understand and probably Emmet to... but that wouldn't appease their anger.
I stopped in my tracks, if there had been any humans nearbye I would have seemed to appear out of thin air.
I breathed in through my mouth, tasting my surroundings. Jaz and Alice had been here recently, maybe a few months even, hunting. I could smell the decay of a herd of elk, almost washed away through time and the elements. I sat down on the flat surface of a tree trunk and breathed again.
They'd sat here to, probably talking.. maybe Alice had seen this place dissapear and would know I'd be coming back? Would they know I wasn't planning to stay? I got up again, finalizing my resolve and began running again.
After a couple of hours of running, I knew I was close. This is where we would hunt when I was little. Sometimes just my parents and I,
sometimes just me and Jake... The thought of him put a bad ache in my too fast heart and I could smell very old traces of him around the tree's. He hadn't been here since I'd left. Now the ache was followed with a pang, I missed him. He'd spent all my life with me,
convinced that I was his future... I couldn't let it be true. Not after I left him, I just had to make him understand. I was walking now,
incredibly slow, even for a human. I was only about a mile away now, it would be dusk by the time I reached the little cottage in the woods.
It had been almost three years since I'd seen it. I was almost nine now, but you'd never know it from looking at me. It all rights, (except age)
I was a full grown adult, maybe twenty-one by human standards. I reached the small stone cottage, smelling in the sweet scents. My shiny green convertable something-or-other was still parked in the back. The keys were in the ignition, as I'd always left them but the tires had frozen to the ground after not being used for years and a nice layer of rust had fallen intricately over the bottom half of the car.
My parents weren't here, the scent was a couple days old. Weird. I crept silently through the house, a huge ball of nerves forming in my chest.
I reached my parents bedroom. The furniture had been rearranged, and the closet larger than my own room was full of all new things.
Of course Alice would refresh their wardrobe with every new season. I moved past the room, gathering in all the sweet scents, reliving each of them on my tongue. I slowed down outside the door at the end of the hall, my door. It still had the picture on it that I'd drawn with Jake when I'd been two (seven.) I opened the door, holding my breath. When I'd turned five (thirteen) he hadn't been aloud in anymore but the scent remained. It was absolutely intoxicating at first.. then the burn in my throat returned and I remembered my reasons for leaving all over again. 'It wouldn't hurt too much' I thought, 'to just lay here a while.' I knew the thoughts were wrong as I thought them, but this was better than him actually being here. That smell would be too much to bear and I don't think I'd be strong enough... This way I could at least try to prepare myself. I layed down my old queen bed and curled the covers around me.. that smell! No matter how faint it was still potent. A low growl ripped willingly out of my throat and I closed my eyes, succumbing to the dreams I knew would await.
I woke up to being jerked out of bed by stone arms, burning cold to my hot skin. "I knew you were coming! I saw the whole damn place dissapear!" Alice's high chirpy voice was so happy, so sure. It almost hurt to wonder if it was real or not. "Where have you been Nessie?! You know I can't see where you're going! Why'd you run off like that?" I could hear myself stutter, unsure what to say back. Would she understand? "Oh nevermind! I'm just so glad you're back!" She pulled away from me, looking me over. "Those clothes are a mess Renesme! I'm ashamed of you!" She said with a smile. "C'mon, let's find something better for you." She pulled me up off the bed. I looked down at my clothes. Maybe a little blood and dirt here and there, but not unfashionable. I'd gotten used to being dirty. "What's wrong with this?" I moaned. "C'mon Ness whatever you've been off doing was obviously dirty work. Just look at you! You shoulda picked up some hiking gear or something." I looked at myself in the large mirror. I was only a little messy. My bouncy curls had been up in a pony tail for a long time, my shirt was ripped innapropriately with various specks of blood from whatever I had eaten recently, and I wasn't even wearing shoes. I wiggled my toes and smiled. Once Jake had told me that we were all part of the earth, and that wearing shoes just kept us from our rightful place. He wasn't serious, but I hadn't worn shoes much since then. "Yeah, I guess I could maybe use a shower?" She smiled at me, "Great!" she said, "You go hop in the shower and I'll pick out an amazing reunion outfit for you! Jaz was the only one that believed me, when I said you were coming back. Boy are they gonne be surprised!" I turned from her and walked toward the door in my room that led to the outside. I'd begged Mom and Daddy to let me have an outside shower, and I'd won. With the beautiful landscape and privacy, it had always felt like I was bathing in a waterfall. Amazing. "Hurry up!" she yelled after me, "Two minutes, jeez Alice!" I hadn't meant to be short with her but good Lord, my shower was amazing it was very high on my 'things-I-missed' list.
Two minutes quickly turned into thirty-five. Most of which I was spending admiring the modern plumbing. The water came out of an almost clear glass wall jutting out of the ground right up against the base of three tree's right behind the cottage. I could see the whole forest from here. From the mountains, to the tree's to a small waterfall far off in the distance. I could hear it's cold water rushing down. When Daddy was out hunting I would sneak and bathe there, but he didn't like me being naked so close to Quilette grounds. Mom trusted Jake a whole lot more than Daddy ever would. Jake.. the ache was back. I knew it was time to go in. I stepped away from the water, draped my over-sized towel around me and ran home.
I stepped back into my room to see Alice sitting on the bed, fussing over a dress much too elegant for me to want to wear. "It's perfect right?" she said looking back and forth between myself and the dress. "Uhm.." I said "do I have to wear something so... strapless?" I mumbled. Her face turned to a bright smile.
"Yeah, I didn't think you'd go for this one. I can never be sure though since I can't see you!" she chirped, obviously annoyed at my dislike for the extravagent.
"So, I picked out this instead" she walked over to the dresser and pulled off a stack of piled clothes. "Plain and ordinary, just like you like it. Which I SO don't understand with how pretty you are." "Thanks," I said as I pulled them on, jeans and a lowcut, half see through long sleeve tee with a camisol underneath,
"It's perfect." I ran quickly to my parents giant closet and found the most beautiful, high high heeled pair of 'fuck me' shoes I could find. And she said I had no fashion sense, ha! I Love me some Jimmy Choo's. I walked back to the room, fully dressed. My hair was still a little damp but you could already see the tight ringlets forming. "I don't know if I can do this Alice, what if they're like... reeeeally pissed off at me?" They'd all taken the last almost nine years to take care of me, and I'd just dissapeared on them. "C'mon," she said "we've all missed you so much. They'll just be glad you're home." She nodded reassuringly but I was invariably unconvinced. Hand in hand we ran back to the house, guilt rolling off of every inch of my skin. Won't Jaz be thrilled.