My Summertime in Heaven Outtake for FGB Eclipse Edition

For Team MyVampFiction

This outtake was in my mind from the beginning but Team MyVampFiction gave me a chance to write it for them...They were really kind and now you can read it too...

Thanks to: My betas: Myonlyheroin and Vickey for making this outtake even better and my pre-reader: Amy

Twilight belongs to Stephanie Meyer, but any and all characterizations, plots and such belong to me, along with my original work and articles. No copying or reproduction of said work is permitted unless written authorization has been given. ©2010 ArcCleo (aka Cleopatra F.) All rights reserved worldwide.

A/N: MSIH takes place in 2004 so in this outtake we are in 2002.

Two Years Ago

Maria woke up from her sleep. It was another endless night with so many different dreams. Even after so many years, and still she wanted some time to cool off. She got up, put her robe on and went straight out to her garden.

Her garden was the only place that really soothed her. After all, it was a gift from her late husband, the only thing that reminded her of so many things when it came to him. Every flower had a story; her memories were everything that she had left of him.

It was her solace to know that in this garden her Yiorgos was still alive. She missed him every single day that passed by, and the ache in her old heart would never go away. Who said that love fades away when the other one dies? These days she loved him even more.

In her heart she knew that she was incomplete, but she focused all her energy to her children and grandchildren. She also had Emmett who was more than a grandson to her. She raised him after his parent's car accident and he grew up to be a fine young man. She had her εγγόνες, eggones (granddaughters) that were living in the States. She missed them all, especially Maria that had her name. Her grandchild had the same qualities as her. She was kind, determined and strong even though she didn't know her powers yet. They thought she was shy and easy to handle, but they were wrong. Her grandchildren in Crete were all boys, κοπέλια, kopelia as Cretans called them and were proud and as handsome as her sons. She was away from them but she always visited them every month.

"Yiayia, stay longer," they would always repeat to her but she couldn't stay. Her heart was at her home, at her garden, even though her Yorgos' grave was on the island. After his death her heart broke and she couldn't stay on the island. It was like a defense mechanism inside her, she wanted to remember the good things and forget the bad ones.

She was visiting the grave, lighting his vigil candle. The village's cemetery wasn't big but every evening, mostly the women that had lost a relative were going there, lighting those candles, talking to them like they were there. Some were crying, others were just asking the priest to say a prayer for them, it was their ritual. But, Maria couldn't stand this ritual, that's why she was staying in her own village that was not on the island.

She was mourning in her own way and everyone knew that. Her children didn't say anything. They all agreed to let her do what she wanted. They were all so worried when she seemed to be in a limbo after their dad passed away. She was not like that. She was a strong, independent woman, strong headed too, but she was afraid and loved by many people.

When Yiorgos died, Maria died with him. Their love was so strong that she felt that her heart was taken away from her chest, leaving her as an empty cell. She didn't talk; she didn't eat and barely slept. She just got up, wore her black dress and stayed in her favorite chair, lost in her memories. She was living in her own dimension, a prisoner of her own mind.

Yes, everyone feared that she was in deep depression, that she would die from her broken heart and follow their father. So, it was a surprise when Bella asked her mother to bring her Yiayia back to Forks, to experiment a bit with her surroundings. Bella Maria Swan loved her Yiayia pretty much and couldn't stand watching her die spiritually every single day.

In the beginning Maria was acting the same way she was acting in Greece, but after a while that changed. It only took three months for Bella-Maria to take her grandmother out of her depression, allowing the grandmother and grandchild to bond while she was in Forks. Maria saw some pieces in little Maria that she loved and that had reminded of her own self when she was a teenager. But in her time, it was different, the war was everywhere and although she didn't want to remember that era and what it did to her childhood, at the same time she was bringing it in her mind as it was when she met and fell in love with a handsome Cretan man that had her heart ever since.

