I don't normally put AN's on top of chapters, but I hope you will forgive me for it this one time.

I am completely blown away and humbled by the response this story has received, thanks to the recs by Cara No and HolletLA. You guys rocked my world .

Thank you everyone who's been reading and leaving me reviews. You're all such perceptive readers and posed so many good questions. Rest assured that pretty much all of them will be addressed in the story. But enough about that.

And now, on with the show!


Chapter 7

The giggles bubbled out of my lips uncontrollably. Jasper was sitting on the porch steps, holding his face in his hands, in full on 'pout mode.'

"Rosalieeeeee," Jasper whined.

She slowed down long enough to tell Jasper to wait his turn before she took off around the front yard again, making airplane noises. Her grip on my legs was tight enough that I could let go of her neck to spread my arms and lift my face to better feel the sun and the wind. It really felt like flying.

Rosalie was 13 years old, that age when girls want nothing more than to shut themselves in their rooms and talk on the phone with their friends. Not my sister. She always made time to play with Jasper and me, and on this sunny afternoon, she was giving us piggyback rides, pretending she was an airplane and we were the pilots.

"Yeeeeeeooooooowwwwnnnnn….!" Rosalie crowed as we did another fly-by of the mailbox. I laughed loudly with joy.

Rosalie had already hit her growth spurt, and at 13, her lean, tall-for-her-age stature hinted at the beautiful woman she would become. Jasper and I, 7 and 9 years old respectively, still looked very much like little boys, scrawny and short. The world looked so different when seen from the height of my big sister's back. Playing airplane with her had been my favorite thing; I had the fondest memories of Rose hauling me around on her back. When she got tired, she'd collapse backwards onto the grass, effectively landing on top me, yelling "Mayday!" all the while.

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This piggyback ride, however, was quite different. When Bella jumped out my living room window with me attached to her back, my instinct had been to scream in fright, but the fall made my stomach jam in my throat, effectively silencing me. Oh yeah, did I mention I lived on the 5th fucking floor?

I was fully expecting for the both of us to go splat onto the sidewalk, but even though the drop was abrupt, Bella landed on the balls of her feet, somehow absorbing the impact so that I barely felt jostled. Once I realized we were safely on the ground and I no longer had a reason to be scared shitless, — and after double-checking that I hadn't wet my pants — I had the impulse to ask her if we could do it again. It probably wouldn't be a good idea, not while she had that murderous look on her face, anyway.

She unwound my arms from around her neck and pulled me towards a black car parked precisely in front of my building as she fished in her pocket for the remote to unlock the doors.

I reached the passenger-side door and stared at the car, my mouth hanging open. "Hey, is this an SLR McLar…"

"Get in," she spat, interrupting my question.

I got into the car, and no sooner than my door was shut, she was peeling out into the street.

"Put your seat belt on," she commanded as her eyes darted between the rear view mirror and the road.

I did as she asked, hoping to appease her, but she was so tense that it was starting to freak me out. "Bella, what's going on? Are we running from something?"

She took a deep breath and let it out slowly; it seemed as though she was fighting to control herself. Bella raised a hand, prompting me to wait, but didn't respond. She had her cell phone out, hitting a number on the speed dial.

"Alice?" She paused to hear what Alice had to say next. "No, we got out in time." Another pause. "Good, stay with him. I'm heading home, Edward is with me. Meet us there. And don't leave him out of your sight," Bella ordered, and ended the call.

I glanced out the window; the streets blurred past us, but I noticed she was headed for the I-5, heading out of Seattle. "Bella, where are we going?"

"Forks," she replied.

"What's that?"

"A small town on the coast. That's where my family lives," Bella explained.

"The coast? Bella, that's an almost four-hour drive!"

Bella gave me a sly grin, and nodded her head towards the speedometer. I noticed the needle was steadily moving upwards; it was already past the 120 mark. "No, it's not," she said with a wink.

