Disclaimer: Not my circus, just stuffing SM's clowns in the car.

A/N: Hi all! This is my first full length fan fic. I used to be a purist but I'm a full fledged AU OOC fan now. I noticed there weren't as many Bella/Emmett pairings as there should be and this idea formed in my head. I'll try to update every Friday until our story is complete. Have fun and don't do anything Peter wouldn't do...wait...

Love, MamaJ

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Standing in the unfamiliar, dense forest of evergreens and ferns...again. I knew I was dreaming but I couldn't wake up. I sighed audibly, knowing what's about to find me.

Looking down at my clothing, I notice I'm no longer wearing my normal dream uniform of a t-shirt, jeans, and beat up kicks. This time was very different. I was wearing a terrible ball gown. It's huge and incredibly heavy, anchoring me to the wet undergrowth of the mysterious woods. I pulled up the full skirt and, to my utter horror, I found four inch heels. How the hell do I run in these?! I silently howled. I guessed I'd lost…again.

I heard her growling before I saw her. Suddenly, she was in front of me, her red eyes seeping away into blackness, just like every other night. I begged and pleaded for my life, for the first time since the nightmares started when I turned sixteen. "Please! I don't know what I've done! Why are you doing this?" I cried as she paused. I had never spoken to her before and I wouldn't have this time but there was something inside me screaming to ask why. She had never stopped before either so I took the chance to examine her more closely.

She was hauntingly beautiful, even with her black eyes and dripping, perfect teeth. I remembered what those teeth could do. Intellectually, I appreciated the unwavering determination radiating from the creature. Emotionally, I was completely broken by my fear. She was also wearing a formal dress but as mine was a deep purple, her dress was a bright, blood red, which suited her pale skin perfectly. Her dress was torn in many places, exposing more skin than covering. Her hair had the look of being styled but it had been ruined by her chase after me. She was filthy, as always, her bare feet and calves caked in mud and torn fern fronds. She looked me over, appraising me. I could see the rage, as always, but there was more behind it. I felt her despair, I felt her sorrow. "Why?" The demon whispered the word so quietly I almost missed it. "YOU ARE GOING TO STEAL WHAT IS MINE! YOU MUST BE DESTROYED!" The last thing I saw was blonde hair covering my face as she ripped my throat out with those perfect teeth...

~.~.~.~.~.~

I screamed as I awoke from the horrid nightmare yet again. It was dark and oppressively hot in my bedroom in my mother's home in Phoenix. Renee and Phil were in Florida for a job interview with a team in Jacksonville. Phil was a decent baseball player but he had been injured so many times that no team would give him an honest shot anymore. This was an interview for an assistant coach position with a minor league team. We were all keeping our fingers crossed for this job. I was tired of being left alone so Mom could travel with him and I certainly had only a small urge to move to Washington with my father. Charlie was a good man and a decent dad but Forks was cold and wet, two things I, Bella Swan, despised.

Stretching my arms high above my head and leaning right, then left, I tried to crack my neck and back to relieve some of the pressure the nightmare had created in my poor body. Looking around, my eyes falling to my alarm clock but I couldn't see it. Obviously the power had gone out from the horrific thunderstorm rolling through. Stumbling down the stairs, I guided my hands along the wall. Like a fool, I tried the light switch, just in case. Of course, it didn't work. I finally made my way into the kitchen and the fridge. Carefully, I pulled out a bottle of water as I turned to sit at the small table in the dining area.

I rolled the water bottle up and down my neck, thankful it was still cold. My thoughts slowly returned to my dreams. She said I was going to take what was hers. I'd never met the beastly woman that terrorized me during the night, I was positive. I couldn't fathom trying to take anything from a monster such as her. The blonde was obviously more beautiful than me. She was statuesque, standing at least 5'9" tall. Her body was slim but not so slim that she lost her curves. I imagined her in her red dress before it was ruined, her beautiful face full of makeup, her hair twirled into a sophisticated twist with tendrils trailing down her long back. She belonged on a runway, not my nightmares. I, however, was short, 5'3", with boring brown hair and and even more boring body. Shaking my head at my exceedingly insane thoughts, I stood up with the intention of trying to get some more sleep.

