Okay. I came up with this last night while i was re-reading New Moon. What if Carlisle came back instead of Alice? What if Bella had been getting over Edward? What if Edward hadn't gone to the Volturi? Well...This is what i came up with. Please read it. And review it. I want to know what you think of my story. Thank you! Now, read!

Disclaimer: I don't own them, I just manipulate them for my sick, twisted pleasure. XD

Chapter One, Bella Point Of View

Jake pressed his warm cheek against the top of my hair.

If I turned my face to the side--if I pressed my lips against his bare shoulder...I knew without any doubt exactly what would follow. It would be very easy. There would be no need for explanations tonight.

But could I do it? Could I betray my absent heart to save my pathetic life?

Butterflies assaulted my stomach as I though about turning my head.

And then, as clearly as if I were in immediate danger, Edward's velvet voice whispered in my ear.

"Be happy," he told me.

I froze.

Jacob felt me stiffen and released me automatically, reaching for the door.

Wait, I wanted to say. Just a minute. But I was still locked in place, listening to the echo of Edward's voice in my head.

Storm-cooled air blew through the cab of the truck.

"OH!" The breath whooshed out of Jacob like someone had punched him in the gut. "Holy crap!"

He slammed the door and twisted the keys in the ignition in the same moment. His hands were shaking so hard I didn't know how he managed it.

"What's wrong?"

He revved the engine too fast; it sputtered and faltered.

"Vampire," he spit out.

The blood rushed from my head and left me dizzy. "How do you know?"

"Because I can smell it! Dammit!"

Jacob's eyes were wild, raking the dark street. He barely seemed aware of the tremors that were rolling through his body. "Phase or get her out of here?" he hissed at himself.

He looked down at me for a split second, taking in my horror-struck eyes and white face, and then he was scanning the street again. "Right. Get you out."

The engine caught with a roar. The tires squealed as he spun the truck around, turning toward our only escape. The headlights washed across the pavement, lit the front of the line of the black forest, and finally glinted off a car parked across the street from my house.

"Stop!" I gasped.

It was a black car--a car I knew. I might be the furthest thing from an autophile, but I could tell you everything about that particular car. It was a Mercedes S55 AMG. I knew the horsepower and the color of the interior. I knew the feel of the powerful engine purring through the frame. I knew the rich smell of the leather seats and the way the extra-dark tint made noon look like dusk through the windows.

It was Carlisle's car.

"Stop!" I cried again, louder this time, because Jacob was gunning the car down the street.

"What?!"

"It's not Victoria. Stop, stop! I want to go back."

He stomped on the brake so hard I had to catch myself against the dashboard.

"What?" he asked again, aghast. He stared at me with horror in his eyes.

"It's Carlisle's car! It's the Cullens. I know it."

He watched down break across my face, and a violent tremor rocked his frame.

"Hey, calm down, Jake. It's okay. No danger, see? Relax."

"Yeah, calm," he panted, putting his head down and closing his eyes. While he concentrated on not exploding into a wolf, I stared out a the back window at the black car.

It was just Carlisle, I told myself. Don't expect anything more. Maybe Esme...Stop right there, I told myself. Just Carlisle. that was plenty. More than I'd ever hoped to have again.

"There's a vampire in your house," Jacob hissed. "And you want to go back?"

I glanced at him, ripping my unwilling eyes off the Mercedes-terrified that it would disappear the second I looked away.

"Of course," I said, my voice blank with surprise at his question. Of course I wanted to go back.

Jacob's face hardened while I stared at him, congealing into the bitter mast that I'd though was gone for good. Just before he had the mask in place, I caught the spasm of betrayal that flashed in his eyes. His hands were still shaking. He looked ten years older than me.

He took a deep breath. "You're sure it's not a trick?" he asked in a slow, heavy voice.

"It's not a trick. It's Carlisle. Take me back!"

A shudder rippled through his wide shoulders, but his eyes were flat and emotionless. "No."

"Jake, it's okay-"

"No. Take yourself back, Bella." His voice was a slap--I flinched as the sound of it struck me. His jaw clenched and unclenched.

"Look, Bella," he said in the same hard voice. "I can't go back. Treaty or no treaty, that's my enemy in there."

"It's not like that-"

"I have to go tell Sam right away. This changes things.We can't be caught on their territory."

"Jake, it's not a war!"

He didn't listen. He put the truck in neutral and jumped out the door, leaving it running.

