a/n: I know Bella canonically moves to Forks in January, but for the purposes of this story, she will join at the beginning of the school year, in September. Any other changes to canon will be revealed as the story progresses.
Despite enjoying their time together on the beach, soaking up the summer sun, and taking a moment away from the hectic nature of their lives, it was nice to be back in Forks. Both her and Lettie were soaking up the cool, damp air of the Pacific Northwest, sharing smiles as he carried her home. They were welcomed back with an overcast day, a thick layer of cloud reminding them what was expected to come as September bled into the end of the year, but it made it all the easier to return to their home, cutting through the trees without bothering to hide their supernatural power. They were, after all, more likely to catch the scent of any trespassing if they kept their noses close to the ground.
Jasper's fear, as much as they hated to admit it, was well founded. There were more than several tracks of stranger stink going to and from the house, certain spots more overpowering than others showing they camped outside the house frequently to confirm the occupants' absence. The house itself was relatively untouched, but there were several things missing; clothes from all the bedrooms, blankets and pillows, files from Carlisle's office. Nothing of major importance, but their family was unsettled all the same. Alice's room suffered the worst of it, trinkets from her travels smashed across the floor, projects ripped apart, and her sketchpads filled with ominous messages, James's unwelcomed stink filling the room. Esme ushered her out as quickly as possible, locking the door and moving her into Jasper's room without much resistance.
"Lettie, Rosalie, and I will take you shopping this weekend, okay? A whole new closet, new furniture, whatever you need, alright?" she promised, stocking Alice's hair softly. Alice simply stared off into the distance, unable to comprehend why her powers didn't show her anything before they arrived.
They spent the week before classes cleaning the house, bleaching every surface until their noses were stinging from the burn of chemicals. Jasper took Emmett and Lettie as often as possible to track the surrounding area, trying to figure out any patterns or clues as to where the nomads were hiding, but anytime they got close, the trail would become completely overwhelmed by werewolf scent. Lettie got them closer, using Samuel's faint winding path to lead them toward Olympia before it completely vanished.
It was no wonder then how the news of a new girl starting at Forks High would go completely unnoticed by them until it was too late to do anything about it.
"Isabella Swan?" Carlisle asked, surprise evident in her voice. Esme nodded, continuing to chop vegetables as the pot bubbled behind her. A quick trip to the grocery store turned into an impromptu meeting with the town gossipers, trading information on the Cullen's summer holiday for whatever they missed while they were gone. "Charlie Swan's daughter? I thought she lived in Arizona."
"She did- thank you, dear-, but for some reason decided to move here for her last two years of high school. No one is quite sure, but there are several rumors about an unwanted pregnancy." Esme took the chopped celery from Alice, dumping it into the pot along with the other vegetables. Beside her, Lettie peered into the bubbling concoction, a smile spreading across her lips at the smell.
"She shouldn't be a problem, then," Rosalie cut in, pushing herself off the counter. "She'll keep her distance, just like everyone else."
"Except we haven't been keeping our distance this year," Alice reminded her, passing her knife to Jasper, who dutifully washed it. "We don't know what kind of person she'll be. I could sneak into the office tonight-"
"It's too risky," Carlisle warned.
Although they had been tempted to report the nomads' invasion into their property to the local police, something to keep them looking human in the eyes of the neighborhood, the idea that the police would start investigating was too much of a risk. It ended up being useless, however, as Charlie Swan, town Sheriff, ended up visiting them only a day after they arrived back home, going door to door to ask if anyone had seen or heard anything about the recent string of break-ins. Carlisle managed to play it off, using their vacation as plausible deniability. He ended up showing Charlie a broken lock to their outdoor shed, something Emmett broke months ago, to keep them from becoming too suspicious.
The nomads, apparently, kept themselves busy while the Cullens were away. Mysterious disappearances chalked up to teenagers running away from home, several broken into houses, and even the school being trashed, the main office's filing cabinets pulled apart until it was nothing but a giant pile of paperwork. James and their coven, it seemed, didn't realize that most things had become digitized in the past years, so the computer was left untouched, but the Cullens' paperwork, as well as many others, were taken from the school. The police believed there was a connection between the disappearances and the missing files, so, until the school year began, every child with a missing file would be escorted by an officer whenever they needed to leave the house. Police would be stationed at the school as soon as the term started again. While the police themselves were not very perceptive, the family easily slipping away to hunt, it was still too risky to go to the school, where the investigation was still being centered.
