.:Edward's POV:.

Esme, Emmett, Rosalie, and I were headed off to Forks High School — a place I had not been to in a long time, yet it still felt so familiar to me. We were to check for any signs of Bella.

Rosalie remained the farthest distance from me as we ran. She was still angry about how I reacted earlier, even though I had sincerely apologized. She could hold a grudge like no other.

Esme and Emmett were both just glad to have me back.

It's about time this family was back together, though the circumstances suck... Can't say I know what the kid's going through, but damn, he looks awful. What do they do to vampires down in South America?

It's a relief to have Edward back. I've been so worried about him. ... I hope Carlisle has no problems with the wolves. Hopefully they have some news on Bella.

I tuned them out as soon as their thoughts began to revolve around Bella, or displaying any sign of sympathy toward me. I deserved no comforting. For this reason, I found myself mainly focusing on Rosalie's thoughts, which was a first. But she was the only one who held no pity for me. I wanted to — no, I needed to feel hated toward right now. There was no excuse for what I let happen. To hold onto what little sanity I had left, I needed someone to treat me the way I felt I deserved. That meant I was in Rosalie's head a lot more than I normally cared to.

There were times, however, where I had to escape even her thoughts. One reason was her incessant self-involvement; I could only take so much of her superficial outlook. The second reason was that even Rosalie could not help but wonder about Bella, and slightly feel bad for her. Her friends; her father; her chance at a happy human life; everything I tried to protect for her was gone, forever lost.

The rustling of tree leaves grew louder as the wind picked up, freely weaving its way through the empty town. I stared blankly out in the direction of the school, striving to keep my mind numb from the fearful and distressed emotions of my family. To occupy myself, I attempted to compose a plan for when we made it to our destination. The only thing we could do, really, was search. Judging from how things were looking, classes were in session during the time of attack. It would be the location where most of the bodies were, or were, depending on how much had been cleaned up. I would assume the children would be the humans' first priority, the first bodies they were charged to acquire, so I was hoping the area was clear for us.

When we arrived, still hiding in the gloomy shadows until we had inspected the place, we saw there were no bodies around anymore. Across the campus, a group of firefighters were deliberating which area to head to next. The school buildings were empty, and the plan I had arranged would work out well, now that we had no need to worry about people seeing us.

"Emmett, Rosalie." I directed them quickly. "Head through the back doors, near the cafeteria. Esme and I will go through the front entrance."

They nodded, hurrying off, as Esme and I did the same.

The impact of the smell as we entered the building startled me. A strong scent of blood, mixed with cleaning supplies, and the faint odor of rotting corpses, was sickening.

However, I was focused on finding one scent. The beautiful, appealing smell of the one person I could not live without.

But the freesia-like aroma was nowhere to be found.

If I knew the exact timing the newborns had appeared, I would have an idea of where to look first, instead of having to check every room. I dashed to every one of Bella's classrooms, hoping they were the same as they were in September. Esme followed, checking through random doors as we went. When all hope seemed lost, and my temper began to flare, my mother's thoughtful voice spoke from her thoughts.

Edward?

I slowed and faced Esme. Her look was soft, caring. She held out a white plastic box; it was thing, one that looked like it held jewelry inside. An envelope was attached to it also.

I found this on Bella's kitchen table. I think that...maybe you should hold onto it for now.

She handed it to me, gently, treating it like it was one of her most precious antiques. I stared curiously at my mother, before reading the front of the envelope. It was addressed to Bella, from Charlie.

A gift?

The envelope was not sealed, and Esme had already read it from what her thoughts were telling me. I lifted the flap and pulled out a small note.

Bella, it read.

I know these past few months have been difficult for you, and I know you don't like talking about them, but you seem to be getting along better lately, and I'm glad. I know in the beginning you only tried to act normal for me, so I wouldn't worry about you, but I'm pleased you listened to me when I told you to get out more. It worked well for you, I think. You found Jacob. That was good, right? You seem so much happier when with him. And I'm happy you're spending time with your other friends again, too.

