I don't own Twilight.

Part I — Renesmee Cullen

As dawn was breaking, my eyes fluttered open. I blinked and looked around. I was in the middle of the woods; the trees were so tall that I couldn't tell if it was sunny or rainy. Though, if I was still in Washington, it probably was the latter.

Under my fingertips I could feel fur and looked down to see Jacob — too exhausted to even change out of his wolf form — snoring still though I had gotten up. So much for animal instinct, I thought sarcastically, smiling lightly down to my companion.

I brushed a piece of fur that was covering his eyes. He always seemed so much calmer when he was a wolf. He was always faster, stronger, and more alive … than he ever was when he was human.

His eyes opened slowly, groggily. He looked up at me in confusion … why, I wondered. I was just being friendly, just like he had yesterday at the wedding when he'd wrapped his arm around me and told me that …

Wait.

The wedding.

Suddenly, images of my family came flashing through my head … Aunt Alice, Aunt Rosalie, Uncle Emmett and Uncle Jasper … Grandpa and Grandma Carlisle and Grandpa Charlie … Mom and Dad.

I could still see the love and terror and worry and pain and regret in Mom's eyes. I could still see the anger and resentment along with unconditional love and helplessness in Dad's. I remembered the last words they had said to me … and then their disappearance.

I remembered the clothes Jacob and I had packed and the escape from the unknown enemy. I could remember the picture I had picked up off the floor … I remembered …

And I wanted so desperately to forget.

I cried out then and leaned into Jacob's now bare-chest. He had run off and transformed — and put on a pair of pants — all while I sat there, stunned, reliving the horrid night. Tears streaked my cheeks and his chest as he pulled me in closer to him.

I patted my hair and stroked it, telling me that he'd protect me, no matter what. I sniffled and looked up at him. His dark eyes stared down at me, like they were staring straight through my soul. He was still stroking my hair and my arms were still wrapped around his waist.

He leaned down and kissed the top of my head. His lips were soft against my skin; I felt adrenaline course through my veins. If only he'd aimed just a little lower on my face … his lips would be touching mine. And, though it seemed we'd reached rock bottom, I would be just a little bit better.

"Who's attacking us?" I asked when I had finally run out of tears. "And why are they after me? Why did they come to the wedding? Why now?"

Jacob sighed. "The Volturi."

The two words he had spoken were the worst two possible. The Volturi was after me. Sure, I'd never met them in my life — as far as I could remember — but Emmett used to tell me scary stories about them, and, when I came of age, Jacob would tell me some of the stuff they'd done to Mom and Dad.

"They're after you because you're a half-vampire, half-human offspring. They're interested. They've come now, possibly because, in just a few months, you'll be a full-blown vampire. They want to 'study' you" — he put air quotes around 'study' — "and see what'll happen when you finally do change. They want to see if you'll be in pain or if you'll just … you know, want blood."

My throat was clogging up. The Volturi — the living nightmare for all Vampires ( who hadn't joined them of course ) — had attacked my family and I had run away. Sure, I wasn't a strong fighter, but I knew a few things. If I was something they wanted, my family shouldn't have been the ones to suffer.

But they had … and there was nothing I could do about it.

"What are we going to do now?" I whispered.

Jacob looked thoughtful as we stood up. He started walking and I struggled to keep up with him, but I managed. "Well," he said. "We'd always thought of the possibility of this happening." It didn't take me long to figure out what "we'd" meant … he meant my family, my mom and dad … everyone I loved.

"It happened when you were a baby. Your safety as long as you were part-human … well, there wasn't any safety, really," he went on, brushing tree limbs out of my way. "Every few months, Bella would go update your pictures for fake IDs and sometimes, your father, mom, and I would stay up late and decide on our escape plan."

My heart tore a little when he said Mom's name. "So, what's the plan?"

"We're going to Tanya's," he said simply. "When we're there, we'll get a car and we'll be on our way to South America. We'll stay there until … well, until they call — or don't."

