(Twilight theme by Stephanie Meyer)

BPOV

It was the hottest day in Phoenix history, and I could not bear the idea of staying inside all day. Summer came early this year. I looked at the thermometer on the window and it was already at 100 degrees, at six in the morning. I crawled out of my bedroom window and looked over into Tristan's bedroom. He was still in bed and by the looks of it he was not alone. I threw a pebble at the glass and his head popped up immediately. He squinted out the window and I waved for him to join me. He slipped out from under his bed buddy and quickly put on some shorts. I was still in my usual shorts and tank top pajamas standing on my roof and Tristan was in a pair of boxers doing the same.

"It is six in the morning Bella."

"I can't sleep it is too hot!" I said and he stared at me after wiping sweat from his neck. "You thinking what I am thinking?"

"Yes, I can't even imagine sitting in a classroom today."

"Okay, let me just get this girl home and then I will be over to get you."

"I'll make breakfast."

"It's a date." He slipped back into his room and I saw him shake the poor girl mercilessly until she woke up. I shook my head and slipped inside for a nice cool shower to rinse off the sweat that had already formed in my short time outside. I didn't bother drying my hair; it would dry itself in a matter of minutes if this heat kept up. I groaned as I looked at my closet for something to wear. I pulled out a pair of denim shorts and a white ribbed tank top. I brushed out my wet hair letting it drip onto my back and I threw a swim suit and extra clothes into a bag with a couple of beach towels. I heard Tristan's car take off down the street after that and I went downstairs to start breakfast.

I opened the freezer mainly to stick my head inside and enjoy the frosty air, but after a minute I could hear my mom's voice playing in my head, "Bella unless you put a TV in the fridge close the door." I grabbed four frozen waffles and the carton of Neapolitan ice cream from the freezer and shut the door. I popped the waffles in the toaster and placed the carton in the fridge while I waited for Tristan to arrive. I turned on the TV to check the weather and they predicted it would be a record high of 114 degrees today. There is no way I was going to school today. I would melt. After a few fluff stories and a political update I heard Tristan's car in my driveway. I opened the door for him and went to scoop some ice cream onto our waffles. He walked in and I handed him a bowl, he went to sit on the couch and flipped through the channels. This was typical behavior for us; we both were not up to conversation until at least an hour after we woke up. I turned up the central air and we relaxed on the couch and took a nap once we had cooled down.

Around 9 am I was woken by the phone and since I was supposed to be at school I let it go to the machine. A mechanical recorded voice came over the speaker to announce that your "child has been marked absent from his or her first period class." I erased the message and I pulled one of the pre-typed and signed letters I had Renee make before she left for the latest road trip. Phil was desperately trying to get signed to any major league team and he was traveling a lot more. Renee had been tagging along as much as she could, but I could tell she felt guilty about leaving me alone so often.

"Are you going to go erase the message on your machine?" I asked him

"Nope, I'm 18 now they don't leave messages anymore." He flashed me his trademark grin. "So we can go now?" Tristan asked getting excited.

"Yes, no chance of Renee worrying if she checks messages."

"Do you have an extra towel for me?"

I lifted the bag and he smiled, satisfied. We got into his car gently and I laid a towel on the leather seat to keep from burning my legs. We arrived at the water world safari park just as they opened and found a locker and spot to lay out our towels in the middle of the park. I stripped down to my bikini and flip flops and Tristan did the same. We walked around to see what had changed since last year when we were here last, but honestly this place was starting to become run-down and not much had changed. An annoying, overly eager employee jumped out in front of us and offered us a complimentary photo. I shied away from him, but Tristan being Tristan insisted that we take the picture. He grabbed me and we "cheesed it" for the picture, we took like 5 of them each one worse than the last.

We finally made it to the slide we had been waiting for. We had yet to touch any water, but Tristan convinced me that if you are going to get wet at a water park you better do it on the steepest slide they have. We ran up the stairs and the shorter slide was open, but they had yet to remove the ropes from the 70ft drop slide.

