May, 2122- 100 years later
"I think it's finally safe for us to return," Carlisle announced.
"Return…" Bella said, hardly daring to hope. "Do you mean…?"
"Yes," Carlisle said, smiling. "It's been one hundred years. We should be okay. Besides, how much longer can any of us last here? How much longer could we stand to be hidden away?"
"Are you sure?" Esme asked. "Even though we can all agree we'd be far better off back on the surface, this is quite a big thing. Very risky."
"I'm sure."
"I'm a bit nervous to return," Bella said. "Who knows what it's like out there?"
But she couldn't deny that they needed to be free. Splitting blood between them all had been a struggle, and with each getting very little blood, very rarely, they'd been constantly thirsty. As a result, tempers flared, emotions ran high, and arguments arose. But somehow, they'd muddled through.
"I know," Carlisle said. "Me too. After all, it's 2122. Who knows how humans have evolved?"
Rosalie shuddered. "It's a scary thought. But I'm sick of being down here, feeding on sharks, having nothing to do, surrounded by only snow, day after day."
"I agree with Rose," Emmett said. "Honestly, I don't care what's waiting for us out there. I just want to be out there again.
"Well," Carlisle said, brightly. "Let's get back out there again."
They carefully, cautiously, unblocked the tunnels, and climbed out, their backpacks slung over their shoulders. One by one, they cautiously emerged from the darkness where they had spent the past one hundred years.
Bella looked up at the sky, a grin spreading across her face. The sun shone brightly, making her sparkle. Spinning around, she laughed in delight. The others were reacting in similar ways. After being cooped up for so long, to be able to feel the wind and sun filled them with euphoria.
She turned to Carlisle, eyes alight with excitement. "Where do we go first?"
"Denali," he said, gazing around in awe. "We can find out what's happened… what's changed."
Impatient to have some link to civilisation again, they immediately headed to Anchorage, and from there, ran to Denali.
Jacob ran to catch up with Bella. "Not far left," he said, reaching out to take her hand, grinning at her.
Bella smiled back, but as the Denali's house came into view, she slowed and her smile vanished.
"Oh…" she breathed, bringing her hand up to cover her mouth in shock.
The house was completely destroyed.
A fire and clearly raged through it, destroying everything in its path. On the walls that remained, 'DIE BLOODSUCKERS' was written in red, the paint dripping a bit before it had dried.
Carlisle hesitantly walked towards the wreckage, looking around at the rubble.
"Gone," he whispered, hoarsely. "All gone."
A few days later, they were walking through the streets of Littleworth.
"Here," Bella said, softly, gazing sadly up at the house she's owned for only a few months, but meant so much to her.
"Sold to someone else," Jacob said, quietly.
"I wonder what happened to all our stuff," Renesmee said.
"Auctioned off, most likely," Bella sighed. "Well, there's no point staying here. Carlisle, the place in Forks would probably have stayed untouched, right?" Carlisle nodded. "So let's go there, because I think it's safe to assume your place in Wytham has been sold too."
She did her best to hide her disappointment; some part of her had irrationally believed that Edward might be there, waiting for her, for all of them. There was still hope, though, that he was in Forks, where they were going next. But if he wasn't there, if Bella never found him, she didn't know how she could survive. Because the only thing that gave her the will to survive, that gave her the strength to keep going in those seemingly endless days hidden away, was the belief that Edward was somewhere out there, waiting for her.
1 week later
"Do you want me to come with you?" Jacob asked.
Bella nodded. "It's been so long since I've visited Charlie. And you can visit Billy too."
Together, Bella and Jacob made their way down to La Push, keeping to the trees, as was habit. Bella stood back as Jacob crouched beside his father's grave. After a few minutes, Jacob stood up, slowly turning around to walk back to the Bella. Then he froze, hearing a quiet growl. Looking into the trees, he saw a grey wolf walking towards her. Two other wolves followed behind it. Bella had seen them too, watching them in shock.
"Leah?" Jacob whispered. "Seth? Embry?"
The wolves turned around and went back into the forest.
"Wait!" Jacob cried.
But a few minutes later, three people came running back out, fully clothed, and smiling.
"Jake!" Seth shouted, happily. "You're here!"
"Seth! You…?"
Seth nodded. "Since none of us have imprinted, we decided to keep phasing and wait for you to come out of hiding."
"What happened to you?" Bella asked.
"We were never discovered," Embry said. At least, it was never known to the public that we existed. Even so, Sam, Paul, Jared and Quil soon stopped phasing because they didn't want to risk exposure. Actually, everything who imprinted stopped phasing. Leah, Seth and I went into hiding too, staying in forests, coming back to check on the rest of the pack every once in a while."