The Quilutes were furious, naturally, and were breathing down Carlisle's neck, thinking their family had some connection to this invading coven. Edward hated that they were partially correct.
"We'll play it by ear," Carlisle decided, walking over to give Esme a kiss. "Esme and I will see what we can uncover from the adults. The six of you," he eyed his children, "can just lay low for now. Isabella Swan may bring trouble, or she'll blend into the crowd, but she's not our priority. Keep what we discussed in mind, and keep Alice and yourselves safe. Okay?"
The chorus of agreement was enough to appease him, sneaking another kiss from his wife before heading off for a shift at the hospital.
"Carlisle is just worried," Esme soothed, giving her children a warm smile. "Now, Lettie, you've never had chicken soup before? It's still a little early in the season, but I couldn't help myself. Want to help me stir the spoon?"
The first day of school was as pomp and circumstance as it normally was, the new seniors having way too inflated of egos for simply being the oldest kids on campus (not including the supernatural ones, of course) and incoming freshmen scattering like mice, standing in the way of seasoned students. Alice tried to get information from the office about Isabella Swan, but they were being very tight-lipped, as any student information was technically being used in a criminal investigation. It seemed that every student had a theory or secret pertaining to the new girl, but it was, of course, Jessica Stanley and their rowdy group to coerced Isabella into their hormone-ruled hierarchy. Lettie managed to overhear Jessica Stanley bragging about becoming friends with the new girl, but she had as little information as anyone else, only finding out she preferred 'Bella' over 'Isabella. None of them shared a class with her by the time lunch rolled around, and, as much as some of them hated to admit it, namely Jasper and Rosalie, they were all curious about her.
They walked into the usual chatter of the bustling cafeteria, the tables nearest them fumbling over conversations as they walked past, too busy staring to continue talking eloquently. Lettie was happily walking beside him, surveying the room while commenting on how excited she was for the books they were assigned to read for English class. Rosalie and Alice, ever the ones to make a grand entrance, kept their heads high, ignoring even their human acquaintances to keep up with appearances. Emmett, on the other hand, had no qualms about disrupting their image, loudly joking with the sporty humans as he passed by. Rosalie rolled her eyes and tugged him along to the cafeteria line. Lettie helped each of them out one by one, picking something she wished to try from each station. Only Jasper and Alice denied her requests, instinctively knowing she wouldn't like what she picked. They were at their table, mindfully playing the part of hungry teens, as they waited to hear from Isabella Swan. Edward concentrated, skimming through thoughts to find a voice he didn't recognize.
"Lettie, let us know if she's looking over here." Jasper asked, then added a 'please' at the end when Edward sent him a glare. Lettie nudged Edward playfully as she agreed, turning her entire body to look at the table in question. It was easy to spot the new girl, awkwardly fumbling around with her bag and her tray of food.
"She is being welcomed by the company at her table," Lettie narrated, snagging a tater tot from Edward's plate as he mumbled the ritual. Lettie's eyes widened as it crunched between her teeth, instantly reaching out for another one. No one commented that the play-by-play was unnecessary, instead chatting meaninglessly to avoid looking suspicious. "She does not appear very happy."
"It's school. Who would be?" Emmett commented sarcastically.
"She is very lovely, with her rosy cheeks." To this, Rosalie scoffed.
"She's human," she said, as if that explain the absurdity of Lettie's comment. Lettie giggled.
"She is still lovely. Though not as much as you, Rosalie." Even without Jasper's powers, he knew Rosalie was pleased, despite her face not changing.
Curious as to why he wasn't hearing a new voice yet, Edward swept his eyes across the room, trying to appear nonchalant as he leaned back in his chair, arm draped over the back of Lettie's beside him. Bella Swan had deep chocolate brown eyes, he noted, but it was all he was really able to see before she ducked her head, face flushing bright red.
"Her eyes are on our table," Lettie said, this time reaching out to snag an apple slice from Alice.
"Who are they?" Now that they knew her eyes were on them, there was no mistake Bella was asking about them. The table shifted, playing up pretending to eat while secretly passing it to Lettie.
