Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight, Stephanie Meyer does.
This story is non-canon and contains fem slash.
Author's Note:
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Last updated/edited on 10/01/2024.
First Person POV: Izzy
Summer gradually transitioned into Fall and the deciduous trees shed their leaves.
Now that I had settled into the house, the family had started my human scent acclimation training. Every day they brought me a new item covered in human scent with an increasing potency. I would sit near the item for as long as I could manage before escaping outside to the fresh air. It was a strenuous task, but it was necessary that I endure the training if I ever wanted to return to society.
I spent almost every moment of the day with my family. And though I loved them dearly, I had started to feel restless. I yearned for more freedom but knew I wasn't allowed to go out unsupervised as a newborn. However, what my family didn't know wouldn't hurt them…
That night I waited until my family members had all retired to their respective rooms and crept out the back door. I had trained my stealth enough that it wasn't much of a challenge to sneak away from the house. Once I was outside, I ran a few miles into the forest and came across a small bean shaped lake. The moonlight sparkled; its light reflected in a glowing stripe across the rippling water. The view made me nostalgic about my old lake base.
I stripped down and set my clothing and shoes on the shore. I stepped into the calm waters, feeling the gentle waves lap against my skin as I inched deeper into the lake. When the water reached my hips, I dove through the surface. I leisurely explored underwater, watching the clusters of fish scatter as I propelled toward them. When I finished playing, I swam back to the surface and smoothed back my long hair from my face. When I looked over to the shore, I shrieked as I saw Irina casually watching me.
"Jesus Irina! You scared the shit out of me!" I exclaimed.
"Oh please, you didn't actually think you could sneak out of the house without at least one of us noticing, did you?" She asked. "You're just lucky that I caught you instead of Kate."
"Why?" I replied curiously.
"Because Kate would have stolen your clothes." She informed me with a snicker. "Can I join you? I promise I won't tattle." She said and I sighed, I had intended on getting some alone time, but I'd already been caught anyway.
"Sure, why not." I agreed.
I looked away as Irina stripped and splashed into the water beside me.
"So, Izzy… Do you like Tanya?" She prompted me with a knowing look, and I sputtered. Shit, was it that obvious? I supposed my discreet glances had not gone unnoticed after all.
"I don't think we should talk about this…" I said, attempting to circumvent the conversation.
"Come on! I won't tell her, I swear." She told me and crossed her heart theatrically.
I nervously scrunched my face.
"Maybe…" I said tentatively and then sighed, she clearly knew the truth already, what was the point in lying? "Okay, fine, yes."
"Yes, I knew it!" She said and clapped excitedly.
"Well… what do you think I should do?" I asked. Irina and Kate had spent a millennium with Tanya. If anyone could give me good advice on how to win her affection, it was them. Plus, between the two of them, I would rather take advice from Irina. I knew Kate would tease me mercilessly if I asked her for counsel.
"If you want my advice, I'd say take it slow. Tanya's over a millennium old, she's not looking for a fling." Irina told me and I hummed in thought.
"You think she would consider a relationship then?" I asked.
"Yes, but you need to be serious before you start something with her - I won't have you breaking my sister's heart." She warned.
"You have nothing to worry about Irina, I would never hurt her." I told her earnestly.
"I believe you." she said with a small smile.
We fell into silence and swam around the lake until the sun began to rise. Sunrays burst over the mountains and lit up the clouds scattered through the sky. Irina's and my exposed skin began to sparkle in the soft morning light.
"We should head back before our absence is noticed… But if you ever feel like you need to escape the house again, I'm willing to sneak out with you, this was fun." Irina told me.
"It was…" I began to reply but was interrupted by rustle on the shore.
My head snapped towards the sound, and I spotted Kate grinning broadly, holding up Irina's and my clothing. "Kate!" I screeched and she made a run for it, laughing maniacally as she flew towards the house. I dove forward towards the shore but came to a halt just before I broke the surface and gave up. With that kind of head start I would never catch her before she made it back to the house.
I covered my face with my hands and groaned while Irina just laughed at my distress.
"Goddammit." I cursed.
"Hey, I warned you." Irina replied.
Well, I had no choice but to run back to the house naked now. There was no way around it… I steeled myself in preparation for what I was about to do.
"Race you back!" I shouted to Irina as I launched myself out of the lake, splashing her in my wake. I bolted back to the house trailed closely by a disgruntled Irina.
Third Person POV: Victoria
Victoria spotted a lone man strolling down the block. He passed under the streetlights, approaching where she was perched on the roof tops. The man was tall with an athletic build, Victoria estimated that he contained about five liters of blood. That would get Riley through the next 48 hours before he needed to feed again. She took in the scents around her and listened closely. There were no other pedestrians around and the car in closest proximity would pass by in about 10 seconds. The outskirts of Seattle were always sparse at this time of night.
When the man passed beneath her, she dropped from her hiding place and landed silently behind him. She placed her hands on either side of his head and gave a sharp twist, breaking his neck before he could even begin to panic. She tossed his body into her trunk and shut the door with five seconds to spare.
She hopped in the car and took off down the street. The buildings thinned out as she exited the city and split off onto the backroads. Soon enough, she found herself on the gravel driveway that led to her current abode.
As she pulled up in front of the house, Riley stepped out onto the porch, eagerly awaiting his meal. Since he was still too young to be trusted in populated areas, Victoria had been fetching Riley's meals for him. She looked forward to the day when he gained enough control to join her on her weekly hunting trips. But that wouldn't be for several more months now. Riley approached her as she stepped out of the car.
"Hey baby." He murmured, placing a soft kiss on her lips. Victoria missed the old-fashioned terms of endearment that James used to call her. But Riley seemed to prefer calling her baby, so she humored him. Victoria tolerated Riley's affection mainly out of necessity. She needed a soldier who was loyal to her cause and the best way to garner immediate and unquestioning loyalty was to allow Riley to believe that they were in love.
