Chapter 5 - Friendship

Tara sifted through Carlisle's library during the early hours of the morning, looking for something to read. She found one of her favorite classics, The Count of Monte Cristo then curled up on a couch in the den to quietly enjoy her book. Before she could finish the first chapter however, Alice appeared out of nowhere greeting Tara as she strolled in the room. "Good morning!" she said with a suspiciously, cheerful grin on her face.
"Hey Alice," she replied as she looked up and smiled, she then returned her attention back to her book.
Tara had no idea that she was about be drafted for a makeover. Alice could no longer stand to see the girl go another day in the same outfit. It also bothered her that the girl's long stringy hair hung in her face. She described her to Edward as looking quite "homeless". In Tara's defense however, Edward reminded her that up until now, the girl was in fact homeless. She felt the girl was simply just a rare gem that just needed a little polishing and she decided it would be her mission to improve on the her appearance.
When Tara realized Alice was still standing there, her eyes slowly panned up from her book. The tiny vampire stood in front of her holding dress in one hand and had a very large grin on her face. "Are you busy? I thought we'd have some girl time. You can always read that later can't you?" Alice suggested.
Tara took a good look at the dress in Alice's hand. "Um...are we going somewhere?"
"Nope, I just thought…or well, I hoped, you'd let me give you a little makeover. Bella and Renesmee let me do it all the time and they love it." Or so she believed.
"Oh, well… I don't really do dresses," she said politely while staring at the frilly item, covered in pink and white lace. “I wouldn't be caught dead in that thing,” Tara thought.
"No problem, I've got lots of stuff that will fit you. Come on, be a sport, it'll be fun! I can do so much with your hair. It will look very fashionable, I promise. I found the perfect style for you." She held up a copy of Elle with a photo of Katy Perry on the front.
Tara's eyes widened. "You wanna give me a hair cut too?"
"Yes, you're in dire need of one - no offense." Alice ran her fingers through Tara's hair, checking for split ends.
"Why? What's wrong with my hair?"
"It just needs a little attention. Don't worry, I've done this before. You'll look adorable when I'm done with you. Pretty please?" Alice gave her a pair of sad eyes as she begged.
Tara remembered Bella mentioning that Alice loved fashion and had even been to beauty school recently. She didn't want to hurt her feelings so she agreed.
Alice grabbed Tara's hand and practically dragged her into the bathroom, which looked like she'd turned it into a mini salon.
"Uh, makeup too?" Tara really didn't like makeup.
"Just a tiny bit, I promise."
Tara reluctantly sat down to let Alice go to work. She washed Tara's hair in the sink, dried it and combed it through, getting all the snarls out. Then she cut it exactly like the picture. Her hands worked very fast. Once she finished blow drying and styling it, she worked on Tara's face, sticking to her promise not to overdo it with the cosmetics.
As the transformation process began, Alice rambled on about her life speaking of her love for Jasper, and how they found each other. She also mentioned how she spent years locked in an asylum and how she thinks she chopped off her hair while she was there. Tara took notice to Alice's wild, spiky hair-do. Though the edges were choppy and uneven, she thought she managed to make it work well.
When it was finished, Tara looked at herself in the mirror. She almost didn't recognize herself, especially since her eye color started changing now. They were no longer the intense burgundy she'd always known.
The makeover wasn't the worst thing she'd experienced she thought but not something she could see herself doing daily. She liked the simpler, much shorter hair style, stopping at her shoulders and cut off evenly all the way around.
"Well…what do you think?" Alice asked.
"I think I look almost… human."
Alice laughed.
After the sun had come up…..
Seth headed to the Cullen's late in the morning. He drove the old bike Jacob had put together for Bella when Edward was absent from her life. Jacob had decided to give it to him as a birthday present when he turned sixteen just two years ago. Seth happily accepted it and got his license so he could ride it legally. It was currently his only form of transportation but he loved his bike.
In the past three years, his bond with Jacob became almost inseparable. Seth frequently accompanied Jacob to the Cullen's home when he came to see Renesmee. He'd always been much more accepting of the Cullens than most of the wolves, developing a friendship with them that the rest of the pack considered unusual. The Cullens also considered him just as much of a member of the family as their own, especially Edward and Bella who felt very grateful for everything he did for them. This time however, Seth had a new reason for visiting the Cullen house. When Esme answered the door, he greeted her with a compliment. "Hey, Mrs. C. You look lovely today." He smiled. He simply adored Esme and she also cared for him and Jacob like they were one of her own.
"Why thank you, Seth." She smiled back. "Is everything ok? You really worried me the other night, when you ran off without even eating."
"Oh yeah…sorry, I just had some business to tend to. Nothing personal."
"Well I'm glad to hear that." She smiled. "Jacob and Nessie aren't here, though. You just missed them."
"Oh, that's okay. I was hoping I'd catch your house guest here. Is she in?"
"Yes, Tara's up in Nessie's room right now. Is there a problem?" she worried.
"Oh no. I just have something for her. A peace offering, you could say. Do you mind if I go talk to her?" he asked politely.
Esme opened the door wider to let him in. "Not at all. Come in," she smiled warmly.
"Thanks." He slipped in and dashed up the stairs, heading down the hall to the last room. As he got closer he heard a voice. Someone was singing and it came from Renesmee's room. He picked up Tara's scent and then quietly as he could he peeked in, pushing on the door slightly. Tara stood facing the back wall with her iPod on and ear-buds in both ears. She sang loudly while air-guitaring to her favorite rock music. He stood by the door, silently watching, amused at the vision. It didn't take her long at all to notice the familiar smell of wolf and stopped cold, turning around slowly to see who was there. Seth's presence startled her and she disappeared immediately.
He became nervous, putting his hands up as a peaceable gesture. "Hey, easy - no need to be scared. I'm the one who saved you remember?" Before he could blink, she had already zipped across the room and stood in front of him. It took him by surprise when she reappeared and he stumbled back a few inches. When she closed in on him, her head only came up to his chest but she stood up on her toes leaning in close. Seth froze as she stared him down.
She put her face up to his chest and inhaled. "Hmm, yes it was you then, the other one smelled much worse." Still only an inch away from his body, she stared up at him as he towered over her. "And, I'm not scared…wolf." Her eyes narrowed. "How long have you been standing there?"
"Uh…not even a minute really."
"Well, don't you know how to knock?" she frowned.
"S-sorry. I was about to," he paused changing the subject. "Um, sooo… we're you just, air-guitaring over there?" he grinned.
She looked embarrassed by the question. His unusual stare made her suspicious but she noticed something else; she detected no fear of in him, no scent of it at all. His heart beat steady and calm as well. She took a step back and turned on her heels to walk back to the bed, ignoring his question.
While she bent over to pick up her sketch book off of the floor, Seth gripped the front of his T-shirt, pulled it to his nose and sniffed. He wondered how bad he smelled to her. Then Tara sat down on the bed and started working on a drawing she started earlier, before being taken away by her music.
"So, what do you want then, a personal apology? I have no intentions to hunt on your land again if that's what you came to check on," she said, not even looking up from the paper. Her hand moved very fast as she drew.
He watched her intently. "Uh no, that's not why I'm here, though a thank you would be nice."
Her hand stopped moving and she slowly lifted her eyes from the paper. "Um...thanks," she said without showing a trace of emotion though she was thoroughly confused now, wondering why he was there.
There was an uncomfortable silence for a moment. "Uh, right." His eyebrows scrunched up as he spoke. "So, anyway, I have something for you…." He paused for a moment before entering. "Um, can I come in?" he asked politely.
She nodded and then watched him carefully as he stepped closer to her. Her eyes widened with curiosity as he fearlessly sat on the bed next to her. She remained perfectly still, bemused, wondering what he was up to. Seth reached into his pocket and took something out. He stretched his arm out to her and opened his fist exposing the gold necklace in his hand.
"My locket!" she gasped. Her fingers brushed his hot skin as she took it from him. She quickly pulled her hand back with a surprised look and stared at him for a moment, bewildered.
He smiled at her, hoping she was pleased. She looked down at the locket in her hand, staring at it for a moment almost in disbelief, thinking it was lost it forever.
Seth decided to break the awkward silence. "The clasp was busted, so I had to make a repair. I gave it a new one but it almost matches perfe….." Before he finished his sentence though, Tara leaped across the bed and hugged him tightly. It startled him but she was so quick he had no time to react.
