— so some little things about the
twilight vamp lore mightchange but
nothing major

also im crap at transition scenes
so if it's too confusing im sry—

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"So, how did he take the news?"

"So much better than I thought he would," she emphasized. She was back at the motel, lying on the bed of the room she rented, procrastinating getting her suitcases from her car. "He still hasn't called."

"He will, mijita." Hearing her aunt's assurance calmed her nerves. She was still shy about the situation, not truly believing the man would stick around. "Are you still okay with money? I can get my husband to send you more." Clara smirked to herself. A few months prior, Josefina Alves nearly ran over a man in the grocery store parking lot and it was moment of love at first sight for him. Their shotgun romance was a whirlwind of irresponsible financial decisions and fancy vacations to exotic islands. Josefina Alves was a gold digger and held no shame over it.

"Tell Hank thank you, but no," Clara chuckled to herself. She listened to her aunt ramble for few more minutes before the call was disconnecting and she was driving towards the closest food place she could find.

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The bar wasn't much but as the blonde sat perched on a barstool nursing a beer and picking at a basket of fries. She'd been told about a diner from the bartender but the cheap plate of chicken tenders and basket of fries was more than enough to sate her. A medley of motown hits echoed around her, one of the drunken regulars singing his heart out at a pool table.

"Lively bunch, aren't they." A heavily accented voice startled her. Her head snapped to her right, her blonde hair falling around her shoulders as she met a pair of piercing green eyes. He had shaggy windswept hair, the dark strands twisting into curls. Though the barstool added a few inches to her height, the man beside her still towered over her. He had a lean muscular build that stretched out the black henley he wore. He discarded a black coat on the stool beside her but chose to keep standing.

He leaned his body against the bar countertop, his eyes fixated on her. She wiped her hands on her napkin, taking a sip of her beer as he just stared. "Is staring how you flirt with women?" She knew her cheeks were red and she hated how this man effected her so easily.

"Is it working?" He leaned closer, his fingers itched to touch her smooth skin or to push her blonde hair aside. "Why have I never seen you around before, angel?"

The pet name rolled off his tongue so smoothly, he'd set the trap and Clara was falling for it. "I'm in town to visiting family," she was vague enough to not reveal any details to a man she'd just met. Despite the fact that the dark look in his eyes would have her instantly on her knees for him, the man was still a stranger to her.

"Give them my thanks," he uttered. Kieran was in awe of the younger female beside him. He knew what she was to him the second he stood outside the bar. The girl's blood sang to him, made him want to ravish her and tear her into pieces all at once. She sat next to him, appearing calm, but he could see the slight shift in her seat as she grew shy under his heavy gaze. She was much shorter than him, even with her sitting he could tell. Her long hair cascaded down her back, framing her waist cutely as it brushed the inch of skin her shirt didn't cover. The peek of her back dimples had his pants tightening, his body craving hers.

She took a glance around the bar, trying to calm her body's overwhelming urge to feel the man's skin on hers. "Do you live in Forks?"

"The accent gives me away, heh?" A small laugh left her, his smirk gradually growing at the sound. "I'm visiting the family, holidays and such."

"It's September," she quirked an eyebrow at him, his light amber eyes twinkling mischievously at her. She hadn't noticed the odd color until that second, dismissing the weird color as contacts.

"Labor Day," he clicked his tongue. His tone was laced with pure amusement as she shook her head and drank from her beer. He watched as she grimaced slightly as she set it down. "The Irish have much better beer."

"There's nothing wrong with American ale," she objected. "But a warm beer isn't good to anybody."

"Ya got me there," he chuckled.

"And that means it's my cue to leave," she pushed her half eaten plate away, putting her trash on the plate, clearing away her little mess. Kieran watched her with a soft smile on his face. The phone call from his adopted sister echoed in his mind. She'd contacted him a week before foretelling his meeting with his mate. He'd waited since he'd been turned, and nearly four decades later, the pretty blonde sat before him. When she hopped off of the barstool, he put his hands out instinctively. He grabbed onto her waist and helped her steady herself before either one of them realized his skin was touching hers.

Her breath hitched, a soft gasp leaving her as she felt his broad hands hold her. His unusually cold temperature sent a shiver down her spine.

He felt her small tremor at his touch, his kind reeling with ideas of how much she'd tremble as she felt his cold bare skin everywhere. He fought the urge to pull her closer to him, instead letting her go and taking a step backward. He was told he'd have forever with her, he could wait. Maybe.

