Five - What if We Rewrite the Stars?

Present Day

Carmen's expression, twisted and confused, was less than encouraging and her thoughts were staunchly blocked from his view. Edward gripped her hands far too tightly but even when he tried to relent, he couldn't. Her explicit instructions had been: 'stay calm, have faith, and picture everything you can about Bella with as much clarity as possible within your mind' and Jasper had also been instructed to leave Edward's emotions alone as it was imperative for Carmen to find the bond without interference of any kind. With each passing second, his anxiety ramped up an additional notch until he was nearly choking. Why was she so quiet? Shouldn't she have seen something by now? Carlisle had explained how Carmen's powers worked and, if what he said was true, what she could see was near instantaneous.

Was something wrong? Had he been wrong?

Fear, dank and deceitful, seeped from every cell in his body and Carmen visibly shivered. "Calm," she murmured to Edward without opening her eyes. "You're muddying my sight."

Bella, his desperate, hurting Isabella, had done the most reckless thing she could possibly think of in order to spite his request, in order to hear his voice in her head – thanks to his sister, it had happened right before his eyes – and Carmen dared to ask that he remain calm? Edward could feel his control slipping as anxiety bled into anger. Why was it taking so long? Was everyone only humoring him to get him to shut up? Did anyone actually believe that Bella was still alive?

Jasper's attempt at apology came to his mind. I wish I'd had better control that day, but… there is only so much our powers can accomplish, Edward. Do you really think we can bring her back? I know you were fond of Bella, he'd nearly gagged on his brother's despair at that, but sometimes we just have to let go.

Fond? Fond?! Jasper could feel emotions so he knew that Edward was more than fond of her and he knew that Bella felt the same! They loved each other to the depths of their souls, to the ends of the cosmos and back and yet he dared to imply their relationship was anything less than that?

Edward would have gone to war for her.

He would have sold the remainder of his soul for her.

He would have given up immortality for her.

And now Bella was gone, ripped from this world by chance and sent somewhere not so easily reached. Edward wanted to unleash chaos, incite war, bring death to every world, to every galaxy so that they, too, could feel the cold knife of injustice twisting in their gut – and that was exactly what he would do if it meant bringing her back home. Bella would have understood begrudgingly, even as she went with his family to pick up the pieces.

But before he went tearing through the impossible…

Carmen's head snapped up and she breathed one, lone, word while pulling her hands from Edward's, "Bella."

The anger quickly faded away but was replaced by elation and terror that rushed through him all at once when considering any number of earth-shattering scenarios that could come of what she'd found. Immediately, his family was at his back and there were numerous, comforting hands on his shoulders. The support was immensely comforting and he would be eternally grateful for it.

"I have never seen anything like this in all my years," she admitted, though not with the distress he'd been fearing. "Bonds are typically a collection of filaments stretched between two people that tie them together. Think of it like the Red Thread of Fate from Chinese Mythology, only there are many different threads representing the many facets of relationships. The majority of normal, human bonds are a deep red, to symbolize the link between blood. Vampire bonds are multifaceted and shimmer like diamonds or, in some more unfortunate cases, they can appear shiny and jagged, like onyx. While I have never seen a bond between a human and a vampire before, I theorized that it would be pink and perhaps still shimmer since it was a merging of the two species but the connection between you two is…" Carmen looked up at Edward. "You have the strongest threads I have ever touched. If I could compare it to anything, I would say it's a slick and silver, reminiscent of tungsten."

Edward was attempting to remain in his skin, "Since you were able to touch it, does that mean Bella is alright?"

"Well, it's a bit more complicated than that. While the link between you two has not been severed, it has been frayed. Bella is still tethered to the other end of your soulmate bond but for me, the line of communication is closed. This is not something I can fix for you, Edward. Wherever Bella is – and make no mistake, she is somewhere – I cannot reach her."

Carlisle stepped in as Edward was currently attempting to locate his heart, which had now taken up residency in his throat, "Your friend – the one you mentioned when we spoke before – is he able to help us?"

