Sunrise - A Twilight Fanfic

[BamaFan121s]

"Me! Me!" Renesmee jumped up and down with her hand raised. She lept into Jacob’s arms.

"Uh, Jacob," Edward began hesitantly, "Exactly what stories will we be hearing tonight?"

"Don’t worry," Jacob said, answering the underlying question. "Not any of those, not with Charlie around."

We made our way to the beach quickly and joined the others. There was already a fire blazing. Green tinted flames licking at the driftwood kindling. Jacob and Renesmee walked over and took a seat on a very familiar weathered looking piece of exposed tree trunk. Edward and I took a seat to their side on one of several quilts that had been arranged around the fire in a circle.

At the head of the circle, sat Billy Black. I looked at his aged face with respect as he began his tale.

"It has been requested that the tale of the Thunderbird be told." There were excited murmurs from around the circle. Clearly, this was a crowd favorite. I leaned against Edward and relaxed, letting the magic of the story consume me.

"Many years ago, when the prairie met the sea, an elk hunter lived at Beaver Prairie. He went off hunting very early one morning, but soon came back and told his tribe, "I saw the Thunderbird in a tree. Here is a feather that I took from Thunderbird's wing." After he showed the feather to the people, he said, "I also saw a very big whale on the prairie. It had been carried there by thunderbird. Thunderbird had to rest because the tree was so heavy.

"The man sent for all the Quileute people living near the river. ‘Come up! We will cut up Whale. He is so large that thunderbird cannot carry him further.’ And so all the people came and got into whaling canoes. They came to cut up the whale. When they reached that place, Whale was lying there dead in the lower part of the prairie. By evening, the people had cut up Whale into pieces. The people were hungry. They cooked some of the whale meat and ate it. It was good to eat.

"It got dark and the clouds overhead became very black. Thunderbird was coming back. He was very angry because the people had stolen his food. Lightning flashed from his eyes. It began to rain and then changed to. After the storm, the people who cut up Whale were turned to stone and forced to live as stone forever. A reminder of how they had stolen from Thunderbird. All the meat and blubber that they had piled there was turned into stone making the ridge from one end of the valley to the other. The ridge is still there today."

For a few minutes, no one spoke, allowing the lesson behind the story to sink in. Then, slowly, the babble of voices and praise for Billy began to rise up. People turned to stone…and forced to live forever… I glanced at Edward, narrowing my eyes in both suspicion and confusion. He did the same, tilting his head as we exchanged questioning glances. Then we both smiled together and shook our heads, casting off the silly thought we’d both undoubtedly been sharing. We spoke in unison.

"Nah!"

"Couldn’t be."

Everyone stood and began gathering the blankets and chairs that had been carried down to the beach. Charlie trudged through the sand to where we stood. "Wow! That was some story, huh?"

"Yeah, Dad. Billy’s stories are the best!" I agreed.

"Well, I’m going to head home, Bella. You’ll call soon, or come visit, or I’ll come visit you…?" He spoke quickly, a very hopeful look on his face.

"Of course, Dad!" I leaned forward to hug him, fighting the flames and swallowing back the venom.

"Good," he said, enthusiasm coating his words. "Well, I’d better be on my way then."

"And we’d better be on our way too," Jacob said after Charlie was out of earshot. In explanation, he gestured to Renesmee, "This one needs to get to bed."

We said our good-byes to everyone and walked with Jacob, carrying Renesmee back towards the house.

"I know you guys only have two seats in that car, so I’ll run her back to your house. I don’t suppose you guys would like a rematch so soon, would you?" Jacob asked eagerly.

"Nah, you’d better go on without us and we’ll just meet you there," Edward said, exchanging a sly look with Jacob. "Bella’s driving us home."

I groaned loudly in protest as Edward brought my hand up in front of him and handed me the keys.

[BamaFan121s]

"Fine! I’ll admit it. It was a little fun. Happy now?"

"Very!" Edward smiled radiantly at me, finally having won the argument. I’d successfully driven the Ferrari home from La Push a few nights prior, finally accelerating to a very high rate of speed that Edward found acceptable. Ever since, he’d been pestering me, trying to find any indication that I might have developed even the slightest interest in automobiles that the rest of the Cullens shared. Truthfully, I’d gotten past my aversion to my new family’s style of driving, but when I thought about the reaction Charlie would have if he spotted a candy apple red Ferrari doing one twenty through the sleepy town of Forks, it sent a shiver down my spine. Vampire or not, Charlie’s was not something I wanted to witness.

