In Town From Alaska (Denali's & those in the Cullen house most often)

Carmen couldn't wait to see her cousins the Cullens again. She hadn't seen them since the last confrontation with the Volturri and she was dying to see Bella and Renesmee again, and under better circumstances.

The house came into view much sooner than she expected. A wide smile spread across her face at the sight. She ran forward and climbed the steps to the front door. She knocked just loud enough to be heard, and waited for the door to open.

Bella sighed as she stood up from the couch in Edward's room. She really didn't want to leave him sitting there, but at the same time she kind of wondered who it could be. She looked back at Edward questioningly, but he wasn't looking at her and didn't notice.
As Bella descended the stairs she knew who it was. Carmen was visiting, according to her vampiric nose. She smiled at the thought.
That's nice of her.
She came to the door, and opened it.
"Hello, Carmen." She said, smiling politely. "It's been awhile."

"Hola mi amor!" Carmen reached out as Bella opened the door and hugged her gently. She pulled away and said, "I hope this isn't a bad time. I do apologize for arriving unannounced." Carmen's smile and words were genuine. Good day Edward. I hope I'm not interrupting anything important. "I just remebered how I hadn't seen the new additions to our family in such a long time." Carmen wanted so much to see the Cullens again. She loved them so much.

Edward followed his wife down the stairs, surprised yet happy to see one of their favorite cousins visiting. "Carmen!" he exclaimed, hugging her tightly. "You're not interrupting anything important," he replied to her unspoken thoughts. It was always a pleasure to have their extended family visit them, especially after all that Carmen had done to help them with Renesmee.

"What occasions this visit?" he asked, stepping backward to where Bella was and putting his arm around her waist.

"No occasion, I just thought it would be nice to visit mis primos." Carmen smiled at the couple that were so apparently in love. "It is nice to be able to come for a more positive reason than last time though," she mused. Carmen looked around the room and felt so comfortable, as always. The Cullen home was beautiful and always impecably done. "Now, where is mi querida? I am dying to see that lovely child." Carmen loved the chance to have a child in the family, something they never thought was possible. Renesmee was everyone's pride and joy.

Bella grinned as Edward came down, and hugged him close to her as soon as his arms were free of Carmen. Her smile faltered slightly at the mention of last time...
Ugh. She tried to remain composed, though the onslaught of memories was very unnerving. So much worry, so much pain...
Carmen went on asking where Renesmee was.
"Oh, I think she's out with Jacob on a walk..." She smiled. It felt good finally trusting Jacob. She'd been planning on banking on him for so much, she truly knew now that she could. Bella layed her head on Edward's shoulder and breathed deeply.

Carmen held her smile well. Though she was still a little worried about the Cullen's closeness with the wolves, she knew that they trusted Jacob, and that he loved Renesmee. I'm glad to see that things are still going well with the wolves then... she thought. "So have things been here in Forks lately, has the hunting been decent. There isn't much variety in Denali right now." Carmen walked a little further into the house as she spoke.

The mention of Jacob still rubbed Edward the wrong way. Though thinking of him set Bella's turmoiled thoughts at ease, it was still strange, difficult even, to think of him as anything but a free babysitter. Carmen's thoughts interrupted his brooding- I'm glad to see things are still going so well with the wolves then...

He nodded briefly. "We trust the wolves- they protect our daughter very well. In fact, they keep things in Forks relatively safe- boring even," he laughed. He could sense that Bella still felt tense at the mention of their run-in with the Volturi, and he squeezed her reassuringly.

Bella relaxed, and laughed with Edward. "Boring might be exagerating just slightly." She teased, looking up at Edward. Bella looked back at Carmen, and then sighed.
"Hunting has been same as usual. Deer, deer... more deer." She grimaced. "Sometimes Edward allows farther trips for lions though. Those at least taste a bit better." Bella detached herself from Edward, always unwillingly, and went to sit down at the couch. Practising to act human was always a good thing, and though it felt unatural at first, she was begining to get used to it. She patted the seat beside her, inviting Carmen and Edward to sit with her.
"How are Tanya and Kate?" She wondered, concern tinting her voice slightly. She knew the poor sisters were probably still grieving the loss of Irina. It was so unfortunate...

Carmen gracefully joined Bella on the couch, leaving room for Edward beside his wife. "Tanya and Kate are as well as could be expected. They miss Irina dearly, but they're moving on. They still have each other, and of course Eleazar and I. And they know they have great support in the Cullens as well." Carmen smiled warmly at both Bella and Edward. They had been so wonderful to them over the years and it was only fair for the Denali Coven to return the favor. "Garrett is such a wonderful addition to Kate's life as well. He's trying so hard to follow her example. We can't get him to stop asking her to shock him though." Carmen chuckled.

Edward smiled at the mention of the Denali's new addition- Garrett's infectious energy would definitely be helpful in their recovery. As soon as he sat down beside Bella, however, Jake's frantic thoughts burst across his mind, instantly alarming him. Volturi.

Volturi? Why were they here? Again? Edward instinctively put his hand on Bella's shoulder, unsure whether or not he wanted to tell her about Jacob's potential trouble. He could sense Jake's thoughts drawing closer- perhaps he should wait until he actually arrived and was able to tell them what he had seen. Or smelled, as the case may be.

"Jacob's almost here," he said, as a way of explaining any questions they might have about his odd behavior.

Carmen stifffened slightly at Edward's words. Carmen was still afraid that there would be tensions from the time her family had refused to help against the newborns. Should I go for now? I don't want to make him tense... Carmen directed her thoughts to Edward. She didn't want to be the reason for any unease in the house. And she definately didn't want them to think she didn't trust Jacob. It was strictly out of courtesy.

