Dawn of the Phoenix: Cedric goes to Forks

Story and Characters owned by

Stephenie Meyer and JK Rowling

Story Adaptation by Erica K. Bailey

Chapter 10: Old Friends

"Edward, did you know Dumbledore was getting me a car?' I asked as soon as I found Edward sitting with Bella in the living room.

"Not until I heard you outside just now." He smiled, "So what kind of car did you get?"

"Um – a grey sedan?"

He sighed, "Let's go take a look."

In a minute not only Edward, but the rest of his family was outside checking out my automobile. Well, not my automobile. It belonged to Hogwarts, but it was mine to use. At first they didn't say much, just walked around and looked at it. I sensed they were disappointed in it. "Well, at least it's not American." Emmett finally said.

"It's a very respectable car, Cedric," Carlisle commented, "It's made in Japan by a company called Toyota. The model is a Camry, which is a sedan. It should prove to be a reliable vehicle for what you need."

Rosalie had already opened the front of the car and was peering intently at the machinery. "There's some potential here. It's in good shape. We could make some modifications to make it adequate. Maybe that… and we can switch out that… and add to this over here." She said as she pointed to various things, with Emmett nodding and grunting in the affirmative from time to time. She stepped back and said, "Emmett?" In an instant Emmett had the front of the car lifted off the ground and Rosalie was underneath poking and pulling at various components, "Yes, I can definitely see some improvements we could be easily make. It wouldn't take any time at all."

"I don't mean to be particular, but what kind of improvements?" I asked.

"Oh, nothing for you to worry about. It's just that this car is barely adequate. We will make it better." She grinned.

I wasn't sure it needed to be better. It seemed fine on the way home.

"Just let her do this. Believe me; you'll appreciate what Rosalie can do with a piece of machinery." Edward leaned over to me.

I had already felt partially violated by the way Alice had picked over every article of clothing I had worn yesterday. And now Rosalie was taking liberties with my automobile. These Cullen girls really had boundary issues.

Edward smirked in response, "Yes, but worth it in the end."

"You know Cedric, you're getting almost as bad as Alice." Emmett complained.

"He doesn't like it when we talk in my head." Edward eased my confusion.

"But he can talk to you in your head."

"Yes, but I what I hear from Emmett isn't usually worth responding to."

"Hey!" Emmett tried to take a more then playful swing at his brother. Edward easily ducked out of the way. "Cheater!"

"You'd think after seventy years he'd have figured this out."

"So where are you going to go for your maiden voyage?" Jasper asked.

"Well, I've already had my first drive on the way back here. And I can't drive without a licensed driver with me. I would really like to go down and meet the wolves, but none of you can come with me, right?" I asked.

"Sorry" Carlisle replied, "None of us can…and Bella hasn't had her license long enough to make it legal."

I paused. Now that I'd admitted it, I was really interested in getting down to La Push. Not only because I was fascinated with the wolves, but because I wanted to push myself into a new situation and into unfamiliar territory. I knew I needed to do that to prepare myself.

"I could take you" Bella offered. Edward stiffened slightly before his face turned to the placid mask that told me he was hiding his true feelings, but said nothing. "If you really want to go down. I haven't seen Billy since I got back. And Seth." Edward relaxed a little at that.

"Bella, I would really appreciate that." I said eyeing Edward to see if he had any objections. But if he had any, he was purposely keeping them to himself.

"Okay, Bella. I guess we're on our way." I held out the keys and she took them quickly out of my hand and crawled into the driver's seat. I got into the passenger side and we were off.

"Why are we stopping?" I asked when she got to the end of the driveway.

"Because you are going to drive down to the reservation, Cedric…" She said as she got out of the car and came around to my door.

"But it's not legal."

"This is Forks – nobody cares." She said as she yanked on my arm to get out. I wasn't sure about this. I was already feeling a bit uncomfortable about driving around with what I was sure was an illegally obtained drivers license. "Listen Cedric, it'll be okay. My Dad's the police chief. He won't get us in trouble."