"Now," he continued, "if you’d prefer another model…"

Exasperated, I looked to Jacob for relief, but found none. He was busily preparing Renesmee’s breakfast, clearly making a great effort not to be included in the conversation. I sighed and dropped my head to my hands while Edward droned on, undeterred, "…now they’re only available in Europe right now, but we could have one shipped over…"

Finally, he stopped rattling on and leaned down on the counter, taking my face between his hands and bringing his face level with mine. "Bella!" His sweet breath washed over me, pulling me back to the present and I looked up to meet his gaze. "Are you listening to me?"

Those warm eyes, liquid topaz, scorching…"Wha….huh? Er, no, I’m not. Sorry." I admitted sheepishly. What were we discussing?

I stared aimlessly back until finally an amused smile crept over his face. "You are ridiculously impossible!" He laughed, leaning forward to kiss me quickly. "You, on the other hand…" he began slyly as he released my face, turning to Jacob.

Jacob froze holding a spoon full of steaming eggs suspended over Renesmee’s plate. He shut his eyes tightly and I heard his teeth grind together. This was the conversation he’d been trying to avoid, no doubt. I couldn’t help but laugh. There were a few things about which Edward was relentless—buying extravagant gifts for others and cars were definitely high on that list. Jacob didn’t stand a chance. I could do nothing but cast him an understanding, sympathetic glance in response to his pleading expression that he cast me. I merely shrugged. It was good to see Edward harass someone else about cars for a change.

I was thankful for the distraction when Alice entered the room. "Morning everyone!" She greeted us all in her sing song voice, stopping long enough to kiss Renesmee on the head. "Bella, you should know that Charlie’s stopping by before his shift starts. He’ll be here in about 15 minutes, but he’ll only be staying a short time."

It was definitely nice having Alice around to forewarn me about my father’s unpredictable visits. "Charlie? What’s he coming by for?"

"He’s only dropping off a package that came in the mail from your mom. And tell her that’s very thoughtful and I love it! I’ll take the white one, by the way." Her eyes twinkled.

"Thanks, Alice. I’ll be sure to pass along the message." Edward was still grilling Jacob about what kind of car he wanted. I sighed, and reached for my purse. Stupid, Alice-bought, designer purse. I grumbled as I dug around looking for the last box of brown contacts Alice had supplied me with months ago. Maybe I was overreacting. Maybe it didn’t even matter any more, but I was fairly certain that my father, always seeming to look for the truth he didn’t truly want, would notice the red tint of my eyes in place of the chocolate brown they’d once been.

I fumbled around and finally began taking the items out one at a time…cell phone, spare keys, wallet… As a pulled my wallet out, a small, silvery plastic card fell out on the table, landing face up towards me. The square stared back at me as the realization of what it was slowly dawned on me. In the lower corner of the card appeared two inset circles, one red, and one yellow. Across the front was a series of random, raised silver numbers. Below the numbers, in slightly smaller raised print was a name-- "Isabella Cullen."

"What the hell is this?" I held the offensive card at arm's length between my thumb and forefinger as if I were in danger of being bitten. My outburst ended the conversation between Edward and Jacob as my husband turned to face me.

"Credit card," he said with forced casualness. I saw him nervously shift slightly as he exchanged a quick glance with Alice. Jacob, grateful to be off the hook, ushered Renesmee into the living room where Rosalie was waiting.

"I know what it is," I hissed, narrowing my eyes. "What I want to know is what is it doing in my wallet and why does it have my name on it?"

"Oooh," Alice crooned, a bit too dramatically, even for Alice as she flitted forward in mock admiration. "I got a new one too!" she said, smiling. "What do you say we go shopping today and break them in?"

Obviously, the moment that I discovered this had been well thought out and planned.

[BamaFan121s]

"Edward Anthony Masen Cullen! Explain!"

"Oh, Bella, be reasonable," Alice chimed in. I ignored my favorite sister and began impatiently tapping my foot waiting on a response from Edward.

"Bella, you are my wife now and part of this family. Therefore, you are entitled to the same benefits as everyone else." I narrowed my eyes in suspicion as he began his obviously rehearsed explanation. "Your card is the same as mine, the same as Alice’s, the same as Esme’s and Jasper’s and Rosalie’s and Emmett’s…and even the same as Jacob’s." He grinned, waiting on the response he knew I would deliver.