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If I hadn't been so preoccupied with the events — so far, still unknown to me — that led to us dashing out of Seattle like a couple of bank robbers, I would have been yelling in pleasure with my head hanging out the window like a dog as Bella pushed the speed past 160. Not that I would have accomplished the feat of sticking my head out the window; the four-point seat belt kept my ass glued to the seat, and even as she took every turn without slowing down, my body remained in place.

In just slightly under an hour, we were pulling up in front of an enormous house with floor-to-ceiling glass panels that spanned the width of the front walls. I started undoing the seat belt, but Bella stopped me.

"Stay here," she said, then walked out of the car and came around to my side. She stood stock-still, as if listening for something, then nodded once to herself. "It's all right now. You can come out."

I exited the car and eagerly took the hand she offered me, and together we walked up the stairs to the wide front porch. Just then, a yellow Porsche screeched to a halt, parking next to Bella's car. A second later, Alice and Jasper joined us on the steps. The door opened, revealing the man I had seen hugging Bella and handing her the manila envelope, a beautiful woman standing by his side, her face smiling in welcome. I didn't recognize her at first, but she looked so familiar. It was with a jolt that I realized this was Bella's mother. It was obvious now; she looked exactly like she had in the picture Bella showed me of herself as a little girl, holding hands with her mother. They looked a lot alike, the same almond-like eyes, the same heart-shaped face.

Bella's mother walked forward and took my hand in both of hers. "Welcome, Edward; it's so good to finally meet you," she greeted me with warmth. "And Jasper, too! Please, won't you come in?" She invited us, having spotted Jasper standing behind Bella, Alice bringing up the rear.

"Thank you, Mrs. Cullen," I said politely as I entered the house. The living room was brightly lit, decorated much in the same fashion as the apartment Bella and Alice shared in Seattle, with light colors and understated furniture.

"Please, call me Esme. This is my husband, Carlisle," she said, introducing the tall, blond man.

He smiled openly at me, shaking my hand with vigor. "We're so glad you're finally here. Both of you," Carlisle said, looking between Jasper and me. I still felt a little residual antagonism towards him, even though I now knew that my jealousy of him was completely unfounded.

Jasper moved past me to shake hands with Carlisle, and then turned to hug Esme as if they'd known each other all their lives. She returned the hug with feeling, releasing a contented little sigh. I couldn't help but stare in surprise. Jasper seemed to be completely comfortable and at home here. Did he not know anything yet?

After the introductions were over, Carlisle, Bella and Alice disappeared through a door after Bella promised to "be right back." Esme excused herself and walked briskly to the kitchen, leaving Jasper and me by ourselves in the living room.

"Jasper, did Alice tell you anything?"

He looked at me as if seeing me for the first time, a slow grin appearing on his face. "Yeah, man, can you believe this? They're vampires! How cool is that? Does Bella drive like a bat outta hell too? If I hadn't been in love with Alice already, I would be after I saw her drive that car. It was sexy as hell," he prattled on.

Was Jasper in shock or something? He was taking this all too well. Did he know about these Volturi characters? "What did Alice tell you?"

"She explained the whole 'mates' concept, and that's why we sort of fell in love at first sight, and that the same happened to you and Bella. She told me she and Bella are vampires, but they're not dangerous to us because they don't eat humans. She told me all about her family, Bella, Carlisle, and Esme. They sound like amazing people," Jasper concluded, an expression of pure happiness on his face. So Alice must have omitted the part about how the vampire mafia wanted us to join their ranks. Well, I suppose he could enjoy his bliss for a little while longer. There was nothing either one of us could do to help that for now, anyway.

Jasper suddenly pulled me into a hug, slapping my back a couple of times before letting go. "This is all completely crazy, isn't it, bro? But I'm glad we're in this mess together," he chuckled.

I joined him in his good spirits. "Me, too, Jazz," I agreed.

