Disclaimer: Stephanie Meyer owns the characters. This we know.

So, here it is the third chapter, I do hope you enjoy it. Things are still building.

I must warn you... there is some Bella/Edward crap in this chapter. It's nothing to serious, and our dear little pixie knows what timing is. (; So fear not, because I hate writing it as much as I'm sure you dislike reading it. So it'll never be too prominent. Though it's a must for the beginnings of this story.

I had fun writing this chapter, so I hope you enjoy it. Let me know what you think and what you might like to see in the future. Every little bit helps me further elongate this story.

The A/B is building!

Cheers,

Lemon

As Jasper took off and the blackness swirled past me, I felt my heart start to pound. I knew it wasn't just the speed, but the relief and joy I felt from my conversation with Jasper. He had asked me if I wanted them to stay, he had told me they wanted to stay. I had them all back. My mind was gone with the wind as he slowed down. Jasper stopped right when we reached the back door and set me on my feet. I stumbled, slightly disoriented from the run, but he caught me before I had time to fall.

"Whoa, Bella." He smiled warmly at me "Don't worry everything is going to be fine." And with that he walked inside. I wasn't worried, not much anyways. I was starting to feel slight doubts bubble up; maybe Jasper wasn't speaking for all of them. I shook it off as best I could, I guess I would find out, and I stepped in after him.

I closed the door after myself and looked up. The fire was still burning warmly and the Cullens looked as if they hadn't moved since my departure. Esme and Carlisle were still standing in the same spot. Rosalie still rested against Emmett. Alice and Edward still sat where they had been when I was next to them. The only one who seemed to have moved at all was Jasper, and he went and stood right back where he had been in the corner. As my eyes swept passed him, he gave me a nod and an encouraging smile, and I felt the calm ease across the room.

Edward lightly tapped the space next to him where I had sat before. I walked slowly over and took my seat. I looked down to see Alice staring up at me, she still had a somber expression on her beautiful face, but there was a glimmer of something in her eyes. Hope, maybe? Then Carlisle began to speak.

"Bella, how are you feeling?" I looked away from Alice's face to Carlisle's. His was a look of love and concern.

"I'm much better, now, thank you, Carlisle." He nodded and smiled warmly at me; then spoke again.

"I'm glad. I'm very sorry if we overwhelmed you or upset you in any way. That was not our intentions. That being said, that was not our intentions when we left, either. I am truly very sorry for that." Esme nodded in agreement.

"I know, Carlisle. It's alright." I exchanged a glance with Jasper. Esme spoke this time.

"Can you ever forgive us?" there was sadness in her lilt voice, but hope rang out stronger than that. I looked at her and smiled as warmly as I could. Then I looked at all of them, pausing, the longest on Alice and Edward.

"Of course I forgive you." I said looking back into Esme's warm eyes. "I never blamed you in the first place. It never seemed real that you'd all loved me, it didn't seem right." Edward stepped in before I got another word out.

"Bella, please, that's ridiculous. We all love you very much. You must see yourself for what you are, a joy to me and to this family." I nodded and spoke.

"Let me finish, please." He nodded. "It never made sense to me, to have all of you, I didn't understand... Then you all left, and that seemed like it was the way it should've been in the first place. I felt empty and utterly alone, but I did my very best to keep pushing myself forward, if not for me then for Charlie. I won't lie to you and tell you there were never times I just wanted to give up, because there were and I almost did, but I couldn't follow through. Things got…slightly better, and I was able to live for myself a little more, but that didn't mean that the pain of losing you went away. It never did. To me it was not only losing Edward," I looked to him, then to Esme and Carlisle, and Rose, Emmett, and Jasper, "but I was losing my family." I paused again a little longer when I looked to Alice. "I was losing my best friend." She looked back at me with sad eyes, but I brushed her cheek and some light returned to them. I refocused on them as a whole.

"When you left I felt like you took everything I had. I know things turned into a mess, but now I also understand, or at least I'm trying to understand, why you did what you did. It was never out of spite, it wasn't because you didn't want me anymore; it was because you love me. You thought you were doing the right thing at the time. So to me, there's really nothing to forgive. It was a mistake in all honesty, but it seems we have all learned from that."