"Bye, Bella," he called back over his shoulder. "I really hope you don't die." He sprinted into the darkness, shaking so hard that his shape seemed blurred; he disappeared before I could open my mouth to call him back.

Remorse pinned me against the seat for one long second. What had I just done to Jacob?

I slid across the seat and put the truck back in drive. My hands were shaking almost as hard as Jake's had been, and this took a minute of concentration. Then I carefully drove it back to my house.

It was very dark when I turned off the headlights. Charlie had left in such a hurry that he'd forgotten to leave the porch light on. I felt a pang of doubt, staring at the house, deep in shadow. What if it was a trick?

I looked at the black car, almost invisible in the night. No. I knew that car.

Still, my hands were shaking even worse than before as I reached for the key above the door. When I grabbed the doorknob to unlock it, it twisted easily under my hand. I let the door fall open. The hallway was black.

I wanted to call out a greeting, but my throat was too dry. I couldn't quite seem to catch my breath.

I took a step inside and fumbled for the light switch. It was so black--like the black water...Where was that switch?

Just like the black water, with the orange flame flickering impossibly on top of it. Flame that couldn't be a fire, but what then...? My fingers traced the wall, still searching, still shaking-

Suddenly, something Jacob had told be this afternoon echoed in my head, finally sinking in...She took off into the water, he'd said. The bloodsuckers have the advantage there. That's why I raced home-I was afraid she was going to double back swimming.

My hand froze in its searching, my whole body froze into place, as I realized why I recognized the strange orange color on the water.

Victoria's hair, blowing wild in the wind, the color of fire...

She'd been right there. Right there in the harbor with me and Jacob. If Sam hadn't been there, if it had been just the two of us...? I couldn't breathe or move.

The light flicked on, though my frozen hand had still not found the switch.

I blinked into the sudden light, and saw that someone was there, waiting for me.

--

Unnaturally still and white, with his large black eyes intent on my face, my visitor waited perfectly motionless in the center of the hall, beautiful beyond imagining.

My knees trembled for a second, and I nearly fell. The I hurled myself at him

"Carlisle, oh Carlisle!" I cried, as I slammed into him.

I'd forgotten how hard he was; it was like running headlong into a wall of cement.

"Bella?" There was a strange mingling of relief and confusion in his voice.

I locked my arms around him, gasping to inhale as much of the scent of his skin as possible. It wasn't like anything else--not floral or spice, citrus or musk. No perfume in the world could compare. My memory hadn't done it justice.

I didn't notice when the gasping turned into something else--I only realized I was sobbing as Carlisle dragged me tho the living room and pulled me into his lap. It was like curling up into a cool stone, but a stone that was contoured comfortingly to the shape of my body.

He rubbed my back in a gentle rhythm, waiting for me to get control of myself.

"I'm...sorry," I blubbered. "I'm just...so happy...to see you!"

"It's okay, Bella. Everything's okay."

"Yes," I bawled. And, for once, it seemed that way.

Carlisle sighed. "I'd forgotten how exuberant you are," he said, and his tone was disapproving.

I looked up at him through my streaming eyes. Carlisle's neck was tight, straining away from me, his lips pressed together firmly. His eyes were black as pitch.

"Oh," I puffed, as I realized the problem. He was thirsty. And I smelled appetizing. It had been a while since I'd had to think about that kind of thing. "Sorry."

"It's my own fault. It's been too long since I hunted. I shouldn't let myself get so thirsty. But I was in a hurry today." The look he directed at me was a glare. "Speaking of which, would you like to explain to me how you're alive?"

That brought me up short and stopped the sobs. I realized what must have happened immediately, and why Carlisle was here.

I swallowed. "Alice saw me fall."

"No," he disagreed, his eyes narrowing. "She saw you jump."

I pursed my lips as I tried to think of an explanation that wouldn't sound nuts.

Carlisle shook is head. "Alice told him that this would happen, but he didn't believe her. 'Bella promised'", his voice imitated his so perfectly that I froze in shock while the pain ripped through my torso. "'Don't go looking for her future, either,' he had told her," he continued to quote him. "'We've done enough damage.'

"But just because she wasn't looking, doesn't mean she didn't see," he went on. "She wasn't keeping tabs on you, Bella. It's just that she's already attuned to you...when she saw you jumping, I didn't think, I just got on a plane. I knew that I would be too late, but I couldn't do nothing. And then I get here, thinking maybe I could help Charlie somehow, and you drive up. He shook his head, this time in confusion. His voice was strained. "She saw you go into the water and she waited and waited for you to come up, but you didn't. What happened? And how could you do that to Charlie? Did you stop to think what this would do to him? And my son? Do you have any idea what Edward-"

I cut him off then, as soon as he said his name. I'd let him go on, even after I realized the misunderstanding he was under, just to hear the perfect velvet tone of his voice. But it was time to interrupt.