"Now that I have seen the bond for myself, I do think he could help. He goes by Kair and he is… not like us, nor is he like Bella. He is an entirely different being from a place we can scarcely imagine and his powers far outshine anything vampires can do with their gifts. If anyone can find Edward's mate, it's him."

"In my two decades with the Volturi, I never heard that name. Wouldn't they covet someone so powerful?"

Carmen nodded, "Kair is a fiercely private person and very few people actually know he exists – we only met him by chance ourselves during a trip to Greece. He keeps his circle of friends very small and his acquaintances even smaller. Aro would be like a bitch in heat if he knew even half of the things Kair is capable of. He knows to avoid attention, especially from those in power."

Edward felt a dangerous swell of hope fill his chest, "And you think he can find her? You think he can reach Bella?"

"I do… but Edward you must understand that Kair is extremely selective when it comes to using his abilities. If he senses even a hint of hesitation within you, all of this will be for nothing. You have to be absolutely certain that Isabella is worth the journey you may have to undertake because there is no guarantee that you will come back from it."

"Bella is my mate; we were made for each other," the hysteria was bubbling dangerously close to the surface but he pressed on, never more certain than now. " I would go to the ends of time for her. I know I made a terrible mistake but I was already on my way to rectifying it - I was coming back. I planned to beg, to grovel at her feet if that's what it took for her to forgive me. She may not be in Forks, but wherever she is, I will bring her home if I have to die doing it and if I fail, then it hardly matters what happens to me anyway. Even if I made it back without her, the Volturi would be my next stop. I don't intend to live in a world without her, Carmen. I can't."

"I understand," Carmen eyed her husband affectionately. "I imagine all of us would feel the same if our mates were taken from us."

There were murmurs of agreements and the pressure of fingers squeezing into his shoulders in solidarity.

Eleazar held out his hand, a stack of matte, rectangular sheets between his fingers, "Carmen will reach out to Kair but he will need to meet with you in the place where Bella's presence is strongest, preferably where the accident occurred. I took the liberty of purchasing plane tickets to Washington for everyone before we arrived on the chance that things went as hoped. We cannot promise what happened can be fixed, but we have done all we can to try. It's in Kair's hands now."

Edward wanted to express his gratitude somehow, he wanted them to understand how grateful he truly was but the promise of seeing Bella again – very, very soon – was too tempting to resist. With quick thanks and hurried goodbyes, the Cullens chose their two fastest vehicles and raced toward Ithaca airport to catch their flight to Sea-Tac. Edward pressed his foot to the pedal, listening for nearby police while also replaying Carmen's fading words he heard as they drove away from the house.

'Kair, it's Carmen. The human girl, Isabella – I could see her on the other side of Edward's thread. She's waiting for something.'

Me, Edward thought fiercely. She's waiting for me.

x-x-x

"I should kill you where you stand, you filthy fucking bloodsucker."

"Probably, but you won't."

"Oh really? Give me one good reason not to phase and tear into your sorry ass right here."

"Because I'm going to bring Bella back."

The long-haired Quileute boy – Jacob Black, according to the chaotic thoughts of the other burly boys flanking him – froze, the very breath pausing in his chest, "What?"

Edward could hear the faint hissing from Emmett and Jasper in the car behind him but he held out a hand to stay them before turning back to the tall, muscular boy who had been Bella's best friend in his own absence, "I think there may be a way to get to her, but I need access to the cliff for it to work."

"You can't–" Jacob visibly trembled, clenching his fists with closed eyes. "You can't. She died, Cullen. I saw it with my own eyes and it was fucking–" He took a few breaths to calm himself before looking at Edward with tears. "I was in the ambulance with her when they… when they took her to the hospital. I held her hand. She's gone, Cullen. There is no vampire power in the world powerful enough to undo that."

The memory of Bella in the ambulance, pallid skin and blue-tinted lips, slammed into Edward from the boy's mind like a punch to the stomach so violent he actually doubled over. Jacob's memory was flawless and horrifying; he screamed, he cried, he raged in the back of the ambulance as the paramedics flew through the little town towards the hospital. He gripped Bella's hand like a lifeline and attempted to bargain with every deity, every demon, every being in existence to spare her but she remained completely unmoved, still and peaceful as if sleeping were it not for the bluish tinge to her lovely lips.