Something was wrong. It was quiet in the house, on the entire block. People never realize how loud life is when the power is running. The quiet was expected but it still gave me an uneasy feeling in my chest. I slowly scanned my surroundings. Our house was nice but not enormous, Phil didn't feel the need to buy us a new house when he married Mom, there was plenty of room for him in our house. The downstairs living area had an open concept design so I was able to easily see everything but the front entryway and the small half bathroom under the stairs. Moving my eyes across the living room, I noticed a patch of shadow that seemed to be darker than the rest of the room. Just as I was about to call out to make sure I was alone, because the shadow had a vaguely human shape, the mechanical buzz of the power returning flooded the area with light, revealing nothing.

Ugh, smart Bells. You let that skank monster from your dream scare you in your own damn house, I thought bitterly. I grabbed my water and stomped up to my room, making sure to turn the A/C up as high as it would go. Climbing back into my bed, I prayed the nightmare would only visit once this night.

~.~.~.~.~.~

Waking up to my phone ringing, I blinked into the early morning sun that was streaming across my bed. I glanced at my clock but it was blinking. I remembered waking up during the night when the power was out and then looked at the caller ID on my phone. It was my father, Charlie. I frowned, furrowing my brow. He didn't call me often and it was concerning to say the least.

"Hello Dad. Is everything alright?" I asked, keeping my tone even.

"Course Bells! I was just getting ready to go fishing with Billy and Jake and they wanted to know when you're coming home to visit. I miss ya, kid. I know they do too. Would it really kill ya to come back? Just until you graduate? Come on, let me be your dad again," he mumbled his last words and it made my heart ache. I never intended my absence to hurt Charlie, it was just easier to stay put. I had been teetering on the ledge, a constant pros and cons list running through my head. The pros for staying with Mom and Phil were slowly dwindling. If he got the job in Jacksonville, I would be moving during the school year of my senior year. If he didn't get the job, I would be alone often, since Mom would always choose to follow him instead of staying with me. I knew she loved me but it hurt to know she would rather be with him than me. I was tired of being picked last for every team I was part of. Charlie always put me first, I was his pride and joy. It might be better to go...

"Dad, I'm not sure. This is my senior year, that means I'd be in a brand new school for the most important year of my education. Is that really a good idea?" I questioned, even though I knew he would brush my concerns under the rug.

"Don't be an idiot, Bella. You are my daughter, you can learn here, there, or anywhere for all I care. I just want you to come home. Renee had her chance, let me have mine," Charlie begged.

"I'm not making any decisions today but I promise to let you know my plans as soon as I've made them, okay? I love you Dad, always have, always will," I smiled lightly, giving him the same answer I had been giving him all summer. I could hear him huffing, I knew he was overcome with emotion and that wasn't a position he found himself in often. "Alright, Bells. If you need a little more time, you can have it. Just remember, you belong here," Charlie breathed out, his voice breaking slightly. Shit or get off the pot time. I need to make a choice, and soon.

"Bye Daddy, talk to you soon."

"Bye bye, Bells. Love you," and he ended the call.

Sighing, I dropped the phone in my lap and covered my eyes. I knew he wasn't trying to force me but it was so much pressure to come to a reasonable decision. Charlie wanted me, Renee didn't have time for me but she still wanted me. Shaking my head, I stood up and started gathering everything I would need for my shower and to get ready for the day. I jumped in as soon as the water was warmed up enough and started working my iris body wash into a stout lather. Iris was an interesting scent and I was so sick of smelling like berries. Mom decided when I was five that strawberry was my "signature" scent. It was fine through my childhood but as a young adult I needed a more mature signature. I found an iris body wash and it just fit so now all my soaps and potions were iris scented.

After shaving, scrubbing, and conditioning everything I had, I stepped out to get dressed. I planned on wearing my regular house clothes, shorts and a tank, since I was staying home for the day. It was Sunday, toward the middle of August, and blazing hot. The storm from last night had dropped no rain, just thunder and lightening. After getting dressed, I tossed myself back on my bed to read the shittiest true crime novel I had ever read. Mom was a true crime nut and nagged me to read them with her while she was on the road. More often than not, I read the crap only to be disappointed because she did not. After an hour of reading about how Ed Gein liked to wear the skin of the women he murdered, I gave up. Renee was insane if she thought I would continue to read that fuckery. Give me a classic love story, like Romeo and Juliet or Pride and Prejudice and I would've been perfectly content. People can be monsters and I would just rather not read about it.

