THE SILENCE BETWEEN US

"In just a moment his entire life was tilted off its axis. It was always described as something wonderful, the process of finding your soulmate. But imprinting was anything but perfect when Seth looked into Daphne's dark red eyes."

Oh, in the strangest dreams, walking by your side
It is the hole you impose upon your life
When you're out, loneliness, it crawls up in the ground
It's what you feel, but can't articulate out loud.

Oh you go to sleep on your own and you wake each day with your thoughts
And it scares you being alone
It's a last resort

All you want is someone onto whom you can cling
Your mother warned of strangers and the dangers they may bring
Your dreams and memories are blurring into one
The scenes which hold the waking world slowly come undone

You'll come undone

Sleepsong, Bastille

Garrett already knew that she wouldn't be inside of the house. Her scent was barely stale, they had missed her by no more than three weeks. Even knowing this, he let out an annoyed sigh when he opened – well, broke down – the door to reveal nothing but dusty rooms.

Kate's hesitant touch on his shoulder grounded him and kept him from losing his temper at yet another failure. Wrapping her arms around him from behind, she stood on the tips of her toes and hooked her chin over his shoulder.

"This is the last of the houses?"

Garrett nodded minutely and responded in what he tried to make a casual tone as he said, "Yes. This is the last of the places we stayed when we were traveling together. I'd been hoping she'd be here. I can't keep looking from house to house to try to track her down, and I certainly can't ask you to continue to accompany me."

Kate laughed lightly and pecked him on the cheek before disentangling herself from him and walking around so she was facing him. She reached forward and laced her hands through his, waiting until he met her gaze to speak.

"Garrett, traveling with my mate for the last six years hasn't been a hardship. Idiot. We both know it was exactly what I needed after what happened with the Olympic coven. I would have gone mad sitting in Denali and locking myself away to mourn."

He nodded to show he was listening, and she continued in a sympathetic tone.

"I know that not finding her has been difficult, but we have left notes at every house. When – not if, when – she returns to one of your past homes, she'll know you're in Denali. Furthermore, she'll know she is welcome to stop by."

Garrett cocked an eyebrow and said in a questioning tone, "Kate, love, you know what she means to me, but I'm still not sure that you understand what the implications of her staying are. She's a bit of a handful, and doesn't know how to live off of animal blood."

"Well I admit it's not entirely out of the goodness of my heart. I want to meet the famous Daphne."

"Is that jealousy I detect?"

Rolling her eyes, Kate shoved him sideways, perhaps a bit overzealously she realized when she saw the dent he caused in the wall.

"No, it's not. When you left you two were no longer more than friends, you were simply companions, yes? I do however want to meet the only human you have ever turned. Even if she is a baby vampire."

Garrett grinned and pulled her into an embrace, kissing her lightly before pulling back.

Grimacing theatrically, he pulled a cell phone from his pocket and said, "And now I'll have to use the damn technology the Cullens forced on me! Bloody industrialists."

Kate snorted and walked back out of the house, pausing on the porch and waiting for her mate to stand alongside her. When he reached her she turned and said, "You give them a call, I'll find a deer or two. I haven't eaten since we were in Montana. After this, we'll head home."

Garrett couldn't control the smile that covered his face at hearing her include her home in Denali as his unthinkingly. Before he could snap out of his preoccupied thoughts to answer her, she had sped off, leaving him alone outside the shabby cottage.

Unsurprisingly, Carlisle Cullen picked up the phone after only one ring.

"Garrett, to what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Carlisle! It's good to hear you, my friend. Unfortunately I'm not making a social call."

"I suspected as much. Are you and Kate planning on rejoining Tanya, Carmen, and Eleazar in the near future?"

"That is part of the reason I'm calling. Do you remember briefly meeting Daphne?"

"I believe so. You're talking about the young vampire you created, correct? The one who's a –"

Garrett felt only momentary guilt at cutting off his old friend, but he was fiercely protective of the young woman he had sired who had become his closest friend for some years, and he didn't want to risk hearing Carlisle say anything unintentionally insensitive.

"Yes, that's her. You'll remember I insisted she stay behind while you gathered witnesses against the Volturi for your grandchild. Kate and I have been searching for her every once in a while we have been traveling the States. We're in Northwest Oregon, and her scent is less than a month old. She knew vaguely of where your coven was situated and I believe she might turn up near your territory – the last place she knows I traveled to was to aid you in your stand. If she arrives, I ask that you let her know I've gone to Denali."

"Of course. And it goes without saying I'll treat her with respect. I'll ask Alice to watch for any unfamiliar vampires coming near our part of Washington."

"Thank you, Carlisle. I hope to hear from you soon."

"Safe travels, Garrett."

The click of Carlisle hanging up and ending the conversation jarred Garrett for a moment. With the end of the call it felt as though he had made a final decision to abandon his search, something he wasn't sure was the right choice.

Somewhat preoccupied, he slipped the phone back into his pocket and began to run into the forest, closely following his true mate's scent so he could join her on her hunt. His thoughts, however, remained on Daphne – the peculiar girl that he had changed on a whim, and who had proven to be an even more peculiar vampire.

Daphne heard a near-silent ripping sound and stopped running so suddenly she almost tripped. Were it possible for a vampire to be caught off balance, she probably would have face planted.

Staring down at her jeans, she confirmed that there was yet another tear in the denim. Damn, that thorn bush had really done a number on them. It didn't help either that she had fished them out of a bargain bin in a thrift store along with the loose v neck t shirt and backpack she now wore, and even then they hadn't been in the best of shape.

Well, nothing to do about it now.

She was pretty sure that she had crossed the border of Oregon a few hours before, which would be putting her midway up the coastal side of Washington state. Daphne had never been so far west in her life, and she couldn't help the childish thrill that surged through her at the thought of being in a new place. If only she could find the place she was actually looking for.

