A/N: So I'm trying to keep these updates to once every other day, but it's not really working, so bear with me if it's a few more days between each update. I don't really know where I want this story to go, so I'm just letting it have a life of its own. (Okay so I'm really just rewriting all of twilight with Bella as a witch. So it shouldn't take this much imagination.)

Disclaimer: I own nothing in this story except my own ideas and mistakes.

Witchy Woman

A Sheeps Life

The beginning of the school day passed without incident until Bella came to lunch. Standing in line with Jessica she realized that one of the five anomalies (as she now called them) was missing. Edward, the one that had stared so cruelly at her yesterday was not here today. This was an unexpected blow; did he hate her so much that he had left? It's only lunch, she consoled herself maybe he's just skipping lunch.

Mostly undeterred, Bella sat with her full tray at the lunch table and attempted to decide how best to broach the subject of LaPush. Thankfully, Mike brought it up first.

"Hey guys, I just heard this morning that two weekends from now there's supposed to be warm weather for awhile. We should do something to celebrate."

Restraining herself from jumping immediately on that statement, Bella thought it would be best to wait awhile and watch to see where this would go. She didn't have to wait long. The whole mood at the table seemed to lift dramatically and everyone was talking all at once.

"We should plan a trip somewhere then." Jessica called over all the voices at the table. She then turned to Bella and mock-confided, "We need to take advantage of nice weather whenever it comes around."

Unable to resist any longer, Bella raised her voice and asked a bit too enthusiastically, "Are there any beaches around here we can go to?" Shoot she thought afterwards that was way too obvious. How could I have messed up such a simple task?

However the others must not have been too bright, either that or they just attributed her excitement to having lived in the sun her whole life. Mike quickly spoke up and informed Bella of the reservation that had a beach not far from Forks.

Happy that they took the bait, Bella sat back and watched as they planned the trip to LaPush. Bella didn't think her good mood could be ruined by anything, she felt on top of the world. For once, everything was going her way. That is until she walked into biology and noticed that Edward still wasn't there.

Maybe he's sick today? she thought. That was silly; she shook her head, he wasn't human. That doesn't mean that he can't get sick, she half-argued with herself. This is pathetic she thought, this shouldn't bother me. But, it did. Unable to shake the feeling that she was the cause of his absence, Bella couldn't focus on Mr. Banners lecture; she would have to copy Mike's notes later.

Walking back to the truck Bella had a hard time remembering there were things she had to do today. Charlie's house was poorly stocked in the way of food stuffs and, more surprisingly, lacked in the way of potion ingredients. She would have to go see what she could find at a regular supermarket in the way of herbs and then make a trip to Seattle or Port Angeles to find a more, suitable, shopping place.

Heading out to the local Thriftaway Bella made a mental checklist of the things she would need. Meats, whatever is on sale; vegetables, whatever is fresh; fruits, something in season; seasonings; bread; that would be enough for now. Herbs would be the tricky part.

She tried to think back to the book Charlie had gotten her for her twelfth birthday. It had been a book on the basics of potion-making. What were the most common herbs that were used in those recipes? She wondered.

She could think of a few that were found in the baking aisle, Bay leaves, Coriander, Basil, Rosemary, Saffron, Cinnamon, Sage, Clove, Anise, Caraway seeds and leaves, Dill, Fennel seed, Flax seed, Ginger, Garlic, Ginseng, Marjoram, Mint, Nutmeg, and Parsley. Some others she could find in produce, Lemon, Orange, Fennel, Radish, they were all extremely common. She would also have to see if they had essential oils. They can be used in place of the parts of the plant. Other than those few used as seasonings, she would have to go search through the forest near her house for some, and go into town to find others. Maybe, if she stayed here long enough, she could plant a garden.