Around eight that night, it started to pour. We were nearly to a big city and an airport. We were going to fly to Alaska and then Jacob was going to transform and run to Tanya's. We had no time to lose. As long as we were in danger, we'd be moving.

"Room for two please," Jacob — soaking wet, his shirt was clinging to his skin that was making the receptionist nearly drool ( and made me want to smack her in the face ) — said, grabbing his backpack off of my back and digging inside. He pulled out four 20 dollar bills. "Is this enough?"

The receptionist, Sarah as her name tag identified her, blinked and then rang up our bill. "Yes, that's enough," she mumbled. "Here's your key. It's room 48."

Jacob nodded and then grabbed my hand. Together, we headed down the single hallways of the hotel and to the elevators. As we waited I looked at the cream-colored walls with cliché, uninteresting paintings. Then, when the elevator dinged, we walked inside.

We pulled up to floor four. After we found our room and got settled in, I announced that I was showering. Grabbing my backpack full of clothes, I scurried to the bathroom and quickly turned on the shower. Feeling the hot water fall down my bare shoulders, back, and legs, I felt so much better.

Just over an hour later, I was in bed and asleep.

I'm not sure when, but, at one point in the night, I woke up screaming. My throat burned from my cries. I couldn't quite remember what the dream was about — just that blood was everywhere, my father wasn't moving, and Mom was crying. That and then men in dark cloaks with hoods; they must have represented the Volturi.

The nightmare had seemed so real, I could even feel the tears running down my cheeks. Jacob was in the dream as well, I could hear him whispering. "Nessie, it's okay," he mumbled. "It's okay … it's just a dream."

I looked around but he wasn't there. His voice continued to calm me but I started to shake. I couldn't see him … then my mom disappeared, and then Dad's body, and finally the Volturi. Everything was black and I was all alone. Then …

"Ness, wake up, wake up," Jacob shook me awake. My eyes snapped open. I could see his dark eyes staring at me, worry drowning within them.

I was still shaking. "I-I," I cried. "I-I had a bad dream."

He pulled me in close and started to stroke my hair. "Nessie, it was just a dream. It's not real. I'm here. No one's going to hurt you while I'm here. Okay? Got it?"

I nodded, not trusting my voice. He'd taken off his shirt of course, so my tears were running down his bare chest. Then, I could feel the rise of the mattress as he got up. I watched him in confusion while he pushed his bed towards mine.

Then, he crawled right next to me and pulled me in close. "Just go to sleep," he whispered into my hair. "I'll wake you up so we can get that free breakfast." I smiled lightly at his joke.

Then he started to hum and it was familiar.

I remember sometimes, when I used to sleep with my parents, dad would sometimes hum to Mom when they both thought I was sleeping. Well, Dad probably knew I wasn't, but still. Mom's lullaby was simple yet so complex that it made my heart ache every time I heard it.

Jacob's voice wasn't as great as my father's but way better than I expected. It was low and gravely but he could hit high notes most men couldn't. His mouth was right next to my ear. Sooner or later, I couldn't help but to not concentrate on anything except his voice. It was so clear and soft. It was totally un-like Jacob and yet it was just like him.

"What is that?" I asked softly, feeling my heart go a million miles an hour.

"After you were born, your father made you this lullaby that he used to hum to you every night before you went to sleep. Well sometimes, they'd bring you over to my house because they — meaning all the Cullens — wanted to go for vacations and you just stayed with me and Billy." He chuckled a little. "It took me three of those vacations to finally get your song down right. Then, I just kinda made up my own."

So, that was where I'd heard it before. Jacob used to sing that to me. I could kinda remember it … but not really. But it still gave me the same affect it did when I was smaller. I felt completely safe — well, as safe as I could get — and sleepy.

"Thank you, Jacob," I mumbled quietly.

"You're welcome, Renesemee," he whispered in return and then mumbled something else but I didn't catch it. I had already passed out.

After one terrifying flight on a plane, a few hours of running, and lunch, Jacob and I appeared in front of Tanya's house. It was large and white, with several windows all covered by curtains. The place was hidden amongst a forest of trees. Surprisingly, for Alaska, it wasn't that cold.

