A/N: And another makes 3.

I do not own Twilight or any of the characters I'm just taking them for a spin.


Bella woke the next day nearly at noon not refreshed but ready to unpack and organize her home. "At least last night I didn't have any nightmares." She reasoned. "I'll take a comfortable sleep over refreshing anyday."

About 2 hours later, while she was making a list of things to look for in town, there was a knock on her door. She dropped the clothes she had been folding and rushed to answer the door lest her unknown guest takes offense. She found herself looking into the gentle eyes from the council meeting the day before.

"Hello, Bella" gentle words met her ears "My name is Sue Clearwater. Is it okay if I call you Bella?"

Bella kept her body partly behind the door always wary of ulterior motives. "Oh, umm I really only ever liked my dad calling me that." Sue's smile faltered and Bella remembered how this woman had intervened on her behalf in the meeting the day before. "But I guess I don't mind if you use it." Their eyes met briefly and Bella offered a genuine smile.

Sue's eyes turned sad again and she reached forward grasping Bella's hand with a slight squeeze. "I'm so sorry for your loss Bella. Your father was a dear friend of mine and many others here." With another squeeze Sue released Bella's hand.

"Thank you." Bella sighed holding back tears. She didn't realize how comforting it would be to have her grief acknowledged.

Sue sniffed lightly and dabbed at her eyes before speaking again "I'm here to see if you need anything or have any questions?" The woman finished with a smile as she gestured towards the bench under the lone tree in the little clearing.

Bella peered at Sue with confusion as she opened the door wider following dutifully behind.

"You don't look like you were expecting me. I thought Sam and them would've told you?" Sue questioned gently as she at patting the space beside her.

Bella felt herself blush at the question as she recalled the laughter from the previous evening. "Disgraceful" Bella shook her head as though to dislodge the venomous mental barb as she took a seat beside Sue. "Thanks" she smiled at Sue. "I was wondering, is there a particular area designated for wolf practice?" Bella scratched lightly at the back of her neck avoiding Sues' eyes. "I'd like to stretch my paws sometimes y'know. Not much chance around the humans."

Sues eyebrows furrowed as she took in the very non-alpha behavior coming from Bella. "Well, the pack sparring grounds are the woods and area down by the beach." Bella felt her skin crawl at the thought of what would happen if she went anywhere near the sparring grounds. She shuddered slightly.

"I'm not looking for a fight just to go for a run with my wolf every now and again," Bella interjected.

"Waste of space." Bella flinched at the return of the voice.

"Well a good portion of the woods surrounding your new home and the land west of forks belonged to Charlie and is now yours. Why not explore it?" Sue advised after a moment.

"This land is mine?" Bella asked in disbelief.

"Well, given that you are Charlie's only child I just assumed. The instructions he gave us didn't specify how long you would stay and this land was his. Despite your mother I doubt Bradley would dare to deny your birthright-" Sue paused and studied Bella a moment "How much do you know about the history between your parents packs and mine?"

Bella blinked at the abrupt change in subject still reeling from the revelation that she was a landowner now. "Well Charlie told me everything I guess. The original leaders of our packs were brothers seeking their fortune. One went North and the other went South. The brother in the South fought and won the right to lead the southern packs. The brother in the North used his strength and cunning to tame the wild and settle the land. When all was said and done they represented many of the strongest packs in the West and the rest fell in line. To foster a sense of family between these newley united tribes they paired them together in the sibling bond. Ensuring a legacy of brotherhood for generations to come. " Bella smiled imagining the brave brothers going out into the world to bend it to their will. She'd always admired them for that.

Taking a breath she continued her tale. "That is how the La Push Pack and the Koyana Pack came to be sisters" Bella paused remembering what she could of the history her father had relayed. "They lived in peace and prosperity for thousands of years. Coinciding with the westward expansion of the USA and genocide of first nation peoples the vast western empire saw it's demise. The only remaining packs from the great empire were the La Push and Koyana Packs. For 136 years they maintained their close ties across the distance between Washington and Arizona."

