CHAPTER SIX

It's you and me, that's my whole world

They whisper in the hallway, "she's a bad, bad girl"

~ Taylor Swift, Miss Americana & The Heartbreak Prince

Edward Cullen

Carlisle and the rest of the family were waiting at Bella's little cottage when we got back from her hunt. I joined her this time, though I took out a few caribou out of her eyesight to save the bear population for her.

They were all scattered along the porch; Emmett and Rosalie swinging gently on the rickety old porch swing, Alice and Jasper sitting on the two front steps, and Carlisle and Esme leaning against the beam supporting the roof.

I felt an age old pull toward him and Esme, and even the others to an extent. They were my family, and I had been in Volterra to protect them as well. Had begged Alice not to tell them of Bella to save them if need be.

"Edward, Bella," Carlisle smiled.

Bella's hand tensed in mine. She was a remarkably intuitive creature, it seemed. Whenever she was around more than a few vampires at once she was tense, on edge. Ready to defend herself.

It was a common response for a newborn, but a deadly one for a newborn with her abilities. I kept us a few dozen feet back from the others. For everyone's safety.

"I've spoken to Eleazar," Carlisle said, his voice easily heard even from the distance. "I still trust him, to an extent. There are some things we might want to keep to ourselves, though. The extent of Bella's power might best be downplayed as much as possible. I think we should stay here a while longer, take advantage of Kate's offer to help train Bella with her electrokinesis at the very least. Is that okay with you, Bella?"

Bella's eyes widened. Shocked that Carlisle would ask her what she was comfortable with. A sharp contrast to Eleazar's demanding demeanor the other day.

I wondered idly how much time she had spent with Carlisle, or any of the rest of them, since her change. If she really knew any of them outside of her human memories.

"Yes," she nodded.

"I owe you an apology, Bella. For how you came into this life. It was a shock to all of us, but I'm sure we could have handled it better. I can't imagine how difficult the last few months have been for you. I apologize for not helping you adapt as I should have.

"I know you and Edward might prefer going off on your own, but I do hope you both know you'll always be welcome with us. No matter what. You'll always be considered part of our family."

"Not because of your power," Alice added, taking a few small steps toward us. "It's never just been about that."

"With that nifty built-in lie detector you've got you should know that," Emmett chuckled from his spot.

Rosalie nearly shoved him off of the swing.

Bella was focused on Alice, though. "I thought you were my friend," she said sadly.

Alice's eyes widened. "I was. Am." She skipped closer, the picture of ease. I kept a firm grip on Bella's hand. "I'm going to give you a hug and you're going to see that you're my best friend. Okay?"

Bella shook her head. "You don't have to do that. I don't want to hurt you or invade your privacy."

Alice shrugged, waving her off. "Don't attack me," she said with a playful stern arch of her brow, before wrapping her arms around Bella.

Bella froze for a moment, before her arms wrapped carefully around Alice as well. The pair pulled apart with matching smiles.

"Hitting Mike Newton in the head with my badminton racket might have been subconsciously on purpose," Bella told her with a grin.

Emmett boomed with laughter on the porch.

Alice giggled, throwing her arms around me in a quick hug, too. "We're all together! Finally!"

"You'll stay?" Esme asked, unable to hide her hopefulness.

Bella squeezed my hand in answer.

"We'll stay."

Carlisle beamed at us, taking a slow and careful walk toward Bella and I. He hesitated for a moment in front of her, waiting for her to object before he gently grabbed her free hand and squeezed it between both of his. Giving her access to every thought he'd ever had. Earning her trust.

"Welcome to the family, Bella," he told her softly, patting her hand before letting it go. Carlisle turned toward me, his hand falling on my shoulder and giving it a firm squeeze. "Welcome back, Edward."

—Miss Americana—

Alice shooed Carlisle and I away, muttering something about us needing time to catch up. She said she wanted some time with her new friend. When Bella hesitantly asked her to help her learn how to filter through her visions, Alice beamed with excitement. After double checking with Bella half a dozen times that she would be fine, I went for a walk with Carlisle.

