AN: Kay, this chapter is dedicated to the only two readers who reviewed. Bitter sweet, huh? Anyway, pilotte and Phantom-writer3739, you guys rock. The first real chapter now, and the second and final OC is introduced. Enjoy!
--
There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find the ways in which you yourself have altered. – Nelson Mandela
--
Cecily sniffed irritably as she bore the quiet fury of her family. Even Edward, who typically was lurking in familiar upstairs quarters, was able to radiate his disapproval down though the thick ceilings.
"I knew that this would happen." She said, her voice bordering on hostile. "You're all so closed minded. You are all unable to see just how perfect this situation is. Ben adores me."
The raised voice of his youngest sister was sufficient to drag Edward to the last steps of the stairs, both in visual and vocal range of the rest of the family. His face was clouded.
"No." He said icily.
Esme snapped around to look at him, tense with displeasure.
"Edward." She spoke quietly but with assertion. "If you would like to take part in this conversation please sit down."
"Everybody has somebody!" Cecily whined. "Everybody has a mate except for me and dowdy old Edward. I'm all alone, and now I'm in love and nobody in this wretched family will even consider it as a possibility."
The eight vampires which circled the Cullen dining table where all rigid with varying levels of anger, despair and irritation, Alice and Esme glanced slyly towards Edward in concern. Carlisle spoke in his usual calm musical tone, as if totally oblivious to the tension.
"Cecily we all empathize with your… romantic troubles." Carlisle cleared his throat and most of the table silently applauded him for his tact. Cecily was after all only in her mid thirties, hardly in desperate need of permanent companionship. "However we have all made it very clear to you the dangers of attachment to the mortal realm. Your new found… infatuation of this human boy puts us all at risk."
"I love him." Cecily pouted petulantly, she looked at Alice, her usual ally, with appealingly eyes but was disappointed. Alice merely shook her head.
"This family had learnt the damage that is done by familiarity between vampires and humans. Sorry Cecil, I'm not going to condone it."
Edward growled softly and his perfect, topaz irises darkened dangerously.
Cecily lifted her chin and stared down her nose at the family.
"I won't stop seeing him. I refuse."
With that sparse and angry remark Cecily picked herself off her chair and stalked to her room, golden curls dancing behind her. Sixteen years old and Cecily was the eternal Claudia, exasperated by youth and wishing desperately for the independence of adulthood that would never arrive.
Edward's face twitched as he watched Cecily go. He barely registered the soft hands of comfort on his back as the rest of the family picked themselves up and exited the room, leaving only Alice and Carlisle.
"I don't like this." He muttered to no one in particular.
Alice sighed and leant her head down on the cool oak table, her own cold skin soft against the varnished top. Carlisle nodded carefully at his oldest son.
"We realise this must be hard for you Edward." He said, his cool voice still commanding despite the notable worry entangled in it.
"Not so hard," Edward snapped. "After all it's been what? Half a century? If only it was as easy for me as it is for the rest of you."
"Edward." Carlisle's tone was angry now, the corners of his perfect face creased. "Please do not forget that we all loved Bella, and that we all remember her with absolute fondness and with gratitude. Do you think I would be this harsh with Cecily's vanity if I did not?"
Edward's own beautiful features hardened stoically. He suddenly regretted the ruthlessness of his words very much. He knew all too well that his family still felt the strength of Bella's loss, but at the same time he knew that did not contend with his own loss, the loss of his singular mate.
Carlisle's eyes softened slightly.
"I think that it is time we moved along. We have perhaps been here to long for peace of mind. Cecily's new human infatuation only attests to that."
Edward nodded and Alice looked up in interest.
"Where?"
Carlisle frowned and Edward realised that his father must have been considering this move for quite a while.
"I would like to return to Forks for a while." He ignored the stricken expression on Edward's face. "At least a few months, perhaps longer."
"No." Edward said steadfast. "I won't go back there."
Carlisle ducked his head pleasantly. "That as usual is your choice. Although I would prefer you stay Edward, we would miss you terribly."
Carlisle glanced at Alice anxiously. "I have feared for along time that there is something beginning in Forks, I would like to be reassured that the treaty has not been compromised."
Alice nodded coolly, her eyes flitting towards Edward.
"It's a valid concern, what with the death of Jacob Black. I would hate for the wolf population to become unnecessarily… Rowdy."
Carlisle smiled suddenly and stood up with a screech of his chair.