She remembered the day she first met him, when he brought home her injured brother. A bullet had crushed his foot. The doctors did everything they could, but those days in the end, they had to cut his leg. Her family didn't know anything, they thought they had lost him but when he came back, her father was proud of him, her mother was relieved and Maria, well Maria tried to remind him that they had missed him.

Her brother was so handsome that her heart broke, but when she saw how Yiorgos was treating him she respected him even more. "He is a hero," that's what he told them when her brother went to sleep. "He saved a whole village." Maria caught herself liking his voice and everything else on him.

It was two days later that they managed to stay alone. It was not allowed to a woman so young to stay with a man alone. They had to be wed. A woman's innocence was valued greatly back then and Yiorgos was treating her with great respect. He was sitting far away from her; he was not going to cause any problems for her. As he told her later on, she held his heart from that first day even though she was so young.

Yiorgos took her brother Demetri to his village in Crete. She hadn't seen her brother or Yiorgos for two years. What she didn't know was that before they left Yiorgos asked her parents not to wed her with someone else. He wanted her for himself when she was older.

Demetri's opinion on the matter made his father see what kind of man Yiorgos was. "He loves her father," he said.

"She is so young. How can you possibly know about love?" his father asked him back.

"Have you seen how he treats her? Like a princess. Have you seen how he treats me? Like a brother. He says I am the Hero, but he saved my life. So, he is MY Hero, father. If you want a good man to take care of our Maria, he is the man."

It was the longest talk they both had made after his return back home. The next day they left for Crete. Maria received letters from both of them and loved reading them. She was lucky that her father was the village's teacher, and taught her how to read and write. The only book they had after the war was the Bible.

She wrote back a letter for her parents but she always wrote one to Yorgos. They were like modern pen pals. For two years they were getting knowing each other through their words. Maria wanted so badly to see Yiorgos and Demetri. They have sent her a picture together and it was her treasure. Once she told her mom about it. "I miss my brother, when I am going to see him again?" She couldn't let it slip that she wanted to see Yorgos as well.

A month later they both came back to the village. It was a huge surprise for Maria. She was so happy that she thought her heart would explode from her chest. The picture didn't do any justice to Yiorgos. He was more handsome than she remembered. If you asked Yiorgos, you would have gotten the same answer. She was more beautiful than he remembered.

A week later Yiorgos asked permission to take Maria for a walk. The permission and therefore blessing was given from both her parents and he took her to the village's clearing behind the Church. They talked for quite a while and finally Yiorgos told her that he asked her parents with their blessing. He wanted her to be his wife. It was so romantic under the clear sky with the full moon watching over them.

Maria remembered how happy she was when he told her. How happy she would make him if she loved him back one day. "I will wait for your love Maria. I won't be a bad husband to you." He was looking for her acceptance in her eyes and when she cried he was worried. "He held her in his arms until her tears dried and when she finally spoke it came out as a whisper. "Of course I will marry you. I will be a good wife to you too and if you love me I will love you the same or even more."

Those days all the weddings were result of match making. Love was rare but not a scarcity. It was a blessing that they were both in love with each other even though they didn't reveal it at that time. That revelation came for both of them some months after their wedding when Yiorgos had a minor incident. They brought him home and Maria was so anxious about his well being. When Yiorgos was sleeping, or so she thought, she revealed to him that she loved him and that she did not want to leave her. "Please, don't die on me. I love you what will I do without you?"

He was tired, his body was in pain but listening to her velvet voice beside him talking to him was his sedative. He was almost sleeping when he heard her saying that she loved him. Those wonderful words made him feel like his chest could explode; his beloved Maria loved him back. He just squeezed her hand and although he couldn't speak properly he managed to say. "Σε αγαπώ και εγώ." (I love you too.)

Some things are meant to be, you are just there for someone and you are stuck together. You cannot stay away from the people that you love. You cannot avert it, you just postpone the inevitable and then it comes back full force and consumes you. With them, it was like that exactly. They hold back their true feelings and when they were finally out, their passion for each other was so intense, but they kept it well within their house' walls.