I stood by the window looking out over our small neighborhood. I saw Mrs. Macon stroll over to the mailboxes to get her mail from yesterday. It made me realize then that I hadn't checked our mail since Thursday. I slipped on some flip flops and stepped outside. It was only around 10 am but the heat was already cloying. I hopped down the steps to the front lawn, neglecting the sidewalk in favor of a direct route to the mailbox. Opening it, I was surprised to see a small box addressed to me , along with the basic bills and ads. The label had no return address. There were no clues as to where it came from. I hadn't ordered anything and Dad never sent packages so I was completely stumped. Instead of obsessing about who, where, what, and why, I walked back in the house to open it up.

I sat on the floor in the living room with some soft music playing on the radio and stared at the package for about ten minutes. I couldn't understand why it was bothering me so much. I kept looking at it, trying to see what made me so uncomfortable. It was relatively small, about the size of a loaf of bread. Is it bigger than a breadbox, Isabella? Just fucking open it already, I mentally chastised myself.

I picked it up and lightly shook it. I could hear a few things bumping but it gave me no clues as to what was in it. I pulled the single piece of packing tape off the bottom of the box and gently flipped the flaps up, half expecting something to attack. Nothing did. The first thing I found was a small note with a few nonsense words.

To the amazing Iz!

Delivered with love for your tatas by Mr. and Mrs. Yoda

Open up Nugget, we need to talk.

The note made me even more confused. I'd never met anyone with the ridiculous name Yoda and I'd certainly never had anyone call me Iz or refer to their love of my 'tatas." I plunged my hand back into the box, finding three items. The first was a cell phone. It was cheap, definitely a burner. The next item was an envelope that had "Do not open until Xmas! Or until The Major says to..." written on the front. It made me giggle and remember a silly Bugs Bunny cartoon from my childhood. The final thing I pulled out had my eyes bulging. It was a huge stack of cash with a band around it that said "$10,000" across it with a post-it that said, "Don't spend it all in one place, Sugar," in a much more delicate hand than the other notes. I laid all the items out on the coffee table, trying to make sense of everything. Who sent this? Why did they? What do I do with it all? I just stared at it all and had nothing. Not a clue or feeling as to what to do. I really wish The Yodas had given me a bit more information here. Would it be so hard to send a text? As soon as the thought formed in my brain, the phone was vibrating. In shock, I reached down and flipped it open to read the three texts I had just been sent.

Nugget, glad you got the package-Yoda

You are in danger and I'm gonna help you but you gotta listen.-Y

Leave your house in fifteen minutes. Go to the airport.-Y

I started laughing. I wasn't sure which friend was screwing with me but there was no way I was rushing to the airport without a good reason and some random anonymous texts weren't enough. Another text alert went off.

I ain't anonymous, I told ya, I'm Yoda. There was a shadow in your livin' room last night.-Y

Now I was scared. How that hell would anyone know I saw a shadow during the night if they weren't here? What the fuck? Was Yoda in the house last night? If not, how could he/she/them know?

It wasn't me. Don't ask me how I know, I just do. Fuckin' move, thirteen minutes.-Y

Frowning, I sat for another minute. Indecision was nothing new to me. I couldn't even decide to go live with the only man who had always had my back. Maybe I should listen to Yoda and just go to the airport. I could jump on a flight to Seattle and be hugging Charlie by dinner.

Charlie's ain't safe. Renee's ain't safe. Eleven minutes, Bells. Grab your favorite book, your bathroom stuff, and your pictures. The rest is replaceable.-Y

"Alright Yoda. Keep your fucking pants on," I mumbled as I moved to the stairs.

I don't wear pants, my balls are too big ;) -Y

Rolling my eyes, I grabbed a small carry on bag, stuffing the things he told me to and the things he sent me, making sure the cash and envelope were on the bottom. It probably should have bothered me that he was answering my thoughts and spoken words like he was right beside me but it never felt wrong. I'd always had good instincts and I tended to trust them.

Write a note for your mama, tell her you are leaving to "find yourself" or some shit and you'll be in contact.-Y

Sighing, I followed his instructions. Listening to him seemed like the right thing to do, even though I was pretty sure he was certifiably insane.

My wife is gonna love you, babe. She knows I'm nuttier than a squirrel storin' shit for winter.-Y

I grinned and laughed lightly. At least this should be interesting. I bounced out the door, locking it behind me. My car was cheap, a little beat up Toyota hatchback. I jumped in and started it up, turning down the road toward the airport and the unknown. I was really hoping Yoda wasn't just a smart ass who liked to mess with others.

Naw, darlin'. You're important to us, you just don't know a thing yet. But you will.-Y

Huh, The Yodas think I matter, I wondered. Maybe it was time to see where these breadcrumbs planned on leading me.