"So… are you the only ones left?" Jacob asked.
"No. But all the others hiding with us stayed back at our base," Leah explained. "So what have you been doing this past hundred years?"
Jacob and Bella exchanged a look.
"Dying of boredom; living in a cave deep under the ice in the middle of Antarctica; feeding on sharks and squids and penguins… It was very dull."
"I can imagine," Embry said, making a disgusted face. "Well, how are you finding it, being back up here? Things haven't changed too much, right?"
"Yeah," Jacob said, looking around. "I expected it to be drastically different. Well, Forks is noticeably more populated, and the technology advances have just been… wow. But other than that, it seems mostly the same."
"Nice to see there are still trees around," Bella said.
"Yep. We managed to control that problem," Seth said, cheerily.
Bella nodded. "What's things like for vampires now? Are we still being hunted?"
"Oh, no," Seth said. "That Officer Fernsby killed a guy called Sigmund Makvala a few years after you went into hiding. Apparently he destroyed the original tape that was used as evidence against you. And you erased all the other evidence."
"Another thirty years later," Embry continued, "Only Fernsby was still searching for you. While other supposed vampires were tracked down and hunted, after they too went into hiding, there was no solid evidence they were actually vampires. And you all hadn't been sighted for so long that people began to believe they had dreamed the whole thing up. But Fernsby was persistent. In the end, she was admitted to the mental ward. Spend the last twenty or so years of her life there. They say she was still rambling about vampires when she died.
Bella's eyes widened. "Wow, that's…"
Embry nodded. "I know."
"So, now that we're in the clear, we can start living properly again. But we'll have to do a better job of cleaning up behind us." Bella sighed. "Anyway, we should probably go. I need to visit Charlie. And I need to find Edward. I'm hoping he left some clue as to where he's gone…"
Leah, Seth and Embry all shared a look. "Actually, Bella," Leah began. "Edward… he came to us, maybe a month or two after you went into hiding. He gave a message to Sam, which was then passed onto us."
Bella frowned. "He… spoke to you? What did he say?"
"That he was going into hiding," Seth said. "Living as a nomad in East Asia, in all the warm, sunny countries. He asked that if you ever came looking for us, we point you in his direction."
"We've been waiting to see you again ever since," Embry added. "Sam vowed that one way or another, we'd pass the message onto you."
A slow smile spread across Bella's face. "East Asia," she repeated. "Sunny countries. Now… now I know where to look for him!" She laughed, barely able to contain her delight.
Seth grimaced. "Actually, Bella, there's something else you need to know…"
Bella's face fell, hearing the seriousness in his voice, knowing whatever he had to say was nothing good.
Leah took a deep breath. "After Edward spoke to Sam, we all followed the news very carefully, for any word about him. Several years later, we heard that… Edward was killed. He was tracked down, found in a little house in the Maldives." Leah hesitated. "It was reported that he was in the house when it was burned down. He was never seen leaving."
For a few minutes, Bella said nothing, oblivious to the others, three words repeating over and over in her head.
Edward was killed.
"Bella? Bella?"
She blinked and looked up, realising she'd sank to the ground, Jacob crouching beside her, one arm around her shoulders. She swallowed and unsteadily got to her feet.
"Are you okay?" Jacob asked, concerned. "It must be a shock… If you need time, anything, just tell me."
"Time?" Bella asked, barely aware of what Jacob was saying.
"Yes, to process all this. It's a lot to take in. We've only been back for a week and it's been a big change for all of us…"
Bella shook her head, brows furrowing. "I… I don't believe it."
"I know, it's a shock," Jacob said, sympathetically. "It'll take time for you to-"
"No," Bella interrupted him. "No, I don't believe it. Edward's not dead. He isn't."
"Bella… you can't deny it. You can't live in denial. You have to accept the truth."
Again, Bella shook her head, more firmly this time. "No! He's not dead. I know he isn't. I would have felt something if he was."
"Bella," Seth began, hesitantly. "We saw the reports. It's true. He's gone."
"But… there's no evidence. What if this is all a lie created by Fernsby?"
Seth sighed. "We saw the tape. It began with him entering his house, to it being burned down. He never escaped."
"What if he faked his death? He can read minds. Maybe he got out somehow."
"Bella," Jacob said, gently. "He's gone. Please, just accept it. Don't fight the truth."
"No." Bella remained firm. "I refuse to believe Edward is dead. I know he's still alive, and I will find him." She drew herself tall, lifting her head. "Thank you, Leah, Seth, Embry, for updating us on what's been happening. But I have to go now. I'll be visiting Charlie and then heading off to find Edward."
With that, she turned on her heel and walked off. A few minutes later, she was crouched beside Charlie's grave.