"Jacob!?" I turned to the living room, but Jacob was nowhere in sight—a very wise move on his part.

"Yes, Jacob." He chuckled lightly. "Bella, we were gone for a few months. Jacob was bound to be spending a lot of time with Renesmee, as you are well aware. Does it honestly strike you as that surprising that Carlisle insisted he have access to funds to better provide for her in our absence?"

"It’s funny—I would have thought that might be something you’d mention to me." I was furious, but he was right on that accord…and he knew it. Between Renesmee and helping Billy at home, there was no way Jacob had time for a job. This I couldn’t deny. And in typical Cullen fashion, Carlisle and Edward would have insisted on helping out in that area. Even so, I was stubborn. I had eventually conceded and let him pay for the majority of my first term at Dartmouth. As much as I hated to admit it, after borrowing against my account to fund motorcycle renovations, the full contents of my savings had barely covered the required textbooks alone. But this was going too far.

He strolled forward and put his arm around me. I flinched, still irritated, but made no effort to move his arm. "Bella…" He began in his most persuasive, velvet voice, "You don’t want to offend Carlisle and Esme do you? This is customary of becoming part of our family. We can’t all hold permanent jobs like Carlisle, for obvious reasons…and you know that money is not an issue. If you make a big deal out of this, you will hurt their feelings, and mine…"

"And mine!" Alice added, innocently, pushing her lower lip out in a playful pout. I shot her the most evil glare I could muster, but I knew I was losing ground. Then I made a huge mistake. I turned to meet Edward’s eyes with the intent of letting him know just how strongly opposed to the idea I was and the guilt of their words, but his burning, ocher gaze, and Alice’s incredibly pitiful face caused my argument to crumble. And on top of that, they were right.

He smiled his angelic smile as I fought for concentration. "Did I ever tell you how adorable you are when you’re irritated?" Then, I lost the battle.

"Fine!" I conceded. "But don’t expect me to use it!" I turned grumpily and put the card back in my wallet, behind the business card of Mr. J Jelks. At least there I wouldn’t have to actually see it.

"OK," he said innocently, a victorious smile on his face.

"See, Edward, I told you that she’d react better this way," Alice gloated. Before I could respond, she breezed by and up the stairs, muttering something to herself about flight arrangements and weather.

"Now, can I ask you a question?" Edward continued.

I narrowed my eyes suspiciously. "I’m waiting."

"Why are you looking for your contacts?"

This seemed like a silly question. He was fully aware of why I wore my contacts around Charlie. Why would he ask me that? "Didn’t you just hear Alice say that Charlie was stopping by?"

He brought my hand up and turned it over, slowly tracing the lines of my palm with his fingers. "Yes, but why do you need your contacts?"

I turned his question over in my head for a full two seconds before I gasped in realization of what he was asking. I ran at full speed to the bathroom and peered into the mirror. The eyes that stared back at me were deep amber, but most importantly, they showed no remaining traces of crimson. Edward walked in behind me as I stared in the mirror and encircled my waist with his arms, leaning down to kiss my neck. I turned to him beaming. "My eyes!"

Edward smiled adoringly and leaned down to murmur seductively in my ear, immediately causing a yearning fire to ignite in the pit of my stomach, "I would love nothing more than to help you commemorate this huge milestone, Mrs. Cullen, but…"

"Mmmm," I purred back, wrapping my arms around his waist and burying my face in his chest. I inhaled his honey-sun scent deeply, allowing it to fill every possible cell of my being. "No…no buts…"

"But…." he continued, chuckling lightly, "Charlie is pulling up in front of the house. And I have no interest in rushing the celebration." He reached back and unwound my arms from his waist, bringing my hands together in front of me.

"Ugh," I surrendered, throwing my hands in the air in surrender, "but we will continue this later." With that, I turned from the bathroom and walked out to greet my father.

[BamaFan121s]

As Alice had predicted, Charlie’s stay was brief. The reason for his visit, as she’d also predicted, was to drop off a package that had arrived for me. The postage on the rather large box indicated that it had been shipped from Jacksonville. With the box on the dining room table, I slid my finger easily under the seam of the brown wrapping paper. I couldn’t resist looking down at my finger, thankful that the simple task no longer yielded the danger of a paper cut….or the consequences.