"Um…Wow. Okay…," he said, gasping for air as she nearly crushed him with her embrace. Her reaction took him by surprise.
Tara gasped as she felt the heat from Seth's body, noticing it was much warmer than normal skin temperature. She quickly let go of Seth and shifted back further on the bed lowering her eyes and feeling embarrassed for doing that. "Ah…excuse me. I-I don't know what came over me."
"No worries," he chuckled as he rubbed his chest. It stung from the impact of her body slamming into him. "At least I know you're happy," he added. It was a better reaction than he expected from a vampire.
Tara became overwhelmed with emotion. Her most precious treasure had been returned by a stranger - but not just a stranger, a vampire killing machine and he'd come to give her the only valuable possession she owned. "I don't understand." She gave him a suspiciously glare.
"What's that?"
"How you found this and… why you brought it to me."
"Um, well I noticed you didn't have it around your neck the other night and I thought maybe it had fallen off when Paul hit you. It was quite an ordeal looking for such a tiny little thing. It landed in a pile of leaves. Good thing your scent was all over it still. I thought the rain would wash it away."
"You actually went looking for it? Why would you do that?"
He shrugged. "Because… I just thought it might be something important to you." He watched her expression. She still seemed baffled. "And maybe I'm just a nice guy," he added with a big grin.
"Well, I guess I just don't understand why you would be so nice. I mean you wouldn't even look at me the other night and the rest of the pack doesn't seem to like me much, so it just seems odd to me."
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to come off as rude and the pack…well, they're just doing their job is all."
"Isn't that your job too?" Why did you stop your friend from attacking me?
"Yeah but I didn't sense that you're a threat and I didn't want Paul to hurt you. I mean, you were only trying to hunt that big mountain lion. You obviously didn't know about the boundaries. I can't blame you," he shrugged.
She gave him an odd stare. "How did you know I was hunting a mountain lion?"
"Um… well cuz I saw it." He lied. Then he changed the subject quickly. "I have a lot of confidence in Edward and Bella. They seem to trust you so that's good enough for me."
"Oh."
She stared into his big brown eyes, believing him for some strange reason. His stare made her nervous so she casually looked down at the locket, rubbing her thumb over the initials on the front. He noticed her staring at the locket and wanted to ask her something that he was curious about. "So can I ask you something?"
She figured she owed him that much at least and nodded.
"Well, don't get mad but… I looked inside and I wondered… who are the people in the pictures?" He took the liberty of looking inside when he found it. "The woman looks very much like you," he added.
Her expression changed to a frown when he asked about the pictures of the man and the woman on either side of her locket. He worried that maybe he shouldn't have invaded her privacy. "It's okay. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."
Tara kept looking at the locket not speaking but then she decided to answer his question. "My parents…." She looked up at his face to see his reaction. "Those were my parents." Her expression remained sullen.
"Oh." It was what he suspected. He noticed she used the past tense, guessing they were no longer alive. He also noticed something else about the photo as well. "So you're mother was Native American?"
Her eyes focused on him. "Yes."
Seth examined Tara's facial features, trying to imagine her with darker skin like his. It astonished him because he never before imagined one of his tribe being turned but it made him realize that it was a real possibility for them.
"Hmm, I guess I didn't really notice before. You're such a pale-face now." He winked.
Tara gave him a disturbed look and he worried that the comment bothered her "Oh, I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you."
She shook her head. "No, it's not that it's just… my mother used to call my dad that name, jokingly of course. It was kinda of her pet name for him."
"Well, I won't say that anymore if it bothers you."
"It doesn't. Don't worry about it. You just made me remember something I forgot for a long time is all."
"I take it they're both gone now?" he said, figuring they were probably no longer alive.
"Long gone," Tara said in a low voice, looking down again.
"Hey, I know how much it hurts to lose a parent, I can't imagine losing both."
Tara's expression softened. "My locket is the only thing I have left of them. Thank you for finding it for me…Seth Clearwater." Her eyes met his with sincerity.
It was the first time she'd said his name and he liked it. "You're welcome, and it's just Seth. I'm flattered you even remembered," he smiled.
"Well, I happen to remember everything," she said smugly as she unclasped the chain and put it around her neck.
"Looks good as new," he said smiling at her.
Seth's eyes warmed her mood. She wondered how old he was, looking at his boyish face. Based on his size and frame, she guessed he was about twenty in human years. As she found herself getting lost in his stare. Seth became a bit nervous when there was a silent lull so he tried to think of something a little more cheerful to talk about. He spotted her ipod on the bed.
"So what were you listening to there before I came in?" he said as he pointed at the tiny gadget. "Do you mind if I have a look?"
She stared at his open palm and then lifted her eyes to his. He seemed nice enough that she could trust him so she handed the tiny device over, purposefully placing one hand under his and slowly dropping the iPod in his palm with the other hand. Her fingertips tingled as she touched his heated skin.
"Thanks," he responded warmly. Then he browsed through the music list. "Hmm let's see…. Elvis eh?" He made his lip curl up like The King and she chuckled shaking her head. "Mmm, I like the Beatles too," he said but as he scrolled through a few more, he didn't recognize most of them. "Uh...Chuck Berry and the Platters?" He scrunched his face.
"Yes, I like oldies. They're all more from my time."
"So how did you get your hands on one of these anyways? I know they're not cheap and I heard you lived alone at a school."
"Oh… well, let's just say it's kinda handy when you can go completely undetected at times."
"Ah, so you stole it?" His right eyebrow popped up as he gave her a sly grin. "My-my, such a little thief, I bet some poor student is probably searching the lost and found right now, hoping some kind soul will return it to him," he teased.
"No, actually it's more like some poor employee at Best Buy is stressing over his inventory."
"Oooh, now that's a misdemeanor," he tried to say with a straight face, "Maybe I should keep my eye on you, maybe you are trouble." He teased.
"Tsk! Whatever!" she clucked, reaching over to grab her iPod from him.
He just moved away from her and turned his head looking her in the eye. "Ah-ah…hold on, I'm not done!"
She grabbed at his hand to take it but he playfully switched it to his other one. She became inpatient with him and leaped on top of him gripping the hand that held the iPod tightly.
He realized she was much too strong to fight back. "Um…ow. That hurts a little," he said as she squeezed his wrist.
She leaned into his face. Her breath was as cool as her icy skin when she spoke. "You really shouldn't tease a vampire. It's a very dangerous thing to do," she hissed.
Seth trembled under her realizing he'd pushed her too far. "I-I'll try to remember that." He stared closely at her eyes and then realized what was different about her. Her eyes were blood red the last time he saw her. They'd darkened to an almost brownish color now.
She cocked her head to the side, staring at him. Then she smirked and pried the iPod from his hand. "Don't worry Seth, I won't hurt you." She backed off letting him up.
He exhaled rubbing his wrists. "Who's worried?"
"You know, stealing is hardly the worst thing I've ever done… or could do, for that matter." She said trying to intimidate him.
He realized what she meant by her comment. "I'm sure I know what you're capable of, however I don't see you as a monster like you might think."
Tara's eyes narrowed again. "Is that so? What do you see me as then?"
"Mmm, how about a friend?" he suggested, hoping she'd accept.
"You're asking to be my friend?" she looked puzzled.
"Well yeah, I figured, since you owe me and all," Seth raised an eyebrow.
"I don't understand. Why would you want to be friends with me?"
"Um…well I guess if you're not interested…" he sounded disappointed.
"That's not what I said," she snapped.
He shrugged his shoulders. "Do I need more of reason? Look, the Cullens are my friends so I thought we could be as well…. if you want."
She stared at him silently for a moment, confused by his actions. She couldn't figure out why he behaved so peculiar. The unusual stare and silence made Seth start to feel as though he wasn't really wanted there. "If you just want me to leave, I can just take off. I'm sorry if I'm bothering you," he said sourly and started to get up and walk away. She didn't want him to leave though.
"Seth - wait!" she ordered. He turned back to towards her."I suppose I shouldn't turn you down…. since I owe you for finding my locket."
"And saving you," he added.
"Stay," she requested. He thought for a second and then walked back over to the bed, standing there nervously.
"Sit," she ordered. "I promise I won't bite." She smirked, keeping her eyes on him as he sat back on the bed next to her and slowly turned his eyes her face.
"I'm very curious about you. You're my first human...friend." She felt odd calling him that. "I never actually speak to humans."
