~She had been called worse. Would probably be called worse in the future.~

CHAPTER I - IZZY LITTLESEA

February 2007

LA PUSH WAS IN SHORT a peaceful area to live. It was along the coast, nestled between the breathtaking lush forests of Washington state and the rushing sea of the Pacific Ocean.

Isolde was now known as Elizabeth, Izzy for short, Littlesea—adopted daughter of Maia Littlesea.

The return of Maia had thrown the entire reservation in a tizzy. Nobody ever expected the overly free spirited woman who left as soon as she could to ever come back. Much less with the plan to stay and with a kid in tow.

Of course, it was clear as day there was no blood relation between the two and so Maia quickly explained (lied) that she had adopted Izzy ten years ago.

Izzy very much stood out in the sea of La Push natives with her pale skin and red hair. Not to mention, she was beautiful, unnaturally so, to the point the elders watched her with hawk-like eyes, more on guard than usual, especially after the Cullen family moved to Forks last year.

But she could be in the sun, her eyes were a deep brown, and she slept. The elders came to the conclusion she was just rather gifted in genetics and welcomed her into their life. Of course, the legends were just that—legends.

Izzy was to start high school as a junior and her only saving grace was that they moved more than midway through the school year. Maia told her the school was rather small—smaller than she was probably used to—but that there was so much to do outside of school to make up for the feeling of 'confinement'. Those were Maia's words, not hers.

Moving in on a Thursday and forced to start school the following Monday had the women sharing a bottle of wine on Saturday in preparation of Isolde having to fully embody Izzy, a seventeen year old transfer student.

Izzy ignored the gawking as she walked into the small cafeteria, looking around for a seat. It was then that the girl Kim Connweller—who was nice but rather quiet—she met earlier hesitantly approached her.

"Izzy, do you want to sit with us?"

At Kim's side was another girl who seemed amazed Kim had the courage to speak to the new student, let alone invite her to sit with them. Izzy thought it wouldn't hurt, and making some friends in school would make it easier to blend in. Therefore making both Izzy and Maia's lives of integrating smoother.

Izzy smiled, "Sure. Thanks, Kim."

She followed them to a table in the corner, sitting down and pulling her lunch out of her bag—no way in hell was she eating school cafeteria food.

"How are you liking La Push so far?" Kim asked sweetly.

Izzy gave a small smile, "It's peaceful here compared to the city."

"I'm surprised they let you transfer so late." Kim's friend said before grinning widely, "I'm Clara by the way, nice to meet you."

Izzy nodded, "I'm sure Maia used her connections to get me in. She was adamant I went to La Push and not Forks for school. Something about wanting me closer."

That was only a slight lie, it was true Maia suggested not going to Forks, but mainly because she heard they just accepted their own lot of transfer students recently and the likelihood they'd accept Izzy so late in the year was slim. Plus, they needed to come off as a loving mother-daughter pair who spent a lot of time together.

Maia did all but beg her sister-in-law's brother, Billy Black, to put in a good word about letting Izzy into the school. It was nearly unheard of for the school to accept an outsider, much less a paleface.

"Well, we hope you settle in okay. You can always talk to us in the worst case." Clara chuckled before pointing between her and Kim, "Don't tell anyone, but we're practically the cool kids around here."

Izzy could tell the girls were nearly the opposite, seeming more of the nose-in-a-book type, a wallflower, but they were nice and the last time she was in school, she fell into the 'popular' crowd so maybe the change of pace could be fun.

She enjoyed living in the moment, rarely keeping any photos of the past, and changing bit by bit to blend into the role she took on.

After all, when one has immortality, one must adapt to the change of time if they want to blend in. And she desperately needed to blend in.

"Right, Kim?" Clara didn't get a response, making both Izzy and her glance at Kim, only to see the girl staring off to the other side of the cafeteria with dreamy eyes.

Clara waved her hand in front of Kim's face, "Hello, earth to Kim."

Kim snapped out of it, nodding right away as she agreed, "Right."

