Hickory dickory dock, Edward went up the clock, he didn't come down and I wore a frown, hickory dickory dock.

Alright, so like, I managed to catch Kellan and I put him in my dungeon, thinking he wouldn't get out. Well, during the night, Robert and Jackson broke in and now I've lost Kellan. So, when you find them, return them so I can punish them please? Fur cuffs and spankings sounds good to me...

Shout out to Sofia Lawrence for her casual threat of killing me before stating she needed to read the next chapter. I love reviews like that!


JPOV

"Jasper?"

"Yea, Alice?"

"Do you think Bella will ever come back?"

I looked over at the tiny pixie that was usually my little bundle of energy. She stood in the doorway of her room, looking down, face sad. This conversation came up at least once a month and had for the past five years. I was currently laying on her bed and the minute I opened my arms out to her, she rushed over to me and climbed onto my chest.

"Alice, we've been over this. It's been five years. I don't think so."

"But, she loves me. Doesn't she?" I could hear the catch in her voice signaling she was about to cry.

"Alice," I sighed, not knowing what to tell her. Honestly, at this point, I didn't think Bella was ever going to return, but Alice as insistent that she had this feeling Bella would. So, she continued clinging to hope, long after the rest of us gave up and accepted the loss of Bella and just missed her. We wished she would come back, but…

"I'm sorry, Jasper."

"There's nothing to be sorry for, Alice," I whispered against the top of her head, wishing there was something I could do to help her. To make all this right. To fix the pain. But, I knew there wasn't. Alice had to come to the conclusion on her own that Bella was good and gone, whether we wished or wanted it otherwise.

RPOV

"EMMETTTTT!!" I screamed from my car. I'd decided to spend the afternoon at their place to do some car work with Emmett.

"I didn't do anything!" was the response.

"Then why the hell won't my car start!" I was beyond furious at this point. I'd searched and fiddled with everything I could think of to figure out why the hell my car had suddenly died. There was nothing missing, nothing out of place, nothing unhooked. Nothing that would explain why a car that should be roaring to life wasn't. I couldn't find a damn thing! Hell, I'd even stopped and filled up on gas…gas. That rat bastard.

"EMMMMMMETTTTTT!!!"

I heard a muffled, "Shit," followed by the slamming of a door.

Getting out of my car, I stormed up the stairs and inside, ignoring James on an armchair and Edward and Tanya curled up on the couch, heading directly to Emmett trying to hide in a corner behind a piece of furniture. "You are going to pay for this. ..Gas??!!"

He stared at me, not saying a word, eyes wide at my tone. "So help me, Emmett, I will sock you and you won't be fathering children anytime in the near future."

If I hadn't been so pissed off, the look on his face would have been comical. James and Edward apparently thought it was as their laughter filled the room. I turned and glared at them, threatening castration with my eyes. They shut up.

Emmett had a look of pure fear on his face, though he still appeared to be debating whether to answer me or not. I figured he needed an incentive and raised my fist, pulling it back in preparation to make good on my threat. He cracked like a weak child. "In the garage! In the garage!"

With one last glare at him and a sound smack on the back of his head, I went out to the garage. Damn idiot.

BPOV

Saturday. It was finally Saturday and I couldn't have been happier. A day for sleeping in and lazing about and doing just about nothing. I turned my head to look at the clock on my nightstand. Eleven. A perfect time to get up.

I dawdled through my morning routine, making it downstairs to start coffee a good forty-five minutes later. Not that I cared. It felt nice to do things for myself again and not have a servant do it for me.

As I stood around the kitchen waiting for the coffee to finish percolating, I absent mindedly glanced at my answering machine. I wasn't expecting any calls. The only person to have my number being James, so I was surprised to see the red like blinking.

Curious, I hit the playback button. "Hey, Bella! It's James. Look, some friends and I are getting together tonight and I wanted you to come along. Give a call. You have my digits."