"It was nice meeting you," she held a hand out to him. His lips twitched as he shook it.

"Let me walk you out, love," he grabbed his coat, ready to stride after her.

"Maybe next time, leprechaun," she grinned slyly. "With the fanny flutters I have right now, it's safer for you to not."

"I could easily remedy that for you," his eyes darkened as hers widened. It wasn't with shock he noted, lust swirled in her blue irises, it was just a flash before she forced it away and mischief took its place.

"Some other time," she rubbed his arm flirtatiously. "If you're lucky." She left him standing by the bar without another word or a glance back. His right hand hovered over his heart, an unknown feeling in his chest as she left his sight. He hastily grabbed his coat, rushing outside to see one more glimpse of her. He caught the taillights of silver suv driving down the road, no sign of the girl lingering anywhere in the parking lot.

"Fucking 'ell," he muttered, running a hand through his curls, hating how lost he was feeling now that she wasn't near him. He went back inside the bar, planning to drink as many beers as he could before his body rejected the sickly liquid.

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It was the next morning, around midday, that her phone rang whilst she was munching on a bag of chips and watching cartoons. She answered the call without looking, chips spitting out of her mouth in shock as she heard Carlisle's voice on the other end. She choked down half of her water bottle as she tried to cough up the crumbs stuck in her throat.

"Are you alright?" She could hear the worry in his tone.

"I'm good!" She sputtered. "I um, didn't think you were gonna call."

The sadness in her tone had the blond man frowning. "Are you free for the rest of the day?"

"Pretty much," she answered honestly. Meeting him was her sole purpose for traveling to the rainy town, she hadn't planned to do anything except sit around her motel room. "What did you have in mind?"

"We'll start with lunch and plan from there."

"Oh okay, yeah," she nodded even though he couldn't see her. She got up from the bed and started rummaging through her suitcase for a suitable outfit. "Um," she stood up straight and pushed her bangs out of her face. "What should I wear?"

His laugh was contagious and she found herself chuckling with him. "Dress warmly, it's raining and cold out. And don't forget a jacket."

"Spoken like a true Grandpa," she mumbled absentmindedly. A wave of warm comfort rushed over his body at her comment. It was just a quick murmur under her breath and he liked it all the same. "Okay, so where should we met?"

"Would you be against me picking you up?" She chewed on her lip as she thought it over.

"I guess that's okay," she agreed.

"Okay, is thirty minutes enough time?"

"I can do twenty, I'm partially ready already," Which wasn't a total lie, she hopped into her low rise jeans, trying to pull them over her thighs as she tried to spot her shoes. "Okay, I'll see you in a bit." She disconnected before he could utter a goodbye and hustled around to finish readying herself.

Her breath was still coming out in pants as she stood outside her motel room. Her cheeks blotchy and red from rushing to make it outside before Carlisle pulled in. She'd foregone most of her makeup, not even trying to rush through a simple beat, instead just applying her favorite lip gloss and combing a spoolie through her lash extensions. With another glance at her outfit in the window's reflection, she deemed herself as presentable as she could get.

"Good morning!" She greeted him happily as she climbed into his car.

"Do you feel safe here?" Carlisle scowled at the building she was staying in. The motel was just a long stretch of rooms that faced the street, he didn't like the look of it. It wasn't rundown or uninhabitable, just dingy and old.

"It's decent enough," she commented as she looked for the flaws he was seeing. "The air bnb wasn't available and I survived last night so it can't be so bad." He was still frowning at the building as she buckled and tried to distract him. "So, lunch?"

"Yeah, let's go." He shook his head and gave her a kind smile, driving them towards the local diner. He'd wanted to take her someplace a little more private, so she wouldn't feel so exposed being seen with him but their little town had limited options and he knew his family wouldn't bother them there.

They had small talk - girl chat as she kept correcting him - his brain memorizing every little detail she told about herself. He'd learned her favorite color, why she preferred the backstreet boys over nsync, how she hyper fixated on conspiracy theories and her long term goal of owning an underground doomsday bunker. He listened to her yapping, smirking to himself at the field day Edward was about to have with her mind.

"—and I sort of get this bad feeling anytime things are about to go to shit so I guess I should've trusted my instincts so that's on me, that was my fault, but in my defense, how was I supposed to know that the poor guy couldn't swim? Plus all he ended up with was a broken arm so it's not like it was anything life changing." She sucked in a small dose of air before continuing her story. "Also, he can swim now so if it wasn't for me almost kind of drowning him, he would've never learned."