"Why not?" he asked.
She leaned a little closer to him. "Do you ever talk to you food?" She looked in his eyes to see his reaction. He shook his head nervously.
She grinned while looking him over. "Though…you're not entirely human either," she pointed out.
Seth shook his head staring at her face. "No, I'm not."
"You smell different from humans, also."
"You mean I smell bad." He remembered her words from earlier.
"You should be thankful… I normally wouldn't tolerate being this close to a human without considering them for a meal."
Seth gulped and his eyebrows scrunched together.
"Also…I noticed your heartbeat is much calmer today," she added. "Well...at least it was up until a few seconds ago." She grinned pleased with herself.
"Huh?" He tensed up.
"The first night you were here, you're heart was racing like the wings of a humming bird. Do I make you nervous?" she wondered.
"Uh no, not really.” He lied. “How do you even know it was me anyways?"
"Because when you disappeared, the room quieted down. I knew it was you then."
"Oh ..yeah, um…I wasn't feeling well. I just needed some air." He looked away feeling awkward about it.
"I got the impression you didn't want to be around me. I thought maybe I spooked you or something."
He chuckled. "Um, no offense, but I've actually been around scarier vampires than you."
Her eye brow went up. "Is that so - and who might that be?" she mused.
"The Volturi."
Tara snickered. "Mmm, the Volturi,…yes…they are a scary bunch." She spoke in a mocking tone since she used to be one. He obviously didn't know that however. "You're all lucky to still be alive. When the Volturi show up at your door like that, you don't usually live to tell about it."
"Yeah well I think they were more scared of us. They may be very powerful but I don't think they were ready to face a pack of angry wolves that were teamed up with some very gifted vampires."
"Maybe so. Aro's not one to get into a battle, he'll avoid it if possible. He likes an easy kill, one where he has the advantage. That's why he likes to collect vampires with talents that serve his purpose," she explained.
"You seem to know a lot about them."
The corners of Tara's mouth turned down. "Let's just say I've encountered them more than I'd like to." She said realizing he didn’t know much about her past.
"Same here," Seth agreed.
An awkward silence came over the room again. Tara found herself curiously fascinated by Seth's presence and his unusual kindness towards her. She also still wondered about his unusually warm body heat. She never remembered humans being quite that hot. They were warm to the touch but Seth's skin was like a blazing fire against hers. She inquisitively reached for his hand to touch his skin. He almost jerked it away but waited, trusting her to see what she was about to do. Her fingertips gently skimmed over the top of his hand, making the hairs on his arm stand strait up. "Forgive my curiosity but… are all of your kind so warm?"
Her cool touch gave him goose bumps. "Yes…we're always like that. It's a wolf thing."
"Is that uncomfortable for you?" She turned his hand over studying his palm.
He started to relax, enjoying her inquisitiveness. "It was at first it was, but not anymore. How about you - are you uncomfortable being so cold?"
She pulled her hand away quickly at the mention of her coldness. "Uh, well no…I'm dead. Cold feels normal to me."
"Hmm… well last I checked, dead people don't talk, or sing or air-guitar," he smirked.
Tara reached for his hand and pressed it to her chest, placing it over her dead heart and holding it there. "What do you feel?" She spoke with a soft and soothing voice.
"Umm…" he paused becoming nervous and speechless.
"No heartbeat?" Her eyebrow rose.
"Uh, no," he spoke softly.
"That's because I'm not alive." She watched his expression, expecting him to become withdrawn but he didn't.
"Well that's only because certain parts of your body that have ceased to function, but you're obviously alive. Your soul is still there, right? Otherwise I wouldn't be talking to you right now. So my theory is …you're just something different."
She let go of his hand but he didn't move his. His receptiveness made her apprehensive. It was something she was not used to with humans. "You're very interesting." Her eyes narrowed.
"Really? Is that good or bad?" he asked as he pulled is hand away slowly.
"I'll let you know."
Seth smiled at her, hoping she would. "So then, what are your plans while you're here in Forks?" he pried.
Tara shrugged. "I have no plans really. I've been a little reluctant to venture off by myself since…well… you know. And since Renesmee went to the Reservation with Jacob for a few hours and Edward and Bella won't be back for couple hours… I guess I just plan to hang here for a bit at least until they return. Bella promised to show me around Forks though. I'm kinda looking forward to getting out."
"Oh… I see." he nervously looked down at the bed. "Uh, well …do you like motorcycles?"
"Sure." Tara wondered why he would ask such a question.
"Great, then… how about if I show you around Forks? If you'd like…." He looked to see her reaction.
Tara stared at him not saying anything, boggled by his amity towards her.
"What? You still don't trust me?"
She looked at him skeptically. "I'm still trying to figure you out."
"Well you can figure me out while we're getting to know each other. So, how 'bout it?" When he held out his hand to her, she looked at it like it was an alien probe.
"Umm... I dunno…are we supposed to be doing that?" Tara never thought in a million years she would befriend a human, especially one that could mutate into a giant wolf. She felt like she was doing something completely illegal.
"Yes, it's fine. We're friends now. Come on - I think Edward has an extra helmet in the garage too. Esme won't mind if we get it."
She contemplated for a few seconds. She wasn't sure why, but she was very interested in taking a ride with her new acquaintance. "Alright then, but I won't need a helmet." She put her iPod down and slowly got up from the bed. "I would like to change into something a little more suitable however… if you don't mind. Alice kinda got to me last night. She thinks I'm her new dress up doll or something."
Seth chuckled. "Oh I see. Yeah, I've heard that about Alice from Ness. You look really good though. Maybe a bit overdressed for a bike ride, but it's a good look for you. I like the hair. It was covering your eyes too much before."
"Thanks," she said, being very coy.
"I'll wait for you downstairs," Seth offered, giving her some privacy.
She slipped into Renesmee's closet looking for a top and grabbed her jeans. Tara's head nearly spun as she thought about the unusual turn her life had taken since arrived in Forks. “So much for dull and boring,” she thought.
Seth drove Tara through town showing her all of the 3.1 square miles of the small city. It reminded her very much of a tiny little town called Milton, where her grandmother lived. Then they headed south on the 101, cruising several miles down the coast of the Pacific. Tara looked out towards the ocean enjoying the feel of the cold air blowing through her hair.
Seth pulled into a tourist stop near the edge of the coast, overlooking a breathtaking view of the ocean. He removed his helmet after turning off the engine."So what'dya think?" he asked.
"It's beautiful," she replied hopping off the bike and then walked closer to the edge admiring the view. She took in every detail remembering it for later for when she could copy it to her sketch book. A light breeze hit her face and she inhaled the smells of the cool, salty air.
Seth walked over and watched her as she seemed to get lost in the scenery. He chuckled.
"What…?" She looked at him curiously.
"You should have worn the helmet. You should see your hair. Alice will be mad," he chuckled, looking at her new wind-blown hairdo.
"No problem," she said as she grabbed a hair band from her pocket. She pulled her hair back and wrapped it around the ponytail.
Seth smiled at her as she studied him. "You seem unusually comfortable around vampires. I find that odd," she said.
Seth shrugged. "The Cullens are cool. They've been like family to me. We have a lot of history."
"Yes, I saw that from Ness's visions. You defended them too. I find that admirable."
"Well after all we'd been through with them, we weren't about to let those vamps come to town and start killing our friends unjustly."
"So how do you know I'm not just like those other vamps?" Tara leaned against the railing that bordered the cliff's edge. Her face became more serious.
"Like I said, I trust Edward and Bella's judgment." Then he leaned in a bit closer to her. "Plus your eyes look different today. I think you've changed your diet."
"How very observant of you," she said, crossing her arms.
"How's that going for you?" he wondered.
"Mmm, it will take some getting used to. I feel like I have to feed more often. Edward says that will fade as I get used to it, as well as the agitation."
"Agitation?
"Yeah from the change… always feeling hungry when you're not. It'll pass."
"You seem to be handling it quite well. Is it really that difficult? I mean blood is blood right? What's the diff?"
"The diff is, it's not the same. Tell you what, try eating nothing but apples for a whole week and tell me how you feel."
"That's not so hard, I like apples."
"Heh, okay! Well I doubt you will after a whole week," she grinned.