I was surprised at her candor. She didn't strike me as a person who broke the rules. She was normally very responsible and honest. But the look in her face said she wasn't kidding me about this. She had an almost wild impulsive look about her I hadn't seen before – as though going to the reservation had brought out another side to her I've never met, and wasn't particularly excited about.

"Fine – but we're not getting pulled over." I said. "I don't want you getting into trouble. Now which way?"

She pointed in the opposite direction from town and we headed out. It wasn't all that far and I was surprised at how quickly we arrived in a very different community from Forks. The small houses, without defined yards, children running all over the place, and the prevalence of darker complexions, especially in contrast with the Cullens, made it seem like an entire different community.

"This is Billy Black's house." Bella pointed out. "Come on." She jumped out of the car and ran up the steps, yelling, "Hey Billy..."

Before she made it to the front door, it opened and an older tired looking man in a wheel chair peered out. "Bella, is that you? I haven't seen you for over a year." He smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. There was a profound sadness to him that seemed to affect Bella as well, as though she hadn't expected it.

"It's me." She smiled faintly, "and this is my friend, Cedric. He came over from London with Sirius."

"Ah, well, Sirius is here now. Why don't you join us?" He wheeled himself around, back into the tiny house. Bella disappeared through the door. I took a deep breath and followed.

The little house was primarily one small room that served as kitchen, dining room and living room in one. There appeared to be two bedrooms off the main room and a bathroom. I realized, with some guilt, that this tiny house was only a fraction of the living space of the "cabin" the Cullens had built for us in their back yard.

"Good day Bella, Cedric" Sirius greeted us as we entered, "Finally come down for a visit."

"Cedric wanted to come, and nobody else could bring him… and I wanted to see you, Billy. And maybe Seth?" There was a question in her voice, and I guessed there was more to what she was asking then her words revealed.

"Seth is out on patrols right now, but he should be back soon. He's been staying here with me lately." Again, the profound sadness was revealed in his face. Then he turned to look at me, "Sirius wasn't kidding. You could be Edward's brother…" then glancing back at Bella, "He knows?"

"Yes, Cedric is fully aware of all the other mythical creatures around here. He's a wizard." Bella confirmed.

"Can you shift like Sirius?"

"No, Sir. I'm afraid not."

He furrowed his brow at my comment, "No need for 'Sir' 'round here."

"Yes, Sir… er… okay."

Billy just shook his head. "Well, it sounds like Seth is back," and I realized the cracking and rustling sound was something large moving through the trees. I couldn't help myself. I ran out into the yard just in time to see a wolf larger then I could have imagined bound out of the forest. It stopped and stared at me, cocking its head from one side to the other. I would be lying if I didn't admit I was a little afraid. The wolf padded right up to me and sniffed at my chest and then barked out what almost sounded like a confused "what?"

"It's okay, Seth," Billy called from the porch of his tiny house.

The wolf looked up at him and Bella and then back at me with the most perplexed expression if that were even possible for a wolf.

"There's still some shorts out by the garage." Billy stated.

The wolf looked back up at him and then seemingly shrugged before he backed away and quickly dove back into the trees. Less then a minute later a young man reappeared wearing nothing but shorts.

"Edward?" He asked looking at me in confusion.

"No. I'm Cedric, a friend of Edward's… and Bella's"

"Well, that explains the smell… Bella you're back!" he exclaimed jumping up to the top of the porch in one leap, skipping the steps entirely and pulling her into a hug, "Still human I see." He smiled.

"Yes. And how have you been?"

"Pretty good. I've been doing a lot more of the patrols." He said with pride. He looked to be in his mid-twenties, but by the way he spoke, I would have thought him to be closer to my age or even younger, "Sam's even let me run with the pack on longer excursions."

"Really, that's great, Seth. You've grown so much, I almost didn't recognize you."

"Yeah" He grinned, "I guess by Jacob's calculation, my relative age must be like 30 now."

At the mention of the name, I noticed both Bella and Billy's expressions fall. I wondered if something had happened.

"Hey Sirius, I see you're back. Come for another run?"

Sirius smiled, "Maybe later."