So, to get down to the point, I bought you something. A tribute to your successful efforts. I know you don't like gifts, but you're going to have to deal with this one. I was thinking of you when I saw it and, well, I just wanted to show you how proud I am of you. I don't think I say this as often as I should, but remember that I love you. Always have, always will.

-Your dad

Esme tenderly, comfortingly placed a hand on my shoulder. From her thoughts, I saw the troubled contortions of my face. I looked pained, defeated, which was exactly how I felt (I hadn't realized I'd been so transparent lately).

I knew I hurt Bella when I left. I understood that it would take time for her to move on, and I inexcusably lied to her because I had hoped she would hate me for it, that she would want to forget about me, and that, consequently, her healing process would be sped up. In general, I was hoping, maybe foolishly, that she would find someone to take my place. Mike perhaps.

I scowled at the thought.

Then there was this Jacob boy. Jacob Black, I presumed? They were friends before, that would make sense, I thought, only halfheartedly pleased she had found someone. Selfishly, I knew I wanted to be her one and only, but I had given that up, for her.

Then everything fell apart.

Running my fingers over the plastic box in my hands, which glowed from the dim light emanating from the gloomy clouds and through the windows, I pulled the lid off. Inside was a stunning silver, heart-shaped locket on a thing white chain. It was not extravagant. It had no deeply intricate designs, no eye-catching ornaments or jewels. It was small, simple, something Bella would approve of. Charlie knew his daughter well. He was an artistically simple man himself, after all.

"It's lovely, isn't it?" Esme said. "Perfect for Bella."

My mother looked up at me, then, a confident grin playing across her face. She was incredibly sure that we would find Bella. No doubts clouded her thoughts. Her only concern was if we would be too late. The Volturi were on their way, Bella was a crazed newborn somewhere, all alone, and we had no lead.

I took a deep breath to calm myself. I could not allow my anxiety and frustration to overshadow my composure like before. It would be no help for any of us. And I refused to hurt Esme again.

I carefully took the necklace out of its holder. The box was too big for me to fit in my pocket, so I couldn't carry it around like that. I folded Charlie's note in half and slid it in my pocket, along with the locket, before throwing the box in the nearest trash bin.

Edward! Emmett was shouting in his head. The moment I heard him, I was dashing through the halls, Esme right behind me.

Emmett and Rose had caught Bella's scent.

.:Alice's POV:.

The wolves came on their own, as Carlisle had predicted. And I sighed in irritation. As it turned out, my power was completely useless around the giant dogs. Speaking with the wolves was not what I wanted to do, not if I couldn't 'see' with them around. Stupid, smelly mutts obstructing my visions.

But, of course, Jasper was needed to calm their tempers, and he was much too overprotective of me to let me leave his side. I could take care of myself, and he knew that, but there was really no arguing with him sometimes.

Jasper squeezed my hand, tasting the frustration I was letting off.

The wolves ran in a large pack. Rosalie had estimated around the right range — there were nine of them. Two were larger than the others — one a reddish-brown color; the other, black. The giant black one stood farthest out, ahead of the rest. I assumed he was the alpha, the leader.

Carlisle bowed his head in greeting and raised his palms, showing that we meant no harm. "We are not here to cause any sort of trouble. We simply need information regarding what has happened in Forks."

Many of the wolves growled. The black one barked to quiet them.

Carlisle looked at Jasper, who nodded subtly. Turning back to the wolves, Carlisle continued.

"We presume this tragic incident was the doing of our kind. Your scent was all around Forks, as well. Is it right to assume you were the ones who stopped them?" he asked carefully.

The leader of the pack hesitated. Concluding it was safe to answer, he nodded, his eyes analyzing our reaction to that. These werewolves were so paranoid of us. There were so many of them, and only three of us. Did they really think we would succeed if we were trying to trick them? I supposed our kind was a terrifyingly sneaky bunch.

