It was strange for Bella to put things into perspective - the last time the vampires visited she wasn't even born and the next time they will visit, they will already be living in an entirely different area for twenty years. Nessie will be all grown up by then, their Quileute friends won't be shifting and they will inevitably start aging. For Bella, it was almost hysterical how much time they wasted in vain by only seeing others this seldomly. For her, since she still wasn't a vampire for long enough, it seemed that vampires are vain beings, really. On the other hand, putting things in perspective made her realize how much is going to change and how much they'll all miss Forks. They were leaving behind a very special place, in the end. Surely, they'll be visiting Charlie as often as they get the opportunity to and Jacob made Emmett promise that he'll pop by so they can hang out and catch up every now and then. Surprisingly, most of the Quileutes made a truce with the Cullens - a truce which formed into a friendship after Aro and his coven visited Forks.

To everyone's surprise, the one who was seemingly about to miss the Cullens the most was Seth Clearwater; the youngest shape-shifter loved everything about La Push and Quileutes, while also paying an omnipresent tribute to his heritage, and yet, he maintained great relationships with the Cullens - even with Rosalie, which was surely a superpower. At moments, he looked up to Esme as to the motherly figure she naturally was, other times he cooked with Edward or caused havoc by Emmett and Jacob's side. The boy loved to hang around and talk to anyone who had the time and mood for a chat; he didn't mind listening about all of the various and strange things vampirism brought, such as their strange life experience or the strangest cravings which oftentimes seemed to be removed far from a regular person's every-day reality.

Therefore, this gathering was supposed to be special - the Cullens wished their friends to meet the shape-shifters as well as they hoped to make this small departure party something special for the pack to remember. As Carlisle and Emmett discussed this issue while standing in the kitchen, a furrow formed on Esme's heart-shaped face when she heard the issue on hand. For a moment, the woman put the sandwich she was preparing for her granddaughter back on the countertop, watching the men with her mouth wide open. That was until Rosalie, another member of the family, walked into the kitchen. The blonde waltzed to her boyfriend's side, kissing his shoulder softly.

"I think it's a great idea. It'll be really fun." - She said, finally making Esme blip back into reality as she forcefully closed the peanut butter jar. "... As well as very dangerous." - Esme muttered, knowing well that all three vampires heard her really well. Carlisle smiled warmly, looking at his wife; yet, Emmett was the first to answer Esme's remark. "Hey, if the wolfies wouldn't want to take part in this, they wouldn't agree in the first place. Don't spoil the fun, Esme, come on." - Saying this, Emmett put one of his palms on his hip and brought Rosalie even closer with his other arm. At this point, another member of the family was getting engaged in the conversation - Edward put the book he was reading down on his thighs, shifting his position on the couch he was sitting on. Suddenly, he was leaning closer toward his family members, holding his jaw in his fingers as he listened to both what was said and what was thought.

"My point is, there will be broken... Actually, let me rephrase this. There will be shattered bones if you won't be careful enough. In that case, you'll have to take care of that, do you all realize that?" - The vampire opposed with worries in her voice, watching her children and husband with small rageful flames in her eyes. Then, Esme let out a long breath to empathize with what she just said and wiped her palms in her apron, still having a wrinkle between her eyebrows. Realizing the deal was probably sealed already made her worried. - "Well, it seems you already talked to the pack, what am I supposed to say now? What did they say?" "Oh, Seth was over the moon, probably celebrating for a whole week Jake seemed to be on board, and the rest of the shirtless pack... They took it as a challenge, they promised they'll swing by." - Emmett explained simply, shrugging his shoulders with a playful smile - at that point, the walking bulk of muscles leaned his bottom into the couch which squealed, having Esme pray she won't have to buy a new one... Sixth in the last two years. Edward chuckled upon hearing so, looking at Esme as well. "Over the moon? Seth was out of his mind if I'm assuming correctly." - Edward said, still smiling at Esme. - "I wouldn't be this worried about the shifters joining in on our game. As Emmett said, if they wouldn't want to play football with us, they'd decline the invitation in the first place. The way we know Sam, he wouldn't willingly endanger his pack... Neither would Jacob. If they both think it's fine to join in, it's safe for them."