"That's settled then. We'll return to Forks within the week, please let me know Edward if you plan on joining us."
He paused in deliberation as he moved for the exit, his movement carefully precise. Carlisle looked sadly back at Edward, his expression soft and sympathetic.
"Please do not dwell too much on this Edward. We must all do our best to keep moving on with our lives, even you, especially you."
Edward nodded slowly and he too got up, instead of following Carlisle walking towards the intricate French-doors that lead to the terrace. He felt, rather then saw, Alice follow him out into the cold, night air.
"Every night I ask myself if I made the right choice. If I did what was best. I tried so hard to be selfless Alice…" Edward's voice was so soft that if Alice had been human his words would not have reached her. "Do you think that I should have listened to Bella when I had that chance? Was that really the only way?"
Alice scoffed, the noise loud in the unnatural silence.
I think both of you where being ridiculous, especially you." Alice paused and her tone softened to one more like sympathy. "But you did do the selfless thing. The only thing you saw to do, the Edward thing. She would forgive you if she was here now."
"I'm not so sure."
"I am."
Edward felt Alice leave as he stared absently into the darkness that surrounded him, yet he himself didn't move until the sun rose with dawn, the hungry scent of mountain lion in the wind. Somewhere, to the west, he heard a wolf cry.
--
As the Cullen's prepared to move back to their former home, Bella Swan had left hers to visit some old friends.
Lilly and Vivian Aberhart's eyes shone dark red in contrast to Bella's own amber, and yet Bella could not begrudge them their appetite any more then she begrudged Jon, they where far too interesting. Isabella had yet to figure out how it was that Lilly and Viv had been able to stay together for almost two centuries with out ripping each other to shreds, their nature as a rule was so volatile and together they had become the bane of the Alaskan country side. Bella tried her best to ignore that when she came to visit her 'friends'.
At the present moment they huddled companionably around a heaped bonfire that send sparks flying high over their head. Bella could only imagine what the scene would look like from human eyes, three unnaturally beautiful woman illuminated to an even more eerie splendour in the firelight.
It was a shame in Bella's own eyes that Viv had to ruin the picturesque scene with the ugly sneer that spread across her face.
"Lillian, dear." She crooned. "Tell Isabella what you told me about that strange family."
The term family in conjunction with vampires was strange enough to hold Bella's attention, strange enough to twist her gut in suspicion.
"I'm sure she already knows." Lilly said stiffly, the pale white blonde of her hair coloured by the reds and oranges of the fire. "Forks is her territory after all, and the Cullen's have resided there for hundreds of years."
After fifty-seven years of effectively ignoring any reminder of the Cullen's, the sheer intensity of the pain ripping up her insides surprised her. For a moment the numbness that had cushioned her for years fell apart and Bella winced.
'We've been acquainted." Bella said icily. Her tone suggested clearly that the conversation had reached its end, but she didn't fail to notice the curious looks that the striking blondes beside her gave. In her post-Cullen haze Bella couldn't help comparing them both to Rosalie, and that too sent an unexpected pang on anguish through her system.
"My god, what did the Cullen's do to you Bella?" Lilly asked wide-eyed. "Run you through with a stake? I would expect that with your… similar lifestyle choices that you would have at least seen eye to eye."
Bella didn't appreciate the turn this conversation had taken, and she cursed her own fickle features. Even as a vampire she was unable to hide emotion from her face, at least now she was saved the embarrassment of turning beet red.
"It's not important. I would rather we didn't talk about the Cullen's."
Forty-eight hours later, when Bella began to make her way home, she realised that she had failed to ask why Lilly and Vivian had brought the dreaded Cullen's into the conversation in the first place. She also supposed it didn't matter.
--
Cecily's mood had improved very little by the time The Cullen's had arrived in Forks. Privately Edward believed that his sister was more irritated at the sudden change of scenery then any damage done on her heart. A satisfying goodbye scene had at least sated her ego, and now it seemed to be her more dramatic impulses that drove her displeasure.
She was, predictably, not speaking to Edward.
Edward had to admit that to a certain degree the move was his own fault. After all Carlisle had been transparent in his attempts to shield Edward from Cecily's unfortunate romance and for the most part Edward was glad. It was just a shame to be returning to Forks High, to memories better left settled. For his own part he was sad that a rift had developed between he and Cecily, despite the fact he was often the harshest of the family members towards her, there was also a certain bond between them.