She let her eyes flicker over Riley's frame. He was brawny just like James… At a distance she might have even believed it was him. His face wasn't a perfect match but if she closed her eyes when they were intimate, she could pretend. Riley even had the same long shaggy hair that she used to love gripping when James took her.
Her main grievance with Riley was that he was infuriatingly affectionate. He always wanted to kiss her or hold her hand. He wanted to make love and look her in the eyes as she came. Victoria simply wanted release in any position that she could pretend he was James.
Third Person POV: Alice
Alice lounged on Jasper's lap as he leaned back against the pillows cushioning their headboard. She scrolled though the Louis Vuitton website searching for a purse to match her new black lace poplin dress. As she started to click through her tabbed choices she froze abruptly. Her pupils dilated, swallowing her golden irises. Her laptop slid off her lap and Jasper caught the device deftly, setting it down safely on the nightstand.
Alice's vision spotted as she was sucked into an unprompted vision. She could tell immediately that the vison was of the Denali's because it was dim and difficult to bring into focus.
When the Denali's futures had first gone black, Alice had been terrified. She trusted the accuracy of her visions so heavily that she genuinely believed they were dead. But as she searched more methodically through their futures, she found that she could sporadically glimpse one or two family members at a time. Despite her concerning lack of visions featuring the Denali's, the family members she viewed in her visions always appeared to be calm and completely unharmed.
As the year had progressed, her existing but infrequent visions of the Denali family members had grown darker and more strenuous to maintain. She knew this effect was likely due to the development of their family member's gift. Alice couldn't help but feel miffed by her increasing blindness towards her cousins, but she knew that there was no malicious intent involved. The Denali family's new member wasn't even through her newborn year yet, so Alice seriously doubted that the girl was blocking her on purpose.
When Carlisle had first mentioned the Denali's new member by name, Alice had instantly thought of Bella. And she knew the rest of her family had too based off their varying reactions.
Alice missed her sister dearly and would never forgive herself for not seeing her death in time to save her. Watching Bella jump off that cliff had broken something inside her. Her once steadfast exuberance had plummeted into remorse. She knew her mood would be even more bleak if not for her mate's efforts.
Her family should never have left Forks. But Edward insisted, and he had never asked anything of their family before. When they left Forks, he pleaded with Alice to leave Bella's future alone and then holed himself up in their family's Rio apartment to brood. Alice had not actively searched Bella's future but that hadn't prevented the unprompted visions from haunting her. She called Edward and begged him to reconsider based on the suffering she saw in Bella's future, but he was stubborn. Edward knew the supernatural world was too dangerous for Bella as a human and he refused to change her out of fear of damning her soul. He insisted any alternative was better, but unfortunately, he was wrong…
As Alice focused on her vision, she saw Tanya and Edward in the forest behind the Denali's house.
"She's mine." Edward sneered and Tanya gave him a vicious snarl in reply. They glared at each other hatefully.
It was strange for Alice to see Tanya angry with Edward - Tanya had always been so fond of him. Although they weren't mates, Tanya had wanted Edward as a companion since she'd met him a century ago. Alice wondered who they were discussing, and she was acting so aggressively towards him.
As Alice's concentration slipped and the vision dimmed, the words becoming slurred. She took a breath and refocused on the scene before her.
"How certain are you that you share the mate bond anyway?" Edward pressed.
"Very certain Edward, you would know if I was lying." She replied venomously.
That was even more shocking… Had Tanya found her mate? And if so, why would Edward be claiming ownership over them?
The vision faded once again, and Alice struggled to discern what was being said.
"-it doesn't matter anyway, we're her real family." Edward concluded.
"Fuck off Edward, she joined my coven. Maybe you should have considered the consequences before you left her." Tanya retaliated and stormed away.
The vision dissipated.
Alice reran the vision in her head. One line really stuck out to her… Maybe you should have considered the consequences before you left her.
She didn't dare get her hopes up, but the vision seemed to suggest that their new member, Izzy, might actually be Bella. It wasn't too far-fetched, they shared a name, a shield, and were located on the same continent. However, she couldn't rule out the possibility that it was just a bizarre coincidence.
She considered the situation objectively. Though the vision was dim, it had felt very solid in likelihood. Not to mention her unprompted visions always had a high efficacy rate. However, she had only heard segments of the conversation and while the portions she heard suggested a connection, it wasn't concrete evidence.
If Bella's latent mental shield had become enhanced as a vampire, it was possible that it could have extended to cover her power as well. Therefore, Bella's future going black would make sense. But Bella's power wouldn't have been enhanced until after she was bitten and began to change. So, wouldn't she have seen Bella get bitten before her future went black if that was the case?
Tanya had also claimed that the individual was her mate. If that individual was indeed Bella, then the revelation would absolutely crush Edward. She wouldn't be surprised if Edward tried to assert his claim over Bella like the vision suggested.
And finally… if this mystery individual really was Bella, wouldn't she have connected the dots by now? Surely the Denali's had referred to their family by name, not to mention they shared the same diet and golden eyes. Bella should have recognized their name and sought them out. Or least, she wanted to believe that was the case…
Jasper cupped Alice's jaw, breaking her out of her rumination.
"Another vision of the Denali's?" He asked her softly, tracing his thumb gently across the apple of her cheek. She nodded but didn't elaborate. Jasper didn't press her for information; he trusted his mate to strategically offer and withhold information in order to lead their family towards the best outcomes.
Alice decided she would keep the information to herself. There was no way to confirm or deny her suspicions until they visited the Denali's. She wouldn't get her family stirred up over a potential misinterpretation.