Dawn to Dusk

Memory

Hermione heard her heartbeat in her ears as Edward stopped the car. In front of them was a large, modern-looking house painted in faded white. One side was covered from floor to ceiling in glass, and she saw movements from unfamiliar figures inside.

"You ready?" Edward asked softly, not wanting to spook her. Hermione looked like she could faint any second.

Tightening her grip on her beaded bag, Hermione tried to calm down by breathing slowly and steadily. When her heart rate was back to normal, she turned to Edward and nodded. "Let's go."

The Cullens must've been aware of their arrival because they were all gathered on the rounded sofa in the living room waiting for two of them.

"Hermione, Edward. You're finally here." Alice chirped.

The Cullens all stood up as Edward and Hermione made their way toward them.

"Welcome." A kind-looking woman who had her hand in Carlisle's greeted her.

"Thank you for agreeing to meet me today." Hermione said, feeling nervous and tense again. She couldn't help but think this must have been how Draco Malfoy had felt when he apologized to her before his family's trial. She forgave him, of course, and she hoped the Cullens would extend her the same courtesy.

"My name is Hermione Granger." She looked at every single face in the room. From left to right stood Edward, Alice, a tall and lean man with honey blond hair that fells above his collar, the kind-looking women, Carlisle, a burly man with dark hair who had his arms around a gorgeous vampire with long wavy blond hair and a figure that bested even Fleur Delacour.

They were beautiful, all of them.

Noticing Hermione's curious glance at the vampires she hadn't met, Edward took the liberty to introduce them.

"Hermione, this is Jasper." He pointed to the vampire next to Alice. "Esme." The woman next to Carlisle. "Emmett and Rosalie." The burly man and the gorgeous one.

"Nice to meet all of you." Hermione smiled. Jasper merely nodded, Esme smiled kindly at her and Emmett had a huge grin on his face.

"You're a witch, right?" Emmett asked, looking like he just won a million-dollar lottery.

"I am." Hermione nodded.

"Can you show us some trick? Do you ride brooms like in the movies? Do you have a toad?"

Her eyes widened in surprise. She hadn't expected the bombardment of questions from a man who looked like he could snap her in half in less than ten seconds. Out of all of them, he was the most enthusiastic to talk to her.

"What was the question again?"

Emmett opened his mouth to repeat his questions but Rosalie cut him off.

"Why are you here?" The blond vampire glared at her with such intensity that told Hermione if looks could kill, she would be dead by now.

"To apologize." She answered truthfully.

Rosalie rolled her eyes. "You expect us to believe you?"

"Rosalie," Edward warned but Rosalie ignored him.

"Carlisle told us about what happened. Your kind hate us. You don't just expect me to believe you're here to apologize for treating us like what you thought we deserve right? What makes you different from the rest of your kind?"

"Rosalie!" Edward exploded surprising everyone including Hermione. Jasper stiffened at the rush of anger he felt radiating from him.

Edward was usually very good at controlling himself, but while Rosalie went on her rant, his conversation with Hermione back at Twigs and Vines came to his mind.