If we weren't running for our lives, this place actually might have been nice to explore. But, seeing as we were running for our lives, we ran right to the front door and Tanya greeted us.

She was beautiful, of course. She had curly strawberry-blonde hair that went down her back. She was wearing just a pair of jeans and a hoody but she looked like a goddess. Again with some higher power mocking my imperfection with all these beautiful people …

"Come with me," she spoke quietly and quickly. We nodded and followed her. She walked through a simple living room with a couple of couches, a TV, and a few paintings. Then, we walked through a kitchen with the typical — unused like most vampire kitchen equipment — stove, counter space, and refrigerator, and then through a door.

We walked for awhile down winding stairs, and then, we reached the basement. It was pitch black down here … the only light from the upstairs made it so I wouldn't trip on every step I took. Even so, I held on to Jacob's arm tightly.

"After the first attack seven years ago," Tanya explained, disappearing from my view. "Edward and Bella took extraordinary precautions for your safety, Renesemee." My eyes fell to the floor when she mentioned my parents' names. I couldn't help but to feel guilty and miserable at whether they were even alive or not … after all, it was my fault that the Volturi even came.

Jacob took my hand and squeezed it. I looked up at him and our eyes locked. I felt like I was drowning in his dark eyes. He shook his head slightly, telling me not to think about it. We had to stay safe. "For your Mom and Dad," he whispered quietly.

I nodded, feeling my throat clog.

Tanya, as if knowing our conversation had just drew a close, flipped on the light. I noticed at once that this was a garage. There was a fast sports car, in which I could not identify — never could — along with a much older, rustier truck.

Tanya touched the side of the truck and smiled lightly. "This is your new home," she chuckled bitterly, walking back over to us. "What do you think?"

The fact that my father bought a "junk car" like this truck shocked me enough. My father was never one actually want to go the speed limit. To buy a car that couldn't go at least a 100 miles an hour was nothing like what my father, or the rest of my family, would do …

And that was the point.

The Volturi knew my family; in a way, they were — or rather, had been — friends. They knew that my family had new, fast, and flashy cars. They weren't going to be looking for this piece of junk. Oh my brilliant father! No wonder why my mom fell in love with him! He was … perfect.

My face turned rigid as my consciousness brought back memories that were so happy and loving and … perfect, it made the hole in my heart rip a little more.

"Nice wheels," Jacob commented, running his hand along the side.

Tanya scoffed then chuckled bitterly. "I suppose Edward thought that you might want to remain inconspicuous and with this. He said it wasn't something the Volturi will be looking for. Unless if they weren't catching the scent of you that is." Jacob glared and Tanya showed her teeth with her smirk.

The way she had said my father's name made me shudder. Her voice was laced with pain and sadness that I recognized; like she was suffering from a broken heart. Though I didn't really care for her or her family, it still made me sad to look at her noticeable depression at a lost relationship. She obviously cared for my father — maybe even loved him at one point — and he'd left her for someone else.

Boy did I know the feeling.

Of course, this all worked out for the better, I suppose. Tanya had the rest of eternity to find someone who loved her for who she was … just like the way my dad loved my mom. At least she had that. Me though … I'm not sure what's going to happen to me.

My life is pretty much in full-blown chaos right now. We were running from the Volturi — which is pretty much impossible in itself — and I didn't know if I'd ever see my parents again. And, on top of that, I was traveling with my best friend … the one, not two days before I was deciding whether or not I liked him more than just "best friend."

Sometimes, my life sucked.

"Thank you Tanya," Jake said quietly. "Nessie, are you ready to go?" He turned to me then and I blushed, looking away. He chuckled lightly; Tanya giggled, her voice sounding like that of an angels.

"You two are hopeless," she commented lightly. Jacob stopped laughing and our eyes caught, thus my face becoming hotter. "Stay safe," Tanya went on, her voice serious again. I shifted my gaze to her and our eyes locked; I saw fear, regret, and sympathy within her topaz-colored orbs.