Digits? The guy was hot, but corny. Still, he was hot. I had to give him that and, at the rate I was doing, I highly doubted I'd be finding the Cullens. Maybe I should hire a PI? Back on track. On one hand, I had been living rather uptight for a long while; it'd be nice to unwind, so to speak. On the other hand, there was no other hand. I guess my decision was made.

I poured myself a cup of coffee, adding sugar, before locating my backpack and digging out James's number from my Biology notes. Grabbing the phone with my right hand, my left having my coffee mug, I dialed, holding it up to my ear.

"Hello?" a male answered, one sounding remarkably like…Emmett.

I froze. It…no…it…couldn't be…I was imagining things. I had to be. There was nothing to say they were even here in Seattle and if they were, how coincidental would it be that they were friends with James? Shaking my head, I tried clearing my mind. "I'm calling for James."

"Um…hold on a sec," I figured the guy had to have held the phone away from his face and not put me on hold because I could hear in the background, "JAMES! PHONE! CHICK! Huh? No, you avoiding one? Really? You'll have to tell. What? Right, I'll ask."

I struggled not to laugh failing as giggles escaped me forcing me to set down my coffee least I spill it. It had to be one of the more interesting one-sided conversations I'd ever heard. I wondered if it was typical guy talk. Whoever had answered the phone, he was pretty amusing that was for sure. I'd missed that not having Emmett around.

The phone must have been replaced because the next question I heard was, "Name?"

I pondered my answer carefully. With Emmett, I'd always been one for a good joke and this was tickling my funny bone. I wanted to have some fun and if he was willing to play along, I'd give it a go. "Tell him Sexy British Accent is on the line."

There was a moment of silence before I heard, "You're shittin' me."

"My dear boy, I make it a point never to shit anyone."

"Hey! I'll have you know I'm not some 'boy'," he retorted, sounding offended.

"My wrong. I apologize. Now, back to the subject at hand. James?"

"Oh, right," the phone was held away from his face again as I could hear, "JAMES! SEXY BRITISH ACCENT! Yea, that's what she said. How should I know? It's a female. She's got an accent. She claims British. What? What the hell are you doing then?"

I couldn't contain myself any more I doubled over in laughter. How could I not listening to this side of the conversation? I could only imagine what James was saying.

"Sorry 'bout this," he apologized, returning to the line.

"Some difficulties?" I questioned, sitting down on the floor.

"Maybe. But, if there are, I don't want to know what they are. James! You gonna answer? Hey, you got another name I can give him?"

"Of course, but I'm having way too much fun to make this any easier."

He laughed, a deep, booming laugh that I knew would fill a room. It had been a long time since I'd heard a laugh like that. "So, Mr. I'm not a boy, who am I playing 'phone' with?"

"Emmett. Emmett Cullen at your service. And, your real name?"

I dropped the phone, hearing it land on the floor with a clatter. It was. Oh…

"Hello? Hey you still there? Don't know. There's no dial tone, but it's quiet. Hello? Hey!"

In my scramble to pick the phone back up, I managed to nearly hang up the call. Finally I was calmed enough to grab it and respond, "Sorry. I…uh…I dropped the phone."

"Oh, thought you'd hung up. Was starting to wonder if you had something against my name."

"No, uh…not at all. Look, um…if James is busy, I can always call him back. I was just returning his call," I was starting to have a hard time keep the tremor from my voice. I desperately wanted to curl up and cry. I'd found one of them. The rest had to be around. Was this fates way of answering my wish?

"Hey, you okay? You sound…different?"

Trust Emmett to pick up on that. He and Edward always had been the more perceptive ones when it came to me. "I'm fine. Look, really, I can call him back."

"Naw, here he is."

I heard some muffled talking before, "Hey!"

"Hey, James. I…uh…I got your message."

"So, you gonna come?" cue eye roll. I had no doubt he meant it as more then what it seemed. "It'll be a ball."

For looks, the man certainly didn't have any brains. "Sure. I'd love to."

"Great! Let me give you the address. You can meet up with us at our place and we'll head out from there!"

Someone certainly seemed hyped up. "Alright…uh, let me get a pen and paper."

I scrambled up off the floor and over to my backpack, pulling out a pen and using my Biology notes.

