~Soon, the words Cold Ones and Bloodsucker were spoken~

CHAPTER III - COLD ONES

March 2007

OVER A MONTH HAD PASSED since the arrival of Maia and Izzy Littlesea. Maia had settled into the night shift at the hospital and Izzy felt as though she had perfected becoming Izzy, fully integrating into her new life as a teenager.

Befriending Clara and Kim had shown her that sometimes life as a wallflower was better than sticking out. Though she did still stick out and some of the attention came from people noticing Paul Lahote circled around her like a guard dog.

Kim and Clara didn't love her friendship with Paul, but they just told her to be careful.

Now, Izzy sat on the porch waiting for Maia to get home from her date. Apparently her and that guy from Seattle actually hit it off. And shocker, they both had lied about their names.

The women had been visited by Billy a few days prior so he could invite them to the bonfire they were holding at the beach. Both were delighted to join and Maia told Izzy that they were probably going to go over the legends of their tribe.

Izzy was excited—giddy even. Despite having traveled all over for centuries, she had never been to the Quileute Reservation and therefore, had never heard the legends other than the snippets Maia tried to recall when Izzy revealed what she was so many years ago.

The sun was already dipping below the horizon as civil twilight began. Izzy always felt more comfortable at this time of day and she used to ponder if it was due to her inherent nature but seeing as though she knew no vampires to ask, she now quietly basked under the twilight sky. She could already smell the starting of the bonfire as she stood up, seeing Maia's car arrive.

Maia drove them to the beach like she had nine lives and Izzy really did blame herself for Maia's horrible driving habits. When they got out of the car, the plethora of people and the smell of burning wood greeted them.

As she stepped on the beach, she saw Paul was already there. Though this time with some girl hanging off his arm she didn't know and surrounded by his usual friends that also all had some girl hanging onto their every word. She didn't want to interrupt so she went to find Kim and Clara, only for Paul's eyes to catch hers, a genuine smile replacing the roguish one.

Izzy watched Paul untangle his arm from the girl who glared venomously at her as he walked over.

"I didn't know they were letting outsiders come to these things." He joked.

Izzy sniffed and flipped her hair over her shoulder, "I am a Littlesea, you know."

He chortled before sarcastically teasing, "Yes, the resemblance is uncanny."

She bumped him lightly with her hip, "Shut up, Lahote."

"Where are you sitting? You can sit with us, if you want." He gestured toward the group that seemed anything but welcoming. Especially the poor girl he abandoned who was shooting daggers at her.

She barely held in a grimace since his offer did seem to come from the kindness of his heart, "I think I'm going to sit with Maia. It's been so long since she's heard the legends, it'll be like both of our first times hearing them."

He snorted but left as his friends called him back over. She made her way through the pretty dense crowd, on the hunt to find Kim, Clara, or Maia.

Kim and Clara are found first, huddled together as they stare toward an area. Izzy bets Jared Cameron is over there.

She comes up beside Clara, following their line of sight and there he is. Jared. Walking in their direction, though not toward them as he was too caught up in what his friends were saying to notice their stares.

Kim was still trying to convince herself to go for it so Clara does what any good friend would, she gives her a little push—literally.

She stumbles and bumps directly into Jared who helps steady her, her face burning red.

"I can't believe you did that!" Kim cried as her hands covered her face.

Clara grinned, amused by the entire thing and feeling accomplished in her mission, "Well, he knows who you are now at least."

"Yeah some klutz who can't even walk straight." Kim grumbled.

Izzy smiled softly at the two, "What matters is that you drew his attention. Besides, some guys like a damsel in distress."

She was trying to comfort the still embarrassed Kim when Maia appeared next to her.

"Izzy, they're starting soon. Let's go sit." Maia's voice held an undercurrent of nervousness—she didn't want Izzy to feel uncomfortable during the entire thing.

Izzy nodded before saying goodbye to the girls, taking Maia's arm and being led to their spot by Maia's brother.

