Chapter One
Isabella Swan
Forks Washington
April 3rd, 2013
Springtime in the Olympic Peninsula was gorgeous. I'd been here multiple times throughout the century I'd been alive and found that I loved it more and more each time. The fact that it was cold and rainy was a downside, yes, but I dealt with that willingly. It was one of the only three places in the United States that I truly looked forward to returning to. Every ten years, I moved towns again. Sometimes, after a while, I'd move out of the country for a nice change. The last time I'd been in Forks, however, was over fifty years ago. Back then, in 1963, I had just gotten my medical degree and was working in a hospital for the first time. This time I'd have more experience.
I had heard that there was another coven here recently but I hadn't seen them yet. One of them, the leader, worked at the hospital. Carlisle Cullen his name was. They had a treaty with the werewolves as well, much like me, and were said to be a very nice group. I would judge that when I met them, of course, but as long as they didn't hunt humans or try and chase me out of Forks, I doubted I'd have much to do with them. I had been alone for far too long to suddenly start hoping for friends. If it happened great. If not, I wouldn't be distraught.
When I first arrived in Forks, the first thing I did was get a hold of Billy Black. He was one of the Tribe Elders that worked with the werewolves and his son was the Alpha. In order to not be chased off, I would have to meet with the new pack and renew my own treaty with them. That wouldn't be too hard in itself. I'd dealt with the last pack well enough. If this pack was anything like that one I'd be just fine. After getting off of the phone with Billy, I headed to the border between the reservation and town to wait for the pack. They arrived quickly enough, like their predecessors had and I was relieved. I was eager to hunt and then shower. It had been a day and a half since I'd done either.
"You're the new vamp, then?" Jacob Black asked. I recognized him because he looked a lot like his grandfather, Ephraim Black.
"I am. It's nice to meet you Jacob Black."
He blinked at me, surprised. "First off, how did you know my name?"
"Well, your father told me when I spoke with him. But I would have known you anyways. You look a lot like Ephraim did at your age."
"Oh. Down to business now. You want to renew your treaty?"
"Well, it'd be nice not to have werewolves trying to kill me every day." I answered.
"Trying?" one of the other wolves cocked an eyebrow at me.
"Yes, trying. I'm not that easy to kill. If Ephraim Black himself couldn't kill me than I doubt you could. Ephraim tried for years to take me out. It was sort of a running bet between us."
Jacob laughed. "Well, I could probably take you out if I tried hard enough. But, as long as you don't drink from any humans, I'll agree to renew your former treaty. You remember what this includes?"
"Sure do."
"Then we'll renew the treaty for you."
"Great."
With one last smile, I turned and headed for the small home I'd bought. My coven mate,a vampire named Charlie Swan, was already waiting there for me. I could smell him as I walked in the door. He was lounging on the couch, watching a baseball game on television when I walked in.
"Hey dad." I greeted, perching on a chair beside him.
"Bells. You're back early."
"The meeting with the pack went okay. They were surprisingly willing to allow the old treaty."
"I may have had a hand in that."
"Oh?"
"I talked to the pack leader when I came through. Told him you'd be along as soon as you could.'
"Thanks for that."
"You're welcome. How ready are you for school tomorrow?"
"Ugh. I've hunted so there won't be any accidents. Otherwise, I suppose I'm ready."
"I'm so glad I don't have to go to high school."
"Yeah, yeah."
We exchanged a few more laughs before I headed upstairs to my bedroom. Charlie and I had joined just after his change. He'd been changed by mistake, leaving behind a wife and small daughter, and we'd joined just after he'd discovered what he was. That, of course, had all happened fifteen years ago. We'd been together on and off ever since. Not as in mates, of course. Neither of us had a mate as of yet. But we were a coven, a small one, and we got along quite well.
Our cover story was simple. Charlie was my father. We'd moved to Forks after a terrible accident had killed my mother. Any attempts to look into our past would simply come up with a false news story about a car accident and a woman's death. It hadn't taken much to come up with it, as we'd used the cover story before. Charlie had been thirty eight when he was changed and so he did look like he could be my father.
I sighed, looking out of the window. Dawn was approaching. In just a few hours, I would be headed to the high school. The Cullens would be there. Idly, I wondered what they were like. I knew they were vegetarians, of course, but I had no idea if we'd get along or not. I was hoping we'd get along. It would only bring hardship if we ended up not liking each other. Besides, I was hoping for a few more friends. Friends that weren't human, of course. Human friends were quite useless, I'd discovered.
A few hours later, I was heading towards the school. I could feel eyes on me as I headed to get my schedule from the office. Ignoring the prying eyes, I greeted the secretary warmly and asked for my schedule. Dazzled, she handed it to me and I smiled at her gratefully before heading towards my first class. Math. Ugh. I detested mathmatics.
"So you're the new vampire." a voice whispered from my right.
I looked next to me. A guy with longish blonde hair sat beside me. Another vampire.
"That I am. You must be one of the Cullens."
He smiled and tipped his head. "Jasper Whitlock-Cullen."
"It's nice to meet you Jasper. I'm Isabella. But most people just call me Bella. Well, Charlie does."
"Charlie would be your coven-mate, correct?"
"Correct. He's Chief of Police currently."
"My wife will be pleased to know I've met you. She saw your arrival."
"Saw?" I was confused.
"Alice sees the future. She's seen you being a big part of our lives, though she won't tell any of us what she sees for certain."
"Wow. That's...impressive. I'm glad we're going to get along at least. I worried."
"You needn't have. Alice says we'll all get along great."
We quieted down as the teacher came to the front of the classroom. I wondered when I'd get to meet Alice. Certainly, I was interested in meeting the future-seeing vampire who had seen me come. Little did I know that meeting Alice would change my life. For the better, of course.