"Well there goes that plan." I said completely disappointed. I looked at Tristan and a Cheshire cat grin spread over his face. He grabbed my hand and said, "Get ready to run for it." He waited until the lifeguard turned his back to us and we ran up to the next level and ducked under the ropes. I sat down and he sat behind me, "One, Two, Three, Push!" He said as we heard the life guard yelling at us to stop.

"No no no no!" I screamed realizing just how high up we were and this was a one person fall not a two person fall! It was too late, we had already left the platform and the slide disappeared from under us. We were falling fast and I was screaming my lungs out as the cool water splashed around my feet and we finally reconnected to the slide and into the shallow pool below. The second we stopped I felt my stomach catch up to me and I looked at Tristan who appeared worried about me. All I could think to say was, "Again!"

***

That flashback held me under the water a little longer than I thought it would. Edward jumped in after me and he smiled as he joined me at the bottom of the cave. He gave me a reassuring smile and pointed up at the surface of the water, it was odd not needing oxygen anymore, and it was like being in a dream down there. We broke through the surface and I was so excited. "Again!"

Edward laughed then flashed me an odd look. "Do you know how weird it is for me to watch you jump off cliffs and wrestle mountain lions? Well, it is not only that, but the fact that you enjoy these things really throws me for a loop."

"It is still a little odd to me too. I think it is the fact that I can enjoy the thrill without the constant fear that I might hurt myself, or you know, DIE. It is oddly liberating."

Edward chuckled and let the current take him down stream out of the cave. I allowed my body to float and followed him. As soon as the cave walls no longer shadowed us I felt the sun hit my skin and a thousand sparkles burst into my eye line. My newborn eyes were dazzled by the colors and I held my hand up to examine it further.

My skin broke out into a million sparkles and I could not avert my eyes. I was still getting used to the features of my new body. I dove down under the water and swam effortlessly ahead of Edward. He swam after me and I tried to keep the lead, but he was a very strong swimmer. He grabbed my leg playfully and whipped past me. I laughed and once under the shade of a cliff side I yelled "you win!" And I could see his triumphant smile as he swam towards me. We were totally carefree and enjoying each other's company.

"Did you ever think we would be doing this?" I wondered out loud.

"What do you mean?" Edward asked me.

"When you first met me, did you ever think we could be this happy? Did you see yourself getting married?" I clarified.

"Honestly I couldn't get past your scent to think about it. Even when I had you I don't think I ever dreamed anything this big for us… What about you?"

"A year ago, if you told me that I would be 18 and married… I would have called you a liar. I never had any desire to get married and I was sure that if I changed my mind I would be in my thirties when I did. I did hope that we would be together and happy of course. I never imagined how much though."

He seemed pleased by my response and we continued to explore the island. It was two months before we decided to fly home.

TPOV

I crouched behind the massive bolder waiting for my prey to wander into my sight. I heard deliberately quiet steps a few yards from the clearing I picked to attack. He stepped into the perfect spot and sniffed the air and smelled me only a second before I made contact with his body. We tumbled onto the mossy ground and I used every ounce of strength I had to overpower the massive brute. I used an old wrestling hold and pinned him into the damp earth.

"Get off me!" Emmett growled.

"Say it!"

"Never!" He exclaimed. I put a little more pressure and his ankle tensed as he tried to break free.

"Say it!" I prompted.

His body went limp, but I refused to relax my grip on him.

"Fine!" the word burst from his mouth and the words I was waiting for flowed from his lips laced with venom and my victory. "You are awesome and I am a tiny little girl."

"Thank you!" I said jumping back and out of his reach readying myself for his retaliation.

"Older brothers?" he asked rubbing his ankle.

"Nope, public school."

"Jerk."

"Hey you started this when you stole my lunch."

"I was just teaching you a lesson; you have got to be quick."

"Well I think I just taught everyone that you are a little girl; oh and that I am awesome."

He lunged at me, but I was still quick enough to get myself behind Alice.

"Emmett, be nice he is still young." Alice soothed.

"Yeah, Emmett be nice." I said poking the bear further.

