AN Let's see how the meeting between Bella and the Cullens will go!

Chapter 4

BPOV

When it was morning, and late enough that I was sure Billy would be awake, I called him. He picked up immediately, slightly surprised to be hearing from me already.

'What can I help you with?' he asked knowing me well enough it wasn't a social call.

'Do you know any hunting grounds of the Cullens?' I asked.

'I'm not sure. We run the border to protect our land, I don't think they'd risk choosing a hunting spot near our border.'

'And you never step outside the border?'

'Sam might have.' Billy answered thoughtfully. 'Hold on.'

Sam's paranoia might be working in my favour this time, though I wasn't happy about it. The phone was put down on Billy's side and I heard some talking in the background, followed by some yelling. I was guessing Sam was there and wasn't exactly keen on helping me. I shook my head. This man really had some learning to do.

'Alright, I've asked him. He says there's clear concentrated trails that lead to mount Rainier. My guess is they use that often. though it wouldn't surprise me if they've also got some places near their home. though I'm not exactly sure what the address is, it's north of Forks.'

'Alright. Thank you Billy.'

We hung up and I got dressed in some hiking gear again. It was forecast to be a nice day out today, though a storm would be coming in tonight. I made sure to set off into the woods early enough before the sun could break through the clouds. Once in the woods I'd be fine.

I walked at leisurely pace at first, following the hiking trails and letting my senses roam around. There were faint scent trails of my kind. One I recognized as Carlisle's. Then there were fresher trails of the wolves. Especially Sam's. It seems he frequently stepped outside his own boundaries. I rolled my eyes at that.

I stepped off the trail as I found a particularly fresh scent of Sam's, overlapping an older almost faded scent of one of my own kind. One of the Cullen's. Had Sam followed this trail? Why would he do that? It was old, even when Sam had been here.

I followed the combined trail into the forest, making sure to keep silent, in case I ran into someone. It led further away from the town and the boundary line of Quileute land, until I finally reached a small clearing.

The sun was streaming through the opening in the canopy of trees, engulfing the small meadow in a warm golden glow. The wildflowers danced softly in the breeze and for a moment I was stunned by its beauty. I sat down at the edge and breathed in deeply, enjoying the scents that wafted around me, reminding me of a warm summer day in Italy. Bees were buzzing around, pollinating the flowers and I smiled as I stood on the sideline of nature doing what it did best.

The scent of the Cullen was stronger here, I noticed. As if he or she frequented this spot quite often. it didn't seem like a hunting spot though. More like somewhere to come and relax, away from prying eyes. This meadow was secluded and far from human hiking trails, the odds of a human stumbling across it were next to nothing.

I headed into the sunlight, finding the exact spot the vampire in question would be, the scent was concentrated in the grass and flowers. I sat down in the same spot, closing my eyes and enjoying the warmth of the sun on my skin. I decided to settle in, perhaps this vampire would want to enjoy the sunlight today as well. Meeting one of the Cullens out here wouldn't be a bad idea. It was neutral, and one on one.

So I settled in to wait. Something I was good at. I watched nature around me flourishing nicely. It was a lovely way to spend the day, and something I hadn't done in a while. The castle grounds in Italy were kept to the taste of the brothers, there wasn't much free nature over there anymore. I kept a small rose garden in the courtyard, but it wasn't the same as being one with nature in a wild place such as this. I felt connected when I was able to observe nature like this, like that was what I was put on this earth for. In a way I was. I protected the balance of the world, that meant I was in harmony with nature. I had to be. I couldn't protect the balance, when I couldn't feel the disbalance. And disbalance could be seen and felt more clearly in nature like this.

When the skies darkened above my head, I knew I wouldn't be meeting this mysterious vampire in this clearing today. The storm was rolling in it seemed. The first rolls of thunder were already sounding from over the mountains. But it seemed my trip would not be wasted after all, as my ears picked up on something else. To a human it would have probably sounded like normal thunder, but I knew it was the sound of something being hit with supernatural strength.

It was the coven. I was sure of it. I grinned to myself and set off running towards the sound.

It seemed they were playing a game of baseball. And it was the perfect opportunity for me to meet them. It didn't take me long to find them. They were just fifty miles away from where I had been when I'd heard them. I slowed my approach when I was still just out of earshot for them. I cast out my senses, getting a sense of what I was going to be up against.