Those days, people were conservative, there was no sexual revolution and the country was trying to find its way back to democratic countries. Although it was a black period for the country, Maria and Yorgos were in their own bubble. Things became less difficult when they finally managed to make it to the States. Yorgos wanted new technological equipment for his fields and they traveled in Chicago to get them.

~M.S.I.H.~

Maria was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't acknowledge the movement in her garden. A young man emerged from the trees and slowly came next to her trying not to startle her.

"Mrs. Maria is that you?"

Maria looked to her right to see Edward Anthony Cullen. He was one of Emmett's best friends and they had come to visit her. As it seemed he couldn't sleep too.

"You couldn't sleep either, Anthony?"

"My nightmares are back. Now I cannot sleep, sorry if I intruded into your space."

"Don't be silly, boy. I was just thinking. Sit down with me."

Anthony did as he was told, mostly because he was so shaken up that his feet couldn't hold him up straight. He tried hard not to show it to Maria, but she already knew.

"Do you like it here?"

Anthony thought it was the quietest village he had ever been to and liked it. After a while he simply said, "Yes."

"Don't get me wrong but I just like to use your Greek name even if you don't use it, Anthony. You know I call Jasper Marc. I think you are like a dynamic duo together and as I recall Marc Anthony was a great Roman general."

Anthony liked Mrs. Maria. He liked her even though he didn't know her as a person. She raised his best friend and loved him as her own. People that did such an act were good, compassionate, loving and caring. Yes, he liked Mrs. Maria she seemed to be a free spirit.

He smiled at her with his crooked smile, "Don't say it to my folks but I like Anthony too. Thank you for calling me like that."

And just like that, they stayed until the early hours in the morning, sitting at the garden watching the stars and talking about many things. Maria liked Anthony. She could see sadness in his eyes that worried her, but she knew his story. She knew mostly because his father Carlisle Cullen was her Yiorgos' doctor.

Yes the world is that small, but she wouldn't say that to him. So, she stayed with him trying to sidetrack him from his haunting memories. It was cruel to be so young and instead of being carefree to have a burden that is so huge for you to carry. That's why she urged Emmett to bring the boys now and then down to the village or to Crete for mini vacations.

She loved to have them around and Emmett was her sunshine, she loved him as her own. They have kept his original name when they had taken guardianship, but when he was old enough to understand, he asked them to be baptized. So he became Emmett-Demetri McCarthy. Everyone was calling him Em, Maria was calling him Deme.

When they went back to the house, she made him breakfast and then made him go back to lie down. Anthony slept the minute his head touched the pillow. Maria had a habit to check her children and grandchildren while they were sleeping; she saw that both Deme and Marc was sleeping peacefully in their rooms. She went to her room and laid down, now she was ready to sleep peacefully for the next two hours.

~M.S.I.H.~

The following days passed by like a whim. She loved to have the boys around. Emmett was smiling and laughing more when they were around and she liked that. She hadn't seen him really smile or laugh for quite a while after Rosalie rejected him. Women can create beautiful things, but also havoc. The Ancient Greeks knew what they were saying with Πυρ, Γυνή και Θάλασσα (Fire, Woman and Sea).

She was cooking one of her famous cheese pies, when the door opened. "Mrs. Maria, the pie's flavor is killing me. Can I help you at least?" Maria laughed with Jasper's facial expression. It was like he was indeed in pain. Boys! Marc was the opposite of Anthony. He was more outgoing and sociable, while Anthony was more to himself, but at the same time they were a great duo, together could make a difference.

"Okay, young man you can help me out and I promise to give you a bigger pie, but you won't say the others or the deal is off. Got it?"

"Yes, mame got it." He even swore in scout's honor. Maria turned around and smiled. Boys indeed! Feed them and they will do what you want. They worked together for an hour and when lunch was ready they called Deme and Anthony in as they played chess outside.