When I addressed him as "Jazz," he seemed to have remembered something. "By the way, can you help me convince Alice to at least use my 'official' nickname? She insists on calling me 'Jaspy,'" he requested with feigned annoyance. I'd be willing to bet Alice could call him anything she wanted, and he would go running to her just the same, lovesick fool that he was. Who was I kidding? I got it just as bad for Bella, though I've been lucky; she hasn't attempted to call me 'Eddiepoo' yet or something equally embarrassing. I'd have to assert my manliness if she tried.

Esme came out of the kitchen then, a poorly disguised grin on her face, holding a tray with two cans of soda and some sandwiches. She set it down on the coffee table in front of us, and Jasper unceremoniously reached over to grab one of the sodas and a sandwich. Bella's family would think we were raised in a barn.

I glared at Jasper, and he shrugged in response, grunting "What?" through a mouthful of food. I rolled my eyes at him so forcefully I momentarily feared they'd be lost in the back of my head.

Reaching for a sandwich, I made sure to thank Esme before I took a bite, showing her that at least one of the Masen brothers had manners. For some reason, I felt it was very important that she liked me. Maybe because she was the mother of the girl I was falling head over heels for. She looked on fondly as we ate our way through the entire tray of sandwiches. I didn't know about Jasper, but I hadn't eaten all day and my stomach was stuck to my back by now.

Esme kindly refrained from making conversation, thus not forcing us to speak with our mouths full. Not that it would have deterred Jasper in any way, rude little troll that he was. Just as we were done eating, Bella walked into the living room, Carlisle and Alice following close behind her.

"Thank you for feeding them, mother. I had completely forgotten." She looked over to me, her eyes downcast in apology.

"Of course, dear. It was my pleasure," Esme beamed. I had the distinct impression that she was being sincere with that statement.

Carlisle moved to stand by his wife as Bella reached me and took my hand. "Come with me, Edward."

Alice sat on the couch next to Jasper, and he immediately placed an arm around her shoulder as they engaged in a whispered conversation. Bella smiled slightly at whatever she heard them say while I followed her up a winding, wooden staircase.

She led me down a long hallway on the third floor to a room at the very end. It was as large as my whole apartment, with glass panels on two walls that converged on a corner of the house. The moon was full and it cast a subtle glow over the room. I could see Bella's face clearly, even though no lights were on. She looked ethereal in the moonlight, as if she were an apparition straight out of my wildest dreams.

"Alice called ahead and had my mother make sleeping arrangements for you and Jasper," she explained as I looked around the room, my eyes falling on a bed recently made with fresh sheets.

"Nice guest room," I complimented her.

"Oh. Um, this is my room," she corrected me, suddenly abashed. "Anyway, it's late, and it's been a long day. You must be tired. There is a bathroom through that door, you should find everything you need in there," Bella added quickly. "I'll let you get some rest," she said, moving towards the door.

I was unwilling to let her go yet. "Stay with me for a bit?"

Bella seemed surprised by my request, but complied with good grace, and took a seat on an armchair near the door.

"I'll be right back," I told her, rushing to the bathroom. I almost cried with joy when I found a toothbrush still in its package and an unused tube of toothpaste by the sink. I spotted shaving accessories on the edge of the marble counter, and from running a hand over my face, I knew I was sporting a healthy five o'clock shadow, but I really didn't want to keep Bella waiting much longer, so I decided to skip the shave until morning, opting to just brush my teeth. I was just thinking about how I didn't want to sleep in the clothes I had been wearing all day when a stack of neatly folded cloth sitting on a stool caught my eye. It was a pair of flannel pajama pants, but no shirt. Well, I guess that's settled. I discarded my jeans and t-shirt quickly for the flannel pants and walked out of the bathroom.

Bella still sat on the same armchair, and from the look of her, she hadn't moved. I got into the bed, the exhaustion of the day catching up with me. Suddenly, I thought of my brother.

"Where is Jasper going to sleep?"

"Alice will be taking care of him, you have nothing to worry about," she assured me.

I slumped back on the pillow and closed my eyes. I was so tired, but my mind refused to settle down. I felt a slight jostling on the mattress next to me, and opened my eyes to find Bella sitting there.