Carlisle nodded back, partly to reassure them. Then he said, "The vampires were newborns, I'm sure. And due to the fact there were so many, we fear someone might be creating them."

Some of the wolves glanced warily at each other.

"As you may have guessed, nobody wants that. Even our kind has rules against such a thing. My family and I — we have a few questions for you, if you are willing to answer them. However, we cannot communicate properly while you are in your wolf forms. If it is too uncomfortable for one of you to phase, then I am, by no means, forcing you," he added promptly, before any of them could become suspicious or offended. "It is merely a request to speak with you. You may deny if you wish."

The wolves were silent. They seemed to be deliberating the truth of Carlisle's words, deciding whether to trust us. I wished I knew what they were saying.

Edward would have been so much help right now, having the ability to be our translator. But he was so fixed on heading toward the school before running into us, that he refused to join the group headed the opposite direction. He made clear that he would accept our help, but he was not changing the tasks he had already set out to perform, which meant no mingling with the werewolves. That boy was so stubborn. He was constantly worrying me. He could easily change his mind suddenly, as well — decide not to let us help him after all; run off, leaving Esme, Emmett, and Rosalie. He better follow Carlisle's instructions or I'd track him down and tear him apart.

After minutes of deliberation among the pack, the second largest wolf — the shaggy, russet one — turned its back on us and darted away. Jasper narrowed his eyes, wondering, like Carlisle and I, if they had agreed to let that one change back into a human form. I hated not knowing exactly what was coming. Who needed surprises — especially during times like this?

Before we could ask, a tall, muscular boy came jogging through the trees, wearing nothing but ripped jeans. I realized he was the wolf who had disappeared just a second ago, and that his face was familiar. His name came to me immediately — Jacob Black. Anything else about the boy, I didn't know.

A couple of the wolves in the far back whimpered worriedly about Jacob's vulnerable state. I had to refrain from rolling my eyes. They honestly had nothing to worry about. We were no match for them. They had to realize that.

And I wouldn't dream of drinking the blood of a dog. In my head, I crinkled my nose in disgust.

"Thank you," Carlisle politely said.

Jacob shrugged. "What do you bloodsuckers want to know?" he asked harshly, his eyes filled with accusation.

Carlisle responded gently, yet firm, projecting the seriousness of the situation. "We will waste no time and get straight to the point. How many were there, would you say?"

"About twenty."

"Did you notice any similar attributes about them? Size, appearance, gender — anything like that?" Jasper asked, getting into it now that the wolves were cooperating. Carlisle let him take over the questioning. This was Jasper's area of expertise.

"No," Jacob answered, eyeing Jasper uneasily. I could tell he was intimidated by him, like most were. "There was nothing special or distinct about any of them." He hesitated, remembering something. It took him a moment to process his memories to words. "There was one, though... Sam thinks she was their leader. Her movements were more skilled and strategized than the others."

Jasper narrowed his eyes. "Did any get away?" The way he said it made it sound like he knew some had. The wolves glared at my husband.

"Most newborns have a tendency to run away when they're afraid," I said casually, backing Jasper up. "Or if they're losing a fight. He meant nothing personal. And in most cases, the one leading ends up escaping quite easily."

As the glaring wolves turned their attention to me, Jasper angled himself in front of me. This time, I did roll my eyes.

Jacob, still glaring at me, answered Jasper's question. "Yeah, three got away. Including the leader."

Jasper nodded understandingly, as he let off a soothing current toward the wolves. "Did you see which direction they ran off to?"

"They scattered at first, going random directions, just trying to get away," Jacob said. "I tried chasing their leader, but she was too quick, running north, and... I was preoccupied with something else." His eyes sparked with a hint of sorrow. It wasn't surprising. I was sure the boy had friends in Forks.