They were stopped when a woman called out Maia's name.

"Sue! It's good to see you." Maia greeted happily as Izzy saw the three people next to the woman, Sue.

Sue's bright grin was nearly blinding as she nodded, "Have you settled in well? It's good to have you home."

Ah, the Clearwaters. Izzy remembered as her nose twitched, a strange very faint smell, barely noticeable even to her, was coming off the young man standing with Sue. It was unlike any mortal she had smelled before though it did not lean toward pleasant or unpleasant, it was neutral, but very odd.

Maia nodded, "Yeah. It's nice to be back."

"You haven't met my kids yet." Sue gestured to the youngest boy standing there, "This is Seth."

Izzy recognized him from school. He was a grade below her, sharing most of his classes with Jake and his friends, so she didn't cross paths with him much.

Sue's hand moved to the young woman, "And this is Leah. She's taking classes at the local college, but is graduating this year."

Leah was very striking for a mortal and completely glued to the man with the strange smell's side.

Izzy inhaled as discreetly as she could, still mulling over what the hell it could be. He didn't smell like other mortals, that was for certain. But it wasn't a scent like her own either, as it was lacking any sweetness.

"And this is Sam. Leah's boyfriend-" Sue leaned closer, "Though I think that's soon to be fiancé."

It was clear Sue wasn't as quiet as she thought when both Leah and Sam twitched. Leah's eyes glittered with hopeful anticipation while Sam's flashed with nervousness and even a hint of annoyance. Izzy thought the second one was strange, but it wasn't her business.

Besides, the man before her was strange enough with his scent and she wasn't about to try and unravel any mysteries. She was here to blend in, not stand out more than her nature already made her.

"It's nice to meet you guys, this is my daughter, Izzy." Maia squeezes Izzy's arm closer.

The four left soon after, heading off to find Harry, Sue's husband. Maia and Izzy took their own spots as the faintest stars began to flicker in the sky.

Izzy was transfixed with the tale weaved by the elders. The story of a man turning into a wolf alarmed her slightly, her mind flashing to children of the moon—but she would certainly have known if any were lurking near her. Soon, the words Cold Ones and Bloodsucker were spoken, her body language and eyes giving nothing away, but her mind was moving quickly. Especially when they spoke of strange ones encountered who had yellow eyes.

Izzy was intrigued, never having seen one herself, but also not exactly keen on meeting any either. Maia seemed more nervous than Izzy herself when all of this was being said and it was only once they were back home that she found out why.

"They usually don't do large bonfires to speak so in detail about the legends…" Maia bit her thumb as she paced in their kitchen.

Izzy submerged the bag of blood in the hot water, eyes watching her friend frantically spiral. It was not lost on Izzy the irony of her actions following the bonfire. But a lady has to eat and human food is only so sufficient.

"They were much more vague in my childhood. But it's like they were truly warning us of dangers ahead and…" Maia stopped, looking unsure.

"And what?" Izzy prompted, pouring the dark liquid into her opaque cup with a lid.

Maia finally looked over and as her eyes caught Izzy's actions her nose scrunched before she brushed over it—like always.

"Remember that hot ass doctor I told you about?"

Izzy nodded, "Yeah, what about him?"

"His name." Maia's face was serious, "His surname is Cullen."

Izzy bit her lip, "Like those in the legends. The yellow eyes."

Maia hummed, "Yeah. And he's pale as hell. Even for a 'paleface.' And he's unnaturally good looking. Like you."

Well, that doesn't sound great. But Izzy didn't ever have to go meet him and it's not like he could come to the reservation.

"I mean, if the legends are true, then he isn't dangerous." Izzy reasoned, not wanting Maia to start panicking even more.

Maia rushed over to her and grabbed her shoulders, "Will you come check him out?"
"Oh no, no, no." Izzy shook her head, Maia had no idea about Isolde's aversion to meeting vampires as there had never been a reason to bring it up, but maybe now was the time. "I'm not comfortable seeking any immortals out. What if he's crazy?"