"The Cullens." Edward recognized the voice easily. Angela Weber, one of the humans he played nice with last year, and one of the only ones who he didn't absolutely despise listening to her thoughts. He didn't know if it was thanks to her Pastor Father or just her inherent goodness, but Angela's mind was one of the kindest at the school, rarely having a bad thing to think about anyone, even if they deserved it. She was even able to tame Lauren Mallory, who shockingly stood up for Angela when needed.
"Doctor and Mrs. Cullen's foster kids." "They all moved down here from Alaska a year ago."
Had it already been a year? Edward couldn't help his eyes drifting to Lettie, who was playfully fighting Emmett for his Jell-O cup (despite disliking the taste of it, both she and Emmett enjoyed the texture, Lettie only eating the red ones while Emmett liked to squish it between his utensils). An entire year of Lettie, when it felt as if they'd known each other for a lifetime. For a creature such as them, time seemed to pass so much differently, and yet, Lettie was able to easily keep up with them, integrating herself into their odd family. He smiled, playing it off while nodding as Alice commented on that semester's school play.
"They kinda keep to themselves," Angela added, causing Jessica to scoff.
"Because they're together. Like, together together." When Bella didn't give the response she wanted, Jessica leaned in conspiratorially. "The blonde girl, Rosalie, and the big dark-haired guy, Emmett, they're a thing. I'm not even sure that's legal."
"Jess, they're not actually related," Angela protested. "And you know they were together before the adoption went through."
"But they live together now, and they're related by law! You can't tell me that's okay." She sighed dramatically. "Anyway, the little dark-haired girl, Alice, she's really weird…" Jessica hurried to add, pulling Bella's attention back to her. Alice continued talking beside him, pretending she couldn't hear Jessica's shrill voice. "You know how theater kids have that reputation? Well, you can thank her for that."
"She's really nice," Angela hurried to assure. Bella flickered her eyes back over to their table, skeptical. Jessica simply rolled her eyes.
"Yeah, yeah, whatever. She might be dating the one beside her. The one that looks like he's in pain? That's Jasper." She huffed. "Don't let him catch you doing anything you don't want the teachers to know."
"You're just upset he was able to get on Mr. Kenworth's good side, while he still calls you Josephina."
"'Jessica' is so easy!" Jessica's outburst brought attention to their table, unwanted by the way she flushed and sunk into her chair. "Besides, why would I even want to be friends with that old coot? He smells too much like smoke anyway." She sent another glare to Angela, before turning back to Bella. "Anyway. Rosalie and Emmett. Alice and Jasper. Dr. Cullen's practically, like, this foster dad slash matchmaker."
"Maybe he'll adopt me?" Angela joked, trying to calm Jessica from getting too overwhelming, though it didn't seem to work. As Bella laughed, Jessica's mind filled with jealousy, a string of thoughts Edward was unfortunately familiar with. Still, he had to pay attention. Jessica's thoughts were so loud, it was nearly impossible to hear the girl next to her. Edward furrowed his brow, eyes on the table, concentrating.
"I offer this food to the spirit realm," Emmett said, a little too loudly. Rosalie rolled her eyes, playing it off as best she could, while Lettie began to eat as much as she could handle from his plate. Now that Emmett was posing as an athlete, he had to pile on lunches every once in a while to keep up appearances. If they didn't have a spiritual companion who seemingly had an endless stomach…well, all of them are just thankful that they did. And, thankfully, they had a strong-willed vampire who knew how to calm down her mate.
Too late this time, though, as Bella's eyes were back on them, ignoring Jessica and Angela's bickering beside her. From the corner of his eye, he watched as she looked over Rosalie playfully wiped nothing away from Emmett's face, moving over to watch Alice chat happily to Jasper, who nodded along every once in a while, before landing on him. He felt his spine go rigid unconsciously, drawing Lettie's eyes back over to him. After a quick scan, she darted her eyes over to Jessica's table again.
"Her eyes are staring very intently at the family," Lettie said between bites, separating each layer of pizza to eat individually. Emmett scowled at her for doing so but quickly returned to bathing in Rosalie's affection when he realized it was too public to scold her. The rest of them were too busy listening in on Bella's interaction, fully aware of her eyes on them.