"Tristan if you don't stop provoking Emmett I will move aside and let him have you." Alice scolded me, but I was not going to be deterred today. I was finally enjoying myself and I needed to get Emmett to see the value of his ability. I had explained to him what I believed his ability's evolution to be, but Emmett believed that brute strength would serve him better than the time it would take to develop his built in weakness identifier.

"…but I can't hit a girl." I said knowing it would push him over the edge. It worked, he pushed Alice out of the way and we ran through the woods back towards the car. Jasper crashed into me and pinned me to the ground. Emmett stood over me and Jasper smiled as I gave up and placed my hands behind my head to cradle my neck.

"Two against one is not very sportsman like Emmett."

He shook his head a let out a huge sigh, "No matter what I do to you, that grin will stay on your face huh?"

"Yeah, pretty much. I'm not easy to scare."

"I could help that along." Jasper offered to Emmett.

"Yeah, and when my little sister gets back we will see how you like it."

"Bella would never stoop to our level." Emmett said.

I just started laughing they had no idea of what Bella and I were capable of when we teamed up on a common enemy. A flash of Italy invaded my happy memories and my laughter died abruptly.

It had been three months since we returned, but my conscience was still heavy with the guilt of my actions. I had killed anyone who crossed my path that night; I had been pushing all those feelings and memories to the back of my mind, especially around Bella. She was so happy to have Edward back and to start a new life that dwelling on the past seemed out of place and I had punished myself enough on the flight home from Italy. It had been the longest 14 hours of my life. No sleep to save me from my thoughts. I changed my seat to a solitary one in the last row of the plane, far far away from Bella and her new life. I decided that when I arrived home I would leave. I would find a cave in Siberia or Antarctica and just sit there. I would go back to La Push and beg Jake to kill me. I thought about provoking one of the Cullens and having them rip me limb from limb; but in the end, all the choices would have ended up hurting Bella and she was the reason I did what I had done. It would be for nothing if I let any harm come to her. I stared at them from my seat and I knew that Edward was going to devote himself to her. He did not even know that he was about to propose. It was at that point that I knew I would do whatever it took to keep her happy. As soon as the wheels hit the tarmac I would drop my guilt and I would be the positive person she depended on, but for the remaining hours in the air I would relive every agonizing moment as punishment for my crimes. She turned her head to look at me and I felt as though she knew exactly what I was thinking and feeling.

Jasper sent a numbing wave my way and I was grateful, the pain those memories dragged up was overwhelming. Jasper understood though. I stared at him for a second and I knew that on this trip I would be able to bond with Jasper as well as teach Emmett.

"We should get home, there are a few hikers nearby and Tristan shouldn't be out here with his eyes like that." Alice said cutting my breath of fresh air short yet again. I needed some extra time and I decided to use my deductive skills to manipulate my way out.

Emmett and I are very competitive and Jasper likes to feel like part of the group. Alice and Rosalie like to believe that they are in control of their men and can do anything better than they do. Esme and Carlisle will go along with whatever the rest of us decide as long as it is responsible.

I planted a few comments about women drivers and Emmett jumped on the chance to make it a challenge. Rosalie seemed like she knew what was going on, but any chance to help me fit in she would give it to me. She convinced the girls to take Emmett's jeep to teach him a lesson and the men piled into my car to follow them.

"Tristan c'mon you can't let them beat us back to the house." Emmett said from the backseat. I hit the gas and pulled up next to the Jeep. We approached the freeway on ramp and I winked at Rose just before I pulled my car onto a side street instead of the ramp that the girls took.

"What the hell Tristan! They have my Jeep!" Emmett yelled from the backseat.

"... and my prison guard. No offense Jasper." I retorted

"None taken, I will enjoy watching her lay into you later." Jasper said unaffected by our abrupt change in route.

"What is the next step in your grand plan Tristan?" Carlisle asked from the passenger seat. I scanned the road ahead of us and the final phase of my escape plan came into focus.

"Male bonding, you see that sign over there?"

Peculiar Perry's Paintball Paradise

"How did you pull this off without Alice knowing?" Emmett demanded as his excitement level rose.