My eyes landed on Esme and Carlisle once more. He had his arms around her shoulders and her hand lay upon his. They both held warm smiles, but Esme's eyes had the glistening look of unshed tears.

"I love you all so very much. Though I know some of us never were as close as we could have been," my eyes flickered between Jasper, Rose, and Emmett. "I loved you all. I still do. My love for you, my family, never wavered or faltered in the slightest." I paused here and took a deep breath before I continued. "I just hope you can forgive me, and my actions."

Esme spoke at this "Bella, your words have without a doubt touched us all. You have once again truly proven how selfless you are. As far as we are concerned on your part, there is nothing to forgive. We know now what we did wasn't the right course of action, and unfortunately there's nothing any of us can do to go back and change that, but know this: we will never leave again, until you ask us to." I smiled at her when she finished. I would never want them to. I was so happy to have them all back. I felt my heart swell with love and joy.

Emmett laughed and said "Maybe we should be thanking you. If you hadn't jumped off the cliff we wouldn't have gone through all this crap to get back here." I blushed at his blatant remark at my idiocy. Which in turn of course got him to laugh harder, everyone seemed keen to join in, and even Rosalie had a small smile. I closed my eyes and listened to the choir of angels sing. Their voices melted perfectly together as they laughed. The brilliant sound filled the empty hole in my chest to the brim. I was whole again.

As it quieted down Carlisle spoke. "Bella, I'm very pleased to know that we have your forgiveness. Might I assume this means you'll welcome us to return to Forks and back into your life?" I smiled and nodded hurriedly. He chuckled and continued. "That's wonderful news, indeed. We'll go back to what we were all doing before we left. I shall contact the hospital. Esme just hasn't enjoyed city life as much as she'd thought." He and his wife shared a brief smile. "I'll have you two," he gestured to Alice and Edward "back in school by Wednesday." My eyes went wide.

The mentions of school led to a flood of memories and responsibilities I'd forgotten since leaving for Volterra. One being: I had missed a day of school today,err yesterday, great. Too bad this hadn't happened at the beginning of spring break. Two being: I had left without talking to Charlie. And three: Jacob. Shit, shit, shit. My heart picked up it's pace and I closed my eyes. What am I going to do about Jacob? He was so angry at me for leaving the way I did. Would he even want to talk to me again? If he knew they were all back and here to stay, would he still be my friend? Would he still be hunting Victoria?

My eyes flew open and I let out a gasp. Victoria. I had entirely forgotten about her as well.

"Bella what's wrong? We don't have to go back to school if you don't want us to." It was Alice whose worried voice rang out. I looked at her and shook my head.

"Not school…V-Victoria." I stuttered. There were so many different things I had forgotten to worry about in the frenzy of the last three days. Now that it was all flooding back, I found myself worrying even more than I had been before.

"Victoria? Bella, please, calm down. Don't give yourself a heart attack" Alice replied lightly. I looked at her puzzled. "Bella, we're going to be here now. There's nothing to worry about. You'll be safe. There are however," she glanced at Edward who nodded "a few things we need to ask you. You told me a little bit about your, err, friend, what's his name? Jacob?" she said trying to remain unbiased though it hardly worked. I nodded. "I told them what you have told me. That your, friend, and his pack killed Laurent." I nodded again. "Do you know if they have any idea where Victoria is? Or what she is up to for that matter?" I shook my head this time.

"N-no, I don't. All we know is: she's after me. I mean there's been three days I haven't been here." A thought struck me worse than any of the others I'd had before. I stood so fast my head spun. "Charlie!" I all but shouted. I hadn't spoken to him since the morning of the day I left.
"Bella, honey, please try and calm down." Esme's motherly tone reached my ears. "I spoke with Charlie this morning. He knows where you are and that you're with me. While he wasn't very pleased, he's fine, and you'll see him tomorrow." I felt myself relax quickly, and I sank back onto the couch, and put my head in my hands. How do I keep getting myself into situations like this? Charlie is going to be furious at me. Jacob is going to be furious at me. And Victoria is out for my blood, just another day in the life. I felt a large stone cold hand start rubbing circles on my back. I inhaled a deep breath and sat up. I started feeling worn out again. I looked at the clock; it was almost four in the morning. No wonder I was so exhausted. So much had happened today and the last few days, even though I slept on the plane and for about 18 hours after that, I was exhausted from the emotional rollercoaster I'd been riding full speed all weekend.