"Can you... Imagine their faces when they'll learn that we invited shape-shifters?" - The woman opposed nonetheless, looking at all four of them as she angrily rubbed jello onto Nessie's sandwich. She wasn't letting her motherly instincts go that easily, it was Esme after all. Sure, the vampires could take of themselves and the Quileutes could too, but that didn't mean there won't be any injuries; sure, the shape-shifters were capable of healing inhumanly fast and their friend sure had plenty of experience re-assembling themselves, but still... "Catching them off-guard like this doesn't seem like the best idea to me, especially after knowing them for centuries. WE might be friends with people living in the reserve, but our families have years of experience with one another. Them? They haven't met each other, not a single time. As far as we know, our family is the only one that has good relationships with shape-shifters."

To explain who the shape-shifters were, it was wisest to start at the beginning. La Push, a nature reserve in near proximity to Forks, was home to indigenous people, the tribe known as Quileutes. Having centuries of tradition and history, some of their most famous stories said that they descended from wolves, from which form they were changed by the Transformer, Q'wati. Only recent stories started to involve the Cold Ones, aka vampires, yet the tribe always seemed the wolves as their ancestors. Truth be told, while smelling a vampire's scent might've been a starter for one's transformation, their existence of them was the last reason for the shape-shifters' existence. The wolves might've been dormant for years, yet everyone carried a piece of them inside and they were doing so with pride. The mutual relationship between Cullens and the Protectors was rocky for quite a long time, to say the least, but the latest event changed them for the better. Quite some time had passed since the Volturi visited Forks, which was caused by the unnatural circumstances surrounding Renesmee's birth - the issue was, thankfully, resolved with both the Quileutes and the Volturi and has since been put to sleep. Since then, everyone seemed to be getting along just fine. And each shape-shifter now willingly agreed to say their goodbyes to the Cullens, taking them up on this challenge. Since the coven was about to leave Washington soon, there won't be no more reason to keep the wolves awake. Soon enough, the Protectors will be allowed to go to sleep.

Aging was another interesting issue the shape-shifters had to deal with was aging. While they aged mentally, their bodies didn't age a day ever since the cycle had started. That meant that since 2006, none of the La Push residents changed in regards to their appearance while they had time to explore themselves as individuals, they grew wiser and well... Older. Actually, talking strictly about Jacob Black and Seth, this might've been a piece of false information, just like when talking about Emmett. Their similar mental sets were probably the reason the vampire and the shape-shifter became the very best of friends; this information was known to everyone and everyone was also okay with it. More so, this led to an agreement upon continuous camping trips after the Cullens leave Forks as well as it allowed the two families to promise that they'll be on keeping in touch. Rosalie still pretended she doesn't have a clue about visiting Jake sometime after they'll move out, yet she already counted on coming along.

"Esme..." - Emmett said rather dramatically, looking into his mother's eyes, bringing her back into reality and to the topic of their friends freaking out. - "Ariadne already asked about them multiple times, right after we told her we met them for the first time. And our Canadian lad? I wouldn't be worried..." "That he is a she." - Esme muttered under her breath, correcting her son patiently. "She's looking for new challenges and things to explore constantly." - Emmett corrected himself patiently, making sure there was an emphasis on the word she. - "She's probably older than any of us and by the way..." "We don't even really know if she's Canadian." - Edward said with amusement, listening to Emmett's thoughts. The buffed vampire put his hands over his chest, turning at his brother with his typical lazy smile. - "She's residing in Canada as of the last few centuries for all we know, and that's why she's Canadian for all I care. We know, Emmett." - Edward remarked upon looking into Emmett's mind.