"Who's he?" Bella said after a moment, cutting Jessica off. Edward shifted his weight on the chair, trying to appear nonchalant while keeping up appearances. He rolled his neck, daring to catch her eye. Dark brown, nearly the color of chocolate, lined in dark circles and long eyelashes. Even locking eyes, he still couldn't hear her thoughts, and he knew the worst had to be true. He barely noticed as Lettie appeared beside him, taking the seat on his other side, between Bella and himself. Though he knew it did little to stop her from seeing him, the attempt at privacy was welcome. He gently tapped her thigh with his, sending her a small smile.
"That's Edward Cullen." Though her thoughts were only on the disrespect of being interrupted, the opportunity to talk about the most gossipworthy student at school, her words, was too good to pass up.
"I can't hear her," Edward finally said, daring to look at his family. It took a moment to process, but as soon as the words connected in her head, they all whipped to look at him, almost comically in sync.
"You what?" Rosalie growled, trying to keep her face neutral. Emmett pressed a kiss to her cheek to keep her calm.
"I can't hear her thoughts."
"He's totally gorgeous, obviously," Jessica cut in, "but apparently, no one here is good enough for him. Like I care."
"We heard you the first time." Jasper was better at keeping his temper in check, but not by much. Especially not when Edward's powers were usually their trump card. "What do you mean you can't hear her thoughts?"
"I just can't." He shook his head. Lettie nudged his leg. "Those around her are the same as usual, but her? It's total silence."
"Anyway, don't waste your time."
"I wasn't planning on it," Bella mumbled, returning to her hunched position. Jessica hardly spared her another glance, launching into a tirade about the unfair workload they'd been given so far.
"Her demeanor is reserved." Lettie, beside him, leaned close, voice dropping to a whisper, her hand squeezing his arm comfortingly. "Should you engage in conversation with her, she will respond. Do not fear for her first approach."
Even as her comforting words loosened his shoulders, he found himself tormented by his thoughts. There she was, once again, offering him that soft smile of hers and giving him the exact words of encouragement he needed to hear, sometimes making him think it was her who could hear his thoughts and not the other way around. He tilted his head down, handset atop hers so he could give it a squeeze. It burned with the desire to intertwine their fingers.
Since their first encounter, has it always been Lettie to comfort him?
Lunch ended with a fizzle rather than a bang, his family too consumed with their own thoughts to play up their human personas. There was still a tension between them, now with the added knowledge that Edward couldn't read her mind, that Bella Swan could end up in one of their classes, a wild card that might try to befriend them or more likely, develop a crush that would make their lives a little more complicated. Lettie tried to keep his spirits (ha) up, excitedly talking about their new science class, Biology this year. Despite the fact that he had taken it multiple times already throughout his existence, he couldn't help but feel a little excited, especially since Carlisle had shown Lettie a few of his anatomy books while they were on the island. He was looking forward to seeing that face again, the one she made as she listened so intently to each of Carlisle's explanations.
Mr. Banner was passionate, if a little awkward, trying to usher students to their seats as soon as they stepped through the door, even though they still had plenty of time before the bell rang. He barely stumbled through a conversation with Edward, guiding him to an empty table at the back, before quickly latching onto someone else. Edward made sure to put on a glower as soon as anyone approached, daring them to take the seat beside him, which Lettie was happily occupying. He even went as far as spreading out his supplies, taking up more room than one person. Lettie was too excited to be sitting on a stool to scold him.
"Yo, Arizona!" Edward suppressed an eye roll at Mike Newton's voice, to which Lettie tutted lightly.
Though Mike Newton hadn't done anything personally harmful to him, he didn't count spreading Lauren Mallory's ill will as a conscious choice, he still found the boy incredibly annoying, not a care in the world to those around him, not if it didn't impact him in any way. He was the type of clumsy to be goofing off with his friends in the hallway only to knock people down, but he was also charismatic, making sure no one was mad at him for too long for his fumbles. No one, it seemed, had the ability to tell him no, and he used that as much as possible. And, it seemed, Isabella Swan was his newest obsession, mind swimming with her face.
"Hey…, Mike." Bella hesitated, almost as if she couldn't quite remember his name. Edward nearly snickered at the immediate downturn of his thoughts, pathetic sadness for something as simple as forgetting a name.