There were seven of them, spread out across the field. They were enjoying themselves, joking around and playing baseball. As I took stock of the vampires one by one, I noted that the seer wasn't the only talented one among them. There was a telepath, an empath and a vampire with enhanced strength, far surpassing others I had met. This was one talented coven it seemed.

Now it made sense why Aro was so antsy about them. I decided to go and meet them. I partly lifted one of my shields, allowing my scent and sounds to carry over to the Cullens, as I set off running towards them again, though I made sure not to run too fast. I wanted to give them ample warning. They would probably be unsettled enough as three of their gifts would definitely not work on me.

Their game stopped immediately and confused muttering broke out as I neared them. Everyone rushed together and when I broke through the foliage they had grouped together in a defensive stance facing me.

'Hello.' I greeted them, my voice kind but giving nothing away as I appraised them.

Carlisle, I'd already seen. He was stood at the front, as a leader should. The others were a mixed group of people. A tiny woman with black hair was looking at me with a shocked expression. A tall gorgeous blond woman was scowling at me. An enormous guy with thick muscles and curly hair was smiling at me. I figured that would be the strength talent. A slightly older woman stood next to him, her hand on his arm. Restraining him perhaps? Then there was a nondescript man, at least that's what he was trying to convince me of it seemed, he was projecting disinterest and boredom. I had found the empath. As I regarded him I noted he was a product of the newborn wars with interest, his body was littered with numerous scars. A menacing figure enhanced by his intense stare and calculating gaze. It made sense he wanted to seems inconspicuous, a stray nomad could easily feel threatened and attack just by looking at him. Finally there was a tall guy with unruly bronze hair and an intense look on his face as he started at me. That would probably be the telepath then. He seemed overly frustrated that he couldn't read my mind.

Carlisle stepped forward. 'Hello. My name is Carlisle Cullen. And this is my family. Esme, Rosalie, Emmett, Jasper, Alice and Edward.'

'My name is Bella.' I responded.

Carlisle glanced at Edward who shook his head minutely. Then did the same with Jasper. Finally his eyes landed on Alice, who shrugged.

'I heard you playing. I got curious.' I said.

Carlisle nodded. 'Yes, the storm created a perfect opportunity for us to enjoy ourselves. We keep a permanent settlement nearby.'

'permanent?' I pretended to be surprised.

He nodded. 'As such we need to keep a low profile. So we'd prefer it if you would refrain from hunting in the immediate area.'

'That's fine. I don't hunt humans.' That much was true. I hadn't had to hunt humans for a long time, a blood bank was much easier or if I was really in a pinch, I usually crept into someone's home and drank a pint as they slept without them any the wiser.

A shocked murmur swept through them. 'Are you an animal drinker as well?' Carlisle asked with clear interest.

I gave a noncommittal gesture. 'I would love to hear more about your situation here, if that were possible? I could follow you to your permanent settlement? And then I could tell you about my lifestyle in return?' I bartered.

Carlisle glanced around at his family. Most still wore expressions of doubt. But not all. A silent discussion seemed to pass between them all, before Carlisle nodded to me. 'Follow me.'

He took off running with the older woman beside him. I set off after them, aware that the three other men were right on my tail. No one spoke.

The atmosphere was quite tense and I wondered if they treated all nomads like this. It was clear I was the intruder here and I had no doubt they could defend their territory well. but why would they accept my offer then? I had to admit I was intrigued by this strange coven.

We ran until we reached the back of a gorgeous modern villa, completely enclosed by private land of forest. I whistled in appreciation as I took it in. Carlisle was already on the porch, holding the door open for me to pass through. I stepped into the living room. It was warm and inviting and comfortable.

'this is beautiful.' I couldn't keep the awe form my voice, it was genuine as well. They had created a home here. Something I hadn't seen a vampire do for hundreds of years. The last vampire to have done something like this was the roman era.

"Thank you.' The woman said with a kind smile. 'Please sit down.'

