Disclaimer: I own nothing.

A/N: My thanks to x19x, 2lulu2 and Jennyleelovee for reviewing. As per x19x's advice, I am reminding my readers that in this story, Jacob has not imprinted on Renesmee.

Chapter Three: Something New

Bella's POV

I stood staring at myself in the mirror, scrutinising my appearance. It had been so long since I had tried to look human, that it was difficult to remember what I was supposed to look like. Charlie had gotten used to my appearance now, so there had been no need to pretend for months. But I was nervous about picking my cousin up from the airport. My family had always been very perceptive...

I decided to wear gloves: long, thin gloves that Alice had given me in that monstrous wardrobe in our lovely cottage. At least this would mean I could hug her without giving her frostbite.

Edward came up behind me, and wound his arms around my waist, pulling me back to him.

"What's wrong?" he asked, running his lips up and down my neck. I shivered. His touch still sent electricity sparking through my limbs.

"Just worried about Raiyn," I admitted.

He kissed my cheek softly. "There's no reason to worry, love. Everything will be fine."

I nodded, trying to be as convinced as he seemed. He turned me to face him and pressed his lips to mine, before taking my hand and running with me through the forest towards our family's house. We emerged from the edge of the trees moments later. Edward, unsurprisingly, hadn't a hair out of place, while my hair was a disarray from the foliage. I just don't know how he managed it. I smoothed down my hair as best I could as I made my way to the house, hand in hand with my husband.

Renesmee greeted us when we entered the house. She was playing cards with Rosalie, her face furrowed in concentration as she sprawled out on the floor. I smiled affectionately at her, and went to kneel down next to her. I ran my fingers through her long, silky curls, and sighed happily. She truly was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. I heard Edward head over to Emmett, who was sprawled out on the sofa, watching a football game.

Rosalie gracefully flicked down a card onto the pile, and Renesmee smiled gleefully. She knew she would win. She placed her hand on mine, showing me in an instant that she had already won the last five games. I left them to it, and went over to Edward. He and Emmett were not the only ones at the sofa now. They had been joined by Carlisle, Esme and Alice, who were all staring at the television, too. I noticed the football had been replaced with a news bulletin:

"... the latest in a long line of natural disasters that have baffled the experts, eastern Kazakhstan has been hit by the worst tsunami on record. The area is at a standstill as people try to find their loved ones and piece together their lives..."

Carlisle was frowning in concentration, staring at the screen, still as a statue.

"Impossible," he eventually ventured.

"I know," Edward agreed.

"What?" I asked, not understanding what I was missing.

"Eastern Kazakhstan is basically landlocked," Carlisle explained. "There's nowhere for a tsunami to come from."

We all stood silently, contemplating this information. What was happening to the world? I shuddered a little at the thought, and pulled myself back to our reality. I tugged on Edward's cuff.

"We need to get to the airport," I murmured.

He nodded, and we headed to the door. Alice followed us, her eyes miles away and troubled. Edward turned to her, his face mirroring her frown. They locked in a worried gaze for a moment. I hated it when they did that.

"What is it? What's wrong?" I insisted.

"I don't know," Alice replied slowly and quietly. "Just... be careful."

Edward nodded once, and led me out to the car, his hand firmly around mine.

"What has she seen?" I asked when we were in the car.

Edward sighed and frowned again. "I'm not certain. Its almost like a warning of some sort. Like... something is coming."

My eyes widened involuntarily. Not the Volturi. Not again.

Edward was suddenly all smiles, that all-too-perfect mask almost concealing his worry. He turned the key in the ignition. "Lets go."

The airport was crowded, and it made me uncomfortable. Edward pulled me close to his side to comfort me, and we made our way through the huge building to wait at the right terminal. We didn't have to wait long until we heard the plane land, and sometime later a vaguely familiar face appeared in a crowd of people from the luggage claim. I'd had to look at some old family photos to remind myself of what she looked like, and those were taken years ago. Still, her face was somewhat recognisable. Mine must have been, too, because she smiled when she locked eyes with me. But as she made her way closer to us, both Edward and I froze. I knew he noticed the same thing as me. Her smell. No. Not her smell, exactly, but more her... presence. Something different. Something new.

"Hi!" she greeted me, flinging her arms around my shoulders. I stiffened. Her blood burned my throat like a human should, but the smell was strange. I smiled warmly at her when she pulled back, and introduced Edward. He was as polite and charming as ever, but I could see the tension in his eyes.

We took her back in the car to Charlie's, and the journey started off in silence.

"So, how's Aunt Paula doing?" I asked after a while.

"She's okay," Raiyn replied. "She's changed her job again. This is her third in eighteen months."

I couldn't help but smile. Seems like Renee wasn't the only scatterbrain in the family.

"So, what do you do, Raiyn?"

I glared at Edward's blunt tone, but I knew he was just as curious as I was.

"Um..." Raiyn sounded nervous. I couldn't blame her. "Well I want to travel, really. I don't... really... have a plan." She grinned bashfully.

Edward managed a small smile. "Nothing wrong with that; you've got plenty of time."

When we finally got to Charlie's, I smelled the unmistakable scent of a werewolf. When we pulled into the street, I could hear Charlie talking with Seth Clearwater. Edward parked behind the cruiser, and Raiyn whispered to me.

"Am I staying with you, or staying here?" she whispered, eyeing the house awkwardly. I could understand her anxiousness. Charlie was hardly the easiest person to live with, especially for someone who wasn't used to him. But then, what was the lesser of the two evils: staying in a house of vampires or staying with Charlie?

Edward answered that conundrum for me: "I'm sure we can figure something out back home."

I gave him an 'are you sure?' look, but he just smiled.

We went into the house and Charlie greeted Raiyn warmly but awkwardly. Seth inhaled sharply, reminding me a little of Edward as he did so, and his eyes widened in confusion. He looked at us questioningly, but Edward just shook his head a little.

Seth tried really hard to act normal, but it was obvious that he was more confused by her than we were. Edward stared at her, with his 'I'm trying to read your mind' expression plastered on his face. If Raiyn noticed, she pretended not to.

"...Its so nice to finally be here," she smiled, obviously tired. "I'd love to look around, maybe tomorrow?" She looked at me.

I smiled slightly. "Yeah, sure. Seth, do you think you'll be able to take Raiyn to La Push tomorrow, show her around?" I would have offered to take her myself, but, even though the vampire/werewolf alliance was intact, I didn't want to push my luck.

He nodded, still not looking too sure. I tried to give him a reassuring smile. There was nothing to worry about. Was there?

We left a little while later. A sheet of rain hit us as we left the house, and Raiyn stared at it with a dismal expression.

"So... it rains a lot?"

Edward chuckled. "You have no idea."

A/N: Thank you for reading. If you enjoyed this, please take a look at my other story, Double Dare.