We were quiet for a long time.

Vampires weren't known for our ability to change or move on. Growing, it wasn't something we did often. So when you made a connection with another, it was usually made to last eternity. Even with a few decades of separation.

"You should have told me," Carlisle said eventually. We had come to a small river trickling through the forest.

I sat down on a boulder, Carlisle taking a spot beside me. "You never would have let me go to Volterra."

"Of course not."

I looked over at him with half of a smirk. "I needed to protect her. However I could."

Carlisle nodded, silence falling between us again for a while. His mind was quiet and contemplative. He had already moved on from the anger he'd directed toward me when he first found out what I had done. I had gotten off easy, because he'd processed the whole ordeal already and was simply glad I was back now. Relieved I was here and not half of the guard.

An errant thought crossed his mind as he looked over at me with a smile. "You'll want to go to medical school again. Quite a bit has changed since 1915."

Just like that, it was like I had never left.

Esme joined us after a while, sitting by my side and humoring me by answering all of my mundane questions about what they had been doing the last ninety years. I had to fight my laughter as Carlisle told me about how his "children" traveled from city to city going to high school. High school.

I hadn't been to high school since 1910.

It was where they found Bella, though. In a quaint little town in the pacific northwest that was nearly always blanketed by dense clouds. Forks, Washington. The most powerful vampire to ever be created was found in a town with a population of less than 4,000 people.

"I've never heard of anything like it," Carlisle mused.

I scoffed. Of course none of us had ever heard of anyone like Bella.

"Not just Bella's power. Or her change. But the fact that she seemed to be actively, albeit unconsciously, looking for you. Even as a human. She breaks all of the rules I've learned of this life for the past three centuries."

The utter peace and fondness that flooded my veins at the mere mention of Bella's name was killed off quickly but a much more sobering thought.

"Aro would do anything to have her. Anything," I stressed. I'd seen him cross lines; heard stories of how he coveted many of the powers he has in his arsenal to this day. If he ever so much as suspected a vampire like Bella existed, he would stop at nothing to acquire her. Whether it be to force her into a member of his guard or keep her locked away so nobody else could one day overpower him.

Carlisle's hand fell to my shoulder. "We'll protect her. We all will."

I nodded. But I knew, once she got a handle on her powers, she wouldn't need our protection. Eventually we would be her only weakness.

—Miss Americana—

I should have known better than to doubt Carlisle and Esme. They still had the small box of my human belongings I had left them with. Kept it with them wherever they traveled, just in case. It was an act of kindness I didn't deserve after my abandonment, but one I appreciated as I double checked the little black box was still in my pocket.

Just in case.

I found Alice and Bella in the meadow. Both sitting still as statues, cross legged in front of each other. I didn't want to interrupt, but it was fascinating to watch. In Alice's mind, I watched her filter through dozens of futures in a matter of a moment, searching for the answers she wanted. Making decisions and changing the smallest detail to change the outcome until she was satisfied.

Then everything went black.

"Damnit!" Alice snapped, eyes popping open only to frown as Bella still seemingly concentrated on her visions.

Bella's eyes opened slowly, her head cocked to the side. "Jacob Black."

Alice's frown deepened. "You saw Jacob Black?"

Bella nodded, opening her mouth to say something as I moved from my spot hidden in the trees and approached. Her attention was immediately locked on me, eyes drifting down my form as I crossed the meadow. I didn't need to be able to read her mind to know what she was thinking.

Alice snapped her fingers in front of Bella's face. "Focus, Bella. This is important. You saw Jacob Black?"

Bella shook her head, turning back toward Alice. "Yes. Why is that so important? Oh. Well, I'm supposed to be dead I guess. Yes, I see the problem."