Just then the cell phone in her pocket vibrated. It was the one Esme gave her for emergencies. She almost forgot it was even there. Renesmee's name popped up on the caller ID. "Hey Ness," she answered cheerfully then paused as Renesmee talked.
"Oh sorry, I didn't know when you'd be back and Seth offered to take me for a ride…Yeah, we're somewhere on the coast."
Another pause.
"Ok hold on…." She held the phone out to Seth. "She wants to talk to you."
"Hey Ness." he said. After another long pause he spoke to her again. "Really? Yah, we'll come. See you in a while…hey did you bring food? Cuz I'm starving."
Tara remembered how humans needed to eat every few hours. She realized what that grumbling noise she heard was now.
"Kay, see you soon," he said to her before ending the call. "Ok, come on," Seth said as he headed back to the bike waving his hand for her to follow him.
"Where we going?" she asked.
"You'll see," he grinned, nodding for her to follow and get back on the bike.
He returned to the 101 and drove several miles north, finally coming to a dirt road and turned. For a long while she saw only trees and then finally there was a break ahead, seeing patch of sky in the distance. They rode above the shore line, on top of the cliffs, bordering the beach.
Seth parked his bike, allowing Tara to hop off first. He secured his helmet to the seat and started walking towards the cliff. "This way," he said, leading her to a path.
As they got closer to the ocean, Tara heard voices more clearly. She recognized two of them for sure. As they neared the sounds, she saw Renesmee, Jacob and a couple of other boys atop of the cliff. Two of the boys hurled themselves off the cliff while howling.
"Tara!" Renesmee called as she ran over with a welcoming smile. She smiled back.
Jacob followed right behind Renesme and greeted Seth with a high-five. "W'sup guys! I'm glad you made it. Ness really insisted Tara came so she wouldn't be the only girl."
"Oh and I texted mom so she'd know you were here with us too. She also said something about the museum tomorrow..." Renesmee mentioned in a questioning tone.
"Oh, right. She must mean the one in Seattle," she said as she curiously watched Seth pull off his shoes and socks. He looked like he was going to join the other boys in jumping off the cliff. "Ah, so what on the agenda…are you all committing suicide today?" She joked.
Seth laughed. "Hardly. Just some cliff jumping. It's fun you should try it."
Just then, Tara noticed the two boys that had jumped a few minutes ago had already climbed back up onto the cliff. She figured they must be part of the pack since no human could climb those rocks with that speed and strength. Both the boys came over to greet Seth and he introduced them. "This is Embry and Quil," he said introducing the two dripping wet boys to her.
They didn't appear to be cold, but she knew the water temperature had to be glacial. Both boys stared at Tara apprehensively, knowing what she was, but eventually greeted her with a nod.
"Are you jumping?" Quil asked nervously.
"Well I wasn't exactly planning on getting wet today." She stood in a very neutral position as she spoke with him with her hands behind her back.
"Ha! Wuss! What kinda vampire are you anyway? Oh I know….you're just like Rosalie…probably don't wanna mess up your makeup." Jacob teased, happy to have a new vampire to pick on now that Rosalie was away.
Tara became annoyed and gave him a dirty look. She bent over to pick something off the ground. "Oh look Jake….." She held up a twig waving it in front of his face. Then she threw it over the edge. "Fetch!" She smirked at him. It went out so far they couldn't even see where it landed in the water. Seth and the others started to snicker.
"Cute one, Elvira. No problem, though. Why don't you just stay up here and guard our food. I know I don't have to worry about you eating any of it."
"You're right about that… I don't like kibble," she snapped back.
Jacob grinned. "Hey Tara, you know how a werewolf says goodbye to a vampire?"
Tara crossed her arms and frowned.
"So long - sucker!" Then Jacob flipped backwards off the ledge.
Renesmee rolled her eyes. "You should just ignore him. He really hates being ignored." Then she followed him off the edge into the icy water, squealing as she fell. Jacob waited for her at the bottom then they raced to climb back up. Renesme beat Jacob by a long shot.
Tara stood at the edge of the cliff, peeking down over the edge with her arms still folded. "Well? Wanna try it?" Seth pressed, nodding his head towards the cliff.
"Hmmm," She cocked her head to the side. "It's an awful long way down," she said in teasing tone.
"You're not too scared I hope." One eye brow popped up as he smirked.
"Hardly," she replied. Her mouth flattened in a straight line.
"By the way, isn't this water just a little too cold for humans?" she wondered.
"The cold doesn't bother me. I happen to like cold things," he grinned stepping towards her while looking at her reaction.
Her eye brow popped up and she cocked her head to the side. "Oh...is that so?"
"Mmm-hmm," he mumbled. "So... how about it then? Ladies first?" he gestured with his hands.
"That's okay….why don't you just show me how it's done," she said putting her hands on her hips.
"Sure, sure. Just watch the pro." Seth bragged before pulling his t-shirt over his head and tossing it on the ground. "Well ok, here goes nuthin!" he said getting ready to charge.
Tara became distracted as she stared at his muscular chest. She watched as he stepped back a little, getting ready to lunge forward. He dashed for the edge of the cliff but then quickly turned back around reaching for Tara around her waist. He wrapped his arms around her spinning her and then jumping off with her in his arms. Half-way down, she shoved him back and flipped her body around entirely doing a perfect dive into the water. When he surfaced, he looked around for her but she didn't come up to the top. He looked around frantically. It seemed like a very long time for any normal person to be under water, but not for a vampire. Jacob and the others watched curiously from the top of the cliff.
“Where is she? There's no way she could have drowned.” Seth thought. Just as he started swimming inland, he felt something at his feet. It grabbed him and pulled him down under the water.
"Seth!" Jacob yelled in a panic. He leaped off the edge, diving into the water. The others watched nervously from the top. When Jacob surfaced he looked around in a panic. "Seth!" he yelled again.
Suddenly, Seth's body vaulted up in the air and fell back down further out in the ocean, landing with and enormous splash.
Tara swam so quickly, she was already at the bottom of the cliff when his body came back down and hit the water. She leaped up on the rocks and climbed them with dexterity. Seth's head finally popped out of the water, slightly stunned but unharmed by the throw. Renesmee and the other boys just looked at each other and then laughed hysterically.
Jacob snickered as Seth swam by him. "Wow dude, guess she showed you who's Boss!" Jacob teased.
"Shut up!" Seth shoved Jacobs head under and tackled him.
When Tara reached the top of the cliff and pulled herself over the edge Renesmee held her hand out for a high five. She smiled and slapped her hand. "Nice one," she laughed.
Seth climbed back up and sloshed past Renesmee dripping wet. "That was awesome Seth, I didn't even know you could fly," she said with a big grin.
"Shut it, squirt!" He messed up her hair as he passed and then walked over to Tara. She was sitting on the ground, wringing out a sock. "Now that wasn't very nice of you," he said with his arms folded, trying to be serious.
She didn't even look up at him. "Mmm, well….you're the one who thought it would be funny to throw me over a cliff." She said angrily.
He smirked. Then turned and grabbed some towels that spotted. He walked back over to her and put one over her shoulders.
"I'm not cold," she snapped at him, shoving it off still not making eye contact. She continued wring out the other wet sock. Pieces of wet hair stuck to her face and little droplets of water dripped off her chin.
He grabbed the towel again and plopped it back on her head. "You're dripping though."
She yanked it off and then gave him a dirty look as she combed her fingers through her wet hair, brushing it back.
He smiled as he dried his head with the other one. Then he squatted down next to her. You know I kinda thought you were gonna stop me, but you didn't."
Her eyes darted up at him, realizing she wasn't even alarmed when he grabbed her. "Mmm, well I guess I just thought I could trust you…since we're supposed to be friends and all," she said, still irritated.
"Well, I think we're even now. How about we call a truce and start over?" he held his hand out for a truce.
She ignored it and looked away. "I warned you about the teasing, didn't I?" she grumbled.
"Hmm, so you did. Guess I forgot." He pulled his hand back and smiled at her still. "So how 'bout it? Please?" he said nicely.
After a moment she sighed and finally gave in. "Fine," she threw her towel at him then reached in her pocket and pulled out a small electronic device that dripped water. She pitched it at him. "But you better explain this to Esme."
"Ah, Sorry. I forgot all about your phone," he said feeling guilty now.
Suddenly, Seth's stomach growled loudly.
"What was that?" she said.
"That's my stomach. I'm starving." Seth looked around searching for food.
