I don't own any of Stephanie meyer's wonderful characters or anything else within this incredible universe she's created.

Chapter 8: Edward's POV

I gave my eulogy tactfully, all too aware of the thoughts in the crowd. Angela was in a state of wonderment. She was truly grieving the loss of her friend, but she was also shocked by my pronouncement of love for Bella. She was wondering how she had missed Bella's crush develop into a full relationship without her noticing. Jessica was equally as shocked. Her emotions were a mix of envy over my love for Bella and gloating over all the attention she would soon receive for speaking at the funeral. However, behind all her pettiness, she was deeply sorrowful. I hadn't anticipated that she would mourn so profoundly. I alway had believed her friendship with Bella to be superficial at best, but now my only guess was that her shrewd competitiveness was a learned behavior and not an innate one. The loudest voice however, was coming from a large russet brown boy with long black hair. He was screaming in his mind almost incoherently.

"EVIL, MONSTER, BLOOD SUCKER, COLD ONE!!! Dad was right about them! It's all their fault, all HIS fault! Dad tried to warn her and I thought he was crazy! And now..now it's too late.. and he.."

Jacob was thinking more than just daggers, I could see with absolute clarity that if he had been close enough he would've killed me, or attempted at least. Jacob had never taken any heed to Billy's warnings about the tribe's legends before, but I guess he finally had enough reason to hate us to see the truth. Then I heard something unexpected, Jacob's mind turned from enraged to down right animalistic. Wolf-like snarls were ripping through his consciousness. His body temperature rose to an inhuman fever, and his entire body began to vibrate. I realized in an instant that the tribe would not be toothless any longer. I shot Alice a panicked look, but her expression was dumbfounded. Before I had the opportunity to think through how I would take down a raging werewolf in a crowd full of people with the least casualties possible and without angering our vampire overlords in Voltera, Jacob got up and stormed out of the church with Billy wheeling closely behind him. Thank god.

The funeral ended quickly after my impromptu speech. I was grateful to be done with this chapter of my and Bella's eternity. I know Bella's grief must seem immense right now, but in 30, 50, 100 years it would seem like nothing. My family quickly gathered their things and exited the church. Rose and Emmett got into the M3 and the rest of the family got into Carlisle's Mercedes. As I was preparing to get into the back passenger seat next to Alice, I felt human warmth creep behind me then a firm hand on my shoulder. I would have been confused by the silent thoughts if not for the circumstances. Charlie started speaking before I had even turned around.

"Ahem… can I speak to you for a moment there Edward?"

"Of course, sir."

"That speech you gave… well… I didn't know that you and Bells were that… serious."

"I meant every word I said, Chief Swan. I truly loved Bella."

"Yeah, yeah, sure. I remember that feeling, I remember being 17."

Charlie looked deep in thought, but all I got from his mind was a beach at night with a starless sky, a full moon and a brunette girl with her feet in the waves. Just as I was preparing to turn and get in the car, Charlie spoke again.

"What exactly happened that night, with you and Bella? Why did she leave?"

"I told her that I loved her, that I wanted to be with her forever. She told me I was crazy and she asked to go home. Then she started to go on about how we were just kids and how we didn't even know what love is. She said she wasn't even sure if that kind of love exists outside of fiction. I told her that I knew it did and how I've seen it with my parents. Then she said maybe it could be real for me but not for her… then she went inside and I left."

"Well she was right, you guys are too young for that kind of thing… you need to grow up some first… she should have grown up some, she could have…"

Charlie looked lost again… then his mind was overcome with violent images. Images of the end he was trying to conjure the will to accomplish.

"Charlie?"

"Yeah?"

"Bella would want you to keep going. It would destroy her if you gave up."

"Yeah… I know."

I hope dearly that this knowledge would be enough to keep him from going down this path…

"I still don't know about everything though, something just doesn't feel right. Feels fishy or something. I still wanna do some digging."

Charlie caught me off guard with this one. I never imagined anyone would be suspicious. We had chosen this cover-up for that reason. Keep it cool, Edward. Don't give him any reason to look into this further.

"What do you mean sir?"

"Bells knew better and to drive late at night and in a storm no less. And I don't know why she would drive all the way to Phoenix, stay in the house without her mom, just to turn around and come back in the middle of the night. And the way that the Oregon State patrol handled the case was odd too. Nothing seems right."

"Grief is confusing… it can make a lot of things not make sense…"

I was grasping at straws I'll admit. I just desperately needed him to drop this.

"I JUST LOST MY DAUGHTER AND YOU WANNA TALK TO ME ABOUT GRIEF?! What do you even know about it?!"

Charlie exploded with anger, but it was really just more pain.

"When my birth parents died I was still young… but I will always wonder if someone could have done something more for them."