Cecily had been created as an incitement for Edward to live, and she had done her job. For two decades after Bella's death, Edward had left the Cullen's and had… there was not a term for how he had existed. Half alive, half dead, broken, suicidal; Esme had been hysterical. So when Carlisle found Cecily, or who ever she had been back then (no one was completely sure), almost dead on the streets of Cardiff, he had changed her and had arrived on Edward's doorstep looking for help.
"She needs support." His father had told him. "Myself excluded you are the eldest, and you are a part of this family. You can help her, don't let dying become your fate Edward."
Edward had sneered at the tiny frame curled up in a bed that dwarfed her; blonde curls stark against dark sheets. This was not the person who was meant to be the eighth member of the Cullen family.
"You've brought me what? A replacement?"
"No." Carlisle had been sincere. "We wouldn't do that Edward. She's your sister, Cecily is your sister and she needs you now."
So Edward had become part of the Cullen family again and after a while it wasn't so hard to be half a person, a soul. Numbness seemed to intrude upon every part of his life, but he wouldn't forsake that for any amount of resolution Carlisle could give him. He wanted never to forget Bella, not ever.
"Jeez!" Emmett bounded out of the '56 Mercedes that Edward had parked in the car park of Forks High; his voice loud enough to break Edward from his thoughts. "The wind of time really hasn't reached Forks has it?"
Even from the awkward position of the driving seat, Edward could see that Emmett was right. Forks hadn't changed much more then they had.
A steady stream of students made their way through the double doors. None of them could stop staring the curious stares that the Cullen's drew. Edward sighed and he felt Rose's hand brush his shoulder softly.
"This won't be that bad." She said softly. "It's only for six months."
Six months, Edward though miserably, a life sentence; Six months of taking Biology in the same class room he had first met her, six months of staying in a house full of memories both happy, sad and excruciating.
Rosalie's own conviction only lasted until the siblings received their timetables. A frown marred her pretty features as she compared it to Edward's.
"Look I only have one class with you and I have Art History entirely alone."
Edward shrugged, nonchalantly memorising his own timetable.
"Perhaps if you took more AP classes…"
Rosalie scowl intensified. "Excuse me if I don't want to fill up my immortal life span with homework. For god sake Edward you've done these classes a million times, do something different. Join Art History with me."
From behind them Cecily came bouncing up, effectively ignoring Edward. Her mood had improved somewhat in the last hour with the news that after some heavy pleading and bargaining, she would be allowed to attend Forks High at the same grade as Edward, Rosalie and Alice; despite the utmost irritation of Cecily's siblings only Jasper and Emmett had been exempt from re-enrolling at Forks High. Cecily on the other hand could have cared less, she alone of the Cullen clan enjoyed the attention of humans.
Next to the sunny features of her sister, Alice's face was very dark indeed. Edward wondered if it was the beginning of a new school career or Forks it self, that had etched a frown over his usually light hearted sister's face.
"If Rosalie's class corresponds with your Biology class then I suggest you take her up on her offer. According to Miss Hope, the receptionist, today everybody's testing their blood type so they can apply for the annual blood drive."
Edward closed his eyes briefly as his mind fabricated the smell of twenty or thirty teenagers pricking their arms and letting their blood flow like a vampire buffet. He tried to ignore the way his mouth watered with venom, itching to be filled with warm, liquid life. He made a mental note to go hunting that night. Schooling his features Edward turned to address the young, pretty receptionist who was shooting him less then subtle looks with her immaculately made up eyes. Her smile widened impossibly as he approached.
"Miss Hope?" He asked, his voice polite but not intimate. "Do you think it would be possible for me to move classes? From Biology to Art History."
The receptionist was obliging, making only a slight comment about Art History not being a suitable challenge for such an astute student before moving Edward into the class. She sent the siblings to their classes with a wave and a smile reserved obviously for Edward.
Edward could hear Rosalie shaping the question before she voiced it and he willed himself not to tense in anticipation.
"Is it terribly hard?"
Edward breath came out unneeded and uneven.
"More so and less so I suppose." He said dryly, trying valiantly to eradicate most of the emotion from his voice. "More so because here in Forks, everything is so much clearer, so much more painful to remember. I constantly feel as if I am being taunted by the knowledge that she is just out of my reach. Less so too I suppose, because coming back to Forks, even if it's painful, is something like coming…"
He paused, and he was suddenly unsure how to continue. "Home. Almost like coming home."