Clara mock glared at her friend, "You don't even know what I said. You were too busy staying at Jared."

Izzy looks to where Kim was staring and sees a table of what she would consider popular guys. There were a total of six of them and she had no idea which one was this Jared.

"I was not!" Kim squeaked, glancing at Izzy with an embarrassed flush.

Izzy turned her eyes back to the girls and grinned wickedly, "Oh? And who is this Jared person?"

Clara practically threw herself on the table to dish out Kim's secrets, "Jared Cameron is who our Kimmy here has been infatuated with since kindergarten. You see that guy laughing in the dark blue? That's him."

Izzy looks back at the table to see who she's talking about. The boy is not bad looking for a teenager, though definitely not her type. Too young to name just one of the many reasons.

"Of course, Jared Cameron has no idea people like us even exist." Clara continues on, brushing right over Kim's attempts to silence her.

"Us?" Izzy cocks her head with the question.

Clara looks her over with a critical eye before flicking her eyes around and back to Izzy, "Well, not you. But us. The ones who fade into the background. The only reason people are even looking at this corner is because you're sitting here."

She waved her hands erratically as she defended, "Not that that's a problem!"

Izzy chuckled, "They're only looking because I'm new."

That was a lie. Izzy knew they were looking because her entire existence pulled them in, but it was also true she was a brand new student who stuck out with her fair complexion and vibrant hair color.

"More like because you're totally gorgeous! What's your skin routine?" Clara narrowed her eyes playfully but the serious glint in them told Izzy she was speaking the truth.

Izzy shrugged, "Good genetics?"

Clara clicked her tongue, but went back to teasing Kim, "Anyway, I think this could be the year for you, Kim!"

Kim finally moved her hands away and pouted grumpily at her friend, "You've been saying that since freshman year…"

"If you say it aloud enough, it could become the truth." Izzy added as Clara gestured at her and nodded rather aggressively.

"See!" Clara exclaimed, a wide grin on her face that showed all of her teeth.

Kim waved her off, "It's okay. I'm fine with how things are right now."

The three of them continued to talk about Izzy's life prior to moving to La Push. Of course her answers were woven with half-truths, but she rather enjoyed speaking to the girls. They were a breath of fresh air compared to the fast paced city lives she's been living.

They exchanged numbers before lunch ended and Izzy went on her way. It was not that surprising that most classes were small, with nearly all juniors having all of their classes together or some of them being joined together with the seniors.

Her next class was a mix of juniors and seniors. She didn't mind, in fact she didn't even care. All she needed to do was get grades that were good enough to be passable and graduate. She didn't even need to be the best. Being best often drew more attention than not.

Her teacher instructed her to sit in an open seat next to an empty desk. As she moved to her seat she easily heard the whispers of the others in class.

"Wow, she's so lucky!"

"Is he even here today?"

"Damn, he's so lucky. I wish she was next to me."

"Definitely. I saw him making out with Hannah in the parking lot."

"I thought he was called to the office after fighting Will?"

"I wish I could sit next to him."

"He hates having a desk mate, but she's hot so he might be okay with it?"

She tuned them out, letting them fade into the faint buzzing she's trained herself to ignore. Seems like her desk mate was rather infamous around here.

Fifteen minutes after class started, and her mysterious desk mate still hadn't shown up, the door slammed open with a loud bang causing a flash of irritation to go through her.

Sure, blending in with humans and especially working in a hospital made her more tolerant of loud noise, but it didn't mean it was pleasant against her sensitive hearing.

Standing there in all his glory was a guy who she had to admit was attractive. He had that whole bad boy charm going on and even his knuckles were a little bruised. Had he been a few years older, she would have eaten him for breakfast—not literally of course! She hasn't sunk her teeth into the flesh of a human in some time.

The teacher eyed him with disdain before he clipped, "Paul. You're late."

The student—Paul—only flapped a piece of paper at him in response before handing the slip over as the teacher just sighed.

Izzy knew already that this was her infamous missing desk mate. Lovely.