Tara spotted a cooler and pointed. "You should look in that box over there. I just saw one of your friends grab some sort of dead carcass out of it," Tara said in all seriousness.
"Huh?" Seth looked at her as though she spoke in a foreign language.
"Chicken, I think it was chicken." She corrected herself.
"Oh…right," Seth chuckled. He walked over to the cooler and opened the lid, reached in to grab some food and can of soda and then returned to sit sat down next to Tara. "You're right… chicken." He waved a drumstick at her. "I bet Edward made these. He's a great cook."
"He is?" Tara thought about how odd it was for a vampire to have culinary skills but then she realized he probably learned to cook for Renesme since she also consumes human food.
"Yup, sure is. Oh, looks like Ness made the cookies though." He looked at the black underside of one. Renesmee was a terrible cook. No matter how hard she tried, she always burned things. Jacob always teased her saying she obviously didn't inherit the cooking gene that the rest of them had.
Tara smiled and curled her knees into her chest as she watched the others still leaping off the cliff. Though the other boys seemed to make her feel on edge, she felt unusually comfortable around Seth. It was almost impossible for her to resist his amiable personality.
"So…. can I ask you something else? Seth became more serious.
"Are we playing twenty questions today?" she replied still looking out at the ocean.
"Um, I dunno, have I reached my limit yet?"
She grinned rolling her eyes. "No, its fine, go ahead and ask."
"Okay, how old are you?"
She paused for a second looking at her strangely curious human friend. Then she responded. "In human years or vampire years?"
"Both."
"I was turned when I was exactly sixteen and I've been this way for fifty-four years."
"Wow, seventy. That's old!" he joked.
She smiled smugly. "Actually I'm considered young, for a vampire."
"Yeah, now that I think about it, I'm pretty sure Jasper and Carlisle have been around a really long while."
"Yes, they have."
He paused for a moment taking a drink, thinking about asking her some more questions. "So…how did it happen?" He pried again.
"What?"
"Ah, you know…" he paused hoping she'd understand he wanted to know how she became a vampire.
"Oh…" She looked surprised. "You really wanna hear about that?"
"Only if you wanna tell me."
Tara paused again thinking as she stared at the horizon. She was a little hesitant to tell him the story. No one had ever asked her before. She sighed and her face became more serious as she began to speak. "My parents took me to Italy for my sixteenth birthday. My father wanted to surprise me with an extravagant tour of this exclusive art museum of some kind." She paused again. Pain filled her eyes as she stared ahead. "First they killed my mom. Then when one of them came after me, my father pushed me out of the way… but they killed him too."
"Who"? Seth imagined some mad gunmen or something.
She turned her head, looking him square in the eyes. "Vampires." Her face looked cold and hard and her eyes darkened with her mood. His expression suddenly changed to surprise and then quickly turned to horror as she continued on. "I was bitten, but it didn't kill me. I hid, somehow. I don't know how but I guess once the venom was in me I was changed. I just remember my father telling me to hide so I crawled under a table and laid there, watching them kill everyone in the room. The only thing that went through my mind was just to try and become invisible or something. I just prayed they wouldn't see me. They should have found me otherwise. They only did later, once the change was completed. I wandered around, confused, hungry…not knowing what happened to me. Then I finally realized… I was one of them."
Seth's heart sank looking at Tara with a sympathetic expression. He couldn't imagine what she must have gone through watching her parents be murdered by vampires. "I'm so sorry. I feel bad for asking now. I can see it's making you uncomfortable talking about it."
Tara shook her head looking down. "It's fine. Ask anything you like of me. If you wish to be my friend, you should know what I am."
Seth paused for a moment before he thought of his next question. "So, they left you alone once they knew you were turned? Did you escape?"
"No, not right away. I couldn't leave and my power was weak at the time. I didn't even know I had a gift right away. I was so confused. Aro took me in…he favored me. He admired my ability, desiring to use it to his benefit. He took me in and tamed me and then taught me how to accept my new life and how to survive. He and the others helped show me to use my gift….how to manipulate people's minds."
"Aro?" He remembered that name well. "The Volturi did this to you?"
"Yes."
Seth's blood boiled. He understood Tara's dislike for the Volturi now.
She continued on. "I didn't know what else to do. My parents were dead, I couldn't return home, I had no one and I was…. hungry. They weren't about to just let me go and leaving the Volturi is difficult. I needed to feed and the thirst was unbearable. They only fed me when I did what they wanted. Eventually I just…stayed. They treated me like I was one of their own. I just…became one of them. Once they trusted me enough, they used me to do their dirty work for them. Since I could conceal myself in the daytime they used me to lure people into their place. I brought the unsuspecting tourists right in for them. They never saw it coming." Tara looked down in shame and then continued her telling her story. "One day I finally realized I had become the monster that killed my parents and the next day that they sent me out, I never came back. I stayed in the sunlight for years living in the sunniest parts of the world hoping they wouldn't follow. Then eventually I just found my way back to home town in hopes to find something or someone I was familiar with. The hardest part was when I wandered into our family cemetery and found, not only the tombstones of my parents, but my own as well. Everyone I'd ever known believed that I was dead."
Tara glanced over at Seth who looked like he'd just finished watching a gory horror flick. She also noticed he'd stopped eating his food. "I'm sorry, maybe I shouldn't have told you all that. You look like you're about to puke."
"Uh no, no. it's okay. I can handle that part. I just can't imagine what you must have gone through. It's the most tragic thing I've ever heard."
Tara still looked puzzled by his compassion. "It was terrifying, like a horrible nightmare I couldn't wake up from. I didn't even know what it was that attacked us. To think such creatures even existed, was unfathomable. The only vampire I'd ever seen in my life was in an Abbott and Costello film, which was a pretty silly portrayal of Count Dracula."
"Abbott and who?" he asked, unfamiliar with the actor's names.
"Costello." She giggled. "Don't tell me you never heard of them."
Seth shrugged. "Um, no…should I?"
Tara shook her head in disbelief. "It's a Classic. You'd get a kick out of it. It's got a wolf man in it too."
"Heh! Really? That sounds good. I'll have to see that one." Seth was thinking he'd probably sit and watch the weather channel with Tara if she was even the slightest bit interested. He continued with his questions again. "So, you just stopped hunting humans once you left?"
She shook her head looking away. "It wasn't that simple. For a while, to avoid killing the innocent, I went to prisons and jail houses. I felt less guilty about killing criminals. Only problem is, it started gaining attention. Too many prisoners were missing or found dead. I was drawing too much attention to myself so I had to move around a lot. Then I just decided that blood banks would be the simplest thing. It kept me out of trouble."
"Makes sense," he said. "So how long has it been...since you've um…" He couldn't get the word out.
"Killed?" she finished for him.
"Yeah."
"You're a very curious creature. Why do you wish to hear all of this?"
"I'm just trying to understand. Do you mind?" His eyes looked soft and sincere.
"No…I don't mind." She took in a deep breath before continuing. "It's been about twenty-three years for me, with one only accident and then never again since."
He looked at her, waiting for her to continue. He seemed to want to know everything so she didn't stop. She was curious at how much information he could take in before he became disgusted with her.
"There was a rapist on the campus a few years ago. He was killing his victims. I didn't bother to get involved or anything. It's not my place to interfere with the humans but one night I heard the screams. I was curious so when I went to see where they came from and I then saw him. He was strangling a young girl in her dorm room. Don't know what came over me but I just….attacked. It was that last time I ever fed on a human. I was too late to save the girl's life though."
"What about the rapist?" Seth wondered.
Her eyes darkened. "They never found his body. I made sure of it." He detected a hint of pleasure when she spoke of the event. A chill surged through Seth's spine. "Am I'm freaking you out yet?" she asked.
"No."
"No? None of this bothers you?"
"You rid the world of a killer. Why should that bother me?"
"Because, I killed a human being!"
"Anyone that can rape and murder a young girl doesn't really qualify as a human being to me. Maybe you just did the world a favor."
Tara stood up, frustrated. "Don't talk like that. I can't justify killing people no matter what they've done. Don't make me sound like a hero for it." She started to tremble. His reactions were not what she expected.
Seth stood up and touched her arm. "Hey, I'm sorry. I've very opinionated and I think a little differently than the others but you're right, I shouldn't justify it. All I'm trying to say really is that I understand. Don't be angry, okay?"