Since the conversation was going off rails anyway, all of the vampires exchanged a few last looks and left the room, attending to their own business. If Alice was residing in the Cullen residence at the time of speaking, she would've immediately started to decorate the house, preparing for the visit; yet since she and Bella decided on a short vacation somewhere in the Amazon, Rosalie and Jasper had to take on the task themselves. As per usual, Alice spent hours on the phone with them, passing on her vision so everything would be perfect. As many times before, Rosalie muttered multiple times that the house doesn't need any decoration for this kind of visit, yet Alice insisted on it, having Bella giggling in the background the entire time. She also confirmed, in a rather jolly tone, that the game will most likely take place - her visions had rather big black spots, meaning the shape-shifters were inclined on accepting the invitation.

As soon as Bella learned about the occasion, she was quite pumped. The woman hadn't seen her former best friend for some time now; neither the rest of the La Push crew and she was looking forward to catching up with them. While Bella turned her back on her former friends (not seeing eye to eye with Jacob was the main reason for such action), Nessie regularly visited the reserve, spending time with Leah, Emily, and Seth, with whom she was best friends. Quil Ateara took Nessie under his wings, watching over the girl as if she was his little sister; both Bella and Edward knew how dangerous it could be to rip Nessie away from the pack; that was also the reason why they planned on keeping her in such close contact with the Quileutes. It was officially safe to say that all coven members, aside from Esme, were very excited about this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

As the guests started to gather in the Cullen family house, the stormy weather was gathering up in the mountains... Perfect for the sports occasion. Talking about the arriving vampires, it could be more or less said that all of them were Carlisle's friends from his youth, and knowing Carlisle was millions of years old (according to Emmett's calculations). the age of his vampire friends was changing drastically - meaning all of these former humans were changed at various points in history. To ensure all of the introductions will go smoothly, Jasper acted as a mediator, watching over the conversations between Nessie and the visitors; the man watched over the conversations with his eyes narrowed, explaining every detail to the newcomers with nerves of steel. Especially to Ariadne, who was fascinated by how Nessie was not only born but also conceived.

First to arrive was Chloe, as she decided to call herself at that point in time all the way from her home in Norway; her skin was the color of warm sepia, her rich curly hair reached her waist and there was this varmint spark her smile and eyes which made others feel like she's about to cause mischief any second. To Nessie, she was one of the most beautiful vampires she had ever seen - which was a true compliment, given the girl was surrounded by very attractive people all her life. When asked about the time she was changed, she assumed it could be sometime in the 17th century, so she was probably very close in age with Carlisle. Truth be told, her memories of her human life were very foggy and limited. Aaron, her boyfriend, and partner, had surprisingly warm and peachy skin, making him almost seem alive. Next to Chloe's varmint, it could be felt that Aaron is a good-willed idiot (which he said himself.), someone who could be described as a ray of sunshine. Interestingly enough, he seemed to go with the newest fashion trends; his short hair was permed, and he had a golden septum in his nose - about which Aaron said to Nessie that he knew the hole might not grow back together, but he very much enjoyed the rebellious vibe he was giving off as soon as he put it in. Aaron also wasn't changed anywhere near her time - Chloe found him in a car crash just seventy years ago. Reminiscing on the night they met, Aaron shily admitted he thought that an angel was sent to take him to heaven, and in delirium, he agreed to be turned - for Chloe, it was love at first sight.

The other two expected visitors (mentioned Ariadne and the Canadian) were both female; Nessie met Ariadne first since the Canadian was taking her sweet-ass time with her dramatic arrival as per usual. If Nessie asked any of the Cullens to describe Ariadne, they'd start by emphasizing her undying interest in human conflicts and the newest movements dealing with various ecological and humanitarian issues. She wasn't changed too long ago, Ari admitted to Renesmee openly, only back in the 60s'. The vampire looked rather young in her appearance, being only 18 at the time of her change. Since Nessie was curious about the circumstances, she admitted that it was Carlisle, who turned her after a demonstration going downhill. She couldn't reside in her hometown in Mexico anymore, due to being turned, yet she talked about how beautiful the place can be during the night - with a soft smile, Ariadne also told Nessie about her people's traditions and attempted to describe to Nessie her ma's best recipes. Her ma, as it turned out, was still living in Cancún. Ariadne, on the other hand, was forced to watch her family from the shadows, never quite having the chance to walk back into the door now that she was turned into a vampire. The story took Nessie's breath away and she started weeping a bit.

