4 : The Coven

A pair of wolves surprised me when I first entered the park. I immediately crouched for attack but memories of my furry friends in La Push made me pause and bought the wolves a little time for a speedy get away. I would have easily caught up to them at the speed they were going but another surprise sprung on me. Fear kicked at me in the stomach. This time my crouch was defensive rather than offensive.

It was a group of three, one male and two females. The beautiful figures and their diamond covered skin screamed vampire but also of danger. Their eyes were a glowing yellow revealing their vegetarian lifestyle. This must be the Denali family. They must have also hunted recently. Their eyes were the same lightness as Edward's when sneaked through my bedroom window right after returning from a hunting trip. Recalling his eyes made my heart skip a beat.

In the fraction of a second that I spend distracted by my own memory, not one of us moved. Both sides saw potential danger in the other. I realized this was a bad way to make acquaintances with vampires I hoped would take me in. So I forced myself to relax my stance and approach their ranks.

"Hello, my name is Bella Swan. I'm a friend of the Cullens from Forks." Short and brief so they will not catch the half-lie in the second half of my statement.

"Bella Swan? You must be Edward's little siren. He must have really lost it then." I flinched upon hearing his name spoken out loud but they probably mistook my little jump as a reaction to the unpleasant memory of being bitten. She thinks Edward bit me. The speaker was appraising me from foot to toe. I didn't bother to correct her.

The female who spoke had a head of strawberry blond hair that burned orange under the sunlight. Her beauty could easily rival Rosalie's, full of glamour and allure. Her two companions were obviously of another ethnicity. Their hairs were dark brown and their eyes wise with age and experience.

"Is that why the Cullens left their residence in Forks so quickly?" the blond female accused.

"At least you are alive and well," the dark haired lady threw a disapproving look toward her sister and cooed to me in a Spanish accent. "You are very welcome to stay here."

"I am Carmen." The Spanish lady introduced herself and then pointed to her sister. "The rude one is my sister Tanya." She said with a not so serious smile.

"Eleazar." The third one nodded to me. His eyes concentrated my face with an unreadable gaze.

"Come," Carmen drew me into her arms. I took a deep breath, thankful that I was no longer on my own.

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It's been a week since my arrival at Denali. I met two more members of the Denali clan. Kate reminded me of Alice's warm and bubbly nature. She went with me on my first hunt, feeding a large variety of animals in the Alaskan wilderness. Irina, after her initial cautiousness, was a graceful hostess in the few times I saw her. In fact everyone other than Tanya treated me like an old friend.

"She's just threatened by your pretty face," Kate reassured me. "My sister is not used to competition."

Life in Alaska was wonderfully calm, the scenery breath-taking through my adjusting eyes. The uneventful days provided too great an excuse for my mind to wonder. Lying now on the soft snow banks, I was trailing off in my thoughts. I wondered when or if I would see Edward. With an infinite lifetime, I doubt it's possible to avoid him forever. If I stay with the Denali coven, he is bound to find out. Perhaps now that he is no longer a constant threat to my life, we could become friends.

Friends. Could I do handle that? I was finally beginning to understand what Jacob must have felt every moment he spent with me. Could I lie to myself like Jacob? Convinced that the person I loved would love me back one day. I shouldn't. I knew I would be doomed the second I plant that seed of hope. But life without Edward is so monotonous. I might as well be in rainy Forks, Washington than the snowy slopes of Alaska. Jacob's friendship was off limits to me now. My family thinks I'm dead…

Too many thoughts flew through my head and the naked pain of my loneliness ripped through my heart. Sounds that barely resembled sobs rumbled through my chest but no tears were capable of escaping my eyes. I was the stone cold Bella again. Silently suffering and coldness inside matched the temperature of my skin.

The irony of my actually being dead snapped me out of my hole of self-pity. I decided to go hunting. By letting my vampire instincts take control, I forgot my human memories. So I set off to drink myself silly.

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After a massacre of two grizzly bears and a moose that got in my way, I reluctantly headed back to my temporary home at the foot of Mt. McKinsey. I was ready to put on a mask of deceptive bliss for my host family when I opened the door. I had an unexpected visitor. I recognized the familiar but complicated scent. My mind warred with itself whether to melt into absolute bliss or fill with apprehension of the purpose behind this visit.

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End Notes: The Denali family is pretty clueless about what has happened in Forks. Therefore Tanya is ignorant of Bella's relationship with Edward and Irina unaware of Bella's friendship with the werewolves who killed Laurent. I'm curious what their reactions will be when or if they find out the truth.

Don't worry. Although I'm getting a kick out of writing wretchedly sad scenes, this is not New Moon. Edward is coming very soon. Yay!

Thanks for reading. Please review!