"Then, to the East, a new power was rising; the Mangemort Pack. Emissaries were sent to form an alliance with them but no word, or person, ever returned. Eventually the Mangemort attacked the Koyana pack unprovoked. They were still contemplating peace and found themselves fully unprepared. It was only thanks to the scheduled return of the Koyana-Push mixed elite guard that the Mangemort was barely beaten back." Bellas back stiffened as she readied to tell the next portion.

"It has always been our way to allow a mourning period at the start of war. Going back to the first wolves the pack bonds are the one thing we all respect. For this reason it is customary to allow a week, before negotiations or further provocation, as a grieving for those who had been and would be lost in the coming fights. But the Mangemort descended on the Koyana anew at nightfall. The ensuing massacre saw the Koyana further reduced to a ΒΌ of their size at the start of the day. The mixed guard fought but their small numbers and exhaustion proved fatal for all but four. The Mangemort served their demands: First the Koyana would submit to their traditions and in exchange the La Push pack would be left in peace. The Mixed Elite guard would be disbanded and the Koyana would submit to Mangemort rule. The la Push pack would pay the Mangemort in exchange for continued peace. And that is how it remains to this day."

Bella finished and kept her gaze locked on the ground. Her shoulders sagged with the weight of the shame brought on by the Mangemorts actions. Bradley was 100% correct when he'd mentioned the blood staining Bellas hands. As the oldest child of Renee Mangemort she bore the weight of that history though she did not have the Mangemort mark.

"DId your father ever tell you that he was one of the survivors in the guard?" Sue questioned gently. "That he was the one who delivered the demands from Mangemort? You know a lot of the story but there are some parts you missed."

Bella felt surprise overtake her. "My father was in the massacre?" She whispered horrified at what he must have seen and done. It was bad enough he'd had to participate in the Mangemort traditions but to have his entire Pack nearly destroyed before his eyes, and be unable to stop it, was unconscionable. "I never knew. I mean he never said anything."

"Your dad wasn't really ever much of a talker. He was always just scribbling away in that journal of his. I remember people would listen when he did speak. He really knew how to bring people together. You have his eyes you know" Sue stated a nostalgic smile on her face as she stared at Bella for a moment.

For her part Bella made a mental note to take some time to carefully read through her father's journal as soon as possible. "Why didn't he ever tell me he was in the massacre; he must've told me that story 100 times and somehow forgot to mention he was physically there for part of it?" Bella was snapped out of her thoughts by Sues hand resting on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry I didn't mean to take up so much of your time. It's been a while since I got to talk about your father." The Older woman stood brushing lightly at the back of her pants. "Was there any other questions you had honey?"

Bella was still feeling light headed from all that she'd learned but she remembered something rather important she should've asked yesterday. "Would you maybe also know when I'll be starting school?" Bella asked hoping her voice didn't tremble.

"You'll need to go into forks and register I'd assume. They'll figure all that out for you I'm sure." Sue said kindly.

Again Bella felt her face blush. How on earth would Sue know anything about her schooling? Obviously, she has to register for school. "Idiot" Bella offered a somewhat strained but genuine smile to Sue. "Thanks, I'll go ahead and bike into town now then," Bella replied as she motioned towards her bike eager to leave this uncomfortable situation.

As Bella peddled swiftly down the side of the highway towards Forks she was brought to a halt by something on the wind. She turned her nose up sniffing gently at the vague scent of Peppermint and snow mixed into the rough wooded smell of her surroundings. "That smells good." a voice rumbled in her mind appreciatively.

Bella stopped scenting, she was still unsure of the new voice in her mind. Although she did have to agree the smell was rather delicious.

It was a good few hours for Bella to bike into town and back fully registered, with instructions to arrive early Wednesday for her schedule and map. She'd also stopped to explore the town slightly; gathering her listed supplies along the way. She failed to notice that her route through town had followed the faint odor of peppermint and snow.


A/N: Still with me? Please R & R.