"Hey, Daddy," she whispered. "I'm sorry I haven't visited you for so long, but I couldn't. I was stuck in an ice cave in Antarctica." She snorted. "Ridiculous, I know. But it saved our lives. A lot has happened since I last visited you. Me and Edward split up but we worked through our issues. It was really the vampire hunters that separated us, anyway. We were exposed and had to go into hiding. Things are better now. Humans have forgotten we exist, and this time, we're going to work harder to make sure we can't be accused of being immortal.
"The wolves say Edward's dead. But I know he isn't. I can feel it. I'm going to find him. We all need him, no matter what terrible things he's done. We've been struggling, and it's a relief to finally be back above land, in civilisation, where I can visit you and search for Edward.
"I hope you're okay up there. Billy too. You've probably been dreadfully worried about us, but I promise we're fine." Bella paused, and sighed. "I miss you, Daddy, and it hurts that I'll never get to see you again. But I know it can't be helped… I love you, and I promise I'll visit again soon. Goodbye."
When Bella arrived home later, she immediately hurried to her room, grabbing a backpack and shoving any necessities inside. Once packed, she sought out Jasper.
"Have you got our faked documents yet?" she asked. "I need a passport."
Surprised, Jasper nodded. "I've finished them. Your passport's in Carlisle's office somewhere. Why do you need it?"
"Doesn't matter. Thanks," Bella said, before rushing out the room, leaving behind a bewildered Jasper.
In Carlisle's office, she checked the place he usually kept any fake documents, and quickly found her new passport. Grabbing it and slipping it into her bag, she went to find Renesmee.
"Mom?" Renesmee asked, as Bella walked into her room. "Where are you going?" She eyed the bag slung over Bella's shoulder.
"Asia," Bella replied. "The Maldives specifically. I won't be staying there long though."
Renesmee raised an eyebrow. "Why are you going to the Maldives?"
"Jacob didn't tell you?" Renesmee shook her head. "I'm going to find your father."
"What do you mean?"
"Jacob and I spoke to some of the remaining Quileutes," Bella said. "They told us that Edward was reported dead in the Maldives. But I know he isn't gone. So I'm going to find him."
"Do you need me to come with you?"
Bella gazed at her daughter for a few moments. If she was being honest, she'd have preferred to go alone, so she wouldn't constantly be having to worry about where Renesmee was, and if she was safe. But this was her father Bella was searching for. Renesmee deserved to be there.
"Yes," she said, after a moments hesitation. "Yes, you can come. Pack some clothes and get your passport. It's in Carlisle's office. I'll quickly tell Esme where we're going. She'll explain it to the others when they get home."
Renesmee nodded, moving around her room to collect the things she'd need. Bella went downstairs, looking from room to room for Esme.
"Oh, there you are!" she said, when she found her.
"Yes, Bella?" Esme asked.
"Renesmee and I, we're leaving," Bella said. "We're going to look for Edward." Esme opened her mouth to say something but Bella continued before she could. "Jacob and I spoke to the Quileutes earlier. I'd explain it all myself but I don't want to waste any time. I'm sorry, Esme. Just ask Jacob to tell you." At the disappointment in Esme's eyes that some of her family were leaving and she wouldn't know when they'd be back, Bella felt her resolve weaken slightly. But this was Edward- her mate and Renesmee's father. Esme would understand, even if it upset her.
Esme nodded. "I understand, Bella. Just… contact us frequently, and stay safe."
"I will, Esme," Bella said, reaching forward to hug her.
Then Renesmee bounded down the stairs, bag slung over her shoulder, phone in her hand.
"Bye Esme!" she called, as she made her way to the door.
"Goodbye Esme," Bella said. "Tell the others I said goodbye to them too. And that I'm sorry for leaving so abruptly."
Esme nodded again. "Goodbye Bella, Nessie. Good luck."
Bella looked at her for a few seconds, realising how big a task she was taking on, and how important this was. In those few seconds, she wanted to drop her bag, call Renesmee back inside, and sink into Esme's arms, relinquishing the weight of the responsibility on her shoulders.
But she couldn't. She couldn't run from her problems, as Jasper had accused her of doing. She couldn't let other people sort everything out for her, while she sat back watching them work. She had to take control of her life again.
So she turned, briskly walking towards the door, following Renesmee outside, never once looking back, for she knew that if she did, her resolve would crack and she'd run directly into Esme's welcoming arms.
Instead, she looked at Renesmee, her daughter's face full of hope, eyes sparkling with excitement. And suddenly, Bella knew that no matter what, she would find Edward. If not for herself, then for her daughter.
Together, mother and daughter set off to find the missing person that made their family complete.