There was a bit of an awkward pause and then Billy wheeled himself back into the house signaling us to follow.

"Edward would really like to meet up with you sometime, Seth."

"Hmmm," He frowned, "I suppose we could arrange a neutral meeting place… like maybe your house." Seth responded.

"You know that's not necessary. You're welcome at the Cullen's any time."

"I appreciate your saying that, Bella, but you know it's not your place to make such an offer." And with that his voice suddenly sounded ancient.

"I could call."

He thought about that for a minute and then smiled, the young boy back again, "Yep, I suppose that would work."

Bella quickly pulled out the silver phone Edward had handed her before we left and hit one of the buttons. "Edward.. No, no, everything's fine… Really, I'm fine – great in fact. Seth is here… I know you do… Because I know you, Edward…Well, I told him that but apparently I don't have the appropriate level of authority." She said with exasperation, "Alright, here he is." She handed the phone to Seth.

"Hey buddy – long time no see… Your friend Cedric just about gave me a heart attack – I thought you'd gone human or something…Yes, I'd like that too…Cool! We'll be on our way soon… Ya, later!" He clicked the phone together and handed it back to Bella. "I'm coming back with you guys."

"But I just got here." Bella said.

"Bella, you can come back." Billy said, "Besides, I think I'm going to go up and a steal a little time with your dad's flat screen."

"I think I'll join you." Sirius invited himself and Billy didn't seem to mind. He seemed to have made a good connection already.

And so, my inaugural trip to La Push was cut short to a mere ten to fifteen minutes as we drove back to the Cullen house. There were so many questions, not the least of which was what had happened with Jacob, but how did I ask that when it so clearly caused them pain? Fortunately, I didn't have to ask.

"Seth, haven't you seen Jacob at all?" Bella asked as I drove.

"I think he was considering coming back to see you one last time before... I could hear the debate in his mind, but when he heard you left for London, he just kept running. I think he assumed you'd come back, ah, different."

"He thought I'd become a vampire." She sighed. "And to him that would mean I was dead." I could hear the sob in her voice, though she held back the tears.

"He came back in November and stayed until Christmas, but it was too hard for him. So he took off after the New Year."

"Does he know we're back?"

"Can't say, Bella. He should, but you've only been back for a bit and none of us have seen you or the Cullens, so it hasn't really been on our mind. Unless we were thinking about it, he wouldn't know… I suppose he'll figure it out pretty quick after today, though."

"Seth, you seem so much older…"

"Hmmm"

There was a pause as I drove, Bella deep in though and Seth with seemingly nothing to say. Bella broke the silence. "I wish… I wish things could be different, somehow. That it could work out. It feels like it should work out – but maybe that's just my wishful thinking. Billy seems to be taking it hard. I'm surprised he could even look at me today."

"He doesn't blame you."

"He should." She turned and rested her head against the window. I wondered if she was crying, but I didn't want to ask.

Clearly this Jacob was someone who meant a lot to Bella – I guess they had known each other as children, or their families had known each other but they had a stronger connection then mere childhood friends. I wondered if this was the reason for Edward's reaction to her visit, though if Jacob wasn't there, that didn't make any sense. I was relieved when I saw the turn off to the Cullen's driveway.

When we got out of the car, Seth suddenly stopped. He almost looked like he was shaking. He took a few steps back and breathed deeply.

"Seth, are you okay?" Bella asked taking a step toward him. He held up his hand as if to say stop, but in an instant Edward was there pulling Bella behind him. I found myself already in a defensive stance, wand in hand, though I didn't know what I was defending against.

"Seth, are you in control?" Edward said sternly.

He raised one finger as he kept breathing, his eyes closed.

"Do you need to leave?" Edward asked, again with a very stern voice.

He shook his head 'no' in response. After a few minutes he opened his eyes and looked sheepishly at Edward. "Sorry man, it's been awhile… I don't know where that came from – my body just kinda reacted to the smell."

Edward smiled uneasily. "We can take this somewhere else if it would make it easier."

"No, I'll be fine out here… It will just take some getting used to. But maybe we should stay outside." Seth said, now smiling easily.