I reached for the hand written letter from my mother that lie on top and read it before examining the contents of the box. As it turned out, Phil’s hard work had paid off—he had been signed to a major league baseball team. My mother’s excitement over this development was evident in her letter, as was her apology for having misplaced my address here at the Cullen household. I couldn’t help but smile in amusement of her typical, scatterbrained ways.

I folded her letter and put it back in the envelope and examined the contents of the box. She’d sent a collection of memorabilia from Phil’s new team. Shirts and baseball caps for every member of the family, plus Charlie, a stuffed bear holding a team pennant for Renesmee and vouchers to a home game—she’d even included enough for Sue, Billy and Jacob.

I walked back to the kitchen where Jacob had reappeared and been cornered by Edward who was incisively talking about cars again. He stopped when I walked in and looked at me hesitantly. "Alice is looking for you. She’s insisting on taking you shopping today." An apologetic grimace crossed his face. "And Jacob and I are going to look at cars."

"That’s fine, go with Jake." I couldn’t help but return his smile as he turned triumphantly to Jacob, obviously having cleared his last hurdle. Sadly, I was not looking forward to the day that lay ahead of me, but I knew that I couldn’t avoid another shopping spree with Alice for long. May as well go ahead and get it over with.

"Ready, Bella?" Alice chirped, having suddenly appeared by my side.

"As ready as I’ll ever be," I sighed in resignation reaching for my purse. "But we’re using your credit card!"

The day with Alice was not as horrible as I’d imagined it would be. I found I didn’t mind so much if I was shopping for someone else. The majority of our finds were items for Renesmee, who seemed to outgrow her clothes faster than even Alice could supply them…almost. It was at the first or many registers that Alice discovered she’d left her credit card at home, forcing me to use mine. It was a little too convenient of a mishap to be believable, not that Alice tried to hide that fact. It was with gritted teeth that I slid the card through the register’s terminal, trying not to pay too much attention to the obscenely high numbers that glared back at me.

I knew that Renesmee was going with Edward and Jacob, so I couldn’t even use her as an excuse to return home early, however, the day seemed to be dragging on without Edward. "Aren’t you having any fun at all, Bella?" Alice still could not fathom why I was not as enthusiastic about spending money as she was. It was only after I begrudgingly agreed to a new, full length blue dress that Alice finally decided it was time to go home.

Edward was not there when we arrived home. Neither were Jacob and Renesmee. After helping Alice bring in our bags from our day’s adventure, as she’d called it, I found myself sitting on the porch, anxiously awaiting their return. Mostly, I was anxiously awaiting Edward’s return. It was nonsensical, really. It was the longest time we’d spent apart since our wedding and the more the day had progressed, the more I ached to be by his side again. As luck would have it, I didn’t have to wait long.

I’d been on the porch a mere ten minutes when Edward emerged from the woods and stepped onto the gravel driveway, his hair windblown from running. He kept his eyes lowered to the ground and walked towards me at a pace that would have been slow even for a human and silently took a seat on the stair beside me. He leaned over to absentmindedly kiss my cheek. "Hi," he greeted me, still looking at the ground.

"I take it car shopping with Jake didn’t exactly go as planned?" I guessed.

"No." He confirmed my suspicions. I knew how stubborn Jacob could be and suspected that his pride would not let him give in so easily. Judging from Edward’s forlorn expression, I was not far off the mark.

"So he wouldn’t let you buy him the Mustang you had picked out?" I guessed again.

"Oh, he let me buy him a Mustang alright!" Edward exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air in exasperation. "Bella…it was from a junkyard! A mid eighties model…not even from this millennia!" He dropped his head to his hands and looked completely dismayed. I pressed my lips into a tight line, trying with all my might to suppress the laughter that threatened to escape. "He insisted that he can fix it up," he continued, lowering his voice to imitate the words I could only too easily imagine Jacob saying. I fought harder to maintain my composure. "He even named it…Shelia."

"He named his car?" I had lost the battle with myself. I couldn’t help it as I burst into a fit of laughter.

"It’s not funny," Edward said, rounding on me, but he was laughing too at this point. "It’s not!"

"I’m sorry," I said, trying to regain my composure and stifle my giggles as he pulled me on to my lap. "You can’t always have your way, you know."