She loved to have people at her home. Tomorrow morning they would all go back to Athens and she would be alone. The thought saddened her and Deme understood it at once. He knew her better than her own sons. Only Yiorgos could read her so easily. "Mom, would you like to come to Athens with me? I don't want you to be alone. Please come," Deme's voice was casual but his pleading eyes made her consider it.

"Okay, if you want me, then I will come, boy." Deme and Anthony washed the dishes while she went to her room to prepare her bag. She was happy that she would go to Athens. She wanted to see Esme and talk about her new projects. She would also like to see Carlisle at the hospital and do a check up. Yes, that would be wise to look after her health.

She went to the porch with her glass of homemade lemonade. She loved to listen to cicadas even though it was afternoon. The nature always had a calming effect on her. She remembered when she was young and used to walk those fields with her brother. She missed Demetri, but her sons took good care of him in Crete.

After a while she got up and went to her room. She could have her famous siesta. Yes, it would do well to her old frame. She laid down and let herself drift off to a sweet sleep, or so she thought.

~M.S.I.H.~

Maria knew she was dreaming. After so many years, she just knew. She followed the road and came to the place she first met her Yiorgos. Her heart started to beat faster. He might be there. I might see him again. She smiled that smile that only her Yiorgos knew and continued walking.

When she turned again to see the path she saw him standing with his back to their favorite tree. She smiled even more and when his eyes met hers the world stopped to exist around and only they mattered. It was always like that, in the beginning they would lose time because they were so into each other.

"Maria, άγγελεμου (my angel). I missed you so much. Please, don't be sad. I can feel your sadness, I know that you are mourning but I am always next to you. Always. Even if you cannot see me, I am around. I cannot leave you behind." his words startled her. She felt him from times to times, but hearing him confessing it made it more real.

She just nodded and went to him. She moved slowly, like every step mattered. She wanted to touch him, like how she did in the old days. For her, he was the most handsome man she had ever seen, even in his military uniform.

When she looked at him again he was wearing his military uniform and in that second they both remembered the day they had met. Maria blushed, Yiorgos smiled. He gave her his hand, when she took it the electrical feeling startled them.

He hugged her before Maria had a chance to talk. They were soon facing each other, then a second later she was in his arms. She let herself give into the feeling she had missed all these years. "I missed you," she whispered, "It aches me not to be around you."

"I know Maria, believe me that, I know."

They stayed into each other's arms for a long time, but in a dream everything seemed to last longer. When he kissed her, it started raining but instead of raindrops, it was raining rose petals. It might be surreal but it was her dream, and she knew that the petals were part of her Rose Garden. His part on earth for her. Such a symbolic dream she thought.

"Maria, this is an important dream and I want you to remember it. You have to remember it. Promise me that you will do that for me."

It was like Maria couldn't talk, it was pretty emotional to see him again, but her emotions spoke volumes. She put her hand onto his chest, where his heart was and looked at him in his eyes and just nodded. He kissed her forehead and whispered words of love to her.

He took her to all the places they loved. It was good to have him around even if it was a dream. It gave her pained heart a breeze that made her feel alive again.

"You are strong, stronger than you think Maria. Don't underestimate yourself."

Yiorgos always knew how to make Maria feel good. He always read her moods and knew when she needed extra reassurance. He knew that without him, she would be heart broken. He was around much to see his love, mourn and losing a part of herself.

People say that dead people cannot remember at all but they are wrong, they do. They just exist in a new form of living but they always remember their loved ones. They come now and then in their dreams to give them guidance, or to just see them, because they missed the people they love.

Yiorgos kept holding Maria's hand and he knew that they must have their time together before he showed her the reason he was in this dream. She had to be ready to believe and most of the times Maria was.

For him, Maria was the beautiful girl he fell in love with some decades earlier after the war. He remembered with clarity when it happened. How her eyes met his, and how everything around them seemed to fade away. He could picture it like it was yesterday. When he saw her he believed she was some sort of an Angel. She was absolutely breathtaking. It was love at first sight for him, and ever since she was his brown-eyed angel.