Last, yet not least, there was her. The one who Emmett was looking out of, the one who he waited for hours, standing with his arms crossed over his chest as he furrowed into the distance. Emmett described her as his sister in arms, especially when it came to rushed decisions, dumb ideas, and tormenting Edward with their synchronized telepathic singing; which was usually as false as they could achieve. As Nessie asked Emmett about the mysterious visitor, it could be seen that her uncle is barely containing his excitement - making the teenager excited as well. While the Canadian was one of Carlisle's oldest friends, the mischievous duo clicked since the time they met on the very first occasion. Rosalie muttered the two of them act like wild, untamed animals as soon as they're left alone for longer than two minutes - Nessie could see that her aunt is very much fond of the stranger, though.

None of them knew Y/N's story and it was quite possible she didn't know it herself - to their frustration, she also locked these thoughts in a huge iron box anytime Edward was nearby, so it was almost impossible for him to decipher it. As Emmett put it bluntly, she was old; and that wasn't meant to be a bad thing. She didn't even bother counting how long she was roaming the Earth, neither did she know how old she was in human years precisely and only one thing was sure - this one was way older than any of them. Neither she nor Carlisle talked or thought about the time they spent together in the past, none of the Cullens knew how they exactly met... Except for the two of them. The only thing the other Cullens knew about their relationship was also the fact that the thought of Carlisle joining the Volturi was so unbearable to her that the two vampires stopped talking for almost two centuries - and only started to see each other once Carlisle found her in the Russian wilderness, owning to the mistake he made with trusting the Italian coven. The relationship between the Canadian and the Volturi, was surely hostile and volatile, but they never really sent their gifted to track her down; whether it was because of her bond with the Cullen family or her potential personal value to Aro was to be debated.

Truth be told, Y/N was always a loner; she never bothered to hide her appreciation for loneliness and personal freedom. The woman wasn't the type to keep a long-term company around, she never stuck with any vampire for longer than a year before abandoning the relationship altogether. In addition, she always claimed that these little gatherings were doing it for her, ensuring she was aware of their home being a loving and welcoming one she could come back to any time. It was unlikely, yet she was content with the piece of knowledge itself. The woman also claimed to have an alleged bullshit meter inside her head and Edward neither confirmed nor denied this alleged superpower.

Nessie, enchanted by meeting all of the other visitors, was sitting on the porch, rocking herself in a chair as she worked on a sketch of Chloe's profile - truth be told, the girl was unable to take her eyes off the vampire. Jasper was sitting on the stairs, craving a small wooden statuette as he hummed a song. And suddenly, they both stopped upon hearing a roaring engine closer and closer to the house. Edward came out of the house with his palms in his pockets, grinning already; Jasper bumped his shoulder, grinning the same way. "Are you sure?" - The southern boy muttered, already chuckling. "It's our little tradition by now, I'm sure I can handle her." - With that, Edward looked over to Nessie, signaling that she should go inside the house for a bit. The teenager took a breath to oppose her father, yet as soon as he read her thoughts, all of her arguments were in vain. - "I want her to meet Bells first, you know how important her friendship is to Carlisle. Surely, there's nothing that can go wrong." "I know." - Jasper smiled before rushing back inside, joining Chloe and Nessie in the living room as the two women started a game of chess, grinning as he listened to the two discussing men and boys. As per usual, Nessie talked solely about Seth Clearwater, for whom she, quite obviously Jasper had to admit, had the hots - none of them took this crush seriously, though; Seth was one of the sweetest and most honest boys the Cullens had ever met and he really didn't seem to think about her of more as his friend's daughter and his own friend.