Walking through the supermarket gathering foodstuffs made her feel extremely normal and relaxed. Regardless of the fact that quite a few herbs she was buying wouldn't be used for cooking, as humans defined it, she still felt good to be in a supermarket. It reminded her of the short story she had read, about the A&P, about all the customers walking along as if they were sheep, leading their sheep lives. She didn't mind being one of those sheep, just for a little; having her biggest decision to be about what she would make for dinner and the like. She knew this wouldn't last, that when she got home, she would have to worry about her magick studies and keeping her powers in control. So she took her time in the market, carefully studying the produce to find the perfect specimen. But, before long she was out at her truck packing the groceries in, climbing into the front seat and making her way back to her house.

Shoving all the groceries into any empty space she could find in the fridge, Bella considered whether or not to keep the magickal ingredients mixed in with the food. For now, it was all the same; she would be seasoning the meat with the same items she would be working with. But, once she stocked up on other ingredients, she wouldn't want to reach for the Basil, and end up pouring Hemlock into her sauce. Ok, so that was an exaggeration, she wouldn't keep Hemlock in the house, that's just asking for trouble. But the idea is still the same. She decided to use one cabinet that was mostly empty and put the magickal ingredients in there, and then put the others for cooking, in the pantry.

With that settled she pulled out two steaks and two potatoes and wrapped the later in foil and stuck it in the oven, and marinated the former then set it aside in the fridge. Deciding to check out her email, Bella turned on her computer and settled in to do some homework. About fifteen minutes later, she was able to open her email and immediately noticed three emails from Renee.

The first two were very short and just asked how she was and what happened to her yellow blouse. The third was from this morning saying that if she didn't email back by 5:30, she was calling Charlie. Sighing and looking at the clock, Bella wrote to her mom saying:

(A/N: In case you can't tell, the following emails are copied straight from the book)

Mom,

Calm down. I'm writing right now. Don't do anything rash.

Bella

Having sent that email, she began again:

Mom,

Everything is great. Of course it's raining. I was waiting for something to write about. School isn't bad, just a little repetitive. I met some nice kids who sit by me at lunch. Your blouse is at the dry cleaners – you were supposed to pick it up on Friday. Charlie bought me a truck, can you believe it? I love it. It's old, but really sturdy, which is good, you know, for me. I miss you, too. I'll write again soon, but I'm not going to check my email every five minutes. Relax, breathe. I love you.

Bella

By this time Charlie had gotten home and Bella went to start the steaks broiling and take out the potatoes. After a silent and again uneventful dinner, Bella cleaned the dishes while Charlie cleared the table and than went to watch some TV. When she was finished, she went back upstairs to finish her homework and then get ready for bed.

Settling in for the night, Bella wondered at how comfortable she was already becoming with this life, and this routine. It didn't bother her as much as she thought it would.

The rest of the week was uneventful, she was beginning to wonder if life in Forks would be uneventful. She was able to recognize everyone at school and waved to them when they greeted her in the parking lot. Every day she waited anxiously for the Cullens to troop into the lunch room and every day she relaxed when the four of them came in without him. Most of the conversations at lunch centered on the trip to
LaPush; for which she was grateful. None of them seemed inclined to back out of the trip, and she would end up with answers one way or another. Though Edward was gone, it didn't deter her from finding out what the Cullens were, with or without him, they were a potential threat.

On Friday, she decided to talk to Charlie about going shopping in Port Angeles to find a new age shop of some sort. She figured this weekend would be the best time, as she didn't have any plans, nor did it seem that any of her new friends would call her so soon to invite her somewhere.

Talking it over with him at dinner, she found out there was a new age store that was running under the guise of a bookstore in Port Angeles. He would call the store clerk ahead of time, as they were friends, to tell her that Bella would be stopping in for some herbs and such. She also talked over the idea of starting a garden and finding some herbs in the forest.

Neither she, nor her father were experts at identifying plants, trees they could point out easily enough, but there were so many different plants. She decided to find a book on identifying plants, surely they had such a thing, and there were books on identifying birds, why not plants. Then maybe she could take a walk in the woods and find some plants she might need, then Charlie could teach her how to make potions. With this in mind, Bella went to bed looking forward to the long day that she had ahead of her.