Edward relaxed his stance only slightly. "Bella, can I please visit with Seth and Cedric alone."

"But-"

A pained expression shone in his eyes as he looked into hers, his finger tracing the tear stain on her cheek. So she had been crying. "Bella, please… just this once."

Her expression said she wasn't happy about it, but she responded, "Okay. I'm sure Alice has some last minute important details to go over anyway," and she turned and went into the house.

"I would never hurt her." Seth said.

"I know, but still…" Then, finally, he smiled, "It's good to see you."

"Good to see you too – though I can't say the same for the smell… It's like your stench got worse over the past year."

Edward chuckled, seemingly wanting to greet him properly with a hand shake or some sort of connection, but kept space between them just in case.

"Hey – it's okay" Seth held out his and they leaned in and bumped shoulders, giving each other a hardy slap on the back. "I'm glad you guys are back."

"Really?" Edward cocked his head to one side, "I would have thought the… boys down on the reservation would have hoped we'd stay away."

Seth smiled uneasily, "Well, some perhaps – but after last spring, they're much more, ah, open… but I missed you Edward. Hey you got any bad vampires to take down?"

"Ah, no" he smiled easily now and I could see the tension had passed. "Just a wizard."

"Oh, well, he wouldn't be any fun – being all soft and breakable." Seth eyed me mockingly.

"Hey, don't underestimate him. He just about killed me last year." Edward joked and I cringed at the memory.

"You know what – you'll have to tell me all about it…" Seth said, "Really, it sounds awesome. Livin' with wizards and witches all year… really cool."

"Not as cool as a pack of transforming wolves." I replied, getting into the conversation. I could see Seth is the kind of guy that would be easy to like – sort of like Ernie. I mostly listened as Edward gave Seth a run down of their past year, though I interjected here and there. It was an easy sort of conversation. After a bit, they both seemed completely relaxed and at home with one another, like old friends.

"I think I can handle the indoors now" Seth suggested.

"How about we try Cedric's place first. The smell will be less potent there."

And so we continued around the house back to the cabin they'd built for us. "We had to build this for Sirius and Cedric because their magic interferes with electronics."

"Really? Cool! But then how do you us a car?"

"I have to be careful to not use my magical ability." I explained, "We could live in Edward's house and just not use our ability all the time."

"But that would be uncomfortable for you." Edward said, "Besides, it's worked out to provide us a great place to visit today."

"You bet – this is nice." Seth said looking around in admiration. I recalled the small place he and Billy now shared.

"You're staying at Billy's?" Edward suddenly asked and I realized he'd pulled that from my thoughts.

"Ah, ya… ever since Jacob left again."

Edward nodded. "So he's still gone." I could see a mixture of relief and pain cross his face, before he covered it with his placid expression. "So are you coming to my wedding? We're doing it the same date – just one year later."

"I'll be there." He smiled, "So you're really going to tie on the old ball and chain, eh?" Edward smiled at the teasing, but I could see he was still being very careful.

"And if Billy, or anyone else wants to come…" Edward went on.

Seth nodded. "I'll tell them."

We visited for awhile and fell into an easy rhythm of conversation. I could see Seth was someone I would want to hang around with. He was easy going and fun-loving. I was also fascinated to learn more about the wolves and their unlikely truce with the vampires. Not only that, but how Edward and Seth's easy friendship has come about last spring in the midst of battle. I better understood what had happened when Seth first arrived today. Because they were mortal enemies, each other's scents were potently repulsive, and yet they over came that among other differences to be friends.

I also picked up bits and pieces about Jacob. It seemed clear that he and Bella did have a very close friendship – so close that Edward was still intensely jealous about it, though he hid his feelings well. If I hadn't known him so well, I might have been fooled by his placid expression when we spoke of Jacob. I also sensed a certain… was it admiration for Jacob. Or perhaps it was a debt of gratitude.

It was an easy afternoon and, when it came time for Seth return home for a rest before his patrol, I realized I really liked the guy and I'd made my first new connection and felt a lot more confident about my up coming mission.