Disclaimer: Once again I don't own any of the characters from the series. Also I haven't been using a beta so all errors are mine. You've got questions, I've got answers. Feel free to ask questions and I may or may not answer them. I know a few people have been wondering when Edward and Bella will meet. They will meet VERY soon.

Chapter 7 – Treasures in the Trunk

The doorbell rang and Bella quickly reached it. She took a deep breath and smiled as she opened the door. "Hey!" she exclaimed as she opened the storm door.

Alice and Rosalie smiled as they entered the house. "We brought lunch! I hope you're hungry! We have pizza and ice cream!" Alice said with a bubbly glee.

Rosalie had a wry grin as she stepped inside. "I hope this isn't a bother for you." She took a moment to glance around. "I'm impressed with the inside," she said with admiration and approval.

Alice saw the fridge quickly hurried down the hall put the ice cream into the freezer. "The garden outside is really beautiful. I have to say your Gran Marie really put work into it didn't she?"

Bella smiled at the memories of Gran spending her weekend afternoons pruning and examining the growth of her plants. "Yeah she absolutely loved them. She always said that plants are a connection to the natural world that you can foster. Life cannot exist without harmony with plant life."

Rosalie smiled tenderly at the words. "I wonder if that's why my grandmother was named Lillian. I heard there is a tradition of girls in the family being named after flowers and other plants."

Alice nodded her head. "That's always possible. I remember my Grammy Carter said she suggested naming me Petunia Grace! It makes me appreciate Mary Alice all the more!"

All three giggled at the idea of Alice's almost name as they setting the kitchen table. They ate a friendly lunch at the table talking about the latest events going on in their lives. Bella talked about Marie's Café before the conversation shifted to her last assignments at the magazine. She only agreed to discuss details after making Rosalie and Alice swear never to reveal the name of her subjects until the articles were released. Alice predictably squealed and bounced in her seat. Rosalie grinned and was impressed Bella was able to get such high profile interviews.

Alice in turn excitedly shared about her ideas for new designs. While she loved her job as a stylist and assistant at Cole Haan, she still dreamt of being her own designer. She did however bring up the fact that she had to return to Mississippi in a few weeks for her father's wedding. Alice never got into all the details before hand, but Bella and Rosalie were aware of the tense relationships between Alice and her father. Both were indignant once Alice began explaining more that she couldn't share beforehand as they were too personal to share at New Moon.

"No offense Alice, but your Dad is a first-class cheating scumbag," Rosalie replied frankly before sipping her Pepsi.

Alice smirked at that. "Well glad to know that I'm not the only one who recognizes his two-faced fakery. To be honest my little sister is the only reason why I'm going back. Otherwise there's no way I'd go back to that Podunk town. I never really felt like I belonged there and well my Dad never liked me much. Aside from the fact I am such a creative spirit, he just thought I was really weird. He seemed to dislike me more because Grammy Carter spent so much time with me. I never really understood why."

"I think it's great you're going to try being nice instead of just skipping out. Even if your dad is a jerk, your sister still needs you. Sometimes I wish I wasn't an only child," Bella said wistfully.

"Would you want to have a bunch of kids to make up for that?" Alice asked teasingly.

Bella blushed at that. "Well if that's what happens I guess I wouldn't mind, but I think two kids would be just fine. I mean just as long as it's not just one kid by himself or herself is okay with me."

"I'd like a bunch of kids only thing is that I still need to find a guy. I mean sure if I really wanted kids that badly I could do it solo, but I'd like my kids to know who their dad is you know?" added Rosalie.

After a few more giggles and blushes about children, preferably with a guy around to help raise them, the trio began cleaning up the kitchen table. Bella seemed to be very serious as she focused on washing dishes while Alice dried the dishes before handing them off to Rosalie to put away in the cabinets.

Alice turned to Bella thoughtfully. "You seem to have a lot on your mind. Anything wrong?"

Bella glanced at Alice and Rosalie and took a deep breath. It seemed like this was the right time to speak something that they had to know. The truth existed and she didn't want to keep it from either of them. "My grandmother had left a thick envelope for me. I started to read it last night and I guess I've been thinking about it since."

Rosalie arched an eyebrow. "Did you read something bad?"

Bella shook her head. "Not bad, just really shocking and totally unexpected. If anything, that is a total understatement. It's a secret about the Anderson family."

Alice was practically bouncing in her excitement. "I love a good secret! Tell me, tell me!"

Rosalie laughed. "You look like a little kid waiting for a present."

Bella pulled a key out of her pocket. "Well, the letter mentioned there are a couple trunks downstairs that are full of secret stuff. Stuff from the Anderson family and that I can't let anyone except family see them."

Alice had a wide, cheeky grin. "Well aren't you fortunate that you are with two people in the Anderson family, dear cousin."