"Is this all right?" She asked, her voice colored by uncertainty.

"Of course it is," I soothed her, elated by her closeness.

She placed a hand on top of my head and began running her fingertips softly through my scalp, cuddling my head against her chest, and the effect was instantaneous. The second her hand touched me, I no longer had a care in the world. This was home; this was where I belonged, right here with her.

Bella touched her lips to my forehead ever so gently, and whispered, "Sleep, my love. I'll watch over you through the night."

A blissful sigh escaped me before I lapsed into a peaceful sleep.

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Bella POV

Carlisle and I were already seated in his study when Alice and Esme finally joined us.

"Took you long enough," I admonished Alice as she entered.

She raised her eyebrows at me and then broke into quiet laughter. "Jasper kept waking up every time I stood up to leave the room; I just now managed to escape without waking him," she said.

Alice came to sit on the arm of my chair while Esme settled next to Carlisle on the couch.

Mother turned to me. "Bella, dear, I've gotten their clothes washed, they're in the dryer and should be ready well before morning," she informed me.

I nodded at her gratefully. "Thank you, mother."

"Bella, I've already filled Esme in on what little you told me when you arrived, that you smelled Felix nearby, then ran with Edward before he could pinpoint your location," Carlisle quickly summarized.

I nodded. "Yes. He was so close. My reactions might have scared Edward a little," I began, now regretting my outburst of fury and the rash decision to take him away through the window. "Oh my God, I could have killed him!" My hands flew to my mouth at the horror of my realization.

"Killed him how?" Carlisle asked urgently.

This was going to be embarrassing to admit. "When I picked up Felix scent, I flew into a rage, and all rational thought went right down the drain. I grabbed Edward and jumped out the window with him, got in the car, and drove here," I said.

"I still don't see how you could have killed him, Bella. Do you mean on the drive? You know better than to think you'd get in an accident," Carlisle tried to placate me.

I shook my head. "No, I mean when I jumped out the window. He lives on the 5th floor. I didn't even think about it at the time, but it was quite a drop. I could have given him a heart attack," I explained, completely mortified.

Alice burst out laughing, earning herself a sour look from me, while Carlisle worked hard to contain a smirk. "Bella, he's quite young and seemingly in excellent health. It would take more than a little scare to make his heart stop," he said.

"It was still careless of me. There is no excuse for me not keeping his human frailties in mind. Anyway, no point in dwelling on it now, it's done. I'll just need to remember to be more careful in the future," I said, effectively closing the subject. I would beat myself up about it later; we had other matters to discuss now.

I turned to Carlisle. "I warned Felix the first time he tried to seize Edward; you know, the usual protocol," I stated airily. The Volturi knew that Carlisle and his family had established a permanent residence in Washington, and that we interacted with humans. We have a track record of being protective of the humans in the area. It benefited our anonymity not to have human bodies showing up inexplicably drained. Based on this widely known premise, I prevented Felix from touching Edward that night outside the club. It was imperative that the Volturi remained in the dark about the ties between the Masens and us. If they suspected what Edward and Jasper meant to Alice and me… I shudder to think how the Volturi could use them to bend us to their will.

"But he tried again tonight?" Carlisle inquired, a frown marring his usually placid countenance.

"Honestly, I can't be 100% sure about what he would do. It might have been just a reconnaissance trip, but I wasn't willing to chance it. When I realized he was in the vicinity, we were out of there like the place was on fire," I clarified.

Eleazar had mentioned, in passing, that he sensed a talented human nearby when he tracked down Alice and me a few weeks ago. She had seen his visit happening at our apartment, but he made a last-minute decision to find us at the school instead, which brought him close enough to Edward to pick up on some ability he appeared to possess. Eleazar didn't elaborate, and we couldn't afford to ask further questions and risk bringing our link to the Volturi's attention. As far as we could tell, their interest was centered on Edward; Jasper was safe for the time being. This encounter, of course, had put a damper on our plans to casually "meet" the Masen brothers. With Eleazar expressing his notice of Edward, we had to remain in the shadows. Felix's actions forced me to intervene, but we had a plausible explanation for that.