Edward gasped, "Please, I need you to think of something else. Anything else."

Jacob sneered hatefully through the tears escaping his eyes, "What's wrong, Cullen? Does it hurt to see what happened when you fucking abandoned her? Imagine being here, living through it! She was a zombie, a shell of the person she used to be. It wasn't like you left, it was like you died! I hope it hurts because you fucking deserve it, you selfish bastard!"

Memories continued to assault his mind – motorcycles, movies, studying, a destroyed car stereo, bloodied fingernails, screaming, jumping…

Rosalie moved in front of Edward, which also brought Emmett to his back, and snapped her teeth at Jacob, "Unless you want to go home with less appendages than you came with, I suggest you control your thoughts. And, considering we have a mind-reader and someone who can see every decision you make, I promise you and your little pack of mongrels won't win against us. Clear?"

The oldest boy of the group, Sam Uley, clapped Jacob's shoulder, "Enough, Jake. Go take a lap."

"But–"

"Now."

Sufficiently cowed, Jacob slunk away sullenly towards the surrounding forest but stopped short of the treeline, "Cullen!"

Edward looked up.

The boy's thoughts were in chaos again but he stood a little straighter, "Bring her back so I can watch her kick your ass for leaving in the first place."

That actually brought a small smile to his face. He would give anything to see that fire in Bella's eyes when she was angry again and he would gladly let her rip him to shreds if it meant she was where she belonged. "I will, I swear."

Once Jacob phased into a wolf and took off at a sprint into the forest, Sam came to the head of the pack, "What do you need from us?"

"We just need a temporary truce from the treaty, a few hours at most," Edward explained quickly. "Someone who knows how to reach Bella is supposed to meet us at the… at the cliff where she jumped."

"How–"

"We don't know. Our friends from another clan in Alaska reached out to him for help but they didn't say how his power works."

The pack leader mulled this over, "And there will be no feeding on our land?"

"Absolutely not."

"We just want to make sure Edward makes contact with this man," Carlisle cut in. "Once they meet, we plan to leave Quileute land. Please."

Satisfied, his thoughts comforted by Carlisle's assurance, Sam nodded, "You can go, just don't make me regret this."

"Thank you, Sam. Truly. If there is ever anything I can do to repay you all for what you've done for Bella–"

"Just bring her back," his words were gruff as the nauseating image of a tear-stained Bella on the forest floor after Edward left came to the forefront of his memory. Edward winced. "Find her and make it right."

"I intend to, if it's the last thing I ever do."

x-x-x

Being on the cliff, standing exactly where Bella had stood in Alice's vision, was surreal. Just a few days ago, she'd been right here… hoping against hope that doing something ungodly dangerous would bring Edward's voice to her mind for just a few fleeting seconds. When the wind blew around him, it was almost as if he could smell the scent of her strawberry shampoo taunting him. So close, it seemed to say. Just a little too late.

There was a shift in the atmosphere around them briefly before a young man appeared from a swirl of mist at the cliff's edge. He had a mop of golden-ginger curls framing milky skin and ruddy cheeks, a simple blue tunic tied at the waist with a shimmering golden rope from which hung a small woven bag. He wore no shoes as there were two sets of tiny feathered wings bracketing each of his ankles, but was clearly not a nomad as his appearance and hygiene were equally pristine. If anything, his skin held a subtle but unmistakable glow that set him apart from any creature they'd ever come across. His jawline was sharp but his sapphire blue eyes were sharper as he took them all in, quickly sizing up and calculating. Most unnerving of all, he had absolutely no thoughts that Edward could hear; not a single one.

"This is a much bigger welcome party than I was expecting," the man eyed each of them with hesitance. "The Denali's did not mention you would all be coming."