A few short minutes later, Nessie's attention shifted elsewhere; a bright red cabriolet stopped right in front of their house with a loud roar. As was expected, there was a woman sitting behind the steering wheel - Nessie could tell she was a vampire due to her beauty, and even though, she was dressed in rather campy clothes and... Smoking a cigarette as she scanned her father from his toes to the top of his head. Little needed to be said, her arrival caught the attention of many; those who already knew her simply rolled their eyes and chuckled upon seeing her ride. Bella, however, watched the newcomer with true confusion. Thinking back about it, Carlisle probably should've warned the new family members about his friend and her need for a bit of... Drama. Edward, however, seemed amused by Y/N. "You might be aware of this at this point of your existence..." - The man mumbled and walked over to the cabriolet with his palms in the pockets of his jeans. - "... But vampires cannot really smoke. Doesn't bring the desired effect." "Oh, boo-hoo, who said it doesn't?" - The woman answered back, snarky amusement almost tangible in her voice. Her eyes snapped up to look at him, her palm moving her sunglasses down to the tip of her nose. As Edward read the print on her t-shirt (Let's go, lesbians, let's go!), he had to let out a sharp chuckle. - "I look fucking cool for someone who watched public executions at the height of their fame, huh? But enough about me getting closer to the young folk, what about you? We still sad or we feeling better, Ed? Are you still hunting down the bad guys and killing them in the still of the night?"

This was part of the conversation which made Bella reveal herself as she stared at the newcomer. Canadian, however, didn't turn her gaze away from Edward. At this point, Y/N started to get out of the vehicle, patting Edward on his shoulder. For someone who didn't know the relationship between her and the Cullen family, it might've been a wee bit too far but this was an old joke. It came to being back when Edward went rogue and did God knows what God knows where. From that point on, it was always the first question Y/N dropped when walking into the Cullen household. As Edward took a breath in to answer, Bella started talking instead. "Correct me if I'm wrong but Charlie wouldn't let her ride through Forks in a car like this." "What's wrong with my Cabrio?" "Have you ever seen the weather in Forks? Also, wearing sunglasses in this weather as well as smoking while driving? No way he'd let you slip past him." "Oh..." - Edward chuckled again as he read through Y/N's mind, looking over to Bella. - "Trust me, Charlie didn't."

"Oh, now that I'm thinking about it, there was this cop who pulled me over, yes. He wasn't too happy about me riding through his town with the music blasting and me smoking, but he let me off pretty easily after I told him I'm here to visit the Cullens. We chatted for a bit before he let me go, he was pretty charming, to be honest." - The Canadian explained, rolling her eyes as she stopped the engine; the strange vampire stiffened and widened her eyes as she stared at Y/N. "That cop is my dad." - This made the Canadian straighten up as she looked at Bella properly for the first time. This was the moment, Edward thought to himself as he let the two women deal with the introductions. It caught Y/N's attention immediately; this vampire was a newborn. Not exactly, but she was freshly changed. She still gave off a rather clumsy vibe, she was also quirky and twitchy. This could be due to the fresh change or it could be just... Weird mannerisms. Alice was also quirky and didn't stand in one place for too long... It was actually a part of Alice's charm. This could only mean one thing only - Carlisle expanded his coven again. And suddenly, her attention was drawn away from Bells.

That smell. That strange smell of inhuman blood. The distant sound of a heartbeat. Heartbeat. The Canadian looked up at Edward horrifiedly, taking her sunglasses off. As mentioned previously, her beef with Volturi ran deep and was as old as time; naturally, this was what Edward was worried about. The Canadian was freaking out. And it was his mess to explain. "Did you manage to drive yourself insane? You now don't only want to play with your life only, you're getting off endangering your entire coven?" - The vampire growled in Edward's direction, not paying an ounce of attention to Bella. - "A human? Here? Do you even realize how much trouble..." "It's my daughter, Y/N, her name is Nessie." - Edward explained silently. - "She isn't a vampire... But she isn't a human. This is her mother and my wife, Isabella." - Carefully, he explained. Edward didn't truly know what the Volturi was, he only just heard about the grudge you held towards the coven. It was important to enlighten you before you'd enter the house and flip out. - "Don't spare me the entire tirade about how dangerous could Volturi be. They've already checked on the issue, it's resolved." "Did you..." "No." - Edward didn't even let you finish the question, never letting Bella know what you were about to ask. The talk ended there and then. No more questions to be asked... Until later. Suddenly, there was a cute smile on your face as you shook Bella's palm with yours.