This was only a half lie. Through the years, especially when I attended medical school, I saw medical advancements that saved people from the fate that a generation earlier I had watched people die from. It is not lost on me that if myself and my parents had lived in the 21st century, we would have likely not died of Spanish influenza. It is pointless to dwell on thoughts like that though, and I am so removed from my human life now that it barely feels like my own.

"Oh, yeah. I guess you do know something about grief. I'm sorry son."

Charlie looked remorseful, but still flustered from his previous outburst.

"It's okay Chief Swan."

"Okay… well I'll let you go…"

Charlie kind of just wandered off back towards the church, his mind as listless as before.

I got into the back of the Mercede. Carlisle drove out of the parking lot and around the corner away from the eye line of any lingering funeral attendees. I got out with the full intent of running straight to the meadow, but something else caught my attention. A scent so pungent it burned the inside of my nostrils. Wet dog… or werewolf… good god. Would fate ever give me just one moment of peace?

Bella's POV

I know the funeral must have ended at least 20 minutes ago, so where was Edward? I try not to be impatient, I really do. But I simply can not wait here anymore without knowing where he is or what he's doing. I'm a vampire now. I don't have to wait around anymore. I'm not some weak, fragile little girl who has to wait and wonder and hope that Edward will come around and sweep me off my feet and protect me from danger. I'm no damn damsel, and although he may occasionally sparkle he is a no knight in shining armor. With this thought and all the will power and stubbornness of my literary heroines before me, I stomped into the forest to track down Edward and set the record straight on how our relationship would take place from now on. It took me a little while of wandering but I finally caught his scent just north west of the meadow about 10 miles. I ran, still tracking his scent, not at all trying to be inconspicuous. I wasn't trying to sneak up on him and it's not like anyone would be in the middle of the forest anyway. Then out of nowhere someone grabbed my arm from behind and covered my mouth before I could scream. Before I knew it I was sitting in Edward's lap on a very high branch of a hemlock. He was still covering my mouth, and it's a good thing too. I have some very choice words for him as soon as he lets me go.

"Bella, what are you doing here? I told you I would meet you in our meadow."

Edward said, sounding gruff and kind of annoyed. What does he have to be annoyed about? It's not like he got attacked and taken to the top of a tree.

"I don't have to sit around and wait for you anymore, I'm a vampire, remember? Why did you attack me?"

"You are the most stubborn person I've ever met, you do know that don't you?"

"That doesn't sound like an answer to my question."

"You are completely impossible."

"Well you should probably get used to that. I highly doubt that it's going away and we are going to be together quite often and for a very long time. I would recommend that you learn to deal."

"I suppose so, it may take a century or so but I'm sure at some point I will "learn to deal"."

Edward shot me his crooked smile, the one that made it hard to think straight. But he has still not answered my question, and that curiosity was the only thing keeping me from letting him get away with his rude and evasive behavior.

"So now that that's all cleared up, I'll ask again. Why did you attack me?"

"You were about to cross the Quillayute territory line."

He spoke so matter of fact like I should just know what he was talking about.

"And…?"

" Come on Bella, don't act like you don't remember. The reason that you even know what I am is because of the Quillayutes."

He gave me an incredulous and comically disappointed look.

"Are you talking about the treaty? Why would that matter? It's not like there's anyone to enforce it."

That's when Edward's expression twisted into something different, anger maybe? No, fear. Definitely fear.

"Unless you know something I don't…"

I look at him pointedly, but he just looks down.

" Come on Edward! What good could possibly come from you keeping a secret from me? Honestly you really need to work on your communication skills. We are going to be together unmoving and unchanging for eternity. At some point you're going to have to figure out that you can trust me and that you can just tell me what's going on without feeling the need to hide it. Where does that come from? Why won't you just let me in?"

My frustration got the better of me, as per usual. But we're going to have to figure this out sooner rather than later. I refuse to be in a relationship that is not fair and equal; a partnership not a dictatorship.

"I'm sorry Bella! I just wanted to be sure before I told you, I don't want you to have more to worry about unnecessarily."

"That's another thing! At some point you're going to have to let me decide what information is too much for me to handle. I'm a big girl you know. I can take care of myself and I've been doing it for a very long time. I've had 17 years of watching out for myself before you wandered in and decided that you need to save me from everything."

" I do need to save you from everything. How many times has fate tried to take you away from me just in the last six months?"

" That was before, now I'm one of you. I'm not breakable anymore, I am ferocious, I am strong, I am powerful. I don't actually need you. I want you very much but if you continue to try to assert yourself over me, then this is simply not going to work."

" What are you suggesting?"

" I am suggesting that you figure out how to be my partner and not my protector."

After a long pause of looking deep in my eyes, I imagine trying to read my thoughts, he simply replied.

"Okay."

"Okay?"

"Okay."

Edward took a deep breath before he continued.

"When I first got off the plane in Phoenix and realized that you weren't with Alice. That you went off on your own to meet him. I lost my mind. I didn't know if I would get to you in time. I didn't know if I lost my purpose for living. I will never experience that feeling again. I refuse to live without you Isabella Swan. So if you're telling me that this is what you need, then okay. I will do whatever it takes to keep you."