"Bella, would you like to go lie down?" Edward's smooth voice asked me. I nodded. We both got up at the same time and walked towards the stairs. I looked back to the family watching us go.

"Goodnight, everyone." I offered a tired smile. Esme was the one to reply for them.

"Goodnight, sweet Bella." Her voice was warm. Esme moved from her spot and in an instant, my tired eyes couldn't hope to follow, was in front of me. She wrapped her arms around my shoulders and pulled me to her. I melted into her and inhaled the deliciously warm scent of fresh baked ginger bread cookies.

"Sleep well, love." She placed a gentle kiss on my forehead, and then I felt Edward tug on my hand. She released her grip on me, and I smiled back at her, and then proceeded to follow Edward up the stairs. He led me to the same room I woke up in before. It was slightly cooler up here than it was in the living room with the fire. I decided I'd keep Alice's sweatshirt on as I slept.

I took my place on the bed and I pulled the covers up to my chin. I situated myself so the comforter was tucked under my feet, and I was burrito-ed in the blankets. I heard Edward chuckle from where he was standing at the foot of the bed.

"Are you quite comfortable?" he asked the crooked smile still on his face. I nodded.

"It's just kind of cold in here, but I'll be fine, Alice let me borrow her sweatshirt." His smile faded only slightly.

"I know. I'm sorry it's so cold in here. We can't get the heat or power turned back on until tomorrow, err later today. We weren't sure we'd be staying, and we had planned to talk to you a little earlier, but you slept much longer then any of us anticipated." His smile returned and I smiled back.

"I've been sleeping a lot. I'm just so worn out from everything that's been going on. I didn't sleep much on the way to, well you know, and I didn't sleep again until we got to Atlanta. I guess it's all coming back to me now." I offered with a shrug.

"So it would seem... Bella," his smile was gone again. "I'm sorry for the mess created, I know I've said it a hundred times, but I am. Not only for the mess with my family, but for the mess it is going to cause for you, when you return home to Charlie." I grimaced when he mentioned Charlie. Then I sighed as I thought about it.

"It's alright, Edward. It was worth it. The fact is everyone was able to come home. The fact I'll be going to see Charlie, angry or not, is wonderful. I do miss him. I haven't even spoken to him since the day I left. I mean I could have picked a better time to disappear on him, his best friend just passed away and he was away at the funeral at the time, but there wasn't really another option. He'll forgive me eventually. Even if he doesn't I do sort of deserve it." I sighed again, thinking about my father made me miss him even more. I missed Jake too, but on that front I'd have to wait and see what would happen. Just the possibility that Jacob might not ever want to see me again, breaks my heart. Jacob had been my best friend, the only one I've been able to function properly with, since the Cullens had left.

Jacob was the only one who helped the gaping hole that had formed in my chest. It never went away, but it felt a little smaller and scarred, but only when I was with him. Yes, there were times where I couldn't stand him, like when he was pushing for more than just being my friend, but he cared about me and I cared about him. He took care of me when I was alone in the darkness, he even offered light and warmth, he really was like his own sun. I sighed and fidgeted slightly.

I noticed Edward was still standing by the edge of the bed. When he saw me look at him he moved to lean against the tall bed post. He crossed his arm and put his hand to his chin. He was looking at me curiously.

"Its okay, Edward. You can lie down with me." I said before he could say anything. He looked at me wearily for a moment.

"Are you sure?" I nodded and he moved to the other side of the bed at a human pace. He gracefully lay down beside me, I moved to get closer to him slightly, and then he wrapped his arms around me, and pulled me tightly to his stone chest. I breathed in the honeysuckle. I felt my head get a bit lighter. He seemed to be doing the same thing, as I felt his chest rise and fall; he buried his nose in my hair. "Bella…" he breathed. I smiled; it had been so long since I'd been with him this way. Though I was still a little on edge from everything that was happening around us, it felt good for him to hold me.