The three girls soon found themselves walking down into the basement. The basement was finished though it was mainly functional and not specially decorated. Alice inspected everything with a decorator's eye. Rosalie took a look around as she was now a roommate and should learn as much as she could about the house that her grandmother was raised in. Bella led them to a corner of the basement. "So here are the two trunks," she said as she squatted to unlock them.

Alice pulled off a sheet and discovered a large, round table. It was the sort of table that would be used as a side table in the living room. It had beautiful carvings of stars and vines on the top. "This is a beautiful table. Wonder why it's down here and not upstairs?" Alice mused.

Bella opened on trunk and found a large, thick, leather-bound book. It looked and felt very old, which didn't completely surprise her. If the trunk really was full of Anderson family heirlooms, a very old book could be one of them. "What a wonderful book!" Bella began to open it.

"Why don't you flip through it while Alice and I start taking out stuff?" Rosalie said kindly. She could see how fascinated Bella was with the old book.

Alice and Rosalie began exploring the trunk's contents. "Hey! Candles!" Alice said excitedly as she pulled out the large blue candles. Alice could hardly believe it. These were just like the candles she made from her Grammy's instructions.

Rosalie was surprised as well. "I found a small box of candles like these in my mother's closet." She pulled a silver chalice with intricate etchings from the trunk. "What?"

Bella barely paid attention as she began reading the book. She was intrigued by the paper, which was very old yet surprisingly well persevered. She could feel her eyebrows rising as she saw the date written in the corner of the first page. xxi June, 1342. She continued reading the page and the words shocked her:

We write these words to pass our legacy to those beyond our own. We make our vow to do no harm and banish evil in our sight. To our daughters and sons, we give thee the knowledge of those before you.

Alice and Rosalie had taken all the contents of the trunks onto the table and stared in disbelief at the collection of items. There were two large, blue candles that looked as though they hadn't been used yet. There was the beautiful, silver chalice with vines, flowers, and other images detailing the surface. There were various small stones and crystals of different colors on the table that Alice had removed from a small velvet bag in the trunk. There was a small knife, though it appeared to have a very dull blade. There were several other items all placed around the table.

"Oh… my…" Rosalie stared at the table. She couldn't quite believe what she was seeing. "You mean the secret of our family…"

Bella glanced up as she finished reading a page in the book. "The Andersons… and in turn us… we're witches." She wasn't quite what to think.

Alice gently picked up one of the candles and had a kind smile on her face. "Of course… now it all makes sense."

Rosalie turned to Alice and her eyes narrowed slightly. "What do you mean?"

Alice had a very thoughtful expression on her face. "I mean our grandmothers left us blue candles just like these. Didn't your grandmothers ever teach you about that…" Alice trailed off and here eyes suddenly widened.

Bella held the book tight to her chest. "What is it?"

"I just realized Grammy Carter taught me a spell! Open my heart so I can receive, not what I want, but what I need. You're supposed to say that after lighting those special candles. Whenever you're troubled or stressed out! Don't you see? That was a spell!" Alice was practically bouncing at the realization.

Bella was also surprised. "I never really thought about it before. I always thought it was something to relax my mind and stuff."

Rosalie frowned. "You can't be serious about this. I mean there are lots of people that say they're witches and do Wicca and stuff, but you can't really be telling me that magic is real." Rosalie was the only one in the trio that had the least interaction with her Anderson grandmother.

Alice began picking up some of the items. "I don't know how else to prove it. Bella? Didn't you say that letter Marie wrote have more sheets? Maybe there's something we're missing here."

Bella quickly went back upstairs to get the letter and returned with the small stack of sheets. She put the first sheet to the back and began reading a sheet that had a title of "After opening the trunks."

Bella cleared her throat and began reading. "Bella, by now you have seen what's in the trunks. It is the secret that I have kept from not only you, but the world. I don't know when and where our powers came from, but it is true: we are witches. Perhaps we got our powers in ancient Britannia, but somehow we did. We practiced our craft in secret and used our powers to help people. There is so much in the magical world that you know so little about. I regret not showing you the truth sooner, but there is no changing the past."

Rosalie shook her head. "I can't believe this! I'm not… I'm not a witch!"

Alice sighed. "Well the letter has the answers to all the mysteries about this family. Try to open your mind a bit, Rose."

Rosalie narrowed her eyes. "Why should I believe that I'm a witch? I've never done anything magical."

Bella continued reading the sheet silently to herself. Her eyes widened at the words on the page. "Listen to this… all the witches of our family line were born with powers. However we bound the powers of daughters and our granddaughters. Alicia suspects little Mary…"

Alice rolled her eyes and sighed, "I hate being called 'Mary.' It's such a boring name! Why did I get cursed with Mary Alice, I'll never really understand…" she grumbled.