"Okay."

All I could manage was a whisper. I was so moved. I didn't want to lose him either. In all the stories that I read, all of those books describing epic love, they always detail the harrowing journey to find your person, but they stop at happily ever after. Elizabeth marries Mr. Darcy, Jo and Amy March both find love in men that they did not expect, and Catherine and Heathcliff are reunited and get to spend an eternity together in the afterlife. But what happens next? Surely all of their problems don't just go away. Elizabeth is still prideful and Mr. Darcy is still prejudice. How do they overcome that? What do they change in their communication to make a relationship that volatile work? I suppose it must be trial and error and not being afraid to tell your partner what you think and what you need. I guess we have our own eternity to find out, because I fully intend on having my epic love.

"Carlisle has always expected us to take the treaty seriously despite the fact that the Quillayutes did not have anyone to enforce their side. That might have changed though. I don't think that the tribe is as toothless as they used to be."

Edward spoke caustically.

" What do you mean? Do you think there's a new generation of werewolves?"

" I don't know about a full generation… But I believe there's at least one."

" Who?!"

"Jacob Black."

"Jake? No way! Why do you think that?"

"At the funeral I was reading his mind, he was so enraged at your death and suspected that my family and myself were to blame. Billy has always warned him about our family. The tribe has always passed the stories of vampires and werewolves down to each new generation. I think he finally accepted the truth in the tales and your death pushed him over the edge. I caught the change in his scent in the wooded area outside of the church. I think he changed for the very first time after leaving the funeral."

"Oh god, oh my god! Holy crow! What do we do?"

My mind was spinning. What could this mean for us? For the rest of the Cullens? What about the people of Forks?

" I was trying to see if I could track his scent. But of course it goes back across the treaty line so I can't track him any further. We're gonna have to go tell Carlisle and see what the next steps are."

"Okay, let's go."

We ran back to the house and met everyone inside. They were waiting at the long oval dining room table. Alice must've seen that we needed this meeting and asked them to wait for us.

" Edward, Bella, Alice told us that you had something to discuss with us. What's happened?"

Carlisle stood at the head of the table looking curious but also slightly concerned.

Edward led me to two empty seats at the table and we sat down.

" We need to discuss the Quillayute treaty. Jacob Black has transformed. They now have a werewolf on their side."

Instantly the table turned to hushed grumblings. Jasper seemed the most concerned, holding Alice's hand close to his chest as he spoke.

"Perhaps it's time to move on, between Bella's change and now the possibility of werewolves it doesn't seem safe to stay in Forks any longer."

"No! We just got here! I don't want to start over again!"

Rosalie snapped.

" We've lived with werewolves on the other side of the treaty before, we can do it again."

Emmett shrugged, not seeming to understand what all the fuss was about.

"What do you see, Alice?"

Esme asked, and we all turned our attention to Alice.

"I… don't … I can't… see anything?"

Everyone looked around at each other's shocked expressions, Alice loved completely perplexed.

"Well… you've never been around a werewolf before. Maybe you just need to get a feel for them before you can see them?"

I chimed in. Alice often had a hard time seeing people that she had never interacted with. I'm sure werewolves that she had never met or even been in proximity to would be even harder.

" Alice will not be "getting a feel" for any werewolves."

Jasper shot me a glare. I put up a shield for any emotions that he may throw at me before he had the opportunity to do so. I didn't really feel like getting mentally attacked today.

" I didn't mean that Alice would get all warm and fuzzy with them, Jasper. I just meant that she probably can't see them because she's never even been around a werewolf. You joined the family after the treaty was already set in place."

I can see now that Jasper just needs his previous notions and ideas to be challenged. I think Jasper is very used to making people see things the way he wants them to be seen. He's got another thing coming with me.

"Okay, I concede you little Spitfire."

Jasper smirks at me, and I understand now that he must already know all his little tricks will not work on me. Well that's just fine, we'll just have to work together instead of working against each other.

" Emmett is right, we have lived in harmony with the Tribe before. We have no reason to believe that that cannot continue now. Nothing has changed. I see no reason why we need to rush our plans to leave Forks."

Carlisle spoke calmly and assuredly. And I knew we would all follow his lead. Emmets laugh boomed, disrupting the quiet nature of the previous conversation.

"Haha! Ya hear that? I'm right!"

Emmett grinned a wide smile

" There's a first time for everything."

Edward said while rolling his eyes.

We all chuckled lightly and got up to attend to our own pass times.

" We never did make it to our meadow, shall we go now?"

Edward whispered in my ear, sending shivers down my spine.

"I would go anywhere with you."

The statement sounded simple but I meant it with the utmost passion. I could feel it, I found my Epic love, now it's just a matter of living out our happily ever after.