Alice sighed. "That's not the biggest problem. The problem is that Jacob Black is a werewolf. They've always blocked my visions, but you don't seem to have that problem."

"Jacob Black is a werewolf?" Bella gasped as I folded myself into a sitting position beside her. She turned toward me, eyes wide and already too dark for comfort. "Charlie and I had dinner with him and his dad every weekend after I moved in with him! But I… I suppose dinner with a werewolf isn't all that shocking now that I'm a vampire with dozens of supernatural powers…" her voice filtered off, a deep frown pulling her brows together.

I brushed my thumb softly against the crease between her eyes until it softened.

"We made a treaty with the wolves," Alice said quickly. "Well, Carlisle did. Before Jasper and I found him. That he would never harm a citizen in La Push. Carlisle promised nobody in the immediate area would ever be fed upon or changed."

A growl rumbled at the back of my throat. "The wolves suspect Bella was changed?"

Alice gave a noncommittal nod. "Sort of. Jacob Black enjoyed those weekly dinners a little too much. We–" Alice hesitated, eyes darting toward Bella for a moment. "We heard him at the funeral. He presumed there was a little more going on between the two of you than there was. He's a wolf, and they have imprints. Similar to mates. But he thought Bella was his imprint and just needed a little more… time to come around to it."

The look of disgust on Bella's face would have been comical under any other situation.

"So now there's a rogue werewolf on the way to extract revenge," I surmised with a sigh.

"I don't know," Alice grumbled. "You need to focus, Bella. Tell us what you see. Try to narrow down a time frame or a day, anything you can get."

Bella frowned, eyes closing as she took a deep breath. I trailed my fingers up her arm absentmindedly.

One of her eyes popped open. "That's incredibly distracting."

I pulled my hand away. "My apologies, love."

Her eyes closed again. Bella started muttering after a few moments of searching. "Not just Jacob. There are others with him…" The ground beneath us started to shake. "Ten. At least. Tonight. Just as the sun sets."

Bella's eyes popped open and the ground was still.

"Go warn Carlisle," I told Alice.

She was gone before she could finish her nod of agreement.

Bella eyed the space where Alice had been with a distraught grimace. "Can't we–I mean, is it not enough to just tell the… wolves… the truth? About my change at least?" she whispered dejectedly. Like she already knew the answer was much more complicated than that.

I moved to sit in front of her, grasping both of her hands in each of mine and giving them a squeeze. "Wolves aren't known for their level heads. Or for anything other than attacking first and not bothering to think about it later."

I had a decent amount of experience with wolves. Or shifters, more accurately. They were a hassle, a real pain in the ass to get rid of, but it could be done. It was much easier with my abilities, as well. If I was within range of one of the mutts I could hear each and every one of them.

It was an interesting development that Carlisle had a treaty with a pack. One Aro certainly wouldn't have approved of.

I had helped take out half a dozen packs that were encroaching on Volterra over the years. Aro had little sympathy that, a majority of the time, the wolves were normal people. They were a threat to him, and that was that.

"I'm sorry," Bella whispered, her head falling.

I brushed my fingers through her hair, holding it out of her face. "It's not your fault."

"You were there for ninety years. You killed –"

"I would do anything for you," I told her fiercely. For as much as I knew she felt the same about me, she didn't seem to understand. The lengths I would go to protect her, to keep her. "Without a second thought. Without any hesitation. If this pack proves to be a threat I'll take them out one by one if I have to."

Bella's head snapped up. "We can't kill them. I know them!"

My jaw tensed. "They're not coming here to check on you, Bella. They're coming here to eliminate the threat."

She flinched.

I cupped her cheek. "I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault."

She didn't seem to see the irony in her response. Until her lips twitched at my thought.

"I just–I feel like I'm ruining everything. Like I make a hundred problems just by sitting here."

I leaned forward, pressing my lips to her forehead. Inhaling in that sweet, woodsy and floral scent of her. Breathing in the way she was still completely saturated in my scent as well. Knowing that no amount of showering or fresh air would get rid of it. She was mine.

