Chapter 5

Jacob POV

My beautiful angel, Nessie, ran back to Emily's cottage. I heard her light footsteps before I saw those tears running down her flawless porcelain face. I hurried over to her side and took hold of her arm. "Ness? Ness! What's wrong?"

Nessie's voice was choked and I could faintly make out the sounds of the air she breathed in, hitching in her throat. "Edella…she…she hates me now. I told you that she liked you, more than a friend, and I wasn't supposed to tell but you caught me with a tricky question and I couldn't…"

I still couldn't believe that Edella actually loved me. I mean, okay, so I wouldn't even look at any girl other than my Nessie, but it was totally not worth it for the closest sisters in the world to fall out…because of a certain, foolish Jacob Black. All my fault, no doubt. "I'm so sorry Nessie!" I said quickly. "If only I hadn't-"

"Not yours," Nessie whispered, shaking her head. Her body went slightly limp and I took her by her waist in one hand. My other hand was up by her shoulder. She seemed to be quivering in my arms. "Mine. I shouldn't have told you. Like Edella said, it wasn't my secret to tell. And she's definitely right."

One week later

Edella POV

I hadn't been home for a week. I stayed with Nahuel in his makeshift home, and we took turns to go hunting. Did my family even worry about me? Huh. Maybe not. Still busy doting on Nessie, maybe. I wouldn't blame them. Nessie is the perfect daughter.

Today Nahuel was out hunting. Even if my family didn't miss me yet, I decided to write a letter to them. If they weren't looking for me yet, I expected that Nessie had told them to leave me alone. If they even wanted to look for me.

I hunted around for some paper-Nahuel had told me that he kept secret stashes of these essential materials around the trees nearby. Finally I found about fifteen pieces of rolled-up white paper in a tiny hole in the bark of one of the tallest rain trees surrounding the meadow. Luckily, I had a pen in the pocket of my skirt.

Dear all,

I'm sorry for my absence at home. Please let me be alone for awhile. I need to think through some things. Don't worry; I'm well and staying with Nahuel. Remember Nahuel, the other half-vampire living in South America with his vampire aunt, Huilen? He was just passing through Forks and is currently having a makeshift home in one of the many meadows in the forest joining Forks and La Push. I don't think Nessie has told you exactly what happened, but if she has then it's too bad, because I really don't want anybody else to know.

I'll be home soon, just need a little 'alone time'. And if Nessie or Jacob brings up anything about me, just tell them that I said "Nessie and Jacob deserve to be together. They truly deserve each other, imprinting or no imprinting". Also, please inform Nessie for me, that I'm really sorry I snapped at her. Ask her for her forgiveness.

Love,

Edella

I suddenly remembered my powers to talk to non-living things and command them to carry out my wishes. Although plants were living things, they didn't move from place to place by themselves, with the exception of moving slowly towards sunlight and whatsoever.

I rolled up the paper and hung it securely on the top of a small, young seedling. "Seedling, can you hear me?"

Yes, Mistress. What is your wish? The seedling was a female. It had a nice, pearly voice.

Please help me bring this letter to my family, the Cullens. They live in a big, white three-storey house. I think you know where their house is, right? I spoke in soft, gentle tones to the young plant, afraid to startle it.

Of course I will, Mistress. And yes, I do know where they stay. Suddenly, a long, thin brown branch appeared from beside the plant, seemingly too large and mature for the plant's early years. My letter moved from the top of the seedling to the branch and hung there steadily. I will deliver your letter safely, Mistress. Do not worry.

With that, the seedling moved quietly and quickly through a bush and disappeared. Though I could no longer see it, I could still feel the plant's spirit inside me. Remember, don't get caught by the humans, or people will start questioning your abilities. Be safe.

I will, Mistress. Your wish is my command. And then the plant vanished from my body.

Over the course of a week, Nahuel had become my new best friend. He was always there for me, helping me when I needed his help, and guiding me. And most important of all: He helped me in my quest to win Jake, and provided me with many deep phrases of wisdom and knowledge that seemed to come from his nearly 160 years.

Just that day, he'd told me: I can give you a knife. You can use it to chop meat and vegetables to cook for me or you can use it to kill people. You see, Edella, you have lots of wisdom inside you. It only depends whether you want to use it or not. Everyone has the ability to discover their true potential. Do you know that, in our lives, we only use about 20% of our brainpower? We could do so much more…

"Hey, 'Della!" I recognized Nahuel's cheerful voice as he stepped into the meadow. "I got a couple of elk, and even better-a lion! What do you think?"

"That's great, Nahuel," I told him, and I felt it-genuinely. It wasn't the popular season for lions and to be able to catch one these few weeks seemed quite remarkable. Unless you got lucky…really lucky.

"Ready to practice today?" he asked me. He'd taught me a new technique yesterday-not that there were any guarantees it would work. Of course, he didn't teach me to keep fluttering my eyelashes like an idiot the way teens usually did on TV.

I felt butterflies in my stomach, although he wasn't the real Jacob. Nahuel was like the big brother I'd never had. "Yes," I agreed easily, and jumped up from the sand. I kicked up a spray of sand from the meadow ground and he smiled at me.

"Jacob likes adventurous, caring, and…" Nahuel, for once, was lost for words.

"I know Jacob likes those things, and you know what he likes the most of all?" I asked.

Nahuel raised an eyebrow in reply.

"Jacob likes Nessie!" I sighed in exasperation. "Not that I'm not enthusiastic about the whole practice thing, but don't you see? I don't think it's ever going to work! If imprinting could change so easily, it wouldn't be called…imprinting!"

Nahuel looked at me strangely. "You've never tried before, how do you know?"

"I've tried!" I cried out, pushing my bottom lip out in a childish, sulky pout. "But he never sees anyone else!"

Slowly, Nahuel stepped toward me and took my face in his hands. I felt shocked, too shocked to move. "Edella Rayne Cullen…" he whispered silkily. I shivered. Big, fat drops of rain started to pelt down from the now-overcast sky. I blinked them away. Nahuel's inhumanly perfect face was now inches from mine. He leant in and kissed away several drops of rain that had landed in my hair. "If Jacob can't see you…did you ever think about the possibility of…us?"