"Mr. Banner is super cool. Don't worry." Edward watched as Mike stretched his arm out to scratch the back of his head, tensing his biceps. "Maybe you'd…wanna be lab partners?"
But Bella was not paying him any mind. Instead, her eyes seemed to almost unconsciously move across the room, instantly locking with his. He tensed, the hatred that her mind was a mystery to him locking his jaw and clenching his hands. Lettie leaned over, placing one of hers on top, thumb rubbing a soothing pattern on the back. He was thankful, he always was to receive her touch, but he didn't back down from Bella's stare. A challenge, a stupid one, but he had to keep trying, pushing his abilities through their eye contact to see if there was anything, even a whisper, from her head. They only broke contact as Mr. Banner came up, pulling Bella away from Mike's pleading eyes.
"Welcome, Ms. Swan. Follow along as best you can till you get caught up, okay?" He placed a hand, an unwanted one if Bella's flinch was any indication, on her shoulder, pushing her towards Edward's desk. "It's good you're here, or else Mr. Cullen would have been left without a partner. Now, have you two met?"
As she was passing by Mr. Banner's desk, pushed to start walking down the aisle, his small desk fan (something he kept going year round thanks to his nervous sweats) swept her hair up, pushing itself into her mouth. He didn't have a moment to bask in her humiliation. Her scent hit him like an oncoming train, a plane crash, a twenty car pile up, and a hurricane all at once.
He gripped Lettie's hand forcefully, enough to crush it if she were human. He could feel his contacts burn to smithereens in his eyes as hunger overtook him, swallowing as much venom as he could so he didn't just start drooling all over his desk like a beast cornering a wounded animal.
"Teddy? Teddy?" Lettie's concerned calls sounded hollow, echoing in his head like she was standing down a long tunnel. He could barely focus on anything but Bella's intoxicating scent.
"Mr. Cullen will take good care of you Bella-Put down that skeleton!" Mr. Banner rushed away without a single glance, shooing some rowdy student away from his model. Their laughter echoed in his head. He squeezed Lettie's hand tighter.
"Uh, hi," she said awkwardly, sliding into Lettie's seat. Lettie stood hastily, trying to take a few steps away, but Edward didn't let her, keeping her hand close to him. He turned away from Bella without a word.
You can't bite her!, he shouted to himself, squeezing his eyes shut as tightly as possible, just to focus on a different sensation. It was nearly impossible, with her sitting so close.
It would be easy, killing her. No doubt having such tempting blood would send him into a frenzy as soon as she bled even a little bit, too busy trying to drain her dry to notice or even care about the running, screaming students. He could kill one of them first, block the door before anyone could get out. He had just eaten the night before so he was powerful, strong and fast and deadly in a way no one in that room would be able to comprehend. Maybe he would be able to kill a few and leave those with freeze instead of fight or flight for last, savoring Bella's hot blood as it trickled down his-...
His phone vibrated in his pocket. The bell rang. He brought Lettie's hand to his nose, taking a deep breath.
"Alright, class!" Mr. Banner said, clapping his hands at the front of the room. He didn't seem to care that the class didn't quiet, instead starting on the lesson.
Edward reached out, snatching his notebook from where he had discarded it across the table, mindful to keep his arm from touching the human beside him. He flipped it open far more aggressively than he needed, pen nearly snapping in between his fingers. His phone buzzed again. Lettie squeezed his hand. He took another deep breath, moving his eyes from the window to the front of the class.
Hold your breath. Hold your breath. Hold your-
His phone vibrated again. He practically tore it from his pocket, slamming it on the table. Bella jumped beside him, face flushing.
Edward turned his head, trying to play off looking out the window, but his eyes were only on his ghostly companion. What his expression was like, he hadn't the faintest clue - his brows were furrowed, his eyes pinched, his mouth twitching and moving with the unimaginable desire to feed - but it seemed to be enough for Lettie, who pressed her hand closer to his nose. She tilted her head to look at his phone, sporting a new crack thanks to his reckless action, and, with no practice beforehand, she reached out, and pressed a button.
Alice [12:45 pm: are you ok?
Alice [12:46 pm: too many possibilities
pls be careful
Alice [12:48: lettie?
Slowly, so slowly, Lettie typed out a message. Her hand slowly began to fade with exertion.