--
As soon as
school ended, Edward recruited Alice for a hunting trip. He wished
internally for something vicious and lethal that would fight back. He
needed something more then blood right now and he needed Alice by his
side to make sure his inner-beast didn't get out of control.
Every
part of him ached.
Silence had been an expected interloper of conversation for Edward since he had arrived in Forks. He knew that it was mostly his own fault; his family had become uncomfortable around him, unsure what would set him off. However in Alice's case Edward was beginning to wonder if she was maybe somewhat furious at him. The periodic table she kept repeating in her head was either way a very clear message for him to stay the hell out of her mind.
Edward sighed and raised an eyebrow helplessly at his sister.
"Are you angry at me?"
Alice peeked at him through her peripheral vision, the muscles in her jaw locking in irritation.
"I'll have you know Edward Cullen that occasionally it is very difficult not to be mad at you."
Even if Alice had not opened the floodgates of her psyche, Edward would have known that her current unhappiness was not due to him using her favourite Dior blouse to mop up blood or showing Jasper her credit card bill. He realised suddenly that to believe that Forks was only hurting him was not only unbelievably selfish, but sightless as well; Alice had loved Bella like another sister and the evidence of her loss was etched plainly across her beautiful face.
"I understand if you blame me." Edward said evenly. Alice rolled her eyes. "God knows I do."
Alice gave up even voicing her thoughts and simply glared at him.
"What happened to Bella was not your fault Edward."
"You are particularly snappy for somebody who does not blame me at all."
Alice snarled and stopped walking, planting her self a few steps before him so Edward too was forced to stop, and for a moment they stared at each other, both motionless.
"I think sometimes you forgot Edward just how carefully we all watched you and Bella. How vividly we all remember your happiness and your catastrophe. I would never blame you for what happened to Bella, you did what you did with the best intentions and her death was not your fault. The fact that you insist on making your self miserable I do blame you for, and honestly Edward, sometimes I can't help blaming you for making her miserable."
There was nothing to be said to that. Edward ducked his head and weaved around Alice's body. He knew that had they never come to Forks, Alice might never have admitted that to him however much he may deserve it. He could not wrong Alice for being honest, and yet the reality of hearing it in the open felt like a knife being twisted in his gut. He felt Alice's sad gaze follow him, and schooling his features, Edward turned back to her, his face blank.
"I smell bobcat on the wind."
"I know." Alice whispered. "Me too."
Their hunt was quiet and brutal, both of them killing with unnecessary force that stained their clothes with blood. If Edward had possessed the ability to cry he would have, long, satisfying sobs that would sate him more then the rich blood he had craved so badly just a few hours earlier. As they finished, their eyes lightening and their moods lifting slightly, Edward slumped down onto the cold wet grass, looking up at the spectacle of the stars. He felt Alice come down beside him, her head leaning gently against his arm.
"Edward." She said softly. "I think that Carlisle is worried about something."
"Me." Edward replied reasonably. Alice shook her head.
"No. Don't you feel it? There's another one of us nearby, and something else coming. Carlisle knows, that's why we came back."
Edward gazed at his sister in confusion.
"Can't you see?"
Alice frowned.
"Everything's distorted. Who or whatever it is, is stopping me, blinding me. But I can still feel it in my gut, something big."
As Edward closed his eyes and listened to the rustling of the breeze, he felt somehow unreasonably disappointed. As if he had expected to hear some unnatural roar or scream over the quiet. Was his agony clouding his mind so effectively that he was simply oblivious to the unrest Alice seemed to feel so acutely? He felt no urge to rise up from his bed of grass and earth; instead he went back to studying the constellations, only the feeling of Alice's superficial breath constant against him. He barely noticed the falling rain.
--
AN: Bella's brown eyes teared up in relief as she saw the beautiful form of her fiancé entering her room.
"Where have you been?" She asked, voice breaking traitorously.
Edward covered the room with the two long strides; he captured her in his arms and buried his face in her long mahogany hair.
"I'm sorry… It hasn't been safe for me lately."
Bella's bottom lip trembled.
"Oh no!"
Edward kissed her tenderly, grazing her lips with his own.
"What happened?"
He pulled back at her question, an uncharacteristic surge of fear crossing his perfect features.
"Some crazy fan fiction writer has been following me around, threatening to write me into slash fiction with Jasper and Emmett."
"Good god!" Bella squeaked. "The foundations of our world would crumble. Did she say what she wanted?"
"All she said was… Press the lavender button and review!"