"I know Eleazar has returned to Italy, so Felix must have stayed behind alone. I doubt they'd feel the need to have more than one member of their guard to bring in a human. Have you detected any other scents around Edward?" Carlisle wanted to know.

I shook my head. "No, Felix is the only one of them who's been anywhere near him, apart from Eleazar. Now that he is back in Italy, I don't know what information he will give them, and how invested they will be in obtaining Edward, which might mean they'll send a larger party to retrieve him. He's human, you know they won't extend him the same courtesy as they have us. He's only a step up from being a meal because they deem him useful, but not worthy of any consideration until he's one of them," I finished, unable to keep the sadness off my voice.

"What if we kept them here, out of sight, for a little while?" My mother suggested. "Maybe Felix would give up for the time being? We know Demetri isn't here, it should give us some breathing room."

Demetri was the Volturi's tracker. If he decided to find someone, there was no place on earth one could hide from him.

"As much as I'd like to, we can't keep them away from Seattle. If they disappeared, it would raise questions. They have family, friends, and obligations. We can't keep them from their classes, and they're playing at Perestroika this weekend. I doubt they'd agree to leave their band mates in a lurch, nor would I ask." Mother's face fell slightly at my words.

"I'm worried," I whispered to no one in particular. Alice put an arm around my shoulders, resting her cheek on the top of my head. She has always been such a comfort to me, from the day she woke up from the change.

"It will be all right, dear. We'll think of something. We'll keep them safe," mother vowed.

Alice straightened and stilled all of a sudden. I was out of my seat in a flash.

"Alice, what do you see?" I demanded, my hands on her face.

She remained immobile for another minute, then her body relaxed. "Felix will be called back to Italy in a few minutes. Eleazar will tell Aro about the human he sensed, and Aro will be very excited about Edward's ability. I can't tell what he will see in Eleazar's mind. Aro will send him back with Demetri and Afton; Felix won't join them."

"When?" Carlisle asked.

Alice's eyes went out of focus again, but just for a few seconds this time. "I can't be sure. I see our Christmas decorations will be up, so maybe a month. They're going to ask for our help with Edward. They think that if they go about it diplomatically, since they're technically stepping on our territory, we won't stand in their way. Felix is staying behind because they don't want to appear confrontational, and Felix is not exactly Mr. Congeniality," she quickly described her vision. Then she began clapping her hands excitedly, and exclaimed, "Oh yay, it'll be cold enough to wear my new purple pea coat; you know the one, Bella? This calls for a new pair of boots, I don't have any that match it. When can we go shopping?" Alice smiled at me, expecting an answer.

Trust Alice to worry about what she was going to wear when the Volturi came calling. The girl had no sense of priorities whatsoever.

"Alice, focus! So we have a month before we have to deal with them again?"

She nodded. "That's the time frame we have to work with for now, yes, but you know that's not set in stone. I'll keep watch, though," Alice assured us.

Reaching for Alice's hand, I towed her with me towards the door. "Carlisle, Alice and I need to hunt. Would you mind staying here with mother while we're gone? We won't be long, but I don't want to leave Edward and Jasper on their own, just in case."

It was mother who replied, "Yes, of course we'll stay." She stood and shooed us out the door. "Go, go, they'll be fine," she added with a smirk.

As Alice and I ran through the forest, I allowed myself a small measure of relief. Naturally, I couldn't afford to get complacent and make the mistake of believing it would really be an entire month before they came for Edward. We'd still need to plan our course of action; there was no way we would simply abide by their wishes and allow the Volturi to have Edward but, right now, I was at a loss to see how this could be accomplished without any hostility.

No, it wouldn't be a month. The storm was coming as surely as the world turns. But I could grant myself a few days to enjoy the sunshine before it came. My thoughts turned to Edward, and I could almost feel the warmth of the sun on my face.