As he began to saunter to his desk, throwing a wink at a girl as he passed, he finally noticed the new addition to the class. At first, he seemed angry that the desk beside his was taken but then the anger morphed to something more roguish.

She felt her eyes twitch before averting them from Paul all together. It was best not to give boys like that attention, lest it go to their heads.

As he plopped down in his seat next to her, he leaned over with a flirty smirk, "You must be the new girl everyone's talking about. I can see why."

She turned to him with a saccharine smile full of fake apologeticness, "I'm sorry, but some of us are trying to focus."

His rakish smile seemed to light up as his eyes roved over her, "Oh, I'm focused."

"Ugh." Izzy couldn't help but let out the noise of disgust. Despite going to school more times than she could remember, she often forgets how hormonal the boys are.

"Paul." The teacher snaps, pointedly glancing at the slip on his desk, a clear warning to the boy who was bothering the new student.

It was enough to have Paul shut up for the rest of the class, but his eyes were still burning holes into her.

She timed her movements to fall in the middle of everyone else's exit, eyes glancing around the halls to find her next class. She probably could just follow most of the juniors in all reality and end up in the right place.

There was a sudden presence coming up behind her and a light sniff told her it was Paul.

Paul smelled really good, like oakmoss and peppercorn, earthy with a sensual scent of musk and a kick of spice.

It was unfortunate his personality was not nearly as enticing.

"Hey, Red!" His deep voice called out to her.

Of course, all heads that weren't already not-so-discreetly looking at her, snapped in their direction.

She turned to him with a withering glare, "I have a name."

Truly, the name didn't bother her. She had been called worse. Would probably be called worse in the future. But it was something about this boy that incensed her. Perhaps it was the fact he walked around as if he owned the place. Or perhaps it was because he reminded her of too many of her and Maia's poor past choices in men.

He caught up to her and she didn't slow down her steps as he fell in pace with her.

His dark eyes twinkled at her response, "I don't know…I think Red suits you."

His fingers went to brush her hair, only for her hand to reach up and slap his away. It took centuries to master that kind of control in order to not shatter human bones. And Izzy was proud of that control, a smirk ghosting her lips at his appalled face.

"Haven't you learned to not touch without permission?" She snarked, dark eyes blazing.

Students stopped to stare and some even quickly moved as far away as they could. Nobody ever hit Paul Lahote without a scuffle breaking out. And rarely was it ever a girl.

Paul stared at her, a challenge brewing behind his eyes at the spitfire in front of him. It wasn't often he had someone willing to step toe to toe with him, much less a girl. A hot one at that. He would usually feel a lot angrier, and that was there under the surface, but intrigue won in his silent internal battle.

"Then what is your name?" He asked after a pause.

Seeing as Paul wasn't about to send the new girl onto the floor out of anger, most students continued to mill about. The noise level was slowly returning from the awkward silence that befell the hallway. Only a few students still side eyed the pair who kept walking side by side like nothing happened.

She didn't get a chance to respond as a familiar voice squeaked, "Izzy!"

Kim, poor Kim who most certainly would have never chanced stepping between Paul and his latest victim, came to her rescue.

She could see Kim ahead of her, nervously still trying to get closer, but clearly fighting her instinct to flee.

Izzy looked up at Paul, "There you have it. See you around."

Her steps were light and graceful, almost as if she floated toward Kim. A genuine smile of thanks was on her face as she hooked her arm through Kim's, steering the girl away from the intense eyes now on her back.

"I can't believe that!" Kim hissed as Clara appeared on Izzy's other side.

Clara stared at her with stars in her eyes, "Nobody has ever hit Paul Lahote and walked away unscathed."

"What the hell is he? A ferocious beast?" Izzy let out a sarcastic chuckle.

Clara's eyes grew serious, "Oh. He's a beast alright."

Kim nodded grimly, "He's managed to lure in every girl he's ever set his sights on, only to leave them heartbroken the next day."