The days that he was not in human form, it was easier to travel to all the places they had been. To see all his loved ones, their children, grandchildren, Emmett and be proud of what they had accomplished together. It hurt him that he couldn't really touch her. His touch was only like a breeze, but he knew that being around her even without seeing him was his only way in sanity.

Yes, time passed by too quickly for those that were on the other side, but that doesn't mean that they didn't question their existence. Yiorgos knew based on his religion, that it was something that he had to endure. His only way of doing it and succeed with it was to keep in his heart on all those things that were valuable for him, like his beloved wife that was next to him.

He held her hand tight, feeling her warmth. He could see that Maria was so happy to see him that she couldn't talk. She knew that this dream was different. He could see it in her eyes. So, he took her to the place where he proposed to her and sat onto the same bench. They hadn't been there for some time. He missed this place as much as he missed her. He had thought of his next words so many times the past few nights. He wanted to see her smile again.

"I miss you like the earth misses the rain. But at the same time, I want you to be happy. I want you to live again. Promise me that you won't cry for me. It breaks my heart to be near you and not be able to touch you."

Maria touched his chin, as she used to do when she wanted to promise him something. It was their thing and in this place she felt totally connected with him. She wanted to tell him everything that was on her mind but she just couldn't so she experimented with something, after all it was her dream. She just showed him everything she felt, wanted to tell him what she couldn't say out loud.

That moment was their moment that changed the route of this dream. When Maria touched Yiorgos, lets say that it was like they were touching intimately, when in reality they weren't. Their guardian angels took pity on them; they were the mere witnesses of their love all those years. Although Yiorgos was in a mission they allowed one last spiritual union. When two lovers are allowed to have a spiritual union all the angels in the sky are singing, with this couple they cried too.

~M.S.I.H.~

Maria missed his touch so much. She missed his distinct smell, little things that made her smile when she was thinking of him. Although it was the most treasured experience after his death, she couldn't stop crying. Yiorgos knew behind the lines what she was feeling. He could feel her feelings like they were his own. Their feelings were mirrored each other's and made them realize that their love was eternal because Love doesn't go away even though death had torn them apart.

When they both calmed down after their epiphany, Yiorgos kissed her hand and hold her in his arms. "Σε αγαπώ και δε θα αλλάξει αυτό. Ευχαριστώ τον Θεό που μου έδωσε αυτή την ευκαιρία μαζί σου. Μουέλειψες." (I love you and this is not going to change. I can thank the Lord that He gave me another chance being with you. I miss you.) Maria kissed his lips and sighed. She knew they had to move on. So, she got up and gave him her hand. She was thinking that in the morning she had to visit the Church light a candle while she prayed for her thanks.

He asked her if they could go first and see their children. He had missed them. He then asked her to tell him their news. It was different to just watch them do something. He wanted her thoughts, her insight. He let her say their news. He missed everyone and his grandchildren mostly. He couldn't be there when they would be married. He wouldn't see their kids. He was sad but tried not to show it to Maria.

He took her to Crete and they saw together their sons as well as their families. He didn't take her to the cemetery. He knew that would upset her seeing his grave while they were together. He knew her discomfort and tried to make her forget it now that they were together. They then went together to their daughters. He had missed them but mostly he missed his granddaughters. They were the reason he was here tonight.

He saw first Bella in her room reading. She was so beautiful like his Maria when she was younger. He looked at Maria then went next to her and kissed her hair. Bella was oblivious to the movement but a tear fell down her cheek. She looked at the wall where her invisible pappou was and smiled, "I miss you pappou. I wish I could see you one more time."

Some things happen for a reason. We might not know it but when we miss someone so much, we might actually utter words to them while they are indeed with us but in another form. Maria went to Yiorgos and hugged him. She knew that he would be emotional about what their granddaughter said. She let him feel those words inside his being, because that was his greatest gift he wasn't forgotten by his loved ones. When he was ready he went next to her and kissed her forehead. "Oh, my lovely Maria. My precious girl, I miss you too."