"Carlisle, I wasn't committing suicide."

He eyed me dubiously. "Are you saying you didn't jump off a cliff?"

"No, but..." I grimaced. "It was for recreational purposes only."

His expression hardened.

"I'd seen some of Jacob's friends cliff diving," I insisted. "It looked like...fun...and I was bored..."

He waited.

"I didn't think about how the storm would affect the currents. Actually, I didn't think about the water much at all."

Carlisle didn't buy it. I could see that he still thought that I had been trying to kill myself. I decided to redirect. "So if she saw me go in, why didn't she see Jacob?"

He cocked his head to the side, distracted.

I continued. "It's true that I probably would have drowned if Jacob hadn't jumped in after me. Well, okay, there's no probably about it. But he did, and he pulled me out, and I guess he towed me back to shore, though I was kind of out for that part. It couldn't have been more than a minute that I was under before he grabbed me. How come you didn't see that?"

He frowned in perplexity. "Someone pulled you out?"

"Yes. Jacob saved me."

I watched curiously as an enigmatic range of emotion flitted across his face. Something was bothering him--Alice's imperfect vision? But I wasn't sure. Then he deliberately leaned in and sniffed my shoulder.

I froze.

"Don't be ridiculous," he muttered, sniffing at me some more.

"What are you doing?"

He ignored my question. "Who was with you out there just now? It sounded like you were arguing."

"Jacob Black. He's...sort of my best friend, I guess. At least, he was..." I though of Jacob's angry, betrayed face, and wondered what he was to me now.

Carlisle nodded, seeming preoccupied.

"What?"

"I don't know," he said. "I'm not sure what it means."

"Well, I'm not dead, at least."

He rolled his eyes. "He was a fool to think that you could survive alone. I've never seen someone so prone to life threatening idiocy."

"I survived," I pointed out.

He was thinking of something else. "So if the currents were too much for you, how did this Jacob manage?"

"Jacob is...strong."

He heard the reluctance in my voice, and his eyebrows rose.

I gnawed on my lip for a second. Was this a secret, or not? And if it was, then who was my greatest allegiance to? Jacob or Carlisle?

It was too hard to keep secrets, I decided. Jacob knew everything, why not Carlisle, too?"

"See, well, he's...sort of a werewolf," I admitted in a rush. "Do you remember?"

Carlisle gawked at me for a moment, and then recovered himself, blinking rapidly. "Well, I guess that explains the smell," he muttered. "But does it explain what Alice didn't see?" He frowned, his porcelain forehead creasing.

"The smell?" I repeated.

"You smell awful," he said absently, still frowning. "A werewolf? Are you sure about that?"

"Very sure," I promised, wincing as I remembered Paul and Jacob fighting in the road.

Carlisle was still lost in thought. Suddenly his eyes widened, and he turned to stare at me with a shocked expression. "Your best friend is a werewolf?"

I nodded sheepishly.

"How long has this been going on?"

"Not long," I said, my voice sounding defensive. "He's only been a werewolf for just a few weeks."

He glowered at me. "A young werewolf? Even worse! Edward was right--you are a magnet for danger. Weren't you supposed to be staying out of trouble?"

"There's nothing wrong with werewolves," I grumbled, stung by his critical tone.

"Until they loose their tempers." He shook his head sharply from side to side. "Leave it to you, Bella. Anyone else would be better off when the vampires left town. But you have to start hanging out with the first monsters you can find."

I didn't want to argue with Carlisle--I was still trembling with joy that he was really, truly here, that I could touch his marble skin and hear his slightly British velvet voice--but he had it all wrong.

"No, Carlisle, the vampires didn't really leave--not all of them, anyway. That's the whole trouble. If it weren't for the werewolves, Victoria would have gotten me by now. Well, if it weren't for Jake and his friends, Laurent would have gotten me before she could, I guess, so--"

"Victoria?" he hissed. "Laurent?"

I nodded, a teensy bit alarmed by the expression in his black eyes. I pointed at my chest. "Danger magnet, remember?"

He shook his head again. "Tell me everything--start at the beginning."