"He's practically insatiable." Clara rolled her eyes, as she continued, "All of the girls here, and even in Forks, know that, but can't seem to help themselves."

Kim sighed, "Just last week he was with Ellie, this sophomore who has been chasing him all year, but this morning he was with Hannah."

"Hannah and Paul have had a weird back and forth all year." Clara filled in the drama.

Kim shook her head, a small frown on her lips, "And he made sure to do it all in front of Ellie. I heard she was sobbing all during first period."

Clara pat Izzy's hand, "Best to stay away from the likes of Paul Lahote and his friends."

"Oh, you don't have to worry about me." Izzy declared, knowing she would never entertain the idea of entangling with a teenager.

Izzy threw her bag onto the floor as she stepped through the front door, cringing when the hinges cried out.

They were going to have to fix that.

Maia was on shift at the hospital, luckily having been accepted quickly with her stellar resume. She had applied at Forks Community Hospital before their move and got the call right before they arrived.

It wasn't lonely though, in fact Izzy relished in the alone time. She loved Maia. The woman was truly like a sister to her, she was her best friend, but sometimes they needed that healthy time apart. She tossed her shoes off, wiggling her toes in her socks before moving deeper into the house.

She drifted to her room, eyeing the, arguably unnecessary, lavish bed with longing eyes. But she should cook dinner for them before she decides to become useless.

As she made her way to the kitchen, she opened the fridge only to pause. They had only done some quick grocery shopping when they arrived, using most of the time to catch up with Maia's family and attend the funeral.

Izzy huffed as she slipped her shoes back on, grabbed her wallet, and stepped outside, locking the door quickly before calling Maia to let her know she was going shopping. Mainly to see if Maia wanted anything from the market, but she said she was fine with anything as the intercom in the hospital warbled out a sentence distracting her.

She let Maia go, hanging up and finding herself in the small market.

Izzy was halfway through her mental list when heard her name. It was Billy Black. He was nice enough, though his eyes held a glint of suspicion when he first met her. Luckily, it seemed he accepted her after the rather sunny day, a rarity in itself, during the funeral.

"Maia send you shopping?" He asked kindly, rolling his wheelchair down the aisle.

She sent him a smile, "Just trying to help out. I'm planning on cooking dinner before she gets home."

"I wish my kids liked me as much as you like Maia…" Billy grumbled jokingly.

"Hey!" A voice called out in offense, rounding the corner of the aisle. It was Jacob—Jake for short—Billy's son.

Billy playfully rolled his eyes before turning to Jake, "If you feel so insulted then what are you cooking for dinner tonight?"

Jake spluttered, clearly embarrassed by being called out before his eyes flashed to Izzy. His cheeks burned a bright red at being caught in such a situation by the pretty new girl.

"Izzy. Hi." He stumbled through the greeting, much to the amusement of both Billy and Izzy.

She felt a little bad for the poor kid so she just gave a small smile, "Hey, Jake."

Jake hadn't approached her at school, but she was okay with that. He seemed to be more absorbed with his friends as they goofed off at some table during lunch, all of them being in the year below her. She didn't want to draw more attention to him than he was already doing himself.

"Well, we'll get out of your hair, Izzy. Tell Maia I said hi." Billy grinned before tapping Jake to move along.

Jake was still staring at Izzy though, looking a bit nervous and unsure before he moved closer as if he had a secret to tell. He practically whispered, "Hey, I heard about what happened with Paul. If you need my help or anything…"

He didn't seem confident in that offer, even becoming a bit pale at the thought of confronting the temperamental senior, but Izzy was practically family now. And Billy did ask him to watch out for her, worried that since she was a pale face there'd be some kickback.

Jake thought there probably would have been if she wasn't so pretty. But all everyone talked about was her looks and how her parents must have been beautiful people.

Izzy gave Jake an appreciative smile, she was thankful he was willing to put himself in an obviously uncomfortable position to help her, but she reassured him she was okay and had it handled.

She watched the father and son duo walk away before going back to her shopping, mind preoccupied with thoughts of how Maia was settling in.