"…little Mary may have broken through the binding spell," Bella continued reading while Rosalie chuckled at Alice's outburst.

"I broke through the binding spell?" gasped Alice.

Bella frowned before reading further. "Somehow her granddaughter Mary Alice has limited usage of the power she was blessed with. It seems that Mary Alice has the gift of foresight. Her premonitions aren't very strong since they are bounded, but they began just before the car accident…"

Alice gasped and Bella and Rosalie looked at her. "Oh my God…" she mumbled.

"What's the matter?" Rosalie asked with a frown.

Alice trembled slightly as she finally realized something that she had buried in the back of her mind for a long time. "I remember…" she mumbled.

Bella gently put her arm around Alice. "You okay?"

Alice sniffled as she considered what to say next. "I was born in a small town in Mississippi. I grew up with my grandmother not too long after the car accident your grandmother mentioned in that letter. You see my father is really social conscious. He tries really hard to gain a positive reputation and it really shouldn't surprise you he wanted to run in politics. We Brandons are an old family in the area."

"That sounds very familiar," Rosalie had a wry smirk at that. Mr. Brandon was related to her father by attitude, but not blood.

"I suppose ever since I started to talk, I gained a reputation as being a very strange child. My father eventually didn't want too many people to speak to me. I never really understood why. Looking back on it, I suppose if I have really is some kind of foresight, it's possible that whatever binding spell was used wouldn't be strong enough to totally stop my power," said Alice thoughtfully.

Rosalie rolled her eyes slightly. "I still don't know about all this magical business. I'll need some proof that magic is real." Rosalie was never one to just trust people, especially not after what Royce had done to her. Trust became something more valuable now that her eyes were opened to the level of secrets and lies that existed in the world.

Bella quickly scanned the sheets. "Well my Gran says in the letter that since our powers are bound only extreme emotions and dangerous situations would cause a bit of our magic to happen. Also now that she and her sisters are dead, the binding spell has weakened and we might be showing some abilities already." Bella frowned at that. Other than the special spell with the blue candle, she never showed any sign of magic.

Rosalie still narrowed her eyes and refused to believe any of this mumbo jumbo. She stared at the objects around her balefully. Was this the reason why her father and Grandma Lillian didn't get along? Was she a witch or at least believed she was one? Just how much did Mom know?

Alice's eyes twinkled and her grin widened. "I can totally confirm that magic is real! I've been making all these predictions and hunches that just worked out great! What else is there, Bella?" Alice knew how much Marie's letters mean to Bella. She decided to let her new friend be the one to read it.

Bella glanced at the letter again. "Well she said here that there is a spell that will break the binding spell on us once and for all. Basically the binding spell they used on us and our Moms basically prevents us from actively using our powers. What reverses this spell is if we choose to embrace our magic."

Rosalie frowned at that. "What if we don't reverse this binding spell?" asked Rosalie. She couldn't wrap her head around this weird supernatural stuff.

Bella continued looking down at the sheet. "She said that while the binding spell will hold, we will gradually experience random usage of magic under extreme situations. There's a possibility that the binding spell will break any way if the situation is really that serious. Also if we have children, the binding spell wasn't placed on them, which means our kids could end up having magic."

Rosalie huffed at that. "You don't seriously believe in this stuff, do you Bella?"

Bella frowned at that. "Well my grandmother would never joke about stuff like this. Besides Rosalie, there are so many strange things in the world that can't be explained. It's worth checking out."

Alice began to look at the book as well. "Not to mention, we're really learning more about the Andersons. Something you wanted to know more about, Rosalie. If this turns out to be some hoax, then no one gets hurt. However if this is real, Rosalie, then not embracing it means denying yourself a part of who you are and where you come from. All this was kept a secret from us and it's the chance to know the truth."

Rosalie had to take a few deep breaths to consider this. "You know this is just… what does this all really mean? I mean if we choose to be witches?"

"I don't know, Rosalie. Only thing I know is that we're all in the same boat," said Bella.

Alice smiled at that. "So we can all learn about it together?"

Rosalie sighed. "I suppose it doesn't hurt to get more info. Let's not jump into the proverbial cauldron and break this binding spell."

Alice couldn't help but smile at that. She glanced at the book and carefully turned pages to examine the contents briefly. "This is just amazing how old this book really is! All this knowledge passed down. It's not the same as Grammy teaching, but this will be the next best thing!"

Bella glanced at the other sheets. "These seem to be some spells Gran wrote down so we have quick access if needed instead of hunting that book. She said it's the family Grimoire filled with spells and information about the magical world that our family has been writing down over the centuries. She said she left some pouches with ingredients already mixed together in case we need them."

Alice flipped through a few pages and gasped at something that caught her eye. Bella and Rosalie quickly went beside her to look at what it could be. Emblazoned on the top of a page was labeled "Prophecy of the Sisters Three."

