Forgiving the Unforgiveable

Sequel to The Little Girl… It's been almost ten years since Jasper and Alice left the Cullens, leaving behind an unraveling family. But when they return, can the family ever learn to forgive each other?

AUTHOR'S NOTE: So this is the much-begged-for sequel to The Little Girl Who Saw Things.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own any of the Cullens/Hales/Whitlocks/whoever they choose to be…

Prologue – Coming Home

"Alice," I said softly as I entered the house. "Alice?"

She was sitting cross-legged on the couch, her face furrowed in concentration as she watched something in her mind. She'd done this on a regular basis for the last few years – still watching the family's future, still looking for danger. I'd suggested that we go back, but she still refused. She said that she liked it being just the two of us for the moment. I knew better.

It hadn't been as good as I was hoping, to be away from the family, alone with Alice. Maybe it was just because of the circumstances surrounding our departure, but there always seemed to be the ever-present sadness.

Sighing, I knelt down in front of her, grabbing her hands to pull her out of the vision. "Lissy…" She came back to Earth, looking at me in surprise. "Are you sure you don't want to go back?" I asked again, knowing that she'd say the same thing that she said this morning when I had asked.

"No. I like it here with you," she replied. But there was a wistful expression in her eyes, a slight hint of longing in her emotions, a little uncertainty in her voice, which all told me a different story.

She missed them. She missed Esme, Edward, Bella, Emmett, Nessie, Rosalie and even the wolves. She just couldn't face Carlisle – she told me that she thought she was being ridiculously petty about the whole affair, but she just couldn't seem to get past her anger and her mistrust.

"Lissy, maybe we should go back. Just to visit, not necessarily to stay," I added quickly when she looked at me in exasperation. Maybe she'd change her mind once she was back home.

*~*~*

We knew exactly where to find them, even though they'd moved several times. She'd watched to make sure that Carlisle would be at work when we arrived.

The new house looked much like all the other houses we had lived in – clearly Esme's design. True to her vision, Carlisle's Mercedes was missing.

"Oh, my Porsche," Alice said, eyes lighting up as we caught a glimpse of a bright yellow car in the open garage. "They kept my Porsche…"

I could only laugh as I pulled into the front drive, shaking my head as the delight manifested itself.

She had barely gotten out of the car before Edward came dashing through the front door, unabashed excitement coming off him in waves. Bella wasn't far behind him, her excitement laced with hope.

Alice laughed, her own excitement and delight extremely obvious to me not only through her emotions, but on her face. She let Edward wrap her into a tight hug, delivering a quick kiss to his cheek, then gave Bella a tight hug as well.

"Oh, my God, Alice, I've missed you!" Bella squealed. "Where have you been? What have you been doing? Are you coming back for good now?"

"Oh. My. God," Rosalie's voice came from behind me. "Is that seriously an –"

" – XLR Special Platinum? Absolutely," I replied, turning around. Rosalie was busy eyeing my new car in appreciation. It didn't look as though anybody had gotten a new car: Edward's Volvo was parked in the drive, Rosalie's M3 in the garage, Emmett's Jeep around back…

"Mmm, I want one of those," she said to Emmett, who had appeared at her side. "Did they have it in red?" she asked me.

"We saw the new M9s, too," Alice spoke up, returning to my side. "Jasper decided he'd rather have the Cadillac."

"What's the 0-60 on this?" Emmett asked in interest.

Alice laughed as she settled back against me. "The dealer told us 5.2 seconds –"

"But I can make it go in 4," I finished with a satisfied grin.

"I want one of these," Rosalie repeated.

"Check out the M9 before you say that," Alice advised.

"We're going car-shopping tonight," Rosalie said, turning to Emmett, who shrugged.

*~*~*

I was surprised at how very little time and effort it took everybody to include us into the family again. Nessie – now a tall, slender young adult with dancing brown eyes – was all but dancing around us all afternoon, chattering up a storm.

Esme had put us both in strangleholds when she'd realized we were here. The pain mingled with the joy and relief that she was feeling was enough to make me feel a little guilty. We'd punished the rest of the family for Carlisle's misdeed.

The hours seemed to pass without us noticing it at all, and it was only when Nessie yawned midway through another tale that we looked up and took notice of the setting sun.

"We should get going," Edward said quietly as Nessie rubbed her eyes subtly.

"Oh, don't go," Esme begged.

"Nessie can sleep on our bed," Emmett spoke up. Even Rosalie – Rosalie, of all people – was watching Edward's conflicted expression with a hint of anxiety. Finally, Edward nodded slightly and Nessie gratefully retreated upstairs.

I caught the brief hint of confusion from Alice as she turned to look at Bella. "Go where?" Alice asked in confusion.

"Home," Bella replied. "Edward and Carlisle aren't getting along very well."