Maia pshed, "He's a doctor, Izzy. Are crazy people doctors?"

Izzy looked at her like she was crazy, "Yes. Do you not remember that doctor from Fort Worth? He literally got arrested for stalking and trying to assault several nurses."

"And he was caught because of your help!" Maia cheered, trying to persuade her still.

Maia landed on her knees, hugging Izzy's thighs, "Please, Izzy! You only need one look!"

Izzy sighed before giving in and agreeing, "Fine, but I'm only looking from a distance."

As Maia had the rest of the weekend off and apparently Sam Uley—the strange guy Izzy had met at the bonfire—went missing, the two women postponed the plan for Izzy to check out Dr. Cullen. Izzy wasn't upset about it and even hoped to put it off as long as possible.

Seeing as it had only been two days since he went missing and he was an adult in his twenties, most people weren't invested or worried. The only person who seemed concerned was Leah Clearwater who was wrought with nerves over the entire thing as the two of them had a small argument right before he left.

School wasn't much different other than some people gossiping about Sam and that included Clara and Kim as they sat around their lunch table.

"I'm just saying it's weird." Kim whispered harshly, eyes nervously looking around. Not that she needed to, everyone else was invested in their own conversations.

Clara huffed, "Maybe he got cold feet and decided not to propose after all. Everyone knows that's all Sue and Leah talk about—the long awaited proposal."

"They've been together since high school. I don't think he's running away from commitment. Something is wrong." Kim argued, mouth twisted in a small frown.

Izzy didn't know Sam or Leah or really any of these people well enough to argue either side. So she simply bit into her apple as she observed the conversation.

Clara slammed her hands on the table, "We don't even know Sam Uley or Leah Clearwater. Maybe he's not even missing. Maybe it's some weird ass fetish play."

The last one made Izzy snicker as Kim's face clouded over in a mix of disgust, horror, and embarrassment.

"How can you even say that?!" Kim hissed as she smacked Clara's arm before looking at Izzy, "And don't laugh! You're only encouraging her."

Izzy shrugged, "I mean, she could be right." Not that Izzy actually thought that, but it was funny.

Kim threw her hands up, "I can't with you two!"

As Izzy walked home, Paul rattled on about his latest fling who was getting a little too invested. Truthfully, Izzy was only half listening and not because she didn't care or found him annoying, but because this was the fourth 'fling' in the last two weeks.

"Maybe you need a period of celibacy for a while." She teased—only she was half serious.

Paul looked as if she killed a puppy, "Are you on drugs? Why would you suggest that?"

She rolled her eyes, "Okay, forget celibacy then. At least stop getting into fights every other day. I don't even know how you're going to graduate with your record."

"You wound me, Red." Paul placed a hand over his heart as his eyes twinkled with mirth.

Izzy had long since given up on trying to get Paul to stop using that silly nickname—it was akin to speaking to a boulder sometimes.

Three days later on a casual Friday, it was as if the recent conversation with Paul brought forth his worst fight yet.

Nearly the entire student body stared in horror as Paul's fist slammed into Jonathon's face again, some senior Izzy didn't care to know. Paul was sporting his own busted lip as a feral snarl twisted his features.

Jonathon was in no better condition, with a bleeding nose and bruising cheek. But it didn't seem to stop him, it only seemed to incense him more as he tackled Paul to the ground.

The duo wrestled on the ground like two alpha wolves fighting for dominance and Izzy thought herself quite funny to make that comparison after hearing the legends.

Paul got the upper hand as he flipped them over, fists winding back before slamming into Jonathon's face in rapid succession and Izzy could hear the cracking of bone—not that her hearing it was the astonishing part, she did have supernatural hearing after all, but it was because one or both of them were receiving far harsher damage than the school would brush off this time.

She bolted forward, tossing her bag at the back of Paul's head with just enough force that it wouldn't knock him out, but would startle him out of his manic violent haze.