Alice cleared her throat. "In all the centuries, there was a prophecy made that there will be born onto the family of Anderson sisters three whose powers would exceed those that came before them. Through their blood shall come powers that blossom to that even greater than before. The signs by which these sisters shall be known is thus: one sister shall have visions of future and past, one sister shall move things with her mind, and the last sister be friend of the elements."

The three girls just glanced at each other awkwardly. "Just what does that really mean?" was the question floating in all their minds.

"Does this mean that our grandmothers are the sisters this prophecy meant?" asked Bella curiously. "I can't imagine my Gran being able to do these things…" Bella paused as her eyes widened and she gasped.

Rosalie looked at Bella oddly. "What's the matter?"

Bella slowly held her hand to her mouth. "I think it's true. It's really absolutely true. I just never really gave much thought of it before because I didn't live with my grandmother until a few months before she died…"

Rosalie arched an eyebrow at that. "What exactly?"

Bella looked at Alice and Rosalie before explaining. "My grandmother was really good with gardens and plants. She could make just about anything grow in her garden. She'd always just know the right time to plant things and what to give them if they needed help to grow better. She never consulted and almanac or anything. Not to mention she was almost as good a chef as a trained one."

Alice considered that. "I wonder if that meant she was a really good potion maker. I mean cooking isn't far off from brewing potions. After all you have to know ingredients, how to prepare them and how to use them."

Rosalie huffed at that. "That's hardly conclusive. You're never going to convince me that we're magical with only that."

Alice frowned. "Well there seems to be only one truly certain way to know whether or not we're magical. We should use the spell to embrace our magic."

Rosalie was not conflicted about that idea. On the one hand, she wasn't convinced that magic was real. If magic wasn't real, then this spell wouldn't work anyway. However, if magic was real then Rosalie would have to find a way to deal with how her understanding of the world. All she knew was completely out the window. Then again, if magic was real it was a part of her family and she wouldn't be able to ignore it. If there was one thing that Rosalie disliked more than the status quo changing, it was lies and secrecy. She wanted the truth and this was her chance.

Bella cleared her throat. "Look, there doesn't seem to be any other way to prove or disprove this whole thing. Either we turn out to have powers or this was a prank by our grandmothers. Are you in, Rosalie?"

Rosalie took a deep breath. "Either I'm a witch or this is a clever prank. I'll be learning something about my grandmother in any case. Let's do it."

Alice flipped to the first page of the book. "There's a spell we use. It's an incantation where a a witch makes a vow and embraces the Craft. It says that all initiates of the Craft gets a temporary binding spell cast on them. By making the vow to use powers only for good, it undoes the binding."

"So what exactly do we need to do?" Bella asked.

Alice continued looking at the book. "Special rituals require an altar and symbols of the great elements. There is supposed to be one candle present for each participant of the ritual. We just hold hands around the altar and say the incantation."

Bella and Rosalie looked at the items they pulled out of the trunks. "Maybe Gran provided the objects we need? I imagine she packed things the way she did for a reason."

Alice glanced again. "It says we need objects representing earth, air, fire, water, and the spirit. They can be any kind of item connected to the elements. Crystals can represent the spirit."

Rosalie looked at a few items. "Well there are feathers here, so that's probably air. The cup could hold liquid so that's water?"

Alice nodded. "That sounds about right. I think there are some smooth stones and well the candles are fine as fire."

Bella began placing the items on the table. "Is there a special arrangement needed?"

Alice quickly looked through the writing on the page and flipped a couple times to double check. "Not really. I suppose it's a bit like decorating your house or something. It's really a way to focus and organize yourself and your power. I guess it's really a matter of what looks organized and orderly."

Rosalie, Bella, and Alice spent the next couple of minutes determining the best way to arrange the items on the table before finally lighting the candles. "So how does this all work?"

"After holding hands we have to recite the incantation together," Alice said. She carefully left the book open so all three of them could clearly see what they had to say and do.

They held hands and began reading the book together: "We ask the spirits of water, fire, air, and earth to guide our hands and our hearts. Give us strength and power and upon this great hour we summon our ancestors to bless us. We vow to harm none with our power and aid those in need. We vow purity in every word and every deed."

After reciting the words, they each felt a tingling sensation flow through their entire bodies. It only lasted a few seconds, but they couldn't help but look at each other in surprise. They carefully replaced everything back into the trunks and wondered what would happen next.

AN: Personally I'm not 100% satisfied with the way the chapter ended. However I will eventually do some editing to adjust this so I'll replace this chapter in a new version in the future. I'm currently working on the next chapter. I'm thinking probably later this week or during the weekend I'll post it. My goal is to reach Chapter 14 by January 31. If not, then Chapter 15 by February 28!