"You must be Kair," Carlisle moved to shake his hand but the other man shrank away from his touch. "Apologies, we did not mean to overstep. We simply wanted to make sure you and Edward met before leaving."

"I assume Carmen mentioned my personal feelings about attention from outsiders?"

"Yes, of course. We respect your feelings and won't ever mention this to anyone."

The man, Kair, relaxed a little, "Truthfully, no one would believe you anyway but I'd rather not chance it."

"Can you help my brother?" Rosalie blurted, thoughts an anxious and uneasy mess of turmoil that shocked Edward. Perhaps she cared more for his mate than she dared to let on. "Can you take him to Bella?"

Kair's eerie gaze locked in on Edward, like he was seeing things deeper than his marble skin that was sparkling in the low sunlight, "I can, but what happens after that is not up to me. All I can do is facilitate the process, the rest has yet to be determined." He paused. "My name is Kairos and I have the ability to manipulate life's more… qualitative moments of time. My brother, Chronos, could take you backwards or forwards in time by a numerical amount. I, on the other hand, have more freedom because – for me – time is not measured by numbers but rather by events. I can find anyone, anywhere, anytime under the proper conditions but I don't work with an audience."

Edward nodded, hugging each of his family members tightly as they all whispered quick sentiments of luck and affection.

Best of luck, my son.

Come home soon, darling.

Tell Bella I'm sorry.

Tell Bella I miss her.

Tell Bella I'll try not to be such a bitch anymore.

Tell Bella it's ok, I'll buy her another stereo.

Thankfully, crying was impossible because otherwise, they would all be blubbering, sobbing disasters. Each of them were speaking as if it would only be a little while until Edward and Bella returned but they all knew the truth, the truth that Carmen had already forced them to face.

There was no promise either of them would ever return. The Cullen family might never be whole again… but he had to try. No other option existed.

Once the rest of his family had gotten back into their cars and made their way down the winding cliffside road and out of sight, Kair gestured for Edward to sit on the smooth stone. Once he did, the other man mirrored the action and held out his hand expectantly.

"Payment is required for a connection to be made."

Edward hesitated, unsure of what he meant. He was familiar with blood offerings in different forms of magic but–

Kair rolled his eyes, "Venom is fine. I just need a piece of you to be able to follow the threads to her."

Without thinking too much about it, Edward quickly bit Kair's hand until he felt the venom seeping from his teeth into the punctures. A few moments of silence passed as the payment was made and Kair withdrew his hand with a thoughtful expression.

"Tell me, Edward," he removed the small cloth bag from his waist, "why have you sought me out? Carmen explained, but I need to hear it from you as well."

"I made a mistake," Edward admitted with undisguised bitterness. "I left because I thought it was best for her and I thought it was too dangerous for her to stay with me. I swear to you, I thought I was doing the right thing at the time."

"And now?"

"Knowing everything I do, I would have never left. Never."

Kair massaged near the puncture marks in his palm, looking out towards the ocean, "You do understand that what is done cannot be undone? Isabella, the one you left in the woods, the one who jumped from this ledge, is dead."

He ground his teeth, anger welling in his breast, "We are still bound to each other, Kair. She can't be dead."

"Mmm… perhaps. We will see," Kair undid the tie on his woven bag, placed it on the ground between them and turned it over. Five different shaped bones tumbled from the bag and he scooped them into his palms, shaking them three times before blowing gently into his cupped hands and releasing them onto the ground. The carved bones seemed to dance across the worn stone to a silent beat until, abruptly, they froze in place. Kair waved his wounded hand over the bones: forward and back, up and down, side to side. When he was finished, he cocked his head to the side, a slow smile blossoming on his handsome face. "My goodness. I certainly did not expect to see such deeply intertwined threads between the two of you after Carmen told me what happened. Such a strong bond between you both, forged in flames, across time and space."

"Will I see her again?"

Kair nodded slowly, scooping the bones back into his hands, "Oh, yes. You will see her many, many times before the end though I can't promise for how long. My bones confirm your assertion that Isabella is still attached to the other end of your frayed connection. She is alive."