Dozens of eyes watched as she stalked forward, breaths held as Paul whipped around with blazing eyes like the Devil, and jaws dropped as those eyes blinked back into focus at the same time Izzy reached out with both hands and yanked the larger boy off the groaning Jonathan.

"Red!" Paul shouted in alarm as he was manhandled—and a small, very small part of him felt a spark of heat from her hands on him.

Izzy glared at him before hissing, "What the hell do you think you're doing? On school property no less!"

"You should've heard the shit he was saying! He had it coming!" Paul insisted that his actions were justified, but Izzy had heard what others were saying about her. She just didn't care to stoop to such lows against mortals—besides, the things they were saying weren't even true.

Jonathan finally stood up and spit blood from his mouth, Izzy's nose twitched and she knew it had been too long since she drank any recently if she reacted to this small amount in such a way.

Izzy sighed, "Paul, don't mind what people are saying. It's not worth it."

Paul held her eyes as his jaw clenched, clearly holding in words he wanted to release. Jonathan was already scurrying away like a little rat and she let him, not wanting Paul to start something again.

"Come on. Let's get out of here." She murmured, grabbing her bag and leading him away with a grip on his arm tight enough he couldn't escape.

As she was passing through the crowd, she caught Clara and Kim's worried faces, shooting them a comforting smile before her and Paul disappeared.

The pair found themselves in their usual spot—the cliff's edge. Paul let her lead him there in silence, his mind still partially clouded with fizzling anger.

Izzy directed him to sit on the log before she went about checking his hands as if she were a certified professional. It made Paul want to know more about her, having mostly spoken of himself whenever they were together.

"Is this what you wanna do after high school?" He let the question fall off his tongue before his mind could catch up.

She glanced down at him for only a moment before her eyes went back to his hands, "Meh, I have no passion, but a job in the medical field is always a stable way to live."

Which was true. It was a stable way to slip blood bags into her own pockets with more ease than outright robbing blood banks—and she did have experience in that, she just wasn't fond of the effort required to do it. The bonus was that it always paid handsomely.

Paul studied her as she carefully massaged his hands, her delicate fingers gliding along his skin made him swallow before he looked away, "You seem to know what you're doing."

"Maia is a nurse." Izzy chuckled with a fond smile. She dropped his hands and stepped away before taking a seat next to him, "Seems like they're just bruised and busted. You should ice them when you get home. And stop getting into fights."

Paul clicked his tongue, "He was saying all kinds of shit about you. About me. About us. I ain't gonna let him talk about you like that."

"He isn't worth it. None of them are, you know. Besides, we know what they're saying isn't true so who cares?" Izzy twirled a lock of her hair, uncaring what some mortals thought of her.

It was clear Paul didn't like that, his face scrunching up and his eyes narrowing but he also didn't argue. Instead he suddenly turned to look at her with a confused face, "Hey, how come we haven't exchanged numbers?"

Izzy couldn't help the shocked laugh that erupted from her. She hadn't a clue other than not feeling the need to.

"In my defense, when we met you weren't exactly someone I would want to have my number." She snickered.

Paul nodded, "I can respect that." After a moment of silence he cringed, "I was pretty awful, huh?"

It wasn't long before Izzy declared they should head home, much to Paul's displeasure. He liked spending time with her. And he hated being in a home where his father rarely appeared and when he did show up, he only ever argued with his only son.

But he knew Izzy loved her home, so he walked with her in comfortable silence, absorbing the small warm moment and wishing he could hold onto it for a lifetime.

Later that night, Izzy grumbled to herself as she read Maia's text.

Maia (20:27) : 4got my lunch. Can u bring? ILY

Izzy gnawed on her lip as she reread the blasted message. She couldn't tell if Maia had forgotten on purpose or was trying to get her to the hospital to see Dr. Cullen after a week of stalling.

Either way, she'd be taking her lunch to her.