"Yikes about that situation with your dad, could you pass him that I'm terribly sorry if I gave him the creeps? I just liked to leave an impression. Nice to meet you, Bella, name's Y/N." - As Bella shook your palm, you pointed at Edward. - "I take it as a sign of Edward not enjoying being melodramatic, then. Don't worry though, Emmett and I will come up with something we can make fun of him for very soon.". - With that, Y/N waltzed right into the house full of vampires. As expected, Emmett, except Carlisle, was the most pumped to see her again. The two of them hugged immediately mumbling something along themselves. - "Great, now there's two monkey men instead of one." - Rosalie chimed in, bringing the woman into a tight embrace as well. After saying hi to everyone and being introduced to Renesmee (by whom you were literally enchanted; especially by her supernatural skills), all of you gathered around the bonfire and talked until dawn. Nessie fell asleep around midnight, which was a sign for you to talk about more... Unpleasant topics, including what had happened in the last twenty years.

For Bella, it was interesting to see a vampire supposedly older than Carlisle fully in touch with the human world, all of its vanities, and the most modern trends. She was sure you were more informed than the Cullens themselves, which was undeniably impressive. After that, though, you asked a whole lot of questions about the Volturi incident. You weren't horrified, no, you were definitely upset by the insanity of the lengths the Cullens had gone to for Bella. The other visitors were slightly confused by the story, but mostly kept to themselves; your reactions were, however, on full display. "I kinda hoped you'd turn up on our doorstep as soon as Carlisle started gathering some of his friends." - Emmett admitted as you sat side by side, still letting the information sink in. "About that... I was a tidbit busy with deep existential themes, I had to take some alone time in the trench. I spent the last six years there if I'm recalling correctly, I needed some real isolation. My memory ain't be what it used to." "Ah, so that's why they couldn't find you anywhere... This would be the story of our lives, can you imagine? You and me, arm in arm against the Volturi." "Oh, we'd definitely popped Aro's head off... What a sight to be imagined. You see, though, being a vampire gets really fucking boring after a few centuries. After being here for long as I have, you sometimes experience this suffocating need to get away from everything." - The woman explained as if nothing was happening, yet her tone was giving away how saddened she felt. - "I feel like I let you down with this and I cannot express how sorry I am. If I even had the slightest suspicion... Of course, I'd be here. The only thing I wish I'd see is Aro realizing he got beaten in his own game and then... If he'd hurt any of my people... All three of them have to know I'm out there waiting for the smallest reason to burn Volterra to the ground, they aren't forgetful nor stupid though."

Both of you started to be wary as you heard a slight shuffle on the balcony. The breathing and rising heartbeat gave the poor girl away as she was spying on you. Her curiosity was stronger than staying asleep. Thus, Emmett felt like a joke was in order. "So now we're your people, huh? Seem to me you've taken the role of Mr. Sad and melodramatic." - The man poked into your side, making you giggle. "Oh, shut up. Deep inside, you're really happy to see me." "We definitely are!" - Alice proclaimed out of nowhere and jumped over the sofa to sit beside you, putting her arm over your shoulder. - "Not like we are angry with you or anything. We managed. Love the t-shirt by the way." - The gentle vampire muttered, making you sure she means it to some extent. The woman was strictly into designer clothes to which you were kind of indifferent. You had the money, without a doubt, but you preferred funny prints. "I hope you are not mad at me, gee. Also, thank you very kindly. I knew you'd absolutely love it." "You still ditched us, though." - Emmett said jokingly, making you grin at him.

"While we're chatting, I had one thing on my mind... Why do you want to set out on a hunt later? I wanted to set off to hunt grizzly bears tomorrow. Chloe was also wondering about this." - You asked out of the blue, making Chloe show you a thumbs up as she overheard the question. To prove your point, you pointed at her and expected your answer. To your dismay, neither of the siblings gave you a clear answer; the only response was a secretive smile they exchanged so quickly that you almost missed it. Needless to be said, neither answered your further questions, so you gathered in the living room to go through a list of songs you wanted to sing to Edward really badly - each being more annoying than the previous one. Ed also knew that by this point he should really know better than to listen to your thoughts; yet this torment was a part of the tradition and it was honestly pretty endearing; except that one when Emmett spent three hours rapping every Eminem song backward, making both of them fail a pretty important exam back at school.