Tara focused on his hand the moment he touched her. His skin blazed against hers. Looking back at him she tried not to think about it, and nodded. She stared at his face looking as though she wanted to speak, but hesitated.
"What is it?" he asked.
"You have a good soul. You're honest."
He smiled at her. "Thanks. So does that mean you trust me now?"
"Perhaps," she smirked.
He decided to change the subject and lighten the mood a little. "Okay then... how about we go jump some more...since you're already wet and all."
Tara slowly turned her eyes in his direction and gave him a crooked smile. All her frustration and irritation left as he spoke. "Ok, but last one down get's the back seat on the way back!" She sprung up and began to run.
"Oh hell no!" Seth charged after her.

Later on…
Tara was trying to get Seth to let her drive the bike home since he lost all the races she challenged him to. Seth was already on the bike ready to head out. "Come on! I beat you six times. A deal's a deal!"
"Um… I don't recall actually agreeing to your little bet."
"Then why did you keep racing?" She had her hand on the handle grip right next to Seth's.
"Cause you kept making me!" he complained.
"Please?" she begged.
"No."
"Fine….I'll just walk back to Forks." She turned to leave.
"Tara, you don't even have a license!"
She jumped back over to him, cupping her hands together. "Ok, just to the interstate then?"
Seth sighed and dropped his head. "I can't believe I'm doing this." He moved his arm so she could hop on scooted back on the seat. Her eyes lit up and she jumped on the bike. Seth just shook his head. As he put his arms around her waist, he inhaled a whiff of her hair. It smelled sweet like fresh strawberries and honey, he thought.
Tara let up on the clutch and pulled back on the throttle. She didn't wobble at all and kept perfect balance as she drove up the dirt road several yards. The small engine revved into a high-pitch sound, barely climbing above twenty five miles per hour. Seth put his lips up to her ear though he knew her perfect ears would be sufficient enough to hear him. "Uh, have you ever driven a motorcycle before?"
"Of course. I stole one in Italy, once," she shouted over the whining buzz of the engine.
"What kind was it?"
"A Vespa, why?"
"A what? Ok wait, stop…stop...STOP!" Seth reached over Tara and grabbed the handles taking control. He sighed. "Ok, this is not a scooter, you have to change gears."
"Oh yeah…that's this over here by my foot right?"
"Yeah, um...maybe I should take over now," he suggested worrying about his bike.
"No, no, come on really…I can drive it." She nudged his fingers away from the handles.
Looking at her for a moment, Seth tried to decide whether he wanted to risk his bike and possibly his life, to please the adorable being he enjoyed hanging onto, even from the back seat of his own motorcycle. He groaned losing the battle with himself and gave in to her. "Please don't kill my bike," he said with a sigh.
She smiled as he grabbed onto her tighter when she sped off. Tara flipped through the gears, speeding up to sixty miles per hour trying to push the bike harder. She weaved in and out and around the path following it with such perfect precision that Seth wouldn't have known she'd never handled a real motorcycle before had he not asked.
"That's the highway up there," he cautioned, "Slow down. Tara... TARA!" She stopped the bike instantly just a few yards short of the interstate.
Seth's body flew forward, slamming into her stone-hard back and he instantly gripped her tightly to keep himself from falling off. "You make a horrible air bag you know."
She turned her head. "Well you're still in one piece aren't you?" she smirked.
"Can I have my bike back now?" Seth started sweating, even though it wasn't even warm out.
Tara spun off the bike, keeping her eyes locked on Seth the whole time with an enormous, confident grin on her face. Then she waited for him to scoot forward and she leaped on, behind him.
"So, you like to go fast?" he asked looking half way back at her.
"Of course," she replied.
Seth grinned and then peeled out onto the Interstate. He showed off a little by exceeding city speed limits on the trip back to the Cullen home. He figured it's always handy when your mother is dating the Chief of Police and you wish to bend the rules a little.
When they arrived at the Cullen home, Tara jumped off the bike and Seth cut the engine.
"So, you wanna come in or do you have to leave?" she asked.
"I've got nuthin to do," he said gladly, shrugging his shoulders and implying for her to lead the way.
As they went in the house, they heard Edward playing a melody on the piano. Bella sat next to him, resting her head on his shoulder. They were the only ones home. Carlisle had left for his shift at the hospital and Esme was busy doing volunteer work in town. Seth remembered to be careful to guard his feelings while around Edward so he immediately began thinking about food, which was pretty easy because he was hungry.
Tara passed a mirror in the hallway and caught a glimpse of herself and gasped. "I should probably do something with my hair before Alice sees me." He smiled at her wild looking appearance.
Though her clothes were nearly dry from the ride, she decided to change into something clean. "I'll be right back…I'm gonna change out of these."
"Okay…um…I'll be around." Seth thought about wandering into the kitchen to see what Esme had stocked in the fridge.
While Tara was upstairs, she put on a pair of fresh jeans and a tight fitting, hooded shirt. Then she raked a brush through the snarls in her hair and headed downstairs to find Seth, peeking in all the rooms trying to follow his scent. "Hey Edward," she said as she passed the music room.
"Kitchen," Edward chimed when she passed, knowing exactly who she looked for. Tara chuckled and headed back upstairs to the kitchen. She hadn't thought about that one. She only saw the kitchen once during Esme's tour and never needed to be in there since.
She found Seth nibbling on some pizza that Jacob had brought over the other day. "Oh, I'm sorry…I forgot you needed to eat again huh?" she said.
"Yeah, I was feeling a bit shaky. You know, I think Jake and I are the only ones who use this kitchen, except when we get Esme to cook for us."
Tara strolled over to the fridge and peeked in just out of curiosity. She scrunched her nose at the smells that hit her as she opened the door.
"What's with all the eggs?" she wondered as she counted six dozen stacked neatly on the top two shelves.
"Ness really likes eggs. I don't know why," he shrugged. "And since she hates cooking, Edward has always volunteered to do it for her. He says he misses not being able to cook for Bella anymore."
"Hmm, interesting," she pondered the thought, "So…what shall we do after you've consumed your curd-covered-carbohydrate?" she asked as she watched him chewing on a mouthful.
Seth nearly choked on his pizza, laughing at Tara's odd descriptions for his meals. "Do you have to keep talking about my food that way?"
"I'm sorry," she grinned. "So, how is your...pizza anyway?" She slowly pronounced the word.
"Not bad, it'll do the trick. I'm sure it's not as good as mountain lion," he winked.
"Probably not," she laughed.
"What about you? Do you need to um….eat?"
"Are you offering me a snack?" She leaned into closer to him. Her eyebrow popped up as she displayed a devilish grin.
"Umm…." Seth leaned back an inch.
"Relax," she chuckled. "I'm kidding, I'll eat later…when it's dark."
"Do you need an escort?" he offered.
"Absolutely not!" she snapped.
"Oh…." Seth felt a bit rejected.
"You'd scare away all my prey!"
"Oh. No I wouldn't. I go with Ness and Jacob all the time. It's pretty hilarious to watch that tiny little thing take down a giant grisly."
"Mmm… hilarious. Yes, that's exactly how I wish to portray myself when I'm killing something," she said sarcastically.
"You know wolves hunt too."
"They do?" She didn't think they'd need to, especially when there's human food available to them.
"Yup, we've had to resort to it a few times in the past when it was ah…inconvenient for us to phase back."
"I see, but pizza's much better though, right? She grinned.
"Definitely!" Seth swallowed his last bite.
"So, do you miss it at all?" He said nodding at the empty pizza box next to him.
"Do I miss what?"
"Human food... eating normal stuff."
"Drinking blood is normal stuff to me. I have no memory of eating human food, so I guess the answer would be a no." She paused. "You have an awful lot of questions."
"Sorry, does it bother you?"
"No, I'm just wondering what the motivation behind it is."
"Curiosity," he shrugged, hoping she'd accept his excuse. Seth became lost in her eyes as she stared at him. He snapped out of it before he got too carried away, remembering Edward was still in the other room. He started thinking of things they could do to distract his mind.
Tara wanted to pry more into his head but her attention became distracted by the tiny vampire that just hopped off of a tree branch and sprung through the kitchen window. It was Alice, followed by Jasper right behind her. "Hi guys!" she sung cheerfully. Her mood quickly changed once she got a glimpse of Tara's hair though. "Ugh! What have you been doing all day, chasing tornados?"