I glossed over the beginning, skipping the motorcycles and the voices, but telling him everything else right up to today's misadventure. Carlisle didn't like my thin explanation about boredom and the cliffs, so I hurried on to the strange flame I'd seen on the water and what I'd thought it meant. His eyes narrowed almost to slits at that part. It was strange to see him look so...so dangerous--like a vampire. I swallowed hard and went on with the rest about Harry.

He listened to my story without interrupting. Occasionally, he would shake his head, and the crease in his forehead deepened until it looked like it was carved permanently into the marble of his skin. He didn't speak and, finally, I fell quiet, struck again by the borrowed grief at Harry's passing. I though of Charlie; he would be home soon. What condition would he be in?

"Our leaving didn't do you any good at all, did it?" Carlisle murmured.

I laughed once--it was a slightly hysterical sound. "That was never the point, though, was it? It's not like you left for my benefit."

Carlisle scowled at the floor for a moment. "Well...I guess I acted impulsively today. I probably shouldn't have intruded."

I could feel the blood draining from my face. My stomach dropped. "Don't go, Carlisle," I whispered. My fingers locked around the collar of his white shirt and I began to hyperventilate. "Please don't leave me."

His eyes opened wider. "All right," he said, enunciating each word with slow prescicion. "I'm not going anywhere tonight. Take a deep breath."

I tried to obey, though I couldn't quite locate my lungs.

He watched my face while I concentrated on my breathing. He waited till I was calmer to comment.

"You look like hell, Bella."

"I drowned today," I reminded him.

"It goes deeper than that. You're a mess."

I flinched. "Look, I'm doing my best."

"What do you mean?"

"It hasn't been easy. I'm working on it."

He frowned. "I told him," he said to himself.

"Carlisle," I sighed. "What did you think you were going to find? I mean, besides me dead? Did you expect to find me skipping around and whistling show tunes? You know me better than that."

"I do. But I hoped."

"Then I guess I don't have the corner on the idiocy market."

The phone rang.

"That has to be Charlie," I said, staggering to my feet. I grabbed Carlisle's stone hand and dragged him with me to the kitchen. I wasn't about to let him out of my sight.

"Charlie?" I answered the phone.

"No, its me," Jacob said.

"Jake!"

Carlisle scrutinized my expression.

"Just making sure you were still alive," Jacob said sourly.

"I'm fine. I told you that it wasn't-"

"Yeah. I got it. 'Bye."

Jacob hung up on me.

I sighed and let my head hang back, staring at the ceiling. "That's going to be a problem."

Carlisle squeezed my hand. "They aren't too excited I'm here."

"Not especially. But it's none of their business anyway."

Carlisle put his arm around me. "So what do we do now?" he mused. He seemed to talk to himself for a moment. "Things to do. Loose ends to tie."

"What things to do?"

His face was suddenly careful. "I don't know for sure...I need to see Alice."

Would he leave so soon? My stomach dropped.

"Could you stay?" I begged. "Please? For just a little while. I've missed you so much." My voice broke.

"If you think that's a good idea." His eyes were unhappy.

"I do. You can stay here. Charlie wouldn't mind."

"I have a house, Bella."

I nodded, disappointed but resigned. He hesitated, studying me.

"Well, I need to get a suitcase of clothes at the very least. Are you sure that Charlie won't mind?"

I threw my arms around him. "Carlisle, you're the best!"

"And I think I'll need to hunt. Immedately," he added in a strained voice.

"Oops." I took a step back.

"Can you stay out of trouble for one hour?"

"Yes," I answered.

"Good. Don't fall down the stairs or anything." He grimaced. Even making faces, he still looked like a God.

"You'll come back?" I asked in a small voice.

"I promise--one hour."

I glanced at the clock over the kitchen table. He laughed and leaned in quickly to kiss me on the cheek. Then he was gone.

I slowly brought my hands up to where his lips had touched. Carlisle had never been that...intimate...with me before. It was strange.

I took a deep breath. Carlisle would be back. I suddenly felt so much better.

I had plenty to do to keep myself busy while I waited. A shower was definitely first on the agenda. I sniffed my shoulders as I undressed, but I couldn't smell anything but the brine and seaweed scent of the ocean. I wondered what Carlisle had mean about me smelling bad.

When I was cleaned up, I went back to the kitchen. I couldn't see any signs that Charlie had eaten recently, and he would probably be hungry when he got back. I hummed tunelessly to myself as I moved around the kitchen.