I looked up into his eyes; they were slightly darker, but only just. I smiled and he returned it with his crooked one. Then the mood changed, the air around us was a little tenser, he was looking at my eyes and then his gaze shifted; to my lips. It hadn't hit me until that very moment, since reuniting, Edward and I had not kissed on the lips. He had kissed me chastely everywhere, but the lips, while we were in the Volturi hall. I hadn't even thought to try, but here we were, staring intently at each other and leaning closer. His lips parted slightly and I could taste and smell his honeysuckle breath. Again it was something I had not felt in many months. My eyes fluttered slightly, but I kept them open, as his golden eyes smoldered into mine.

My breathing started becoming a little more difficult to control, and then when I thought he would pull away, he moved in and closed the gap between us. His lips felt as cold and smooth as an ice sculpture. My eyes finally closed. I simply basked in the flavor and feel of him. His hands were gently stroking my back; mine were curled up on his chest. He continued kissing me, then he did something I did not expect, his tongue slipped out of his mouth and grazed my lips to ask for entrance, I complied. His icy tongue moved around my mouth and found dominance instantly. He was gentle but in control of the kiss entirely, so I just went along, I melted into him. He kissed with passion and love, I could feel it radiate from his entire body. However I was starting to have trouble breathing and it didn't feel like he wanted to pull away any time soon. I tried pushing against his chest, but he kept kissing me. When I was about to panic I heard someone knock on the door.

Edward's lips stopped moving and he pulled back slightly. I took in a huge breath he didn't seem to notice, he was focused on glaring at the door, and when he answered he let his irritation seep through.

"Come in." He said through slightly gritted teeth. Then he looked down at me, I gave him a look that told him to cool it, his face softened instantly. "Alice, is there something we can help you with?" I pulled back from his grip to face the door. Sure enough, Alice stood there looking at us pleasantly; the most heartwarming smile graced her features, her dimples showed perfectly. I couldn't help but smile huge in return.

"I just wanted to come up and spend a few moments with you before Bella went to sleep. Though I know she'll be asleep within the next five minutes." She giggled and tapped her forehead. Edward merely chuckled.

"Bella is that alright with you?" he asked me. I turned my head to look at him curiously. I thought I heard a little hope in his voice; for what I wasn't sure.

"Of course it's fine with me." I replied and frowned at him a little, maneuvering around so I was on my back beside him, with his arm around my shoulders. I looked to Alice and tapped the spot on my other side. She smiled bigger and danced gracefully over and hopped up on the bed. She took my right hand in hers and held it there. I had never been quite as comfortable as I was at this moment. When Alice jumped on the bed it moved the air around so their scents filled my nose.

Honey, chamomile, and honeysuckle drifted dreamily into my head and my eyes rolled back as they closed. I let out a silent moan, though they both heard me. I knew because I heard Alice giggle, and Edward started moving, like he was chuckling beside me. I took several deep breaths and then reopened my eyes and looked from Edward to Alice. I was instantly more relaxed than I had been even moments ago. Edward's eyes were warm like liquid gold. Alice's eyes were swimming with happiness. She looked like a statue that had a smile, complete with adorable dimples, carved into her utterly perfect face. I lightly pulled on her hand signaling for her to scoot closer to me, and she did so, happily. My legs were now pressed up against the side of her shorter ones.

"Are you happy, love?" Edward questioned with a warm voice. I smiled wider if it were possible.

"I am, very much so." I responded before a yawn took over my features. Another wind chime rang out as Alice laughed. I stuck my tongue out at her and she reciprocated it.

"Sleep now, Bella. It's nearly morning." Alice's sweet voice sang to me.

"Goodnight, Bella, I love you." Edward's deeper voice soothed me. Then they started speaking to each other about irrelevant things like school, and music, and books. It was nice to hear them chatting like a brother and sister would. I had a feeling they did it because they knew I loved the sound of their voices. Just as Alice had predicted I fell asleep in the next few minutes. I felt nothing but warmth, love, peace, and contentment as I drifted off to sleep that night.

I stretched out my limbs and took in a deep breath as I woke up. I could feel Edward's strong arms still around me. I smiled as I rubbed my eyes with the backs of my hands; wiping the remnants of sleep away. As I opened them I noticed the gray light that filled the room. It was another rainy day in Forks. I could even hear the rain tapping on the window. I looked to Edward's face and saw him smiling.