"So, we typically meet here at six. Head out to dinner and then Voultri. You good with that?"

"Yea, fine."

"Ready?"

"Uh huh…okay…right…got it. I'm not actually that far from you. I'll see ya at six then."

"Cool."

I hung up the phone, dropping to my knees, arms wrapped around my stomach. It had been Emmett. My Emmett. It had to have been. There couldn't be two Emmett Cullens in the world could there? Oh gods! What was I going to do tonight? If it truly was Emmett, would he even recognize me? Five years was a long time. Hell, would he even be happy to see me?

Get a grip, Bella. Go shopping, find a nice outfit, get dolled up. You can deal with it at the time. What happens if you get your hopes up now only to find out you were wrong and it's not the Emmett you're thinking of? What then?

Shopping. Right. Stop thinking.

EmPOV

"That was definitely one weird chick. Who was she?" I asked James as he hung up the phone. She'd been all joking and funny until I'd said my name and heard a thud following it.

"Bella. You know, that British accent chick I was talking about."

"Really?" Bella. Well, if it was our Bella, it might explain the phone dropping. I tried remembering the voice more clearly in my head, hopping to hear beyond the accent, but I couldn't place it with Bella's voice.

"Yea. I invited her along tonight. No objections?"

"No, that's cool. Look, I promised Rose I'd lend her a hand. See ya later." Looked like tonight would be the night I'd find out if Bella really had returned from England or not. I hoped she had. It was a good thing. A very good thing.

BPOV

I wore black leggings under black lace-up, knee-high boots and red miniskirt. I'd paired the skirt with a matching red corset. A little eyeliner to highlight my eyes, some gloss and just a brush of brown eye shadow took care of my makeup. I left my hair down, putting in some mousse and fluffing it a little. Hoop earrings and bangle bracelets completed my ensemble.

Grabbing a black clutch, I put in the necessary accessories and headed out the door, directions in hand. Deep breath, Bella. You'll be fine and find out soon enough if it's the right Emmett or not. How would I feel though? How would he feel? Did I want to think about it? I was nervous enough as it was. I didn't need to be adding to it. But, still…Emmett!

I felt self-conscious in my outfit though. I'd never dressed like this in England. Victoria hadn't let me. Any clothes purchased like this were promptly thrown out the minute they were found. It took courage to dress like this and I needed to wrap that courage around me to face this phone Emmett. Nerve racking or not, I had some courage somewhere.

Deep breath. Deep breath. It was only a ten minute drive over to the address and it wasn't long before I found myself parked outside another townhouse. Just, get out of the car. Get out, walk up the steps and ring the bell. Deep breath. Steps. Good, one at a time. Ring the bell. Deep breath.

"Someone get the door!"

"I got it!"

"Naw, I'm already here. Hi-" the door swung open, revealing a short person with spiky, black hair, all contained in a form that I remembered as being full of energy. I wondered what had her pausing in her hello. Did she recognize me?

"I'm a friend of James. May I come in?" I was positive I knew it was Alice, but…but, did she know it was me?

"Oh, sure. Sorry. Come on in. James! Your friend is here."

James appeared from around a corner. "Hey! You made it. Didn't get lost?"

I shook my head, shrugging shoulder as well, feeling the butterflies fill my stomach.

"So, these are a few of my friends. We're still waiting on three others, but they should be here soon. So, that tall blonde over there is Jasper and the little one that answered the door is his girlfriend Alice," James pointed them out and I felt my heart start pounding in my chest. To find them. And, it had been as simple as meeting James! I was having a hard time keeping my tears at bay seeing them.

"Rose isn't here yet, and neither is Edward and his girlfriend, Tanya. But, this big guy over here is Emmett."

I turned around and, sure enough, there was the familiar goofy grin and warm smiling eyes. The teddy bear brother I loved. Co-conspirator of pranks. And, energetic Alice and quite Jasper. They were here. All of them. Were the fates really putting things in my favor again? I'd missed them all so much and thought I'd lost them and to find them again…

"Oh, God," I murmured, my legs shaking. I'd expected…what? What had I expected? Not weak legged like this, that was for sure. Not dizzy or teary eyed, okay, well maybe teary eyed. Not like my heart was pounding a mile a minute as if I'd just completed a day of shopping with Alice and Rosalie.