"What? I brushed it out," she shrugged, running her fingers through it. Then Tara looked at Seth. "Is it that bad?" she asked.
Seth shook his head quietly and smiled. He liked her hair. Then his attention suddenly turned to Jasper and they exchanged a friendly nod as he remembered to guard his feelings around him as well, a task he found to be very difficult. Since his feelings of hunger had passed, he began to think about work as a distraction, tuning Alice out for a moment.
She still rambled on about Tara's appearance. "…..and of all the clothes in Nessie's closet you managed to find one of Bella's old outfits. You guys are just killing me!"
"Well it looked comfy. I might hunt later though, maybe I could slip on an evening dress and some pumps and seduce some unsuspecting animals tonight," Tara said with sarcasm.
"Really? Seth asked.
Tara turned towards Seth and gave him a No, stupid, that was just a joke, kind of look.
"Are you mocking me?" Alice's eyes narrowed.
"Why no, I would never do that to you Alice." She sung in an innocent voice with a smile.
"Tsk! Whatever! Well I suppose if you're just gonna hang out with a bunch of wolves anyway, there's no need to fuss over you." she huffed before exiting kitchen. Jasper loyally followed behind her.
"Uh, thanks Alice," Seth replied, but she was already gone in a flash.
He turned his attention back to Tara still trying to think of something they could do. "So…do you like watching movies? The Cullen's have like, tons of them."
"A movie? Hmm, that sounds good. Let's just see what they have then, shall we?"
Seth took her to a room that had a seventy-inch plasma TV. Normally when Emmett was there he dominated the television with his sports. Tara picked up three different remotes trying to find the ON button. Seth knew exactly the right one being that he spent so much time watching sports with Emmett or Jacob. As the screen came on, it was already tuned into ESPN. Then he went over to a large cabinet opening the doors, exposing hundreds of DVDs. "Wow," Tara uttered.
"Yeah, I know. It's like having a video store in your own home."
She sifted through the movies looking at the titles. "Gosh…someone really likes horror," she noticed
"That would be Emmett. He collects them all…zombies, vampires, werewolves, aliens…."
Tara looked through the names of each one, all organized alphabetically. "Hey, what'ya know!" Tara said as she pulled out the copy of the nineteen forty-eight movie, Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein."
Seth observed the cover which showed pictures of a very vintage-looking Frankenstein, Dracula and wolf man on the front. "So this is the one eh? Oh, hey ya know, I think my dad use to watch these guys when I was little…it's um, black-n-white eh?" he recalled from a memory.
"Yeah that's right," she said. "Cuz, ya know…I'm old and all," she nudged him with a cold elbow.
Seth chuckled. "Ok, let's watch it then." He opened the case and placed the disk in the player, waiting as it whirred up. Tara plopped herself on the floor even though there was a couch. She wasn't used to furniture though she knew what it was for. The floor was just fine for her and she liked looking up slightly at the TV from a lower angle like being at the movie theater. Seth turned the surround sound on and then once the opening credits began, he sat on the floor in front of the couch next to Tara. She curled her legs in towards her chest and wrapped her arms around them and smiled as he made himself comfortable. He was used to sleeping on the floor in wolf form so it didn't bother him much either.
After a several minutes into the movie, Seth put his elbow up on the couch and then propped his head up with his hand. He glanced over at Tara often during the movie, trying not to be too obvious. Though she'd see the movie a dozen times as a kid she still enjoyed it like it was her first time. It amused him when she would laugh at the two slapstick comedians on the screen and he'd laugh with her. About half way through, Tara noticed he wasn't laughing anymore. She peeked at him through the corner of her eye and noticed he'd fallen asleep. His head was resting on his stretched out arm that laid flat across the couch. She cocked her head to the side, curiously staring at him as he slept. He looked very peaceful, she thought. Tara reached her hand out towards his face and paused, yearning to touch his skin. She debated with herself for a moment and then she slowly stroked her finger tips across his warm soft cheek. His skin felt like burner of a stove under them and an efflux of energy pulsed through her arm. She never intimately examined a human this way. She pleasantly enjoyed it, very much as she studied his face intensively, copying all the features to her mind. One of her fingers pushed back a few strands of hair that hung over his forehead. When she realized she was getting too much enjoyment from the experience she pulled her hand back, nervous about the sensations it gave her to touch him. She distanced herself a little, perching herself up on the couch so she just could watch him sleep. She was so absorbed in the moment she didn't even notice when the music had stopped playing down stairs or when Edward entered the room. "So are you supposed to be watching the TV or the sleeping human?" he curiously asked.
"They're so interesting when they sleep," she said as her eyes shifted back to Seth's face.
Edward smiled. Her observations reminded him so much of his days of watching Bella sleeping. He started to notice the way she looked at Seth. It was more than just curiosity that she was feeling. Edward was intrigued as he listened to Seth's dreams. They exposed the enigma in Seth's mind that he could no longer conceal as he slept.
Jacob and Renesmee's voices carried in the hall now. They both stopped to talk to Bella before heading their direction. As they approached Edward met them in the hall and greeted his daughter with a hug and a kiss on the forehead. He only gave Jacob the usual manly nod acknowledging his presence. Then he wrapped his arms around his wife and gave her a very gentle kiss on the lips like he used to do when she was a frail human. Bella took notice in his use of restraint. "Um, that was awfully reserved of you," she commented.
He sighed. "Oh well, I was just having an epiphany…and a bit of DeJaVu. How about we head home?" he suggested.
"Home? Already?" Bella asked. She wasn't thinking about leaving so soon now that her daughter finally returned.
"Yes, I was just having the sudden urge to cover you in feathers." Edward winked.
Jacob seemed to recall a remark about feathers once before, except it was Bella's remark that time. He knew it had to be about something personal and just rolled his eyes.
Bella didn't wait another second. She yanked his arm nearly dragging him behind her as they he sped out of the house.
Tara heard them down the hall speaking. She wasn't quite sure what he meant by what he said but she figured it was code for something very private. She remained quiet at Seth's side just staring, not wanting to wake him just yet. Her mood was spoiled when she heard Jacob's giant feet clomping towards the room. As soon as Jacob entered he noticed his friend passed out next to her. It startled him at first and he frowned but when he realized his friend was only sleeping his mood lightened up. "I see you put him to sleep," he said as he turned his attention to the TV. "Well no wonder, what kind of nonsense are you watching?" Lon Chaney Jr. was transforming into the Wolf Man on the TV. "Wow, what lame special effects!" he laughed.
"It was made in nineteen forty-eight, Rin Tin Tin. It's a Classic and it's supposed to be funny."
"Yeah it's a classically lame movie. Look… it didn't even entertain the poor guy enough to keep him awake." They all stared at the unconscious boy.
"Well he's got the right idea anyway, I'm ready for bed," Renesmee said.
"Okay, I'll tuck you in. Go get your PJ's on." He smiled at her with his big warm eyes. When she zipped up the stairs, Jacob walked over and shook Seth's arm to wake him. "Hey Seth, you moving in or what?"
Seth snorted when he woke up and rubbed his eyes. He looked up at everyone in the room as they stared at him. "Oops…sorry, I guess I passed out." Tara smiled at him until Jacob spoke again with a tone that was starting to really annoy her.
"Yeah well I would too I was watching that snore-fest," he teased.
"Guess I missed the wolf man huh?" Seth said to Tara as he stood up stretching.
"Nah, you didn't miss much," Jacob interrupted.
Tara just rolled her eyes and clicked the off button on the remote. She was trying to ignore him like a pesky fly that buzzed around her head. She badly wanted to take a swat at it though.
"Hey Tara, do you know why Dracula has no friends?" She gave Jacob another dirty look, not saying a word. "Because he's a pain in the neck."
"Wow, that's hilarious," she said in a flat tone. "Where'd you get that one, stupid-vampire-jokes-dot-com?"
Seth snickered.
"No, I made that up.” Then paused thinking. “Hey is that a real site?" he asked making a mental note to google it later. Tara just shook her head rolling her eyes again.
"So, I guess I'll see you around," Seth touched Tara's arm gently taking her mind of her irritation.
Jacob chuckled. "Yeah, real soon I'm sure." He grinned. "Good thing you napped, eh?"
Seth gave him a dirty look. "Weren't you just saying you were leaving?" he grumbled.
"Yep. I just wanna make sure you don't stay up too late. I expect to see you on time to work tomorrow."
