ALICE

"I still feel bad," I inform my mate.

"Every vampire in this house feels bad," Jasper assures me.

"We deserve to feel bad," I continue.

"Hence why I haven't tried to alter the atmosphere," Jazz sounds so sad.

"How could we have just followed Edward? We didn't even think that Bella would feel rejected or worthless in our eyes," I berate myself and my family.

"That's just it dear, we didn't think," Esme says as she enters our suite.

"And now we have to deal with the consequences," Carlisle adds as he sits down.

"She said she forgave us. I believe she really did," Emmett booms as he and Rosalie follow Carlisle and Esme in.

"Trust has to be earned, Emmett," Rosalie says.

"We did earn it before," Emmett pouts.

"But then we broke that trust by leaving. We never even said goodbye," I sigh.

"It will take a lot to earn back her confidence in us," Jazz continues for me.

"One of the biggest parts of that is accepting her and her lifestyle," Carlisle starts.

"Whatever that is," Rosalie snidely adds.

"Come on guys. She's a witch…and immortal. We are vampires. How much of a stretch is it to accept that magic is it real? We have already seen them use it," Emmett dismisses.

"We have to make it clear to Bella that we don't expect her to have to choose between us and her new family," Esme quietly says.

"Which means that we will have to try and become a part of that family," I add.

"Eliot is way cool, so he won't have a problem with that," Emmett announces.

"Jen is rather laid back, but we will have to prove our trustworthiness or loyalty before she will fully accept us as a part of her family," Jazz states firmly.

"No comments, rose?" I ask.

"I don't have a problem with rectifying our mistakes. As much as I hate to say it, we did this. Edward is not the only one to blame," she states.

"Besides, have you seen how badass Bella has become? I think she and Rose will be good friends this time," Emmett optimistically booms. We all chuckle at him.

"Anyway, I think it's safe to assume that no matter what her usual responsibilities are, she and her friends are going after the Volturi now," Jazz brings us back to the topic at hand.

"Based on what happened with Demetri, I think we can also assume there won't be any survivors," Carlisle adds.

"I'm not a fan of the Volturi. They have had too many power trips over the years. So, I want to help Jen and Bella out. That is, if they will let me," I break the news to my family.

"Wait a second, do we seriously need to discuss this? I'm all for kicking Volturi ass all over the place," Emmett interjects.

"It would also be the perfect way to build up some trust with Bella and her family," Jazz adds as he takes my hand in his.

"I take it everyone is in agreement, then?" Carlisle smiles as he asks.

"YES!" we all say at once.

"Poor Edward will have to deal with the fact that Bella can take care of herself," Esme giggles a little as she comments.

"Where is Edward?" Emmett asks the obvious.

EDWARD

I can't stop thinking about what Jen told me. I will have to work on rebuilding Bella's trust. The whole 'equals' thing will be challenging for me too. Clearly she can take care of herself now. But I want to be the one to take care of her. She seemed angry about us leaving. However she was definitely pissed about the way she was treated. She didn't know what was best for her. I did. Maybe I should have talked to her about it, but that wouldn't have changed anything.

My family has gone to apologize to Bella, individually, throughout the day. Carlisle thinks it would be best if I just wait for her to contact me. He might be right about that. I have some things that I need to work through before we can pick up our conversation. Her anger, while completely justified, caught me completely off guard. I need to just let her feel what she needs to feel. Now, there are some surprises from her outburst in that clearing. Okay, there were all sorts of surprises in that clearing.

First, how did I know she would travel through there? There was no way to know that she was staying in this house. I didn't even know that this house existed. I'm not psychic, like Alice, so I couldn't See her coming through. But I knew it just the same. I just knew she would. I will have to ask about that. Second, she's a witch. Apparently, witches are immortal. That means that I don't have to end her life to be with her forever. That's good…at least for me. She seems to be really powerful. Okay, so Bella has changed. I can accept that. I have to accept that to be with her.

Carlisle and Alice come into my suite and sit down opposite of me. They look serious. I can hear their thoughts, but I need them to say it all out loud to make it real. Shaking my head, I look at the floor.

"Edward, we have discussed what the family wants to do," Carlisle starts.

"Wasn't I invited?" I try to joke.

"This is serious, Edward," Alice says.

"We decided that we all want to stick around with Bella. We will rebuild her trust in us, not matter how long it takes. We also want to be a part of her new family," Carlisle tells me.

"That means that you have to accept a few things. For starters, your foolish actions when you left," Alice sounds annoyed.

"Her way of life might be a hard thing for you to accept you to accept as well," Carlisle adds.

"Come on, everything is going to fine. We'll be together. I don't even have to watch her die anymore. She might not like some of the ways I protect her, especially from herself, but we will work through that," I say.

"Edward, are you even listening to yourself? You are so selfish…and self-centered. Bella might not take your sorry ass back. I don't think I would if I were her," Alice cuts me off. She storms out of the room.

"Alice has a valid point, Edward. Those traits are that lead you to your decision to leave. The decision that you and Bella needed to be apart for her own good. Bella is the only one that should ever decide what it best for her. You need to realize that," Carlisle sounds disappointed.

"But Carlisle…" I try, but no more words come out.

"Edward you need to decide something. Do you really and truly love Bella or do you just want her to be yours? Like a pet? Because, if you don't love her with all of your being, then there is no way that the two of you can reconcile," Carlisle says as he, too, leaves.

I think back over my encounters with Bella. Sadly, there are a couple of themes. I was selfish and self-centered…especially when I decided to leave her for her own good. At the time, I didn't even consider that she might have an opinion worth listening to. Damn, they are right. I treated her more like a pet than like the love of my existence. How could I have been so stupid?

Bella deserves better. Therefore, I need to make myself better because I want to be with her. I just hope she can forgive me and take me back. That's what Jen meant with her advice. She was telling me how to fix things with my Bella. I don't deserve her help, but she helped me anyway. No wonder Bella seems so attached to her friend. I would be too. Maybe after I work on things with Bella, we can join her family. Suddenly, a slip of paper folded in half slides under my door. I go and pick it up. Opening it, I read:

We need to continue our talk.

Meet me at the front door at 10 and

we'll walk in the forest.