"You'll be fine, Renesemee Cullen. You're family loves you more than anything on this planet. They'll protect you, even die for you." She paused, taking a deep breath while I fought not to cry. "But, don't underestimate their powers. They've fought the Volturi without physically laying a finger on them. Your mom, Renesemee, is the reason anyone of my family, the Cullen family, or the wolf pack is still alive today."

My eyes widened.

"And I'm sure she'll keep it that way. She'll risk everything to keep you and Jacob safe. As will you father and the rest of your family. And so will I."

I barely caught her last comment … for I was too stunned for her previous one. I hadn't known that my mom was the reason that we defeated the Volturi so long ago. Emmett used to tell me about Carlisle's negotiating and Dad's anger but never my mom.

I wonder why they hadn't told me.

"I'll tell you later," Jacob said like he could read my mind … like always. I nodded as he slipped his hand in mine. I looked up at him and our eyes locked; I felt safe with him beside me.

He grinned and I blushed yet again.

After boarding a plane and flying to Seattle, we drove non-stop (only stopping for the necessary potty breaks) until we reached just inside the California border. The sun setting behind the tall buildings, streaks of light spotting across the city, when Jacob finally pulled into the parking lot of a small diner.

"Hungry?" he asked, parking the car and shutting off the ignition.

"Starved," I admitted. He reached behind him and pulled his backpack up to his lap. He pulled out a t-shirt and slipped it over his head. "Ready?" I asked, pulling my hair up in a ponytail. We probably looked like crap; but, hey, we'd been driving for nearly six hours straight with hardly any stops.

"Yep," he replied shortly and got out of the car; I jumped out after him — we found out my door didn't open from the inside — and then he took my hand and we walked inside the restaurant, probably looking like an odd couple.

I blushed for what seemed to be the billionth time that day.

I'm sure when my parents planned this whole "escape" thing so long ago, I doubt they thought I'd be contemplating where Jacob and I stood in our relationship. Or where we were going. Or not going. I'm not really sure, actually, but I doubt they'd thought their daughter would be thinking this way.

The two of us approached a young woman dressed in a black shirt and slacks. Her red hair reminded me of Lizzie's but it was shorter, less frizzy, and straight; freckles covered her face and arms though, which was exactly like Lizzie. Her eyes were caramel-colored; she looked like a vampire if you just stared into her eyes … but everything about her was definitely human.

"How many?" she asked, pulling out a couple menus from under the podium.

"Just two," Jacob replied.

"Right this way," she said shortly, grabbing to sets of silverware. We followed her to a concealed area of the restaurant and, for that I was grateful. "You two look like you'd like some alone time," she said kindly and she winked at me, grinning.

I blushed and looked away. Jeez, I was pathetic.

She chuckled and then seated us. "I'm Sam, by the way, so, if you need anything, just let me know." She nodded to both me and Jacob and then went back to her post by the front of the restaurant.

For the longest time we sat in silence. I sipped my water that some guy placed in front of us and kept my eyes on my menu. Jacob did the same.

"Hello," I heard. My eyes traveled upward to meet the face of a boy around my age — well, human age so sixteen or seventeen — with brown eyes and shaggy brown hair. He was really tall and wore the same black-shirt-khaki-pants combo Sam was wearing. "I'm Ryan and I'll be taking your order today," he said politely, pulling out a notepad. "Can I bring you something to drink? Or are you ready to order?"

"I'll take a Coke and just the hamburger and French fries," Jacob said dully.

"Make that two," I added.

Ryan nodded and scribbled down our order. Jacob and I handed him our menus and he asked, "Do you need anything right away?" When Jacob shook his head, Ryan quickly disappeared into the kitchen that was actually about ten feet from where sitting.

As we waited for our food, Jacob and I made small talk. We spoke of some of the old "adventures" we'd taken when I was younger and how much fun it was. I laughed loudly at a particular one. "Oh my gosh, remember when we snuck in that pet lizard?"

He chuckled as well. "Yeah, your dad was so mad, he nearly had a heart attack. Hah. Heart attack." I giggled at his pathetic joke; trust me, he'd said them a lot. "That was a good day."