Jasper was staring intently at Jacob, but I could tell his thoughts were contemplating the information we gathered, trying to fit pieces together.

"Is that all?" Jacob asked flatly.

"Just one more question," Carlisle said, taking over again. He paused briefly, choosing his words carefully. "Did any of the newborns bite someone?"

Jacob immediately became defensive. Aggravated, even. "Why does that matter?" he demanded angrily. His eyes stabbed threateningly at us. It was unmistakable that Jacob's reaction meant that someone had.

It had to be Bella.

Jasper snapped out of his own thoughts upon hearing Jacob's tone. He sent off yet another wave of serenity to ease the wolf's heated attitude.

"It matters a lot, Jacob," Carlisle responded cautiously.

It was still an unsolved debate whether to ask the werewolves straight out if they knew Bella, and if they saw her. Jasper did not want to give them too much information, while Carlisle believed that in order to get the most out of our questions, we also had to give answers. I was with Carlisle, only with a different possibility. I hoped that, maybe, one of them knew her through Charlie or something. Wasn't he always going fishing with someone who lived on the reservation?

Jacob read the suspicion in Carlisle's voice, but his lips formed into a hard line, and he remained quiet, glaring at us defiantly. The boy was just as stubborn as Edward! Where did stubbornness get a person anyway? It was just troublesome, if you asked me.

"For goodness sake, we know someone was bitten, now where is she?" I demanded.

"She?" Jacob said, his eyes widening. "How did you know it was a girl?"

Carlisle raised an eyebrow. "So there was someone?"

Jacob grimaced at his mishap. "Well, yeah, but only three were girls."

Jasper stiffened beside me. My eyebrows shot up in shock. "There was more than just one?" I asked in disbelief. I hadn't seen that. Not that I had seen much of anything, but... How was that even possible? "How many were there? What did you do with them?"

Jacob folded his arms over his chest. "There were six." He glanced at the black wolf — Sam? — who nodded, reassuring Jacob that it was okay to give us the information. "We let them live...or change into, well, you know."

I stared incredulously at him, at all the wolves. Why on Earth would they allow that to happen? Bella's brilliant escape from the newborns was unexpected pity from werewolves? What an odd thing to be saved by.

Jasper was mystified beyond belief. He was staring past the wolves, speaking so quickly I could barely understand him.

"There are six new vampires roaming around that are innocent victims of the massacre — one being Bella — and they are together somewhere without any guidance or knowledge, while the Volturi creep closer. This is not good."

"Hold up," Jacob interrupted suddenly. His stare was deadly. "Bella? How did you know one was Bella?"

"You know Bella Swan?" I asked, surprised, ignoring his rude tone.

"Don't you act all innocent!" Jacob yelled at me. Jasper swiftly pushed me behind him, set off by Jacob's sudden fierceness. Apparently, Jacob Black held a grudge against us for more than just our species.

What did he know about us?

Carlisle sighed. "Jacob, we need to find her, to help her."

"Why does Bella matter to you? You left her didn't you?" Jacob growled.

Carlisle and I glanced at each other, guilt evident on both our faces. Jacob noted our expressions.

"What? You left her and now, after hearing what happened, you came back out of guilt? Pathetic leeches."

"We left to keep Bella safe from our world," I responded defensively. "It was too dangerous for her to be around us, to be attached to us. We loved her, and protecting her was the only reason we left. None of us had any idea that this would happen."

"You are right on one thing, though," Carlisle added sadly. "We do feel incredible guilt. If we had known this would happen, we would have stayed. We would have tried everything in our power to prevent the fate of Forks."

Jacob couldn't seem to dispute what had been said — Carlisle's words were too genuine. Instead, he just furrowed his brow and pursed his lips in annoyance at having to trust vampires.