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Edward POV

I awoke alone. As I got up from the bed, the morning chill hitting my body with a slap. It seemed to be shortly after sunrise, and a light fog still clung to the windows. I went into the bathroom to retrieve my clothes, more importantly, my shirt, but they weren't where I left them. They were nowhere to be found, so I wrapped myself in the blanket and padded out into the hallway. All the doors were closed, and the house was deathly quiet.

"Um… Bella?" I whispered, hoping she was close enough to hear me.

A second later, she poked her head around the top of the stairs. "Yes?"

Relief flooded through me at the sight of her. I didn't like waking up to find her gone. "Where were you?"

"Mother and I are in the kitchen. She wanted to prepare breakfast for you and Jasper, and she's trying to teach me how to cook. It's not very easy to cook stuff that tastes like dirt to me," she said, scrunching up her nose.

I laughed nervously. "There's really no need to go through all that trouble, we can get something to eat later."

Bella graced me with a breathtaking smile. "It's no trouble at all, and mother is just having the time of her life with her newfound reason to use the kitchen. Come join us downstairs, I don't think Jasper is awake yet."

"I'd love to. But I kind of need my clothes for that," I whispered.

"Of course. They're in the dryer, mother insisted on washing them. They should be done, let me get them for you," she said, disappearing back down the stairs and returning a few beats later with my clothes neatly folded, still warm from the dryer.

Bella handed me the clothes, and I held out my arm from under the blanket to accept them.

"Are you cold?" She asked, eyeing the goosebumps that erupted on my skin.

"No, no, I'm fine," I assured her, but she didn't seem to believe me. I was actually freezing.

"I'm so sorry, we're not really used to having human guests here," she apologized. "You and Jasper actually have the great honor of being the first ones," Bella declared with a mocking curtsy. "Go get dressed and come downstairs, I'll go turn the heat on."

I followed the smell of burned bacon, finding Bella and Esme standing by the stove. There was a heaping platter of scrambled eggs on the counter, a stack of toast next to it that looked to be the entire loaf, and a plate of non-charred bacon.

"No, Bella, you have to flip it after a couple of minutes, or this happens," Esme was saying, holding up a blackened-looking strip for inspection.

"Good morning," I called hesitantly. Bella turned around to face me, her brilliant smile stunning me for a moment.

"Good morning," Esme said. "Come sit, we have breakfast ready," she announced proudly, pointing at the food with the spatula she held.

I sat at the counter while Esme started piling up eggs on a plate. "Jasper still asleep?" I wondered as I helped myself to a piece of toast.

Bella was lowering herself onto the seat next to me when I asked about Jasper. She paused for a second, listening, before she sat down and answered, "Yes. Mother will save him some breakfast."

When I was done eating, I followed her to the entryway. Bella reached into a closet by the front door, pulling out a coat. "It's cold out, you should wear this," she suggested, offering me the jacket.

"Where are we going?" I asked when she took my hand and started walking toward her car.

"I want to show a place I like to go to when I'm in Forks," she told me. "If you'd like to see it, that is," she added quickly.

Rubbing the back of her hand with my thumb, I hastened to reassure her, "Wherever you go, that's where I want to be."

Her face relaxed into a smile, and then her eyes glinted with mischief. Holding up her key ring, she offered, "Do you want to drive?"

Happy birthday to me! No, it wasn't really my birthday, but the prospect of driving this car had me doing mental cartwheels. I'd do the real ones, but I'm not that flexible.

"Are you sure you don't mind?" I asked, reaching for the keys she held out to me.

She shook her head with a giggle and settled on the passenger seat. Bella leaned towards the driver side and beckoned me, "Get in, Edward. I'll give you directions."

I didn't need telling twice. The purr of the engine elicited an indecent moan from me; Bella laughed heartily at that. Once we were outside the city limits, she directed me, "Turn on the 110. And then drive until the pavement ends."


A/N: Guess where they're going? =D

Thanks for reading!