Edward [12:51: ajhcd
Alice [12:51: lettie keep him calm
distract him
his hunger was triggered
Edward tried to keep his eyes on the phone, not daring to see the expression she now had, knowing he was on the verge of killing again. After their summer in the rainforest, Lettie had become, not comfortable, but understanding of their need to hunt. She didn't like it, he knew that much, but she never made a comment about it, nor did she have a bad thing to think about him, simply wiping blood away from his face without a word. Killing an animal was one thing, but a human? She knew they had all killed at some point, and bar Rosalie, they had all tasted the temptation of blood, felt it dance across their tongue. He praised Carlisle whenever he thought about how hard it must have been to turn someone instead of sucking the life from their bodies, to give in to their purest instincts. How easy it would be. As easy as leaning across the table and sinking his teeth into Bella's nec-
"Teddy," Lettie whispered, breath fanning across his face. He blinked rapidly, daring not to hope he was dreaming, or entering a bloodlust-induced haze. Her lips brushed across his temple, fluttering kisses of words only meant for him. Her free hand, the one he wasn't holding onto with all that was left of his sanity, curled into his hair, wrapping her fingers around it until she was practically tugging at his locks. A sensation he could anchor onto. "Imagine our mountain. Feel the sensation of the sun's rays on your skin, and the cool earth beneath your fingertips. We are far from civilization, and the only sound you hear is my voice, and the twittering of birds."
He closed his eyes, trying to picture what she was describing. He and Lettie, lying on their backs, rocky terrain poking him uncomfortably but he didn't care at all, because, in this position, he got to watch Lettie. Watch as her lashes fluttered against her cheeks, her head tilting this way and that as the wind carried the sounds of nature to their sanctuary. She would sigh dreamily as the breeze passed over them, smiling as the sun finally revealed itself from behind a cloud. She would turn to him, and act surprised that he was already looking at her, laughing and reaching out to gently nudge his hand. He would respond in kind, playfully, making her laugh again.
"You are stronger than your hunger, and more intelligent than your desires. Let them not consume your judgment."
For the remainder of the class, they stayed that way, Lettie's soothing words and faint scent keeping him from being taken over by his bloodlust, not daring to keep up the facade of a good student, not while lives were on the line. He was on his feet as soon as the bell rang, hastily grabbing his books and bag with one hand, the other keeping Lettie's fingers firmly intertwined with his own. He didn't spare anyone a glance, briskly walking to the woods and past the treeline. There, he hoisted Lettie on his back and took off.
The path to their mountain felt like returning home. Gone were the rusty reds and browns of Fall, the constant rain revitalizing the earth to bloom back to green. He knew it was stupid, knew Jasper was going to have his head as soon as he got back, if the nomads didn't get him first, but he couldn't think about the dangers beyond what killing the town's Sheriff could do to his family. He didn't stop until he was at the peak, throwing his things to the floor to help Lettie down. She looked around in confusion for only a moment, before latching onto him again, her hands clasping either side of his face to examine it, to see if there were any indications his hunger was taking over. Only then did she meet his eyes, her own softening.
"Oh, Teddy…"
"I don't know what happened. Her scent…" He swallowed back his gathering venom. "It was too powerful. It's just like Emmett…it's just like Emmett described." A broken whine fell from his lips. Lettie's thumb brushed over his cheek in comfort. He chased the feeling. "I was angry at him, for giving into temptation and making us uproot our lives. I didn't realize…I didn't know how powerful it could be."
Pleading, he realized. He was pleading for her to understand, and she hadn't the faintest clue what he was talking about. A story for another time, he promised himself, finding more value in seeking the warmth of her touch than reliving the past.
"You did not hurt Ms. Swan," Lettie reassured. "She is safe."
"She won't be. Not while I'm there. Not if-" Lettie shushed him softly.
"Do not say such things."
"I wanted to kill her," he confessed, bringing his hands to hold hers in place, not wanting to give up the comfort she had offered just yet. "Slaughter the entire classroom to get to her."
"The family will assist in whatever you desire, and they will not leave your side."
"And what about you?" he said before he could stop himself. Lettie gave him a small smile.
"I shall not leave you. Never." She brought his face close, determined to have him understand the seriousness of her words. "Not of my own free will shall I ever leave your side."