"You and Jasper were so sure that we were going to race them home, that she did not check my future. If I am right, and I am always right, they are still trying to find out where we went, so if you would not mind I would like you to refrain from answering your cell phones." I handed them my baseball cap and they dropped their phones into it. I snuck a peak at Carlisle and he was smirking. I wondered how often he was included in things like this.

We rented some equipment and paid a little extra to get our own course to play in. We were divided into two teams and I made sure I got Jasper on my team. We hid in some trees on the south side of the course.

"Jasper, can I ask you something?"

"I suppose, what's up?"

"It is more of an observation I guess. You don't seem like you fit in with the Cullens, why is that?"

"If it were not for Alice I am not sure where I would have ended up. I would most likely have been a nomad. I think my difficulty with the diet has a lot to do with my distance."

"If it weren't for Alice would you be here?"

"I think I would want to be here, but I am not sure if I would have the motivation to refrain from drinking human blood. Why?"

I ignored the why and fired another question at him. "Are you happy here?"

"It is challenging, but I do consider this home. I am happier here than I was wandering around without a purpose. The guilt I felt each time I fed was horrible. No support system and living that way hardens you. You become someone that in life you would have never been." He shifted and scanned the forest around us. "I know you feel lost, but you have all of us and once Bella is back you will feel more at ease around all of them. Trust Me."

"Thanks Jasper. Please don't say anything to anyone, I don't want them to think I don't want to be here, it's just I needed to hear it from someone who might understand."

"Not a word I promise. Okay, I smell Emmett approaching."

"I'll take the tree you take the boulder, we will trap him in the center."

Jasper smiled and was gone in a flash of 'Camo' colors. I jumped into the tree and aimed at Emmett as he inched closer. I pulled the trigger, but he heard the slow paintball coming and he jumped out of the way. I jumped down to race after him, but I smelled Carlisle behind me and I felt him pull the trigger right on my back. I turned to see him smiling, "You're dead." He said with a huge grin on his face.

//splat splat//

"So are you Carlisle" Jasper said as he shot from behind the boulder hitting Carlisle in the chest and arm.

I pointed towards Emmett and Carlisle and I walked to the safe zone to wait for those two to kill each other.

"How is the transition going, son?"

His use of the word 'son' caught me off guard. No one had ever called me that before.

"Um, fine I guess. I am trying to get used to living with a family."

"Esme mentioned that growing up you just had your mother. Is that right?"

Esme was the only one who had asked me about my childhood at all. She was so easy to talk to that I spilled so much more than I expected to. I told her stories about my mother before her problems and during them. We talked about how I met Bella, living with my uncle to attending college. She listened with such intensity that I bet she was taking notes in her head for later analysis.

"Yes, I am not used to coming home to so many people. I spent a lot of my time outside my home and this new arrangement is a difficult transition."

"I have noticed that you have been developing your ability."

"Actually, I was going to speak to you about that. It has been developing on its own. Is that normal?"

"Not at this stage, I would love to monitor it, if you wouldn't feel too uncomfortable that is."

"Be my guest, I would love to have some answers for Bella when she returns. I think that if mine are developing at this rate hers should be as well."

My mind started to wander and I wondered what her abilities were like now. It has been about two months since she left and I am itching to see her. I was broken from my thoughts by Carlisle's next comments, he must have heard my exchange with Jasper while stalking me with a paintball gun.

"You may not think you are fitting in with us, but I think that is because you are not filling an empty spot like Bella has. You are creating your own place in this family. Bella is a daughter to me and Esme, a wife to Edward and sister to the siblings. You are making your own unique connections to each of us. It will take time for you to feel like you are home, but just know that we want you to feel that way with us."

His words touched me, but this type of father-son conversation made me uncomfortable. I rolled my eyes and grinned at him.

"I can't believe you shot me in the back and now you are giving me a family talk. Tsk tsk Dr. Cullen."

He grinned and we changed the subject to paintball and decided to team up for the next game.

(A/N: I know it's dragging a little, but Bella and Edward are coming home in the next chapter. ;) Stick with me! Thanks to my super awesome beta Nici91!)