"Oh, God," I managed to murmur again, letting my legs give out, falling to the floor, legs bent under me, hands holding myself up. Head bowed. Oh God…I didn't hear a single movement. They were probably wondering what the hell was wrong with me. Why would a stranger person suddenly fall to their knees in front of them? I didn't know if they were looking at me or not and couldn't bring myself to look up and find out.

All my insecurities came flooding back to me. It had been me that left them the last time. Would they still want me? Did they still care? Would they want me back? Could they forgive me? Would they turn me away?

I felt, more than saw, James kneel next to me. "Hey, you okay?"

I heard the concern in his voice. The puzzlement. What the hell is this girl doing? I couldn't tell him about my past. I barely knew him. How much time had passed since I'd fallen? It felt like hours, yet I knew it couldn't have been more than minutes.

I took deep breaths, trying to calm my racing heart. I'd wanted this for five long, horrid filled years. It was here. I could just grab it. It would be mine again and yet, here I sat, trembling on the floor, too scared to be rejected again. Too scared to be pushed away.

I heard the door open. Footsteps. Door closing. Click.

"What the hell did you do to her, James? You've already got her on the floor. Gods, take it to the bedroom," Rosalie's voice rang out. Same as ever. Bitchy. I loved her for it. I missed it.

"Unless, of course you're looking for an audience?" an unknown voice spoke. It was soft and fake and I hated it immediately. It reminded me of all the girls in England. Their fake voices that tried cajoling men. Couldn't they see it wasn't the truth?

"She looks like she's having trouble breathing. We should get her to lie completely flat on the floor," Edward said matter-of-factly and I was aware of how labored my breathing sounded. My chest heaving up and down like I couldn't get any air. How long had I sounded like that?

My whole family. They were standing here, in the same room with me and they didn't even know it was me. All of them together. The ones I loved within touching distance and I cowered on the floor struggling to take in air. Was I that much of a coward? So much of a chicken that I couldn't face the past and move past it? Did it rule me from the grave? I wasn't sixteen anymore. I could do this. I would do this. I could stand up and face them. I would stand up and face them.

I could say goodbye to the past. I had to say goodbye. I could lay it to rest. I could, couldn't I?

Slowly, as if in slow motion, I stood up, taking deep calming breaths the entire way. Each of them stood there. Each the same and yet different. Each wearing the same look of concern and puzzlement. Not recognizing me. Not knowing who I was. But, still, the looks said, "I think I'm supposed to know you."

So, even if consciously, they had no clue who I was beyond a friend of James, subconsciously they must know who I was in some fashion. That would be the logical conclusion, right?

Taking my time, I took in each face. Rememorizing each one. Recalling what they looked like five years ago. I was where I wanted to be. With the people I wanted to be with. And, they didn't even know it was me, yet. Had I truly changed that much?

What could I say? How could I tell them? Make them see that it was me, Bella, their Bella. That I was back. That I was home. What? My mind was blank. All I could do was stare and stare and stare, taking each in, relishing in the happiness flowing through me.

"Are you okay?" Edward inquired, taking a step towards me before the strawberry blonde at his side place a hand on his arm.

"Leave her be, Eddie. I'm sure she's fine." I saw Edward cringe at the nickname before pinching the bridge of his nose like he used to do when he was frustrated.

"Tanya, please, don't call me that," he bit out between clenched teeth, but Tanya didn't seem to be paying attention to what he had to say.

And then, with perfect clarity I knew what I needed to say. What I needed to do. How to tell them. How to let them know. How to find out if they still wanted me and their words of long ago weren't false.

I turned towards Alice who stood within the confines of Jasper's arms and asked, slowly, precisely, with a quiver in my voice as I tried not to cry, "Don't you want me as your sister?"

Would she remember?