"Good morning." - Chloe smiled at everyone sitting in the living room, playing various card games. The hunt was over for almost four hours now, so you needed to find a different form of entertainment before the Cullens reveal their secret. As per usual, something as simple as a greeting managed to set off a bomb consisting of three idiots precisely - Emmett, you and Alice, Aaron joining on this very sporadically. The rest of the vampires, including Nessie, simply answered and got it over with... Alice furrowed at Chloe though, acting as if she didn't hear correctly.

"Morning?" "Yea, that's not gonna fly here, missy." - You chimed in, muttering it as you put your joker card on the table. As soon as Chloe heard this, she just rolled her eyes and joined in on helping Esme with a hoard of sandwiches. "That's like... Formal vampire knowledge." - Emmett joined in silently, trying to figure out what you're gonna do next. - "Vampires don't sleep." "You can't wish good morning to someone who doesn't sleep." "Thanks for reminding us of our misery, big appreciation for that." "Shut up, you three." - Chloe said as she laughed silently.

Not even five minutes later, you took a stroll into the kitchen, watching the mass of food Esme put together. The woman started to go through the snacks, some were sweet, some had meat, and some were vegan-friendly. - "This is getting freaky, what is this for? Did you invite the entire Forks to watch us?" "Well, not Forks exactly..." - Esme smiled, teasing you a bit more. The look in her eyes told you that she'll finally let you in on what was going to happen. - "The boys invited a few of our friends from La Push as a surprise. "Wait." - Chloe stopped in her tracks, setting the knife aside. - "Carlise warned us... Years ago, going near the ravine leading to La Push was strictly forbidden due to this pact you made with the people living there." - Esme simply nodded in agreement. "A lot has changed in the past few years, along with the relationship. They are looking forward to meeting you." "That is actually..." "Pretty freaking cool." - You admitted, tapping the countertop with your palm. Esme was waiting for your reaction, but your expression didn't give away much more than amusement and determination. - "I'll get ready to kick some shape-shifter ass, then."

Two hours later, the entire coven as well as the rest of you, set on your way. Atypically for vampires, you decided for a long hike; in case Nessie would be tired, someone would carry her on their back - the hike was, however, interspersed by a climbing competition between you and Emmett. To please Alice, all of you put on expensive designer sports clothes she ordered some time in advance. Funnily enough, the clothes made you look like a true team. Rosalie, as per usual, was the best-looking, but any of you looked particularly bad nor you felt bad moving around in the clothes. Bella named herself the chief photographer, taking various photos throughout the walk; there was a photo of Edward hugging Nessie around her shoulder as they both smiled happily, of Alice blowing a kiss to the camera, of Jasper wearing one of his many famous cowboy hats, of Rosalie, who was pointing a deer hidden in the forest, of you and Carlisle talking as the sun shined on you (Bella thought that you're both looking like angels in said photo), of Chloe carrying Nessie on her back as they both laughed, of you and Emmett absolutely losing it as you almost cried of laughter - all of these photos were to be a beautiful memory of one happy weekend. Everyone was in a happy, jolly mood.

Then, Nessie shyly asked what 'taking time off in a trench meant precisely, to which you replied you spent the last six years at the bottom of the Mariana trench, hunting various predators to keep your hunger in check. Suddenly, out of nowhere, you pulled out a whole story about how you wrestled with a shark somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean, taking the girl's breath away in an instant. As Alice listened to the story, giggling at it, suddenly all emotion faded away from her face - it happened at the moment you and Emmett walked into the open, letting the pack of werewolves see you for the first time. Alice was unsure as to approach it, so she simply watched your back, seeing... Nothing. There was nothing in your future, nothing she could see for sure. Panic was overtaking her - were you about to die in the next few moments? If not...