Bella glanced at Edward stiffening slightly as his hand was placed on her shoulder- he seemed stiff himself. She wondered briefly what was wrong until he mentioned Jacob. Ah.
Bella grinned. "Yay." Bella had odd mood swings on the matter of Jacob. Either she was annoyed or not, it seemed to only depend on the time and such. Bella stood, and looked out the window, waiting to greet him. "Does he have any news?" She asked Edward. Bella always wanted to know what was going on with his pack and such, still feeling like all the trouble in the first place was her fault. But, now that things were better, she didn't feel guilty so much. Bella just... felt like she wanted, needed, to know that things were going okay.

"There's no need to leave," Edward replied to Carmen. "And besides, I'm not entirely sure why he's visiting." He frowned thoughtfully. He couldn't smell the Volturi anywhere- so why had Jacob? He concentrated more sharply, looking for any trace of the Volturi's scent. There was nothing on the wind, and Alice hadn't alerted them at all. Though, to be fair, she couldn't see anything with Jacob and Nessie around.

Does he have any news?

"I'm not sure," he said, walking over to where Bella was standing at the window. "He seems a little frantic about something but I'm having a hard time figuring out what, exactly. I heard him say he smelled the Volturi around our house, but I can't catch their scent."

Carmen nodded when Edward explained that she could stay. She looked a little confused that Jacob had smelled the Volturi. "I don't believe there are any Volturi here. I was just outside and didn't smell anything." Carmen began to think. "Maybe he smells me. He wouldn't remember my scent specifically, just that he's smelled it before."

Volturi!? HERE?
Bella was just about to beging to panic, since her vampiric brain seemed to work much too fast for words, before Edward and Carmen could continue. She did however stiffen and unstiffen again so quickly it was unnerving for herself.
"Oh." She sighed. "Yeah, that would make sense." Bella glanced at Edward's face for comfort before looking out the window again. "Sometimes I wonder..." She trailed off for a moment. "...when..."
The Volturi were so bound to come back, it wasn't exactly comfortable, even now. She knew they wouldn't come back immediately, though these thoughts had been disturbing, and if Bella let her guard down just one moment those horrid thoughts clouded her mind. Thank gosh for being easily distracted.

Carmen rose from the couch and approached Bella and Edward. "Whenever it is, we will be here to help," she said refering to the rest of her coven in Denali. Carmen smiled warmly at her newest 'cousin'. Carmen had always held strong connections to those she loved. It was almost like her talent. Her family bonds were as close to unbreakable as they could come.

Edward put his arms around Bella again, wishing she wouldn't feel so anxious about the Volturi. "They won't come back for a while," he reassured them, though his words were directed mostly towards his wife. "Do you remember what I told you last year? Time for them moves so slowly, they might not come back until Nessie's fully grown- and then, what reason would they have to object to her? It will be obvious by then she's no threat."

He sensed Jacob's thoughts growing closer, and he realized he was slightly angry with the mutt right now for making Bella worry so much over a misunderstanding.

Jake slowly turned the drive, his hands shaking frantically in apparent nervousness. His eyes wandered wearily down the road.

'Edward?' he thought again. It unnerved him, how Cullen could read his thoughts but was unable to return the favor. At times like these, he wished that he could allow Edward to reassure him, to say that Nessie was safe. But, of course, there was no such luck; the second the house came into view, he stopped the car and almost broke his own door, jerking it open so quickly.

The scent, he realized as he neared, was not completely unwelcome; the thought reassured him as he rushed in to the house, not bothering with knocking. "Who's there?" he roared, in full fury. The moment he saw the new bloodsucker and his golden eyes, he blushed furiously.

Carmen smiled warmly as the apparently agitated Jacob burst in shouting. "Hello again Jacob," she said kindly. Carmen was always willing to show kindness to others, especially when they cared so much for members of her family. "How are you? I apologize for making you nervous, it was not my intention." Carmen's smile never faltered as she looked at the blushing young man.

Edward glared at Jake, as if to say See? You were wrong, mutt, it's just Carmen. "As you can see, one of our cousins from Denali is visiting us," he said calmly, attempting to soothe the anxious nerves in the room. "Nothing to worry about." Jacob hadn't knocked, but Edward had smelled him coming. It was difficult to surprise a vampire, though Jacob had certainly tried over the years.

He watched Carmen anxiously, hoping that any rudeness Jake might have shown in his overly protective concern for Nessie had not dampened his cousin's spirits.

Bella nodded at Edward's reassuring words, but still felt somewhat uncomfortable. Yes, time was slower for them... But she was positive the Volturi won't only set on her daughter. She knew they wanted to eliminate the Cullens- as a whole. Bella returned the hug to Edward, leaning her head on his arm.

Bella heard, and smelled Jake approaching. He was obviously still in a rush, and he burst through the door shouting. Bella chuckled half heartedly, and listened to Edward and Carmen greet Jake.
"Hey, Jake." She sighed when the other two were done. Bella waved smally.

Cadence chuckled at Jacob's obvious embarassment. That's quite fun...seeing him flustered... she thought for Edward's benefit. "I'm glad to see you are doing so well Jacob. And from what I've heard, you've been keep a close watch over our little Renesmee. Though I'm sure you hear it often, thank you for that." Cadence smiled at Jacob then at Edward ad Bella. They knew that Renesmee held a special place in her heart. Actually Renesmee held a special place in most everyone's heart.