SM owns the characters.
Thank for all the reviews, and the new adds. This is almost the end just the epilogue to do.
Saying Goodbye
It's been a week since the battle, and the Volturi being destroyed, after near constant bed rest, I was almost fully healed. I still looked pale, and I was still struggling to eat anything other than soup, but I felt better than I did.
But I still had to force myself out of bed, the Cullen's were leaving today, before that a meeting had been arranged between the pack and them. I wanted to go, much to Paul's annoyance. I knew he was still getting over what happened to me, and even though he wouldn't say it out loud, I knew a part of him was blaming himself for not being able to protect me.
I had decided that if he wasn't going to talk about, and then neither was I, as far as I was concerned it was in the past. There was no point in the should of, or could of.
"Bella, you don't need to come. Why don't you write a letter to them and I will get Jake to pass it on." Paul begged again bringing me out of my thoughts.
"No Paul, I want to say goodbye in person. I will probably never see them again, I want to do this properly." I explained, trying not to lose my temper with him.
"Why, they never said goodbye to you last time." I cringed at Paul's comment, before I was picked up and wrapped in his arms. "I'm sorry; I didn't mean to bring it up."
"I know, but I want to do it, I'm not like them and I never will be, just let me have my goodbye."
"I can't stop you, I know that. But I just wanted to check that you were ok with saying goodbye to them."
"Thank you." I replied, before he moved me, so he was carrying me bridal style out the door.
"I can walk you know." I moaned, wrapping my arms around his neck.
"I know, but I need to keep you close, plus you remember what Old Quil said, you need to take it easy for at least two weeks." Paul, reminded me.
I nodded in acceptance, and closed my eyes as he silently walked into the forest to the agreed meeting place.
With the sounds of twigs snapping, I opened my eyes to see the rest of the pack, walking with us, With Jake and Sam leading.
"How are you feeling Bella?" Leah asked I turned my head to where she was walking at Paul's side.
"Better, I still feel a bit tired, but not as bad as I did."
"That's good, you had us all worried."
"All of you?"
"Bella you are pack, the pack would have fallen apart if you had been killed or worse changed. So don't be surprised if we are being over protective of you or growling at anybody not pack near you." Leah explained, as Paul wrapped his arms around me tighter.
"Thank you." I whispered, swallowing the lump in my throat.
Sam and Jake walked off to the side out of sight, less than a minute later, they were back leading the pack but in their human form.
The pack suddenly seemed to step even closer as we walked out into the opening of a new meadow, I had never seen before. I looked around the meadow, in awe. On one side of the meadow, were bushes of lavender. The rest of the meadow was dark green grass covered in daisies.
"Thank you all for coming, Bella it is good to see you looking a lot better." Carlisle, spoke first, taking a step closer to the pack.
"Thank you" I replied with a small smile.
"As you already know, we are leaving the area. Unfortunately, with the Volturi destroyed, it has fallen down to us to govern our world. To make sure the supernatural world remains a secret, we have to journey to Italy." Carlisle explained.
He pulled out a brown envelop from the bag he was carrying in his hand. "This is for you and your tribe; I know that us moving to the area started off a chain of events."
Sam took the envelope and opened it; he pulled out a sheet of paper, reading it quickly, before passing it to Jake.
"You didn't need to do that." Sam complained.
"It is a trust fund Sam, I am aware that with you all phasing, it would be impossible to leave the Reservation and go off to college. The money will help the pack purchase, top of the range computers, and hopefully gain degrees by doing online courses."
"Thank you." Jake spoke up, before he passed the paper to me and Paul.
I gasped in shock, when I could see the figure already in the trust fund. Fifty million dollars, sitting in the account, with an additional twenty million going into the account every twelve months, with no expiry date when it would end.
"Carlisle, it won't cost that much." I blurted out, so shocked at the amount.
"Even though it is initially for the pack, we also want to give the other children on the Reservation the opportunity to go to college. Who goes will be down to all of you, but the funds will be there. The money can also be used to start businesses, if you look further down the paper. There is a clause, that any businesses started with the trust fund money, has to be repaid back, once the business owner has started to make a profit."
I was in shock, and with Paul being silent I guess he was too.
"We were wondering if it's ok, if we can each have a private word with Bella. You have our word that we will never return, and as the new governing body for the vampire world, we will make sure that a warning goes out amongst our kind to stay away from the area." Carlisle, coughed slightly before talking again.
"Bella?" Paul asked I nodded my head that I wanted to do this. I wanted the goodbye I should have got all those months ago.
