Blood Moon

INTRODUCTION

Charlie Swan loved with every fiber of his being. This much was evident when he jumped head-first into a marriage with a nomadic woman hailing from California. He fell hard and fast for the girl, and proposed as quickly as she swept into his life. For a while, they were happy.

When Renee fell pregnant, Charlie worked harder at his job at the police station to prepare to provide for not one, but two new additions to the Swan family. Renee was pregnant with twins, and Charlie couldn't help but feel immense excitement at the idea.

Isabella was born first, and instantly sought comfort in the warm embrace of her mother. When her twin sister, Helena, was born, she would not stop screaming. The doctor's reassured the new parents that the child was healthy, just that she was uncomfortable. The second Charlie scooped up the bundle of pale yellow blankets, the screaming ceased.

Charlie Swan loved with every fiber of his being, a trait he passed down to his youngest daughter. The second her large brown eyes landed on the blurry figure of her father, and her head rested against his warm chest, Helena settled into a deep slumber, giving the hospital room a break from her non stop screaming and crying. Helena loved her father with everything in her little body.

This habit wouldn't change for the months leading up to Renee's decision to leave. Despite needing her mother, Helena would not make it easy for Renee to care for her youngest daughter. Unless she was in the arms of her father, Helena would scream, cry, kick, and fight until she tired herself out and was forced to sleep.

So, when Renee tried to pack up her twins and leave Forks, Washington, Helena's screaming alerted the neighbors to call Officer Swan. Charlie rushed home, stopping his cruiser beside Renee's car. He left the engine running as he pulled open the back door of Renee's car, placing his shaking hand on Helena's car seat. She quieted her screaming and reached out for her father's cold hand.

Renee told Charlie she needed to leave, that she couldn't be stuck in a small town like Forks. She told him that she was taking the twins back to California, and that she wanted a divorce. Charlie agreed, but only if he could keep Helena, knowing she would be an utter nightmare for Renee without him. Despite the aching in her chest, Renee agreed to leave one of her twins in the care of Charlie, leaving Washington with Bella and all her belongings.

Thus began Helena Opal Swan's childhood growing up in the sleepy town of Forks.

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Even though Helen Swan suffered from Alzheimer's, she never could seem to forget Helena. While Charlie struggled to keep a coherent conversation going between himself and his mother, Helen and Helena could babble to each other for hours. Charlie would often come by his parent's house to help care for his mother, and he had no choice but to bring Helena along with him.

The first time Helen laid eyes on her granddaughter, she wept from happiness. The first time Helena was placed in the arms of her grandmother, she gave the older woman a little giggle while squeezing her finger. From then on, Helen and Helena would be thick as thieves.

Although Helen and Helena would only spend four years with one another, their relationship was something Charlie had never seen before. Helen taught Helena how to walk during one of Charlie's visits, and would often wander off after the unsteady toddler as she explored the house. When Helena was old enough to start talking back to her grandmother, the pair would talk for hours about things they'd seen, or places they'd been.

One of Helena's first memories was one she cherished deeply. Her grandmother had brushed Charlie off, not recognizing her own son, and grinned down to the toddler. The older woman scooped the girl up, eliciting a giggle from the younger girl. Helen tapped Helena's nose lovingly, asking the young girl if she could tell her a secret she'd learned during her life.

"Oh, my dear Opal." Helen spoke clearly to her young granddaughter. "Let me tell you something I wish someone had told me when I was younger. You can't make everyone happy. You can't make everybody like you, my dear Opal. You have such a big heart, but you cannot let it be broken by trying to please everyone else."

"Okay Grandma." Helena nodded, taking in her grandmother's features.

"You just be the best you, Opal." Helen grinned. "Because you are perfectly imperfect."

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It crushed Helena's heart when her grandmother passed away. She clung to her father's side as she cried, watching with a quivering lip as they lowered her casket into the ground at the cemetery. Charlie numbly rubbed Helena's back with one hand, the other hand holding onto Isabella's little hand.

Isabella hadn't known her grandmother, so she didn't understand why her sister was so sad. Nonetheless, she pulled her hand away from her father's hand and gently hugged her sister. Charlie smiled sadly down at the twins, kneeling down to hug them both.

When Geoffrey Swan passed away only six months after his wife, Helena did not cry. She only hugged her father's leg and told him that he loved Helen so much that he couldn't live without her. Charlie hugged Helena and sobbed at her words. It was the first time she had to comfort her father, and -surprisingly- she did a good job at only four years old.

Helena learned about loss at a young age, but she did not dwell. She knew that her grandparents would not be back, and she knew she couldn't change that fact. It was something that shocked Charlie, but he didn't make a big deal out of it. Everyone would learn this lesson eventually, and Charlie was secretly glad that Helena understood the lesson.

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When Jacob Black, the son of Charlie's best friend, started walking and talking, he was introduced to Helena. Billy and Sarah Black encouraged the shy boy to play with the more outgoing older girl while they talked with Charlie. Helena, noticing his hesitance, took the younger boy's hand and tugged him gently toward her sandbox, pushing a toy truck his way with a grin.

Since that day, Helena and Jacob were inseparable; wherever one went, the other wasn't too far behind. And, when Isabella came to visit during the summers, Helena made sure she was nice to Jacob and to include them both in her activities.

Because of how much time she spent with the Black family, Helena came to love them like they were her own. Rachel and Rebecca would brush the girl's hair and read her books she had yet to comprehend, Billy would treat her as though she were his, Sarah would let her paint alongside her in the garage, and Jacob made sure Helena was taken care of whenever she visited La Push.

When Jacob was nine and Helena was eleven, Sarah Black tragically died in a car accident. Having dealt with loss before, Helena comforted her younger friend as best she could. She couldn't deny her own aching heart, but she set it aside to help the Black family grieve. Rachel and Rebecca did their best to stay with Jacob and Billy, but eventually they left the reservation.

Jacob and Helena were even closer after the death of his mother, and after his sisters left. Jacob told everyone that Helena was his very best friend, and Helena told her friends that Jacob was practically her brother. Charlie and Billy couldn't be happier that their children got along.

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When Helena was seventeen, her slightly older sister decided to move to Forks. Isabella decided to let her mother's nomadic spirit roam free, hating that she was keeping her mother at home while her step-father traveled for work. Even though she loved them both, Isabella thought it was time to move in with her father and twin sister.

However, as Charlie drove out to pick Isabella up from the airport, Helena made her way over to La Push to make sure Isabella's homecoming present was ready to be taken to the Swan residence.