It had been inevitable that she and Garrett would part ways. He had stayed by her side for six years or so after her transformation – yet another thing she owed him for. He had been her creator, briefly her lover, and most recently her very best friend. It was not the fact that they were separated that had driven her to seek him out in the past few months, it was the restlessness.

For the first five and a half years after he had left with the peculiar golden eyed vampire, she had continued on as normal. She had been traveling, exploring the world as a predator instead of the prey she had been when she was attacked and then bitten that February night. But it had grown lonesome. Daphne wasn't set on staying with Garrett, but if anything she wanted to have a conversation and plan to keep in touch before they set off to do their own things once again.

So she had been back to a few of their old houses looking for him, but none of them appeared to have been lived in. Being a rational person, she knew she had to retrace his steps in a sense.

Which was why she was running through a very green, very damp forest in the middle of fucking Nowhere-ville, Washington State.

The golden-eyed vampire, Carson? Carlo? – she had been panicking at a foreign vampire approaching and had been unable to control herself, so she had been morphing back and forth nonstop and couldn't concentrate very well on the conversation – had said he lived in Forks, Washington. The last name was Cullen, she remembered that much, and a quick trip into a public library had allowed her the computer access she needed to find out where the hell the town named after cutlery was situated.

So she found herself journeying to Forks, hoping to say hello to Garrett before deciding what next to do with her life. Um… sort-of life.

Was she alive?

She had nearly perfected her ability, which had required quite a bit of understanding the human condition and mimicking such behavior, but she herself was undoubtedly a vampire. Undead, strong, growly – surprisingly glittery, but it was only fair that there were downsides to immortality – and her uncompleted Psychology undergraduate degree had meant she'd spent days contemplating whether or not she was alive or merely existing.

A bit too philosophical for Daphne, but vampires were supposed to be brooding, right?

She only allowed herself another moment of thought before she set out running once again. The forest she was traveling in was empty of human life, though she had been making out the sounds of large animal heartbeats. If worst came to worst, she'd either drink from any human she came across or morph so she could continue on her way without arousing suspicion.

No matter how fast she ran, how hard she pushed herself, Daphne could still make out the minute details of every leaf she passed.

God, the artist in Penelope would have had a field day.

But her sister was dead. Killed in the same night she had been saved in a sense by Garrett's venom. Penny was one of the only things she remembered from her human life, and she felt a rush of nostalgia and sadness each time her older sister crossed her thoughts.

In her preoccupation with thoughts of her deceased sister, Daphne almost missed the scent at first. Just a second later though, it was almost overwhelming.

What on earth…

It smelled – musky was the closest word to what she was inhaling. Her senses were a bit off for a vampire, undoubtedly because of her bizarre 'ability.' Because of this it took her a moment to recall what the smell reminded her of.

Brief flashes crossed her mind. A squirming ball of fur, growing into a huge dog over the course of a decade. Playing with the dog… Dusty, that was it. Chase and fetch and sprinklers –

There we go. The scent reminded her of wet dog. How curious.

Unwilling to let such a mystery go unsolved as to what could be producing such a potent scent, Daphne's path veered a bit to the side, nose now locked on to the trail.

Minutes later she was close enough to the animal she was following to hear the wet thudding of a huge, powerful heart.

She made out a shape half a mile away, a hulking beast with a dark brown coat obscured by the dense foliage. It had frozen, definitely hearing her approach, so she in turn froze as well. A low growl made her bones vibrate, and it began to lope closer to her until they stood a mere thirty feet apart and it stood in an attacking stance.

Animals had always reacted strangely to her since becoming a vampire. Many were fearful, while others displayed aggression, especially those of large predatory species. The wolf that stood before her was mammoth, hardly a wolf at all, but it was beautiful and she didn't want to scare it away just yet, so she extended her hand and began to morph.

Her arm had been in direct sunlight, so the visual effect of her using her gift was obvious. Slowly she raised her body temperature until it was what she approximated to be about human, and her skin lost its sparkling cover, gaining the few freckles and more olive hue that she had before she had transformed. She didn't need a mirror to know that her dark red eyes had now faded to the brown shade they had possessed as a human.

Of course, her transformation was not quite that – it wasn't a transformation so much as camouflage. Her skin remained strong, her throat burned, and her senses were still elevated, but somehow when she was turned she had gained the ability to briefly pass visually as a human, though the process was admittedly exhausting.

The wolf froze, and its growling abruptly stopped, as if it was confused. The sound of more wolves approaching almost caused her to morph back, but she didn't want to scare the wolf away just yet. She sincerely hoped that when she continued on her journey to the Cullens' residence the pack would not attempt to attack her – they were much too beautiful to needlessly die at her hands.

The brown wolf, the one she had seen initially, resumed its growling as its pack members seemed to be coming closer. In mere moments three more had joined the first, and Daphne was openly gaping at this point. They were – wow. They were enormous. Her concentration wavered for a moment as she let out an incredulous and awed sigh, and her camouflage wavered.

The grey wolf to her right lunged, and with regret she swung her leg out in a kick that would connect with its jaw. She only hoped that the animal wouldn't be too injured.

However, her foot did not touch its jaw, it instead connected with the teeth inside of its gaping mouth. A tugging sensation caught her completely by surprise, and she lurched in the direction of the wolf. A flash of light glinting off of something white within the wolf's mouth caught her attention while she remained in shock that she had been moved.

It was – holy fuck. That was her foot that it was now spitting to the side. Daphne couldn't process what was happening. The wolf had somehow torn off her goddamn foot. For a second she couldn't even feel it.

And then she did. Oh, did she feel it.