Check the first page for disclaimers/warnings. Italics are Wanda. Normal text is Bella.

Chapter Two: Running

"No one broke the treaty," Edward assured me. His voice was harsh and sure, but this didn't cause me to give up. Something had to be going on with the pack. It was the only answer.

"You don't have to protect me from them. Jake would never hurt me…" I spat back.

"Don't assume, Bella." Edward's eyes narrowed. His lips were pressed into a thin, white line. I looked at him for a moment and then promptly laughed in his face.

"This does have to do with Jake! You're running from the wolves!" I continued to giggle until we suddenly came to a stop. I was so startled, that in a split second, all of the color had drained from my face. My eyes were wide with shock.

"They left. The night of our wedding they left- without a warning of the danger, without anything, the bastards- and they're not coming back." Edward's voice was cold and filled with unforgiving anger and disgust. He mockingly added, "I suspect they went they went somewhere far from civilization. Sam wouldn't let them take any risks." He said the pack leader's name as if it were something foul smelling.

"Why?" I almost screamed and Edward glanced around to make sure nobody was around to hear me. But, we were deep in the forest and there wasn't a chance of anyone- or anything- lurking around out here.

"I don't know. We thought that Jacob would have at least warned you. He knew us 'bloodsuckers' weren't in any danger."

"Danger of what?" I asked. He ignored my question and continued.

"If Alice hadn't seen it coming last night, we would have been found. You could have been-" he stopped in mid sentence, as if the idea repulsed him so much that he couldn't speak it aloud.

" Danger of what?" I repeated, angry that he wouldn't tell me exactly what was going on. Again, Edward ignored me and went suddenly back into his full speed run. "Edward, you're so frustrating sometimes. I'm not a baby. You don't have to hide things from me," I snapped. Edward frowned, but continued to ignore my request for more information. I exhaled sharply, rolling me eyes in frustration. I could think of no way to win this argument. I knew Edward's mind was made up. It made me more annoyed to look at him, and because it made me dizzy to look anywhere else, I closed my eyes.

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As my feet hit the pavement faster and faster, my body screamed at me. Sharp, nearly unbearable, pains shot through my feeble legs and air ripped fiercely through my lungs. After all the work I had been doing to get this body in shape since I adopted it, it still wasn't strong enough to meet the standards that I was used to with Melanie. I still couldn't lift anything moderately heavy, and my arms shook under the weight of a shovel, leaving me useless when it came to harvesting crops at home. I was sick of being useless after all that the humans had done for me. I was sick of being an extra mouth to feed, and being handicapped.

My muscles relaxed as I came to a stop at our current hotel and a sighed. It was both a sigh of relief and defeat. The raid was almost over and we would not go back out again for months. This would be my last chance to run before I would get into Jared's jeep, and we would drive to the musty caves that we called home. Running was such a useful form of exercise. It was also nearly impossible in the caves. The feeling of disappointment running through me was as hard to ignore as the pain in my legs as I walked into the hotel lobby. I was so distracted and tired that I nearly jumped a foot when the lady at the front desk greeted me. She was older, with hair a dull red color that was pulled into a tight bun, and a nice suit with a nametag on it that read "Laura: Manager". Her mouth was pulled into a friendly smile.

"Oh, Good afternoon," I mumbled to her. I forced a smile and she grinned back and watched me trudge up the stairs until I was out of sight. I refused to use the elevator, no matter how tempting it was. If this body was going to be difficult, then I would be too.

After three flights of stairs, I made it to our room. I slid the room key through the reader and found Jared and Melanie sleeping in one bed, and Ian watching muted television with the captions on, on the other bed. He looked very uninterested, but I was sure there really wasn't much else to do.

When Ian heard me enter the room, his eyes lit up. He turned off the TV and jumped up to greet me with satisfying enthusiasm that lightened my mood.

" Wanda! You're finally back," he whispered excitedly. I softly chuckled as he pulled me into a big hug

"I was only gone for an hour," I muttered into his chest.

"Yes, but you can't imagine how tedious things are when everyone is asleep. Soul television is simply unbearable." There was lightness in his voice-relief. It was nice to know that someone was made happy by my presence. We stayed locked in an embrace for a few minutes, Ian's large build wrapped in a bear hug around my tiny body, which looked too young to be its true age of seventeen. We were interrupted by the sound of a yawn and sheets rustling. I pulled back and Ian reluctantly let me go. We turned simultaneously to face Jared, who was sitting upright, his golden brown hair a mess from hours of sleep. He smiled at me and it was like my insides were set ablaze. I felt fire burning in the pit of my stomach and it quickly spread throughout my body. I prayed that I wasn't blushing. My yearning for Jared was slowly fading away with time in my new host, and time with Ian. However, it was still there and I feared that it would never go away.

"Good morning, Wanda. Ian." Jared let out another big yawn. My lips twitched up into a small smile, but I couldn't speak.

"It's already three-o-clock," Ian chuckled and pointed at the digital alarm clock on the counter. The big mocking numbers read "3:02". Jared laughed and rolled his eyes at Ian, then stretched and carefully slid off of the bed, not wishing to wake Melanie. He walked towards us, but passed us by and locked himself in the bathroom. Ian turned his body and smiled down at me. I went up on my toes to try and give him a kiss, but my body betrayed me, and I yawned. I blushed bright red and Ian chuckled.

"A little tired? You haven't slept much the past few days."

"No. I haven't, " I agreed. I didn't want to disappoint Ian by going to sleep so I tried lying, "But really. I'm not tired." I tried with all my might not to yawn again, and failed. Ian, a grin still plastered on his face, looked suspicious.

"I really doubt that. I don't mind. You can sleep." I looked at him gratefully and took off my shoes, climbing into the empty bed that Ian had been sitting on. I didn't expect him to climb in with me, but I soon felt his warm body against mine. He put his arm around my waste and I rubbed my hand against his a few times before falling into a fast sleep.