While Thursday's casserole rotated in the microwave, I made up the couch with sheets and an old pillow. Carlisle wouldn't need it, but Charlie would need to see it. I was careful not to watch the clock. There was no reason to start myself panicking; Carlisle had promised.

I hurried through my dinner, not tasting it--just feeling the ache as it slid down my raw throat. Mostly I was thirsty; I must have drunk a half a gallon of water by the time I was finished. All the salt in my system had dehydrated me.

I went to go try to watch TV while I waited.

Carlisle was already there, sitting on his improvised bed. His eyes were a liquid butterscotch. He smiled and patted the pillow. "Thanks."

"You're early," I said, elated.

I sat down next to him and leaned my head on his shoulder. He put his cold arms around me and sighed.

"Bella. What are we going to do with you?"

"I don't know," I admitted. "I really have been trying my hardest."

"I believe you."

It was silent.

"How is Esme?" I asked him.

He stiffened a bit. "We got a divorce."

I sat up quickly, nearly hitting my head on Carlisle's chin as I did so.

"What?!" I squeaked. Carlisle and Esme? Divorced? What?

"We just simply...fell out of love," he said.

"Oh, Carlisle...I'm so sorry." I hugged him.

"She still lives with us. We are best friends now."

I decided to change the subject for him. "You said you flew here...Where did you come from?"

"I was in Denali. Visiting Tanya's family."

"Oh. Did anyone else come with you?"

He shook his head. They didn't approve of my interference. We promised..." he trailed off, and then his tone changed. "And you think Charlie won't mind me being here?" he asked, sounding worried.

"Charlie thinks very highly of you, Carlisle."

"Well, we're about to find out."

Sure enough, a few seconds later, I heard the cruiser pull into the driveway. I jumped up, and hurried to open the door.

Charlie trudged slowly up the walk, his eyes on the ground and his shoulders slumped. I walked forward to greet him; he didn't even see me until I hugged him around the waist. He embraced me back fiercely.

"I'm so sorry about Harry, Dad."

"I'm really going to miss him," Charlie mumbled.

"How's Sue doing?"

"She seems dazed, like she hasn't grasped it yet. Sam's staying with her..." The volume of his voice faded in and out. "Those poor kids. Leah's just a year older than you, and Seth is only fourteen..." He shook his head.

He kept his arms tight around me as he started towards the door again.

"Um, Dad?" I figured I had better warn him. "You'll never guess who's here."

He looked at me blankly. His head swiveled around, and he spied the Mercedes across the street, the porch light reflecting off the glossy black paint. Before he could react, Carlisle was in the doorway.

"Hello, Chief Swan," he said in a subdued voice. "I'm sorry I came at such a bad time."

"Carlisle Cullen?" he peered at the tall figure in front of him as if he doubted what his eyes were telling him. "Carlisle, is that you?"

"It's me," he confirmed. "I was in the neighborhood."

"Is Alice...?"

"No, I'm alone."

Both Carlisle and I knew that he wasn't really asking about Alice. His arm tightened over my shoulder.

"He can stay here, can't he?" I pleaded. "I already asked him."

"Of course," Charlie said mechanically. "We'd love to have you, Carlisle."

"Thank you, Chief Swan. I know it's horrid timing."

"Call me Charlie. And it's fine, really. I'm going to be really busy doing what I can for Harry's family; it will be nice for Bella to have some company."

"There's dinner for you on the table, Dad," I told him.

"Thanks, Bell." He gave me one more squeeze before he shuffled toward the kitchen.

Carlisle went back to the couch, and I followed him. This time, he was the one to pull me against his shoulder.

"You look tired."

"Yeah," I agreed, and yawned. "Near-death experiences do that to me...So, what does Alice think of you being here?"

"She doesn't know. She was on a hunting trip with Jasper. I'll hear from her in a few days, when they get back."

"You won't tell him though...when he checks in again?" I asked. He knew I didn't mean Jasper or Emmett now.

"No. He'd bite my head off," Carlisle said grimly.

I laughed once, and then sighed.

I didn't want to sleep. I wanted to stay up all night talking to Carlisle. And it didn't make sense to be tired, what with me crashing on Jacob's couch all day. But drowning really had taken a lot out of me, and my eyes wouldn't stay open. I rested my head on his stone shoulder, and drifted into a more peaceful oblivion than I had any hope of.

OW! OH MY, GOD! My back hurts from sitting in the computer chair for three hours and typing! I don't own more than HALF of this text. It came directly from New Moon. Please review. Please. This took me forever. 4,664 words.

Review! Flames welcome!