A/N: This one took a bit longer because I was no longer working off of the old chapters.

Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight.

The forest around Forks was dense. As we ran towards the meeting spot set by the Cullens, I took in the beautiful range of greens I was flashing by. While the sky was clouding over and the rain was sure to come, sparse sunlight poured in through the areas the trees allowed. My skin reflected the light and I shifted away from it uneasily into more covered parts of the forest. The light didn't hurt – on the contrary, it felt nice for the sunlight to warm my body up slightly. I just wasn't comfortable being in the sunlight in an area I didn't know very well. It was possible for there to be hikers nearby, after all.

The run to the meeting place didn't last as long as I would've liked, but out of Cate, Henry and Matt's nerves we arrived a couple minutes early. I had grumbled and protested before following them out, simply because of a gut feeling. I could feel that the Cullens – that Edward wasn't a threat. We could co-exist. We would prove the general theory about vampires wrong. We didn't have to be in constant power struggles, after all we had overcome that instinct when we'd become a family and not a clan.

The spot the Cullens had chosen was really unremarkable – there was a slight clearing, but the sunlight hardly came through the trees that did surround it. I began my trek around the clearing and I tried to ignore Matt as he silently followed me.

"Matt, do you need something?" I glowered at him as I turned back at him.

He glared back. "You're my family, and I will protect you from them. They could arrive at any second."

I huffed but decided not to push, as I would be acting the same way if I had thought the Cullens were a threat.

Just a couple moments later, I heard ruffling and muted voices hundreds of yards out. "East," Henry murmured.

I rejoined them as they assembled themselves on the edge of the opposite side, facing east. Matt attempted to cover me, but I quickly shoved myself through and whispered, "He knows me."

Henry nodded at Matt and Cate placed a hand on my shoulder before squeezing lightly to show her support.

The first to arrive was Edward, which was frankly not surprising. A couple erupted from the woods behind him and I tried not to recoil from the burn of the beautiful blonde's glare. I stood as firm as I could as I glanced from her to her mate, a big burly guy who had a serious enough look on his face to make me a little uneasy. Another couple made their way out of the woods, this time a short and thin woman with a pixie haircut and an easy grin with a hesitant blond at her side. I stopped short as I easily spotted the scars from vampire fights that ran up his forearms. Behind them, was another couple that was much older than the rest of them. The man was easily one of the most beautiful out of all them, except maybe Edward, and at his side was a woman with warm eyes and a kind smile.

"Wow. Large family, huh?" I almost shut my eyes and cringed at my own remark. The tiny vampire's tinkling chuckle rang out and Edward shook his head slightly in exasperation. I cleared my throat, "So… uh, Edward already knows who I am. I'm Isabella Green, but please, call me Bella. This is my family – Henry, Catherine and Matthew. Henry is, uh, the leader of our family, so he'll take it from here."

Henry stepped in front of me, slightly, as the blond man spoke up. "Pleasure to meet you. We're the Cullens. I'm Carlisle and this is my wife Esme. These are my sons Jasper, Emmett, and Edward, and my daughters Alice and Rosalie. Edward mentioned your intention of moving into town?"

Alice waved at me shyly and I smiled and waved back.

Henry smiled at them and said, "Pleasure to meet you, as well. Yes, we moved in a couple of days ago. We do not subsist on human blood, so you need not worry about us drawing unnecessary attention. We'll also to make sure to spread out further from this area to hunt, as I'm sure that having these many vampires in one location would surely take a toll on the wildlife in the area."

Carlisle looked pleased as he said, "That's perfect. Now that that's settled, would you like to join us at our home? We'd like to over your cover stories, as we're concerned that the humans might find it… strange that so many people have our… unique appearance."

Henry glanced at Cate before glancing at Matt and me. I nodded my head slightly and Henry smiled back at Carlisle, "Why not?"

"Good," Carlisle smiled and then turned back to his family. "You can just follow us back, then?"

"Yes, that'd be fine."

As everyone began to move, Alice skipped over to me before pulling me into a hug. Startled, I allowed her to hug me and it was a second before I reciprocated. Jasper hung back slightly behind her and he looked in a bit of a panic.

"Oh, I just know that we're going to be best friends!" Her enthusiasm was catchy, and I laughed as I pulled back. "Come, Jasper, say hello!"

Alice stepped back and then pulled Jasper up. He gave me a tight smile before saying, "Hello."

I smiled back a bit awkwardly. As I had a habit of doing, I blurted out the first thing that came into mind. "A bit of a southern drawl, where are you from? Originally, of course."

Jasper bit back a real smile this time, as he replied, "Texas, ma'am. And yourself?"

"Uh… I was born in San Francisco, actually. I'm from the bay," I chuckled lightly, I saw Matt hanging back and giving me pointed glances. "I don't remember much of it, really. We should go, though. Everyone ditched us already."

Jasper eyed me for another second before motioning for Alice and me to go first. I stepped forward and attempted to shrug off that basic instinct to never turn my back on an unfamiliar vampire.

…

After the tense moment with Jasper, I'd caught up with Matt at the edge of the clearing before introducing him to Alice and Jasper again. As we walked towards their house, Alice had begun peppering us with questions. Matt had glanced at me in discomfort but had answered her questions honestly, nonetheless.

"Where are you from, Matthew?" Alice happily asked as we trekked through the woods.

Matt cleared his throat, "Call me Matt, please. I… actually don't remember where I was born or lived while I was human. The Greens found me in upstate New York during a particularly bad episode. Saved my life."

I smiled at him softly in an attempt to comfort him, as I remembered the look of anguish that I had seen on Matt's face all those years ago. Even now, I could see it perfectly in my mind. I could see the blood dripping from his mouth and the tears welling in his eyes as he realized what'd he done. I blinked and the image of Matt kneeling outside of that cottage house of the family he slaughtered dissolved.

"I'm sorry," Alice murmured. "I also don't have any recollection of my human life. I was fortunate enough to have my visions – they guided me through my first years until I found this one."

I didn't have to glance over to see Alice make googly eyes at Jasper to know that that was who she was referring to. "Did you find the Cullens or did they find you?"

"We found them," Alice chuckled softly, seemingly lost in her own memories. "I'd seen them in a clear vision – almost like a memory. It was meant to happen, and I just ensured that it did."

"Your visions… do you have them often? About anything and anyone?" I could see Jasper tense slightly at the question.

Alice made a noise of disagreement. "No, not anyone or everything. Usually it's someone or something that affects my family or me directly. I saw you, for example. I still see you, which means you'll be in our lives for quite some time."

I glanced at her and furrowed my brows as she smirked at me knowingly. She was smiling like she knew something I didn't. I chose to ignore her comment as I said, "Does your family always settle together?"

"No, not always," Jasper piped up. "Every few years, some of us take vacations. Take a breather from having to live as a human."

"Or honeymoons," Alice giggled lightly, and I hoped she was back to flirting with Jasper.

Thankfully, Jasper replied teasingly, "Yes, we do take quite a bit of those, as well."

"God, how far is this house?" Matt whispered to me conspiratorially, and I pushed him slightly.

I shrugged at Alice, "Don't listen to Matt, he's just jealous because he's never been on a honeymoon."

Through the trees, I began to see a house – an estate, really, complete with the winding driveway and gardens, and I sped up slightly.

"I would've gone on one if you hadn't said no, Bella." Matt teased from behind me.

Easily I flipped him the bird without glancing back and took a breath as we neared the tree line.

"We should head to the main house," Alice suggested before picking up her speed as we made our way through the rose garden. "They're expecting us."