"Thanks Jake, I already have a mother…and a sister." Seth grumbled.
Jacob grinned. "Right. See ya." He said just before he disappeared.
Seth shook his head and rubbed his face still feeling a bit groggy. "I better take off. I'm sorry I missed the movie. Maybe we can finish it another time?"
"That sounds fine," She smiled. "I'll see you around then."
"Seth nodded. He knew that was all too true.
Later that night, Tara left the house to hunt on her own. She finally captured the mountain lion that managed to get away from her when Paul attacked and scared it away. After being satisfied by her meal, she perched herself in the limb of the tree overlooking the forest. She didn't so much as even blink, staying perfectly still for nearly an hour just watching and listening. As she inhaled the crisp night air she smelled the scent of fire wood burning several miles away. A gentle breeze lightly flickered through the leaves and the light from the moon peeked through them, illuminating the forest. As the cold air shifted, she picked up a familiar scent. Looking deep into the forest thought the trees, she spotted the source. Tara remained perfectly motionless and silent as she observed the large furry creature. It circled the area several times, sniffing the air. Then it put its muzzle to the ground, tracking a scent like a bloodhound. She grinned, curiously tilting her head to one side as she watched it getting closer. After a few moments, it became frustrated until finally it let out a whimper and laid down under the tree folding its paws, resting it's head on them.
Tara stood on the branch and silently tiptoed to the edge. As she leaped down to the ground, her body spun around, landing in front of it. She then slowly stood up making eye contact as it lifted its head and snapped up on all fours. She slowly walked forward until she stood face to face with it. Her eyes widened with amazement of its size. She never examined a wolf so closely, let alone one this large. She recognized the scent and the eyes immediately. "Seth?" she whispered.
The wolf nodded stepping closer.
Tara's eyes widened with amazement as he towered over her. She stepped back cautiously and Seth picked up on her fear. She looked around for others and then looked back at his big brown eyes. Something about them stared right through her.
He stopped moving and shook his head, hoping she wouldn't take off. She paused for a moment watching him.
"You won't hurt me will you?"
He shook his head again.
She stepped closer wanting to see him up close. She slowly reached out her hand to touch his pelt and caressed his head, running her fingers through his fur. "Wow," she gasped as she closely looked him over.
He closed his eyes tilting his head in towards her hand. The corners of her mouth turned up as she put her other hand to his face and pet his soft fur coat. He was in heaven.
"You're so soft," she said. "You know, you're actually kinda... cute." She grinned.
Seth let out a low grumble.
"Oh sorry, I mean ferocious looking. Really, really ferocious," she corrected "But what are you doing out here so late?"
Seth looked down to the side, slightly embarrassed.
"Are you looking for something?"
Seth nodded, then put his nose up to Tara's hair and began sniffing. It tickled, making her giggle. "Ah, you tracked me, but why? Am I doing something wrong?"
He shook his head.
She sighed. "Could you change back to a human so you can talk? This is kinda frustrating."
His eyes widened, remembering he ran all the way from the reservation not thinking he'd need a change of clothes. He groaned and shook his head.
"Why not?" Tara looked up at the sky. "Is it the full moon?"
Seth let out a loud wolfy laugh and shook his head.
"Okay, okay. Come on, I'm new at this. She tried to think of a reason why couldn't change back into in front of her. Finally the light bulb came on in her head.
"Ohh," Tara snickered. "I get it, you're… naked!"
Seth put his paw over his face.
"It's okay," she said still giggling. "Looks like I'll just have to do all of the talking." As she continued to pet his face, his eye lids fought to stay open. His body swerved back and forth, feeling woozy. He plopped down on the ground curing up into a ball trying very hard to keep his eyes open while Tara talked. She sat close to him, gently stroking the fur on his back.
She prattled on for a while about herself and all the places she'd been up until she returned to New England. She talked about the museum, about how her and her mother loved art and how her parents had planned to send her to Dartmouth once she had graduated high school. Before long, Seth finally lost his fight to stay awake and could no longer hold up his heavy eye lids. She looked over at him, watching him sleep peacefully. She caressed his back a few times, running her hands though his soft coat. After a while she rested her head on his back and gazed up at the moon and the stars.
Tara stayed with him till the sun rose. In the early morning, a variety of birds sung their melody. Seth lay for an hour more until his ears picked up the sounds around him. He opened his eyes and looked down at Tara, curled up into his side. She watched him sleep, still playing with his fur. They sat silently looking at each other for a while before Seth's stomach started to growl. "I take it that means you're hungry again?"
Seth thought about it for a moment, not really wanting to get up but then he shook his head.
"We should head back. I don't wanna worry them. I have been gone all night."
Seth stood up and leaned forward, putting his arms out front and stretched his long back, then shook his body like a dog waking from a long slumber. "Ready to go?"
Seth nodded .
"Okay, then let's see how fast you are. Race you there!" Tara suddenly vanished. She was merely a blur moving through the forest.
Seth chased after her taking long strides and leaping over vast amounts of terrain. He thought he'd almost lost her when the blur disappeared but then something made him stop abruptly in his tracks. He saw the vision of white wolf standing in front of him. He squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head wondering if his mind was playing tricks on him. When he opened his eyes again, he saw Tara standing in spot where the white wolf was.
She let out a playful snicker and disappeared into the trees again. He stood there in shock for a moment but then started chasing after her once more. Running as fast as he could he finally caught up to her. Then he leaped over her head and completely passed her. He stopped at the edge of the woods just behind the Cullen home, skidding in the dirt spinning around right in her path.
Tara stopped instantly, just inches from him. "You beat me," Tara grinned from ear to ear. "You had to work really hard to do it though. You're winded."
Seth let out a big sigh as she reached up and touched his face again. He closed his eyes as she ran her fingers though his thick fur.
"This is very strange for me, but I really have enjoyed spending time with you. Thanks for making me feel welcome here."
His eyes lit up when she smiled.
"Well… see you around." She fluttered her fingers at him then quickly spun on her toes and dashed off. "Oh and uh…don't be late for work." She winked.
He let out a snort. Then he watched as she headed for the house. She stopped and turned to look one last time before entering and then shut the door.
Seth finally turned and headed home. But as he dashed though the forest, he picked up on an intruder following him. "Damn," he thought, as his sister Leah ran up beside him.
"What the hell are you doing!" she demanded to know.
"Nothing!" he grumbled.
"I warned you not to do this Seth!"
"Just mind your own business Leah."
"This is nuts! She's…she's …not even human. She's a vampire. You can't do this!"
"I know what she is, and you know I have no control over the situation. It's just happened. Besides, I don't mind so much. She's actually very sweet and if and if she'll accept it, I wanna be with her".
"You're going to tell her? How? What if she doesn't take it well, Seth? You could be risking your life."
"I haven't figured it out just yet. I don't have all the answers. I don't know how to tell her just yet."
"Then don't!"
"Just stick to our deal and keep Sam's pack out of this for now. Jacob promised he'd do the same".
"But they can protect you."
"I don't need their protection. I don't think she'd hurt me. I protected her, remember?"
"Don't remind me. It would have better if you just let Paul kill her. Problem solved! I don't like this at all."
"Just shut up Leah, It not even your problem anyway!"
"I'm just worried. I don't want you to get hurt."
"Well stop worrying. I can handle it."
"Mom's not gonna be happy, did you even think about how this will affect her?"
"Yes, and in fact, mom's engaged to Charlie, whose daughter is a vampire also, and F-Y-I - that would make Bella our step-sister."
She thought about it for a moment. "Damn…this is all getting so…. weird."
"Not to me. I'm totally fine with it."
"Well, that's great for you but what about the rest of us?"
"Look I'm sorry you don't like it but I can't change it."
"Oh, well fabulous! As long as YOU'RE happy!"
"I told you, it's not a choice but I don't care. I want this. It doesn't matter to me that she's a vampire. Maybe there's something different about me. Maybe there's something different about the both of us. You haven't even been imprinted on yet."
"Yeah well I sure as heck don't wanna get stuck with any vampires! It's gross."
"That's your opinion!" he thought as he grumbled.
"Well, this isn't gonna fly Seth. You're gonna have the others in an uproar over this one".
"You have to keep this to yourself. Promise you'll keep the others out of your head okay? Just till I can figure this out…. Please?"
"Fine." She huffed. "Figure it out soon though." Then she disappeared