Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. I am in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise, I just use their creations to have my wicked way with them. No copyright infringement is intended.

Many thanks to Jadsmama and Ladysharkey1 for their amazing pre-reader- and beta-skills. Without those two I'd never even dare to post. Luv ya!

I would also like to thank my dear friend Ange de l'Aube for creating the beautiful art that adorns this story. *hugs*

Okay. Sequel. Here it is. Let's just get on with it?

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

United States of America, Declaration of Independence (1776)

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Freedom.

It was such an odd word, filled with all sorts of happy but intangible meanings such as 'freedom from oppression', 'freedom of speech', 'freedom to be' or 'freedom from fear'. To anyone else these four freedoms had become so commonplace and natural that only a minority of individuals inhabiting the free world would ever have a second thought on them.

Not Bella.

It wasn't even a week since her old life – the life of Isabella; a meek servant and slave to an erratic, dying old man - had ended and she had been reborn into that free and strange new life she was still trying to come to grips with.

She wasn't used to having so much freedom.

Bella sighed, leaning her head against the backrest of her chair, her eyes trained to the infinite blue of the heavens and the distant green and grey of the world below as the airplane zoomed through the sky on its way to her new world. As if to remind herself of who was keeping her safe and grounded in the midst of all the confusion and turmoil she was continuously becoming lost in, her hand squeezed his as they lay entwined on top of their shared armrest.

Edward.

Her one and only lifeline.

If he would have opened his eyes at that moment he would have been met with a look of pure, all-consuming love clouded by the fear and uncertainty of her life. But, in spite of a muffled grunt and a slight change in posture as he shifted to stretch in his uncomfortable airplane seat, he was quick to fall back into that deep sleep that had lulled him unconscious ever since the plane had first lifted up into the sky.

She quietly turned to her side, forgoing the mesmerizing sight outside her window to watch him, unabashedly. Was it even possible for love to grow so deep and strong over such a short amount of time?

She had never thought it imaginable but then again, she hardly had any material for comparison when it came to love. Her whole life had been one big uphill battle for survival, leaving hardly any moment's peace to enjoy it or even think about falling in love.

And yet she'd fallen.

Hard.

So hard.

It was the feeling Bella was trying to hold onto when everything else was threatening to become too much; the love she had for Edward and the trust that in this rough sea, he would steer her in the right direction and protect her against the waves and the sharks. She would conquer this life and set out what she'd promised herself over and over again she'd do.

Live life to the fullest.

Yes, everything was going to be alright.

Her emotions during the past couple of weeks had been all over the place, so much so that she was still fighting to keep a handle on all of the things she was feeling. She'd loved James in her own way – the man he used to be before the disease had killed his ability to be human, not the man he'd become in the end - and she missed him, even if it was still so hard for her to come to grips with what he'd done.

True, he had betrayed her; betrayed the trust and hope she'd given him to give her a future after she'd given him her labor and devotion for almost four years of her life.

It was all gone.

She bit her lip in an effort to stop it from trembling and hopefully prevent her tears from spilling – whether from anger or grief she wasn't sure – as she thought about the long and hard fight with Jane she'd had in front of her if she wanted to get what was owed to her.

Did she really want that anymore?

Part of her did, and not just because she wanted justice. As much as she loved and trusted Edward, she wanted to be free – his true equal instead of becoming completely dependent on him. If she had money, she would be able to do her own things, regardless of whether or not he approved.

But she didn't.

She didn't have a damn cent to her name where she should have had enough until she was able to make her own way.

But did she want to fight the dirty fight with Jane she knew she had in front of her if she wanted to gain that freedom?

Most of all she wanted peace; a quiet life with Edward and the time to think about what she wanted to do and who she wanted to become. Fighting with Jane would bring the exact opposite into her life: more fighting, more dissonance – and it wasn't even a given that they would get the judge to side with them in the end. Edward's brother-in-law had been very clear about that, even before he'd immersed himself into the details of the case.

Was it even worth it?

She sighed again, suddenly remembering one of the many lessons James had taught her on those mornings when his mind was still cooperating and he still had the willingness to share his wisdom with her.

It had been a lesson on one of the oldest and most valuable documents in the history of the United States: the Declaration of Independence. It had stuck with her throughout the years that had followed since, not just because of the dramatic events that followed or the way it incorporated the groundbreaking ideas of some of the greatest philosophers of the Age of Enlightenment. No, it had been one sentence from that document which had jumped from the page and haunted her ever since, justifying her reasons to stay and challenging her to leave at the same time, as each night she repeated it in her mind.

She, like every other American - and each living soul on this earth - had the unalienable right to pursue her own happiness.

And now, freed from her oppressor and getting closer to the start of her own life in a new town, she was determined to make it happen, no matter how hard she was going to have to battle for it.

She was now free. She had the right to pursue whatever the hell she wanted.

Go wherever the wind would carry her.

Including toward a life full of love and happiness.

And that goal would be worth whatever trouble had blown on her way.

It would have to be.

Thoughts?