I sat down on one of the plush white couches as the rest of family filtered in. They were still suspicious and weary of me and I thought for a moment on how to best approach this. As a rule I never revealed my true identity unless it was necessary or if I had to instil some fear into someone. The Cullens hadn't done anything to require anything like that. But somehow for the first time it felt wrong to lie to them about why I was here and who I was. It was a strange feeling, something I had never had before. I'd done countless of missions like this, assimilating into covens, appraising their threats, and deciding on what to do with them. If they were fine, I just disappeared again, a simple nomad encounter that would eventually be forgotten. If they needed to be dealt with I revealed myself and either disbanded the coven or dealt with the problem more permanently and more violently.

I was still undecided when Carlisle spoke.

'Myself and my family have kept to the animal diet almost exclusively. It's allowed us to mingle with humans and live in one place for between six to eight years, without much trouble.'

'and you thirst isn't a problem?' I asked slightly curious. I had no bloodlust, but that was a perk that belonged solely to me. Other vampires struggled with it in varying degrees, but none were completely free of it.

'It's harder some days, especially for the more recent members of our family. But we manage.'

'And you don't 'think it's dangerous to get so close to them and run the risk of exposing us all?'

Carlisle shook his head. 'No, I do not. Every vampire is strong enough to resist. It just takes practice. And my family has had a lot of it. '

I looked around the room thoughtfully. It was quite impressive that this many like minded vampires had found each other and chosen to form a coven. I felt there was more to the story. But I wasn't sure they would trust me with it. The man wit the scars, still trying to seem uninteresting to me, was getting antsy and fidgety. His constant attempt to influence me was getting slightly annoying, it vibrated off my shield and was tiring him out.

I gazed at him. 'you can stop that. It won't work.'

He gasped in shock. As did the bronze haired guy. 'You felt me?' he asked shocked.

I nodded. 'And I've already seen your scars. You don't frighten me. I guess you were in the southern wars?'

He nodded slightly dumbfounded.

'your talent would have definitely been valued there. I am glad you got out before the Volturi put a more ruthless end to it.'

He swallowed thickly. 'How did you know what I was trying to do?'

'It's my gift.' I responded, curious why he had kept trying because it seemed like he had noticed it wasn't working the way he wanted it to. 'It's why you can't feel me, or influence my feelings. And it's why you can't hear my thoughts.' I directed to the bronze haired guy.

He gasped again.

'A shield?' Carlisle asked, his eyes wide and his voice willed with wonder.

'Yeah, I guess you could call it that.'

'But a shield wouldn't be able to identify our gifts.' Broze haired dude argued back with Carlisle.

I shrugged. 'It has some extra features.'

'That must be why I can't see you then too.' The small black haired woman said. I raised a brow at her. I hadn't expected her to just come out and say she was a seer. I figured they would all protect that gift with everything they had.

She interpreted my raised brow as a question though. 'I can see the future.' She explained to me.

'you're a talented bunch.' I noted drily.

They all shrugged like it was no big deal.

'So how do you blend in?' I asked, redirecting the conversation back to their lifestyle. I knew further probing into their gifts would not work in my favour right now, only bring on more suspicion.

Carlisle launched into an explanation of their lifestyle, which seemed to settle everyone down slightly. When he was done explaining, I glanced at the five "children".

'That must suck, repeating high school over and over again.' I shuddered. College I could understand... but high school?

They chuckled and the bronze haired one who I now knew was Edward, nodded in agreement. 'but the younger we start out somewhere, the longer we can stay.'

I nodded thoughtfully. They really were different from any coven I had met so far. It was really interesting. It seemed they had bonded not out of convenience which was the norm for covens, but out of respect and affection. Familial bonds tied this coven together. Was it the animal blood that made them like this? I wasn't sure. Though it seemed unlikely, I had met other animal drinkers and none of them had exhibited this amount of compassion and kindness.
Or hadn't they had the chance to? One thing was for certain, I needed to find out why Aro hated this coven and wanted to eradicate them.

I was pulled from my musing as Alice, the small black haired one, let out a gasp. Edwards gaze swung to her, his brow furrowed in confusion. Then Alice clutched her head and shook it rapidly, massaging her temples as if she had a headache.

'What was that?' Edward let out in a strangled voice as if he was in pain as well.

'I don't know.' Alice whispered, as Jasper, the one with the scars, wrapped her up in his arms. But her gaze drifted to me thoughtfully and I wondered what she'd seen.