[BamaFan121s]

He buried his face in my hair inhaling deeply and then pulled me back and looked into my eyes deeply. He reached his finger up and traced the shadow under my eyes, as I had done him so many times before. "I told Jacob that we were going to hunt tonight and that we’d meet him and Renesmee in the clearing later." I nodded in agreement, recognizing the burning thirst that suddenly made its presence known at his mention of hunting. "And then when we get back," he murmured in my ear, "I will have my way with you." As he traced his fingers teasingly up my spine, a ripple of desire quickly replaced the thirst.

Moments later, we were running through the woods, following the not so tempting scent of a nearby heard of elk, along with Alice and Jasper who had decided to join us. It did not take us long to find the heard, and even less time to successfully take them down. To Alice’s delight, I managed to drain two full size does without getting so much as a single drop of blood on my clothes. "Very good, Bella," she mocked, in a voice that sounded more like she was praising Renesmee. I rolled my eyes at her, but couldn’t argue. My hunting techniques had drastically improved over the last few months.

The four of us stepped into the clearing together, but there was no sign of Jacob or Renesmee yet. As we waited, Alice looked thoughtfully up at the sky, her eyes staring blankly for a minute. "Oooh…there’s a big storm coming in tomorrow afternoon." She turned to us, the excitement on her face quickly being matched by that of Jasper and Edward.

"Perfect day for baseball," Edward commented, no doubt having seen the predicted weather conditions in Alice’s vision. He turned to me, a wicked smile playing on his lips. "I’m eager to see how your baseball skills match up to Emmett’s. He’ll be absolutely beside himself if you outperform him."

"Well, I don’t think he has to worry about that much longer, seeing as I can’t beat him at arm wrestling anymore," I said with a casual roll of my eyes. It was true, much to Emmett’s delight, the strength that I’d had as a newborn was fading and a few days prior, he’d finally claimed victory against me.

Truth be told, it was not beating Emmett that concerned me. My mind was preoccupied with the last game of Cullen style baseball I’d witnessed. It had resulted in disaster. Come to think of it, this was the first trip to the clearing I’d made that had been under favorable conditions. At that realization, I immediately began listening to every sound around us, trying to detect any sign of a threat. My eyes instinctively surveyed the spot where James, Victoria and Laurent had once emerged.

An involuntary shudder ran the course of my body. Edward, sensing my apprehension, but not the true source, wrapped his arms around me and kissed the top of my head. "Don’t worry yourself about it, Bella. You’ll do just fine." And he was right. It would be fine. There was no one here but the four of us. And I knew that even if three murderous vampires did suddenly appear, they wouldn’t pose any threat to us. It was absurd to let the memory of that fateful day have such an effect on me now. I forced the notion from my head and reprimanded myself for my overreaction.

"Of course it will be fine," I responded, casting him an excited smile of my own. "I’ll be with you—what could possibly go wrong?"

[livingdustmops]

I have really enjoyed reading your story..I am amazed at how good it is..I should have known but still...any chance I could get an autographed copy

I hope you enjoy writing like this as much as I have reading it....

[BamaFan121s]

LOL...thanks Cindy. It has surely been entertaining to write and entertaining for my aunt and a few friends I've shared it with. Too bad I can't find something to do with my time that would actually be productive... I'm, actually enjoying reading back through it now and proofreading as I post it. I've been working on it since Feb and have forgotten half of what I wrote!

[livingdustmops]

Originally Posted by BamaFan121s

LOL...thanks Cindy. It has surely been entertaining to write and entertaining for my aunt and a few friends I've shared it with. Too bad I can't find something to do with my time that would actually be productive... I'm, actually enjoying reading back through it now and proofreading as I post it. I've been working on it since Feb and have forgotten half of what I wrote!

Oh no...you are getting the dreaded "ICRS" brain...it is caused by old age...

You are very talented...I wish you could do it for a living, make a ton of $$$, and then buy all of your friends estate homes where we can all have our little doggies and just have fun and play all day. Did you notice where I said "we"...

[BamaFan121s]

The following day proceeded as normal - as normal as you could expect in a house full of vampires who received frequent visits from werewolves. The only noticeable difference was that this morning, it was Rosalie and Esme rather than Jacob who we found preparing Renesmee's breakfast when we arrived at the big Cullen house.



"Where's Jake?" I asked Esme. She was taking a pan of fresh biscuits out of the oven. They looked and smelled absolutely disgusting, although I imagined to a human they were quite appealing.