"I see," Carlisle nodded, his grin mesmerizing as she followed him into the diner. He chose a booth in the back, wanting as much privacy as the space would allow. "That's- that's something." Truthfully he didn't know how to respond, instead just nodding along and grinning to himself at her ramblings. It was a trait she got from his burliest son, the incessant rambling and the inability to finish one story without venturing into ten other ones before finally ending the first one.

"Mama Tati made me bake him cupcakes to tell him sorry," she smacked her gums, "and she caught me trying to spit in the batter."

"Did you apologize?" The look he gave her was one she was familiar with. The stern "you should know better" glare was ingrained in her mind, the look being one her foster Mom had constantly given her.

"I did and with spit free cupcakes," she rolled her eyes playfully. She stayed quiet as she looked over the menu, glancing up at the man before her through her lashes. He quietly analyzed the menu, a content smile on his face. She was in awe of his skin, the even complexion and lack of wrinkles had her wanting him to give her a step by step of his skincare routine. "Carlisle?" He looked up at her, "you said it's not just you here. Who else is?"

"Everyone," he smiled gently at her. He set the menu down, relaxing into the seat. She copied his movements, her blue eyes flickering across his face as she tried to read his expression. "I'm assuming you don't remember who everyone is?" At her nod, he took an unneeded breath. "Well, we have a fairly large family. Only a few of us still live here. My wife, your grandmother, Esme lives here with me. My youngest son, your uncle Edward, also lives in town with his wife and their daughter."

"Have I met any of them?" She figured it was a stupid question but in the seventeen years they'd spent apart, she wasn't sure who would know the toddler version of herself.

"Esme and Edward, yes. Bella and their daughter came much later." They placed their orders when the waitress came around, Carlisle continuing explaining their family as she gazed up at him with curiosity flashing in her eyes. "Alice and Jasper live in Alaska with family friends, enjoying their married life in peace with the moose and snow." They shared a small laugh. "Kieran's a wanderer, never one to settle in one place. Now he's here but before that I think he was in Greenland doing only he knows what."

"Have I met them too?"

"Not Kieran. He joined the family in '93. Two years after you'd gone," his smile grew sad as the memories flashed through his mind. He remembered the pain and confusion they all felt. The loss weighing heavily on their chests as they realized the only way they could ever keep the little girl safe from their enemies, was to give her away. Let her live a life without them. "Rosalie and Emmett come and go. They visit quite a bit and when they're not here, they're in Alaska with Alice and Jasper."

Hearing the two names triggered something within her. Somehow, without him even confirming it, she knew the last two he mentioned were her parents. She sunk in her seat at the realization. He'd said they were all in town for a visit, which meant if she wasn't careful, she'd be meeting them before she was even ready to admit to herself they existed.

"Do you know why they left me?" She fiddled with a strand of her blonde hair, ignoring the pitying look he gave her.

"That's not for me to tell you," a frown forming at the dejected look on her face. "It wasn't an easy decision for them Clara, you have to know that."

"I wanted to hate them," she confessed, guiltily chewing on her bottom lip. "But you can't hate people you don't even remember."

"I'm really happy you found me, Clara," he reached across the table and held her hands in his. "We'll take this as slow as you want and until you're ready, this will be our little secret." The smile she gave him was blinding. Her blue eyes lit up as his understanding, the trust she was unknowingly conveying had his chest swelling with pride. "I do have to warn you, I did tell Esme about you." Her lips parted in surprise but he spoke up before she could. "She's excited you're here. She's ready to meet you whenever you're ready to meet her."

Clara felt her nerves spike at the thought of meeting her "—will you be there when I do?"

If he could cry, he would've shed a few tears. The girl hadn't been around him for more than a full day and he was already someone she trusted and felt protected with. Carlisle was the patriarch of their Coven. The father figure for the vampiric teens he adopted. They were a family and Clara was apart of that. His missing puzzle piece. Protecting his family gave his life purpose and with the short blonde wanting him near at vulnerable times, the warmth in his chest encompassed him. "I will. I'll be there whenever you need me." His promise meant a lot to her. She put blind trust in the man, not having regretted that decision, but she couldn't lie to herself. He was still just a stranger (and a man), how much could she really trust him.