It made situations like the impending wolf infestation seem remarkably mundane.

My lips brushed against her skin. "I love you."

I couldn't tell her everything was okay because, technically, it wasn't. I wasn't sure what the future held, how we would navigate it. What it would look like.

But I knew I loved her. I knew that after waiting for so long I finally had her. And that was all that mattered.

Bella let her head fall to my shoulder.

I wrapped my arms around her, pulling her into my lap as her legs effortlessly fell to either side of my hips. Her arms wrapped tightly around my neck, fingers digging into my back as she held me as close as possible.

"I love you," she breathed out, her voice tight.

I didn't need to read her mind to know what she was thinking.

Bella carefully extracted herself from my hold, standing on unsteady legs like she was a newborn calf. "You should go talk to Carlisle," she said, her voice almost pained. "Tell him what you… know about wolves. I need to hunt."

I nodded and she took off as fast as she could. I gave her a five second head start before I followed.

I understood the instinct. Had just told her how I had the same one to do anything for her. As much as I understood her instinct to run, it still hurt. Still made my long-dead heart ache that she thought I would let her go just to save myself.

I caught up to her on the outskirts of the Denali National Park. She stood frozen in the grass, eyes squeezed shut as the wind blew her hair across her shoulders. She was right at the edge of the forest, overlooking one of the larger lakes. She seemed to be willing herself to take just one more step. Forcing herself to flee.

"Where would you go?" I asked, leaning against a thick trunk of a tree a few feet behind her.

She didn't gasp, wasn't startled. Between her mindreading and visions, she knew I had been coming.

"I don't know," she admitted, still staring out at the lake. "I don't–I can't let anything happen to you. Or the others. If I'm out of the picture you and Alice and Emmett and everyone could be safe. Not have to spend the rest of eternity looking over your shoulders."

"I get it," I told her. Trying to keep my own frustration out of it. "That instinct to run, to do whatever you think you can to protect your mate. It's what sent me to Volterra for ninety years. But, you running now, Bella, it won't solve anything."

"But what if it did? What if I left and you went back with Carlisle and the others. He missed you so much, so did Esme. You were all a family and you could have that again."

The wind picked up, the overcast clouds becoming darker, heavier. "Without me around… you could be happy and safe," she whispered dejectedly, voice wavering as she lied. "Safe."

I closed the distance between us, grabbing her hand and pulling her around to face me. My other hand cupped her cheek, forcing her gaze to meet mine. "Even without the visions… without the mindreading… you know, you know, I'm nothing without you, Bella. I went to Volterra because it kept you safe. And I know you're willing to do the same, but the situation is different. You running off on your own is dangerous, for your own good, for everyones."

Her face fell. Tears would be streaming down her cheeks if she were human. As it was, I felt the beginnings of a rain shower dripping from the sky.

I pulled her close, arms wrapped around her in a grip tight enough to ground a human's bones. As it was, Bella pressed herself closer as if it weren't tight enough.

My lips fell to her ear. "If you want to run, we can run. If you need time away from so many others, it's understandable. But, from here on out, it's you and me, Bella. Always."

She took a few unsteady breaths, burying herself closer as she admitted, "Everything is new and confusing and scary and I don't know what's going on half of the time but the one thing I know is you. That you're mine. And I saw the wolves–what you've done, what's coming, and I panicked. Because if anything happened to you because of me I don't know what I would do. I don't know. I–"

I broke her off with a kiss. "The wolves are nothing more than a nuisance," I told her gently. "We'll be okay."

She saw them as the ultimate threat. They were, to an extent I supposed. They were our natural predator so she was right to feel threatened by them.

At the moment, to me, they were more of an annoyance than anything. I had taken down packs twice the size of what was coming, and I had no problem doing it again if necessary.

A/N: I hope you guys enjoyed this one! I'll see you next time :)