It was Rosalie who answered. "The mongrel called and said that he had some errands to run for Billy this morning but that he'd be over later." I tried to ignore the venom in her words as she acknowledged Jacob's whereabouts.

"Maybe he'll be able to get some of the parts for his car," I added thoughtfully.

Edward looked at me and winked behind Rosalie's back. "You know, Rose," he began in a tone laden with teasing. "You are our resident car aficionado. Why don't you help Jacob out?"

Rosalie froze, turning slowly to face Edward. Her grip on the spoon she was holding tightened, her porcelain knuckles turning even whiter as she easily bent the metal instrument into a useless, bent arrangement of silver. Her eyes became ice cold and the look she gave Edward was murderous. "And why in the hell would I do that?" She spat her words at him through clenched teeth.

"Rosalie!" Esme chided, casting an explanatory glance towards Renesme.

"Just to be polite and helpful?" Edward suggested with a note of false innocence in his voice. From the garage, I heard Emmett's roaring laughter. He had obvoiusly heard the exchange.

A hiss escaped Rosalie's lips. "I would rather throw myself on a fire than to help that mutt!" Rosalie's hand was shaking in anger around the misshapen spoon she still clutched.

"Don't call my Jacob a mutt!" Renesmee chimed in, turning the full force of her angelic, pleading eyes on her favorite aunt. That seemed to soften Rosalie a little. She resigned to muttering insults under her breath as she busied herself cleaning up the kitchen at an inhuman pace. I sat at the counter in the kitchen mindlessly flipping through Rosalie's lesson that she obviously had planned for the day. It appeared that she planned to continue teaching Renesmee about Italy as she had for the past few days, in preparation for our looming trip no doubt.

I flipped through the book, stopping to examine a picture of St. Mark's Square. On one page was a picture of the Basilica, an ancient looking stone building with a high domed points adorned with iron crosses and intricate, carved artists renderings inset in its many arches. The caption indicated that the original structure was burned during the 976 rebellion and remained closed for a century until it was rebuilt and that it now housed the Correr Museum. I flipped the page and froze when I saw the following images. On one page was a picture of a giant clock tower that adjoined the Basilica. On the opposite page was a picture of thousands of people filling the streets in celebration. The caption under the picture identified it as April 25th-St. Marcus Day.

Immediately, unwanted memories, as clear as if they had happened yesterday, filled my head. I'm not sure how long I stared at the two pictures. I was only suddenly aware that Edward had placed his hand over my own, which was trembling, gently forcing the book closed. His velvet voice whispered in my ear, so softly that only I would hear. "You're worried." It was a statement, not a question.

"Yes," I whispered, still staring down at where the pictures had been before me.

"Bella, it's still not too late to change our plans. We could stay here, no one would blame you."

"No," I replied, although the uncertainty in the one simple word wasn't convincing even to myself. I took a deep, unnecessary breath. "I think....I think I would like to talk to Alice."

"She's upstairs. Jacob's not here, so this may be a good time to talk to her. Maybe it will ease your mind some," he suggested, correctly interpreting the reason behind my request.

I found Alice upstairs, just as he'd predicted. She was on the computer. I glanced over her shoulder to see that she was looking up designer shops in Venice in typical Alice-fashion.

Before I could even address her, she turned in her seat to face me, with a very understanding smile on her face. "I know what's on your mind, Bella." She patiently waited for me to confirm that she was right. I nodded my head and she continued. "I've looked so many times at our trip, trying to find something to ease your mind....and mine too. No matter which way I approach it, the outcome is always the same. You know if I saw even the slightest chance of something happening..."

"I know Alice," I said softly, dropping my eyes to the ground. I knew that it was senseless to worry about something so trivial - something that Carlisle had complete confidence in, something that Alice had already seen a thousand times, but I couldn't help it.

[BamaFan121s]

"I understand why you're apprehensive, Bella. Honestly, I'd question your sanity if you weren't the slight bit nervous about it. Please trust me in this Bella. I assure you, I don't see any indication that we will have any trouble whatsoever in Italy."

"Really?" I asked.

"Really. And Edward has seen what I've seen too. And we've discussed it in great detail with Carlisle too."

"OK, Alice. I trust you. And Carlisle. I just needed...reassurance, I suppose."

At this, she seemed to relax. "Honestly, Bella, you are going to worry yourself gray prematurely." She laughed a little, her bell like voice filling the room.

I forced my face back into seriousness. "Alice?"