"You see," Carlisle continued, gesturing to me, "Alice can seen things before they happen. She has visions of the future, if you will." The wolves did not look pleased by this news, and now looked at me like I was a potential threat. "She doesn't catch everything — she can't. But she did see...well, she saw Bella becoming one of us, so we came back to find her. If she becomes one of us, she will be just as crazed as the newborns you were fighting. We have to prevent that. We have to teach her our ways, help her understand what she has become."

"She knows what she's become," Jacob argued, bitter. "Thanks to you guys."

"She will know," Carlisle agreed. "However, that knowledge will not help her self-control. It takes more than understanding to tame the bloodlust, believe me. It will be dangerous for humans, for the other newborns you left with her, and for her, if we don't find them soon."

Jacob seemed to finally register the consequences of letting six humans change into vampires. I still couldn't believe how many they let live, let alone that so many had actually escaped the newborns with only a bite mark.

Jasper's eyes met mine. We stared anxiously at each other, knowing perfectly well how crucial our objective had become.

"There's a shack," Jacob started abruptly, his voice thick with defeat. "There's an abandoned shack far up north. If you run just straight from this point, you'll hit it no problem. It's extremely isolated from any civilization."

He did something right, at least.

Although, I could hardly hold it against him for letting Bella turn. I would rather she be one of us than dead. I was probably just being selfish...

Nah. I wasn't. Besides, Bella wanted this, too. At one point, anyway. The first vision of Bella I had — back when she first moved to Forks and changed my brother's life — was more inevitable than I had thought.

The wolves shifted on their paws, nervous. But not about us, it seemed; rather, about Jacob and Bella. Were they that close?

"Thank you very much for speaking with us, Jacob," Carlisle said. He also nodded a polite farewell to the pack. "We'll be on our way, now."

At Carlisle's light touch on our shoulders, Jasper and I angled ourselves to the north. We began to move silently in the direction Jacob told us to head.

"Hey, Doc," Jacob called in the same vulgar tone that he always used with us. Carlisle turned back to him. Jacob took a moment, his eyes moving to the floor. His fierce expression faded, replaced with a sad, slightly hopeful look. I wondered what he could want that would make his attitude shift so suddenly. His deep eyes met mine, then Jasper's, and finally Carlisle's.

"Take care of her," he said, and for the first time since speaking with him, his tone was soft, pleading, trusting. Mostly desperate; he had nothing left to put faith in.

I had no idea as to why this young werewolf felt so obliged to protect Bella, to even go as far as letting her live as the very thing he was created to destroy, but I was grateful.

Carlisle bowed his head — a slight nod of reassurance.

"I will, Jacob. We all will."

The sincerity ringing from his cool voice cleared any doubt those dogs had of us, I was positive. And I nodded, too, inspired by Carlisle's determined belief. Jasper did the same. Then the three of us turned on the wolves and darted into the misty shadows of the trees.

As Bella flashed into my head, standing right beside Carlisle, Jasper, and me, I sighed in relief.

We were on the right track.

.:Bella's POV:.

The expressions that played across the faces of the Denalis, and of my friends, as I explained my story either confused me or made me wary. There were two specific things that really seemed to shock the Denalis during my tale. The first was my relationship with Edward; they glanced at each other like the news explained a lot on its own. The second was James. I explained how he had bitten me (I even showed them my scar, which was still permanently visible on my hand), and how Edward managed to suck out the venom. Even my friends were staring at me like I was infected by something. I remembered, then, that I hadn't told my friends about the encounter with James, Victoria, and Laurent, before now; but they needed to know if Victoria was still after me. I couldn't endanger my friends and then leave them oblivious.

When I got to the part about my confrontation with Laurent in the meadow, and how the werewolves saved me from him, the Denalis exchanged looks again, with an odd mixture of comprehension, sadness, and worry. That reaction was the one that confused me. I figured it had something to do with the werewolves, but I couldn't be sure.

Not once did anyone interrupt me, even when I knew they had questions. Vampires were a very patient species —excellent listeners.