Edward rubbed his hands over his face, the sheer weight of his relief making his body sag, "Thank any and all gods. How do I bring her back? How can I fix this?"

He snapped his fingers and an ancient-looking brass hanging scale materialized to float in the air between them, each side of the scale hanging by a brass rod with razor-sharp edges. Kair placed the bones on the left scale and above the right scale, pressed into his punctured palm with his thumb until the scale plate held exactly five drops of blood undoubtedly mixed with venom. The plates vibrated for a moment before the scale tipped in severe favor of the bones, "The scale says you are unworthy right now, Edward. It says you will not be able to keep her again until you prove your merit."

Edward's relief was short-lived. "Tell me how," he begged, fear and uncertainty making the hope he'd been riding high on quickly turn sour. "I will do whatever it takes."

"Isabella's soul is fragmented across time. Each piece is a different part of her, each one looking for something and they won't return to you until they find what is missing. The strings of fate to bind you, 'mates' I believe your kind call it? I can see that the binding is incomplete. That is why it feels like she's out there somewhere, waiting for you – the pieces are lost and need help coming back together so she can be whole again."

His hands were shaking now, a million possibilities of what could be happening to all the little pieces of Bella running through his mind, "I can do it, just tell me how to get to her."

"I will, but… a piece of unsolicited advice, if I may?"

"Of course."

Kair put the bones back into their pouch and secured it around his waist again, the scales disappearing in swirls of mist, "Carmen mentioned your tendency towards overbearing tendencies. While I can understand, especially in this situation, I will advise you to tread carefully. Isabella will be different from the girl you knew, but she is still your soulmate under whatever physical facade her soul takes on. She won't remember you, but she will know you. Do not repress her, do not try to control her. Do not attempt to force her to remember. Her soul is searching for something and she is a stubborn one - she will not stop until she finds what she seeks. You have one chance at this, Edward. One. Treat it as such and give her soul whatever it is asking you for, otherwise you risk her being lost forever."

That, he could do. After seeing Alice's visions and the myriad of memories from the wolves of how Bella had been in his absence, how his need for control and tendency to think he knew best had broken her… no. He'd learned his lesson. "Understood, more than you could ever imagine."

The other man surveyed Edward for a long moment, eyes sweeping across his face and down to his chest as if looking for something. Kair then nodded and rubbed the palms of his hands together in a circular motion until they became cupped with the weight of holding something. He opened his hands and, in the center of them, sat a large egg-shaped stone of pale blue, soft gray, and rich green speckled with snowflakes of white – a preseli bluestone, worn and completely smooth.

"This is a timestone," Kair explained. "It knows exactly where you need to be and will take you there when the time is right."

"How?"

"Your venom, along with my blood, have impregnated the stone. Trust it, it knows what you are looking for and how to help you find it." Edward reached for the timestone but he pulled it back slightly. "And do take good care of it so I get it back in the end; these are not easy to come by. I wish you luck in your journey, Edward."

With that, Kair dropped the stone into Edward's outstretched hand and the world shifted. The cliff, the ocean, the Reservation – it all dissolved before him, bleeding into a swirl of indistinguishable colors like melting candles. He was falling, down… down… down…

There were flashes of chocolate brown eyes, dusky skin, and wisps of caramel hair jumbled together with glimpses of speckled stars and faraway galaxies. Brushstrokes of azure, amethyst, amber intermingled with Bella's ethereal face until she could have been mistaken for a goddess of the universe, hair made of night and skin like a supernova. As he fell through time, Edward heard Bella laughing at one of his stupid jokes, begging him to touch her more, asking him is favorite color. She was giggling, whispering, sighing; excited, impressed, aroused. She was everywhere and nowhere, surrounding him like a blanket while the agony of their separation threatened to pull him apart.

Edward!

I missed you…

This is my favorite, how did you know?

Wow, aren't you the charmer?

I might die if you don't.

You're home.

All at once, the falling stopped and Edward was slammed into the ground – sun blazing above him and hot sand grating against his arms.

It was impossible to miss that his skin was no longer sparkling.