"Yes?"

"Do vampires get gray hair?" I teased.

"No, but I'm sure you'll be the first to find a way." Suddenly, her face went blank for a fraction of a second, pulling her face into a scowl. "Ooooh! I hate delayed flights!" She threw her hands up in frustration and spun back around to the computer, already rescheduling our flight before she'd finished her statement.

"Thanks, Alice. I'll let you get back to your planning." I turned and headed back for the stairs.

"Oh and Bella...don't pack your green jacket. You're not going to need it," she called over her shoulder.

"Alice...I didn't pack my green jacket."

"I know," she said, turning to flash me a quick grin. "But you were going to...and don't forget to get your passports together. I already have Edward's." She turned her attention back to the computer screen, her hands flying over the keys in search for different flights.

Once downstairs, I rummaged through my purse and pulled out mine and Renesmee's passports. I looked at Renesmee's marveling at how her appearance had changed in the few short months since the picture had been taken. She easily still resembled the picture, only older. I mused over the name...Vanessa Wolf. I didn't suppose the name mattered. I took both the documents and lay them on the counter for Alice.

After a quick peak in on Renesmee's lesson, I followed the sound of Edward and Emmett's voices to the garage. They were on the far side of the garage, standing in front of a massive steel cabinet, full of sporting goods and camping equipment. At the sound of my approach, Edward turned his attention to me. "Feel better?" he asked. He stepped forward to embrace me, leaning down to kiss the top of my head.

I nodded. "Yes...much. What are you two doing?"

"We're getting together the supplies for the baseball game," Emmett said as he stepped back from the cabinet. He inclined his head to acknowledge his arms which were full of gloves. He easily slung them in the back of his Jeep. "Why don't you two pry yourself off of each other long enough to help me out?"

Edward and I rolled our eyes at each other and turned to help him. I didn't want to admit it, but I really didn't know what ‘supplies' we actually needed. I stepped towards the cabinet, grabbed a few bats and walked around to put them in the back of Emmett's jeep as well. I held back one and turned it over, examining it closely. It felt feather light. I knew I'd never played baseball, or any other organized sport that I could recall off hand, but for some reason, there was something very familiar about the bat that I held in my hand. I peered at it, turning it over in my hands, trying to recall exactly what it was. I shrugged and reached forward to place it in the back of Emmett's jeep and picked up one of the balls from the back seat. Like the bat, there was something familiar about the small red and white sphere, but I couldn't quite place what it was. I turned it over, running my pale fingers over the stitching. I could easily discern every small flaw in the leather that covered it. I could count the threads in the intricate stitching, but I couldn't recall why I would feel a connection to the object.

Emmett's booming voice pulled me from my musing. "Those wolves don't honestly think they stand a chance against us, do they bro?"

I turned a confused expression towards him and Edward and raised a questioning eyebrow. "Wolves?"

Edward grinned at me widely. "Jacob and a few of his pack members are going to join use this afternoon."

Edward, Renesmee, Emmett and I rode to the clearing in his jeep. All the way, Emmett boasted about how easily we would beat our opponents. I rolled my eyes and focused on Renesmee who laughed hysterically with every bump we drove over in Emmett's four wheel drive. At long last, we arrived at the field, where we'd met the rest of the family.

[BamaFan121s]

We didn't have to wait for Jacob and his pack brothers long. By the time they'd arrived, Carlisle had paced off the bases and set them up, and we'd gotten all of the equipment from the Jeep. Thunder rolled in the background, just as Alice had predicted and in the distance orange lightning snaked its way though high, purple walls of clouds.

I began to hear a distant stirring in the leaves. "Well, their stench certainly travels before them." Rosalie sulked.

A minute later, Jacob emerged from the trees on the other side of the clearing. A step behind him was Seth, grinning widely, closely followed by Quil and Embry, and Claire, who ran forward to greet Renesmee. Then, my jaw dropped-emerging from the trees behind them were Sam, Paul, Jared, and Leah. Jacob hadn't brought a few of his pack members, he'd brought the half of the La Push werewolf population. Carlisle stepped forward to greet Sam, extending his hand in greeting. I took note that Sam reached forward, taking Carlisle's hand, showing no aversion.