Once I was completely finished, Eleazar said, "That was quite an interesting story."

What was interesting to me was that the Denalis hadn't known any of this. Everything I had said was absolutely new to them. I always suspected that, maybe, being the close friends they were to the Cullens, I would have been mentioned at least once. I guessed that was a little egotistical of me to think.

"It certainly explains a lot, let me tell you," Kate murmured, mainly to Eleazar and Carmen. "I wonder why they never told us anything."

It wasn't too difficult to guess who she was talking about, considering she was echoing my own thoughts. But I couldn't have them talking about the Cullens.

"It doesn't really matter." I shrugged off my story as if it was nothing. "The Cullens were tired of having to worry over a fragile human all the time, so they left. I mean, can you blame them?" I laughed, and hoped it didn't sound too hysterical.

The three Denalis stared at me curiously for a moment.

"I have known the Cullens for decades, and that really does not sound like something they would—" Carmen stared, but I interrupted her.

"You know, I spent all this time telling my story, I deserve some of my own questions answered."

Kate eyed me cautiously. "What do you want to know?"

"Oh, Kate. They are new to our life. They all must have questions." Carmen smiled warmly at my friends, who had gathered closer together, becoming more trusting of the Alaskan coven. I could still feel the aggravation seething from Jessica and Mike, though, so I kept my distance from them.

"I have a question," Ben said, a bit hesitantly. "For, um, Eleazar."

Eleazar didn't look surprised. In fact, he seemed to have been expecting this.

"How did you know about my power?" Ben asked. It was a good question. I'd been curious about that, too.

"It is an ability of mine," Eleazar answered coolly. "I can read and recognize the special talents in others. Power sensing, if you will. And you, Ben, are not the only one with a unique gift."

"We know," Jessica said, sighing. "Anything Angela says, we believe." She sounded bored, uninterested.

Eleazar smiled.

"Then there's you..." he mused. Jessica's attention was immediately recaptured; her eyes gleamed with eagerness, hopefulness.

"Do I have something?" she asked excitedly.

Eric, catching on to Eleazar's skill, joined in. "How about me? I should have one, too, you know, if the others do. Maybe mind control — everybody will have to do as I say. Heh heh. Or maybe flying! Has any vampire ever flown, besides the whole bat myth thing? Oh, I got it, how about—"

Eleazar held his hand up to quiet Eric. "You're a very intriguing group, I'll admit, but let's not get carried away with ourselves."

Mike and Ben snickered at Eric, who glared at them.

"Intriguing, you say?" Carmen asked her mate.

"How so?" Kate wondered, analyzing us. I wondered the same thing.

I mean, Jessica had an enhanced gift? That sort of terrified me. Did Mike and Eric have one, too? Or me? I felt no different than when I was human, besides the obvious changes. I doubted I could do anything special. Nothing like Eleazar, or Ben, or even Angela. I was always so ordinary and plain in my human life, so it only made sense that was what I was now. At least I was relieved about one thing, though — no clumsiness. Being the world's first and only klutzy immortal would have been humiliating. I could imagine the jokes. I would take plain and ordinary for a sense of balance any day.

"Well, they are a very diverse group," Eleazar explained, looking thoughtful as he spoke. "A truth manipulator, a sound illusionist, a shield, a techno-path, a time manipulator, and an imitator."

My eyes widened in shock as I counted out how many abilities he named off.

Six.

Did that mean I could do something amazing, too?

"A shield, huh?" Kate smirked challengingly. Carmen shook her head at Kate in disapproval, but Kate ignored the look, grinning excitedly, observing us, and holding her pointer finger out in front of her like it was dangerous. "Which one of them is that? We could have a little test."

Eleazar's eyes darted to me. Kate followed his gaze, and our eyes locked. The way she looked at me made me suddenly anxious. But at the same time, very curious.

"Alright, Bella. Let's see what you got."