Izzy (20:29) : Ur lucky ILY

For the first time since being in La Push, Izzy grabbed her car keys. Her car that had been sitting in the garage under its cover since they moved in.

It wasn't new enough to stand out—though in La Push it would garner more than a few open mouthed stares—and the color was fun and bright. She had bought it right before moving, thinking it was old enough to blend in, but how wrong she was. Now, it would only be broken out for specific tasks.

As she ripped the cover off the car in a flash, before her eyes was her vintage mint green 2004 ford thunderbird.

In order for the two women to blend in a bit more, Maia was driving around her—very cute in Izzy's opinion—red dinged up beetle. The small imperfections on the poor car were completely Maia's fault as the woman was a reckless driver who was only encouraged by Izzy's own insane driving.

The difference was that Izzy had far more control and supernatural reflexes where Maia did not.

Wheels squealed as Izzy grinned in manic delight. It felt good to be behind the wheel of her car again, having to walk to and from school as her car would stand out far too much and not having gone anywhere without Maia during the weekends.

The hospital wasn't busy when she pulled in and parked before grabbing Maia's lunch and heading inside.

Izzy (20:52) : Here

Before Izzy even entered the hospital she could smell it. Sweetness. Maia didn't text her back, but as Izzy entered she saw her talking to who could only be Dr. Cullen as the sweetness was wafting from him. It wasn't overbearing, vampires never having been repugnant in scent to her, but it was sweeter than her own smell. It reminded her much of her old friends that she hadn't seen in a few centuries.

Izzy knew immediately the blonde was a vampire. Scent aside, his pale alabaster flawless skin was too perfect. Her sharp eyes could tell he was controlling his movements with ease so he was older, able to control his fine motor skills and appetite enough to work in a hospital. It was a rather admiring feat.

"Maia." Izzy finally spoke up as she got closer to the pair and Maia perked up, smiling guiltily at her.

So it was a trap.

"Izzy! Dr. Cullen, this is my daughter, Elizabeth. But we call her Izzy for short. Izzy, this is Dr. Cullen." Maia introduced and as the man's eyes landed on her they widened and went back to normal so quick no human would have caught it.

His eyes were a honey-golden, something Izzy had never seen before, but she didn't outwardly show her internal reaction. He was handsome, though that was no strong feat in Izzy's eyes as all vampires were beautiful in their own way—herself included.

Dr. Cullen was still trying to discreetly assess the 'teenager' in front of him. Her red hair was vibrant and fell in loose waves while her flawless pale skin held a hint of a warm undertone. She was stunning and looking every bit like one of his kind, but he could hear her beating heart. Smell the blood in her veins, though it wasn't tantalizing in the same way like the woman next to him.

"It's nice to finally meet you, Izzy. Maia has told me a lot about you." Dr. Cullen introduced before smiling kindly, "And please, call me Carlisle."

Maia jumped in, quickly taking her lunch from Izzy as she informed, "Dr. Cullen also has adopted kids of his own."

The look Maia sent her with her eyes told her enough. She meant that there were more of them. But the golden eyes made Izzy think they wouldn't be much of a threat. Especially if the legends from the tribe were to be believed.

"Oh, how kind of you. You're quite young." Izzy internally grinned cheekily at her comment, knowing the man was probably anything but 'young' by human standards.

Maia shot her a look before turning back around to face Carlisle, "Dr. Cullen and his wife are very generous. I can barely even handle one kid let alone five."

Izzy couldn't help but snort, because what the hell?! Five? Including his wife? That made seven of them!

Luckily her reaction was passed off along with Maia's words as Carlisle chuckled himself, though it sounded like a laugh that held secrets of an inside joke.

Suddenly, he was paged over the intercom and he gave a quick goodbye, but not before giving one more 'discreet' scrutinizing look at Izzy.

"We'll talk when you get home." Izzy flashed Maia a sarachine smile, causing the woman to shiver but nod.

Izzy went on her way, heading back to her car as she vowed to stay the hell out of Forks if seven vampires were residing there.