Everyone seemed completely at ease...except for Leah, and Rosalie. Leah stood angled herself so that Sam and Set were between she and the vampires in the field, her face in a scowl and her fists clenched tightly. Rosalie, stood behind Emmett, her arms folded across her chest. She was adamantly explaining her disapproval over our rivals to Emmett, who seemed to be only agitating her further by ignoring her concerns.

Jacob, grinned widely at the expression on my face. His white teeth gleaming against his russet colored skin. "What? You didn't think we were going to let you guys outnumber us, did you?"

"Hey, if you want your whole pack to witness your annihilation, that's your call," Emmett said jokingly.

After a few minutes of light hearted ribbing, Carlisle explained the modified set of rules the Cullens had adapted to everyone. After everyone had been briefed, we broke apart, the electricity of the upcoming game radiating from all sides, matching that in the air from the nearby storm.

Jacob clapped his hands together in front of him and facing off against a gloating Emmett. Renesmee sat perched upon his broad shoulders, her face eager with excitement. "You leeches ready to get beat, Quiluete style?"

Rosalie looked seethingly at Jacob and taunted him. "Wouldn't your kind be more equipped for a game of Go Fetch?"

Suddenly, I had reached my limit. The insulting comments, the constant bickering...I snapped. "That's enough!" My bell-like voice rang out through the clearing, silencing all of those around us. I felt my muscles tensing and my shield blurred my vision red around the sides. I didn't know who to direct my anger towards. I slowly backed away from them so that I could face them both. "I have had it with your constant arguing with one another!" I saw the shock on Rosalie's face as she froze in place. Jacob slowly returned Renesmee to the ground, all traces of humor gone from his face. She heeded his instruction and ran off to peer back at me with wide, tear filled eyes from behind Esme. "This...ends...NOW!" My voice ripped through an entire octave and echoed back from the canvas of trees surrounding the clearing.

Unsure if they truly grasped the extent of my frustration, I felt fury building up within my body. I backed up a few more paces and felt my body reflexively curling into a crouching position. I felt a growl building in my chest threatening to burst free at the moment I lost my composure. From the corner of my eye, I saw Leah take a step forward clearly intent on defending Jacob, her face twisted in outrage. Before she could take a second step, Sam slung his massive arm forward to stop her. He shook his head silently when she looked to him confused, clearly having been forbidden from intervening.

I sensed Edward cautiously moving closer to me from behind and waited to feel his hands find my shoulders to restrain me, but they did not come. Instead, with a slight edge of concern, he merely uttered one single word, a directive. "Jasper."

I felt Jasper taste the mood around me and sensed it as he tried to calm me and resisted, even though I knew my shield was immune to his gift. I didn't want to be calmed. I wanted to put an end to this situation and I was willing to do so by whatever means necessary. "Stay OUT of this, Jasper!" I threatened through clenched teeth. I felt the vibration of my shield as it stretch crept forward, no longer only in my peripheral. I deliberately stalked forward a pace, looking first to Jacob and then to Rosalie, daring one of them to make the first move. They both still wore a mask of shock on their faces and had not yet reacted to defend themselves. Jacob began slowly backing up, his hands extended forward, palms upturned, indicating that he had no intent on fighting me.

Several feet behind them, I saw Esme's panicked expression as she shielded Renesmee's eyes and turned with her, putting some distance in between them and the fight that was brewing before them. I felt the tension in the air and sensed the other pack members shifting nervously. From the corner of my eye, I saw Leah and Jared fighting to control the tremors that were rippling down their bodies.

"Jasper..." Edward trailed off, urging his brother to help control the situation.

"I'm trying, Edward," Japser responded. I could hear the strain in his voice as he tried again to wash over me with a wave of calmness.

I was on the brink of losing it. "Jasper, I said stay OUT!" I ordered. My demand was interrupted as my ears were met with another feral snarl. To the left of me, I turned to see Jasper now in full hunting crouch. He stalked towards me, his eyes murderous and his gaze intent.

Ignoring reason, my defensive instincts took over and I turned to face my brother. I looked into his eyes and saw a familiar spark that I had only seen once in my life. His fierce golden eyes indicated that his intentions were clear - the same intention that had been there on the night of my eighteenth birthday washed over his face once more. The same desire for one thing and one thing only - to kill me.

[sugarmamma]

I just had to......

[miabellaamoure]

Do share...

[frevrangel]

just a quick note to let you know that I think your writing is amazing. I really loved the Twilight series and cannot wait for Eclipse to come to theaters.

[Tessa Arnold]

awesome