"Too bad I didn't know about Dad's ability to read minds back then … I would have saved myself some embarrassment."

Jacob smiled softly and brushed his hand against mine. "But we would have lost some of the best times in our lives. That lizard thing was awesome. Besides, if you did know about Edward's power, we would have never broken all the rules we did."

I blushed slightly and his grip loosened on my hand. Then, I panicked. Anyone looking now would guess that we were dating — which we weren't! — and that we were together, as a couple. For some reason, the idea was excitingly wonderful yet frightening terrible.

"I – I have to go to the bathroom," I whispered quietly.

Jacob nodded and released his grip on my hand. I stood up and headed to the restrooms, before tears could escape my eyes. It was so strange. The fact that Jacob and I could act like we were together, in public, and talk about old memories — including my parents — without pain coming.

What was happening to me? Was I forgetting my parents?

Then, as I passed the kitchen, I saw a scene I probably wasn't meant to see. Our waiter, Ryan, was hugging the hostess, Sam. She was dressed in a light jacket and she had changed out of her slacks to regular jeans; she looked like she was leaving.

"I love you," she whispered quietly, gripping onto him like if she let go, he might disappear.

"I love you too," he said just as quietly, kissing her forehead, tenderly. She looked up at him and grinned; he kissed the tip of her nose. Their eyes never left each others. They were so in love, it almost made me feel like I was invading their privacy by just standing here.

They reminded me of something I'd seen before. The way she buried her face in his chest and how he had kissed her forehead and stroked her hair seemed so familiar …

It looked just like Mom and Dad.

Just as I tried to push away their memory, their faces sprang up in my mind; their perfect faces were smiling at each as Dad kissed Mom's forehead. She closed her eyes as his lips touched her skin and then she buried her face in his chest.

I felt breathless, like the wind had been knocked out of me. I spun on my heel, ready to leave as soon as possible, the gaping hole in my heart crackling and burning.

"Jake," I said, coming up behind him.

He looked up, worrying crossing his brow. "Yeah, Ness, what's up? What's wrong?"

"I – I don't feel well …" I wheezed. "Can, we just go to a hotel and order in? I feel like I'm going to get sick." Jake nodded immediately and stood up, wrapping an arm around me. He weeded me through the throngs of tables and people, hoping for an escape.

I glanced up — so I wouldn't do something stupid like trip on nothing — when I saw him. He was wearing a dark cloak that covered every inch of his body, including his face. I couldn't really even tell it was a guy … I just sort of knew, you know?

My skin crawled at the sight of him.

Though I couldn't see his eyes, I felt mine lock with his. I started to shake. Who was this man? He was staring at me in such a way that I couldn't help but stare back. What was his problem? Who was he? And why was he unnoticed by everyone except me?

"Is your girlfriend sick?" asked a new hostess; her voice brought me back to reality. I looked away from the man and to her face. I was about to deny the accusation — I still had enough common sense to do that — but Jacob played along with the story.

"Yeah," he lied smoothly. "She must be getting that cold that's going around. I better get her home before she pukes over this nice carpet." He motioned to the ground.

I started to gag — maybe to freak the girl out a little when the truth was I'd never puked in my life — and her face turned green. She nodded. "Go ahead, and feel better." She patted my shoulder but quickly returned to her podium. I nodded at her comment.

Jacob was pushing me through the doors but, before we could leave, I looked back one more time at that mysterious man that had been sitting. There was something about him that seemed oddly familiar. But, as my eyes fell upon his table …

He wasn't there.

Well, that was strange.

A/N — So, I finally updated after another MONTH! Sorry! School, homework, the usual stuff that keeps me from writing. So, who is this man at the end of the chapter? Hmm … only time will tell. Haha. Okay, so if you'd like to see pictures of what I think Renesemee, Jacob, her room, their Cliffside, etc. go to my profile and then click the "Homepage" button directly below my name. From there, go to "Photo Gallery" and then the "Easy as Breathing" album.

Have a great week guys! Please review!

-Liz