"Good morning, love. Did you dream well?" he questioned with his beautiful voice. I took in a deep breath of his scent as I thought about it.

"I don't remember dreaming. I feel quite rested though, so it's nice." He smiled at my response.

"I'm glad. Is there anything you'd like to do today before having to see your father? We won't have to take you back until he's off work." I cringed slightly at the thought of facing Charlie, but brushed it off until I absolutely had to think about it. I looked around the room. Where did Alice go?

"Edward?" I asked, he merely responded with "hmm?"

"Where's Alice?" I looked back to his face as he smiled down at me.

"She and the others have gone hunting. Is everything alright?" he asked. I only nodded in response. I had been hoping she would be here, when I woke up, as well as Edward. It had been so long since I had them both with me. I wanted to spend as much time with them as I could.

"Well," he began again "Why don't you get up and come join me downstairs? I believe Esme has left you something for breakfast." His eyes were gentle and warm.

"Sure, that sounds wonderful, but could you give me a…err, human moment?" I asked. He nodded, smiled, and then kissed my forehead.

"Don't keep me waiting too long." And he hopped off the bed and was gone.

I pushed myself up into sitting position, and ran my hand through my tangled hair. I huffed a sigh as I looked out at the rain. It wasn't so much as my complete distaste for the rain itself, I actually thought the rainy days were growing one me, they were beautiful. However I didn't feel the same way about the wet that generally came with the rain. I shrugged to myself and climbed out of the bed.

I walked across the hall into the large bathroom, just like everything in this monster of a house, it was beautiful. I'd used this particular room many times, but it still caught me off guard at how elegant a simple bathroom could be. Okay, so maybe "simple" isn't the right word to use. Esme truly was a genius. I smiled and then I proceeded to "take care of business". When I finished I washed my hands and face and went downstairs to join Edward.

"Hello, again." His velvet voice reached my ears before I turned into the kitchen. When I did my eyes landed on the massive amount of eggs, hash browns, and toast lain before me. Edward chuckled. "Now, I realize you won't eat this all but"- he stopped short and tensed. I looked at him with my head cocked to the side.

"Edward? Edward, what's wrong? Are you alright?" he didn't say a word but I swore I heard him growl. His face was set in a scowl, but then his nose wrinkled in what looked like disgust.

"What does that, mongrel, think he is doing here?" he spat the whole sentence, but the word "mongrel" was pure venom. His eyes darted to the back of the house, "Bella, stay here." he commanded and then he was gone. I looked around the room. He wasn't here. I walked through the living room, still looking around for him. He wasn't there either. I heard no noise upstairs, not that he would make any, but I had a pretty good idea of where he went. So I headed to the back door and looked out through the glass.

"Edward? Are you out there?" If he heard me he didn't show up. So I opened the door and stepped into the rain. I looked around hurriedly, but it was hard to make much out through the down poor. However, I saw two figures standing near the tree line. One was tall, huge really, and dark, the other was mildly shorter and leaning over in a crouch. I heard a snarl rip through the space between us.

"Edward!" What was going on? Who was that? I walked further into the space between the house and trees, trying to get a better look at the two. Edward was the one crouched down; he was in his fight ready position. I heard a roar and my attentions were directed to the larger figure. I squinted a little to see through the rain. It was Jacob.

"Back off, mutt! We can handle it!" Edward hissed at Jacob.

"Yeah, sure you can! After what you did to Bella you should be thanking me, bloodsucker. She would have been killed, because you left her alone. Lucky for us I was there!" Jacob spat back at Edward with just as much hatred. Edward roared.

"What's going on here?" I demanded, astonished. "What do you two think you are doing?" I was getting angry. Surely, at least Edward knew better than to act this way.
"Stay out of this, Bella!" Jacob growled. "Go back inside!"

"Stop it! Both of you! Right this instant! Edward look at me!" his head barely turned enough so he could look over his shoulder, but his position didn't relax at all. "What are you doing?"

"Don't worry about it, Bella, just go. Now!" he commanded, I was getting sick of people telling me what to do, instead of telling me what happened. Edwards head snapped forward and a loud growl bounced back off the house. "Get out of here, dog! I will kill you!"