Paul, put me down and I walked slowly towards Jake and Sam. I stopped in between them, as Jake squeezed my shoulder. I took another step forward, turning back to look at Paul. He started to walk towards to me before I shoke my head silently telling him to stop.
I wanted and needed to do this alone, to say goodbye for the final time.
Once I was closer to the Cullen's and further away from the pack, Carlisle stepped back as Rosalie stepped forward.
"Bella I want to apologise for the way I treated you in the past, I never hated you, it was just the choices you were making. I didn't agree with those, I wanted you to understand that there was more to life than becoming one of us."
"Thank you, I understand now." I replied, looking over my shoulder at Paul and smiling.
"Enjoy life Bella, and I hope one day you are surrounded by your children and grandchildren." Rosalie finished, smiling at me. I blinked and she was gone.
Emmett then stood forwards; he ruffled my hair and smiled at me. "I hope you have a great future Bella, and don't be scared to try something new every once in a while." Emmett smiled, before he too disappeared,
Carlisle stepped forward again, and pulled me into a gentle hug. "Stay safe, and if you ever need anything, it doesn't matter what it is call me." He said, before handing me a card with all his contact details on.
I smiled at him, and wrapped my arms around him again. He hugged me back, before letting me go and disappearing, I guess into the forest.
Esme stepped forward, and I could see the venom tears in her eyes. "You will always be my third daughter, no matter what. Have a full life Bella, and like Carlisle said if you ever need us, then contact him." I nodded silently, feeling the lump forming in my chest. I felt her cold lips kiss my forehead before she left the meadow, she ran slower than the others so I watched as she ran into the surrounding forest.
I watched as Jasper walked towards me, stopping a short distance away from me. "Always remember, that you are worth it and always will be." I took the card from his outreached hand. "If you ever need me, to help fight battles or anything like that, then you can always call me. I will make sure you will always have my up to date contact details so you can pass them on to your children. All your future generations are under my protection, until the end of my life or the end of eternity."
I could feel the tears slide slowly down my face; it was one thing to know that I will always be safe with Paul by my side. But to know that my children, grand children and great grandchildren will also be protected was heart warming.
He too ran into the forest at a slower pace, before running behind the trees and disappearing. I looked to where Edward and Alice were standing; by their facial expressions I could see that they were having a silent argument.
It was Edward who eventually stepped forward, and stopped in front of me. I took a deep breath before, looking at him.
"Bella, this is going to be goodbye forever, I want you to be happy. I will always love you, no matter what. I never wanted to change you into what I am, you deserved to remain human. You would have lost your personality, and your brown eyes. Be healthy and happyBella, that is all that I ask."
I nodded silently, quickly wiping away the tears that were falling down my face. I looked up to say goodbye, but Edward was already gone. He sounded so sound, and the words he had said sounded like he had rehearsed them.
Alice then stood forward, and pulled me into a hug. "I will keep an eye on him, he will be happy, I've seen it. He will eventually find his mate, she is out there, but he needs time to heal and learn to live again."
"I hope he is happy Alice, he is a good man and deserves some happiness."
"If you need anything, or want to talk, ring Jasper's phone."
I nodded silently, and then watched as she danced into the forest, joining the others.
I quickly wiped my face; the silent tears were running down my face. I knew that I was a wolf girl now, and that comes with family and friends. But the Cullen's were my first friends, the first time I belonged somewhere. I was sad that they were gone, and I knew that deep inside I would probably never see them again, and hopefully never need to contact them.
I felt Paul wrap his arms around my shoulders, and lightly kiss the back of my neck. "It's for the best Bella, if they stay, there will be more wolves." Paul whispered into my ear.
"I know." I replied, nodding my head.
"Come on lets go home, the pack want to finally celebrate winning the battle."
"Why, have they waited so long?" I asked, confused, when the battle was over a week ago.
"Bella, how many times do we have to tell you? You are also pack, how could we celebrate as a pack, when one of its members was getting over an injury." Jake, called out, before walking into the forest.
I smiled, before Paul stepped a short distance away from me. Took his shorts off, and phased into his wolf.
Paul, lowered his body down, and I climbed on top. I laughed loudly when the silence was disturbed by the howling of wolves. Their howls sounded joyous and I giggled when Quil's wolf started to bounce around, doing a full circle around us, before running deeper into the forest.
With Paul's slow even walk back to the Reservation, the smile stayed on my face, for the first time there were no threats hanging over me or the pack. Today marked the beginning of an almost normal future. We won't ever have a normal future, we will always be a pack, and the wolves will always be there even when they have stopped phasing.