Jacob laughed darkly and with that; he lunged at Edward. He shifted just before impact, his massive paws coming down full force on Edward's chest. There was a loud sickening sound, like metal being torn apart, when my vision caught up with their movement Edward was already standing with Jacob thrown back several yards. There were huge tears in Edward's shirt and large gashes in his diamond flesh. Before I could assess any more damage Jacob was back up hurtling towards Edward.

"Stop! STOP!" I screamed, though it was useless. They weren't even trying to listen to me. Jacob's teeth made a snap for Edward's shoulder, but just before he could close his mouth Edward had him over his head. He threw Jacob's body, into a nearby tree, like a ragdoll. Both Jacob and the tree came crashing down with a loud "BANG", but Jacob was already up. Edward lunged for him at the exact moment Jacob made his move to do the same. There movements were too fast for me to follow closely anymore. They went tumbling backwards, flipping, and somersaulting over the other. They each were clawing, snapping, kicking, and punching with every available chance.

Then Edward was on the ground, with Jacob on top of him. He was thrashing about; trying to wiggle himself free from Jacob's massive body, but one of his arms was caught, twisted behind his back. Jacob barred his teeth and growled, and just as he was about to take a bite of Edward's head, he was thrown off. He yelped loudly, and my eyes followed his body as it flew far into the trees, before my line of sight was obscured. I looked down to see Edward staring straight ahead. He snarled his eyes wide and black with furry, and then he was on his feet in an instant, lunging once more.

Only, this time, it wasn't Jacob he was lunging at. It was the thing, or person, that had thrown Jacob far away. I heard a wicked laugh, and looked up in barely enough time to see a flash of bright red hair. Victoria. No, no, no, no, NO! How could this be happening? We just got back, I just got them back!

I could still hear Victoria's mad laughter as they fought. I only saw brief glimpses of every action, they moved much too fast for my slow human eyes. Where was Jacob now, when he could actually be useful? I could hear the sound of clashing thunder every time someone landed a blow. I only hoped it was Edward. Then Victoria was suddenly down on her back, Edward was kneeling over her, his hand on her throat. There were cracks along his jaw, and one on her brow, just as he was about to bend down and bite her, she kicked up with her legs and sent him hurtling over her head. She was up and they were moving again in a blur.

I didn't know what to do. I felt useless. How could I just be standing here, like some fool? When would the rest of the Cullens be coming back from hunting? Another thunderclap sounded through the rain, followed by the boom of boulders shattering. I looked up and saw Edward stagger backwards. His eyes were hard with fury, but his face was contorted in fear, he looked to me and mouthed "run". That, was by far the worst thing I thought I would ever lay my eyes on.

That was until I saw Victoria, casually standing before him looking at her nails, when I looked back to Edward I realized why he had told me to run. He was losing. His left arm was gone, from just above the elbow down. My eyes widened at the scene.

"Bella! RUN! NOW!" he screamed at me, his usually velvet smooth voice, was raspy with fear. He made one more begging look at me and lunged for Victoria. They were moving again. I should have run, I should have moved to do anything, call for Jacob, call the Cullens, but I was frozen. I was just a deer in the headlights. There was another grizzly "BOOM" and Victoria had Edward pinned up against a tree.

She held onto him by the throat, her other hand was used to pin his only good one. As he tried to kick and writhe against her grip, her manic laughter returned. She had a wicked grin, and evil red eyes, but the most frightening feature on her face, was the sheer calm. She knew she would win. Edward knew. I knew.

"Oh, dear. You should have stayed away." She said to Edward with a tsk, her voice was sickeningly smooth. "Then you wouldn't of had to die so terribly along with your mate." She chuckled briefly, then glanced over her shoulder and her ruby eyes fell upon me. "Don't worry, dear Bella, once I've killed this one, you and I can begin our little game." Her head turned back around to focus on Edward.

As I averted my eyes from her, I noticed something. Her vice like grip was tightening on a long pale neck. The small body held between Victoria and the tree was thrashing wildly. I let my eyes roam back to the face, if only for one last look at love, at my life. Black eyes widened in fear. But theses eyes were not Edward's eyes.

"Bella…" Alice's terrified silver voice breathed my name, begging me to run. My eyes went even wider. I would not let this happen.

"Alice! NO!" I ran forward just as Victoria sank her teeth into her neck.