Maria tried to remember all the details. She silently prayed to the Lord to let her remember every single detail of it. Please don't let me forget it. It is one of my most treasured memories. They stayed in that room for quite a while watching Bella as she fell asleep in her bed. They both kissed her and went to the next room to see Alice.

Alice was sketching something in her big notebook. I have to make it pretty for Rose. They saw that she was drawing a wonderful dress. I hope she likes it; it is my birthday present for her. I wish yiayia was here and helped me make it a dress. She stopped and a tear fell down her cheek. I miss her laugh. I miss how her eyes were glowing when pappou was around.As it seems it was a day full of revelations for them. They both kissed Alice and went on Rosalie.

Yiorgos was the one that could see behind the facade Rosalie was portraying to everyone. She loved him pretty much because he knew her. When her pappou died, Rose was affected a lot, but she didn't show it to everyone except her cousins. She became moody and cried a lot. She only came to her senses, as her mother was telling her, when she saw that her yiayia was really bad. She was looking at her photo album, the one she loved because in it were photos of her grandparents, her cousins and Emmett. She sighed and let a tear fall down. I miss you so much pappou, you always knew what to say to me. Never judging me even though you were older. You just saw through my theatrics and accepted me. I just miss you so much. I miss all of you.

It was an emotional night for them. Because they missed him and that had a toll on him as well. He missed them all, but he was here on a mission and had to deliver a message. He felt lost but so powerful at the same time. They loved him and remembered him and that gave him courage to hug Maria and take her another place. It was time.

~M.S.I.H.~

Yiorgos took Maria to the chapel that they were married in. It was the most beautiful place he had seen when he brought her brother home. He tried to remember how beautiful she was, while Maria was actually doing the same. They smiled to each other as they moved forward. "This part is the most important one, Maria. You promised me not to forget." She nodded; she would do anything for her Yiorgos.

They moved more and she saw that the chapel was decorated for a wedding. She could see the flowers and the candles, she could hear people talking but she couldn't understand what they were saying. It was like their words made no sound. Maria moved forward and Yiorgos was following closely behind her. She wanted to see who was getting married. She had a feeling in her chest but she couldn't let it out yet. She wanted to see to make sure that she knew whose wedding was.

Yiorgos smiled, she was so smart, his Maria. He was sure that she would understand it before she would see the image. He chuckled silently to himself and he saw his guardian angel looking at him smiling back. I am almost there, thank you for everything.The angel simply nodded as he became invisible again. Maria was in the entrance of the chapel and Yiorgos was behind her. He wanted to be around her in case she got upset.

He remained silent behind her and let her sneak inside the chapel. She gasped when she saw who was getting married. She put her hand in her mouth so she would not to make a sound, and then she turned back and smiled to Yiorgos. He gave her his hand and pulled her into a tight embrace. "What did you see?" She lightly kissed his lips and whispered, "You know exactly what I saw."

"You won't tell me? I didn't see it with my own eyes, I want you to show me."

Maria did exactly what Yiorgos asked her. She showed her that inside that church she saw their eggones, Bella, Alice and Rosalie getting married. They were beautiful and the men next to them were glowing. "I see, so they are in love. Did you see who the men were?" Maria shook her head and let his embrace and went to peaked in again. It was like someone called them and at that time she looked they all looked at her. She knew them, all of them.

She went back to Yorgos and showed him again what she saw. "Tell me what I have to do, Yiorgos." Yiorgos smiled back at her and simply whispered. "Bring them home Maria, to meet their destiny. It is not going to be easy, but the men they are looking for are here in Greece. When the time is right, bring them home." Yiorgos slowly moved and kissed her lips. "Σε αγαπώ, για πάντα." (I love you, always.)

Maria knew that was her sign to say goodbye to him. She stood up on her tipped toes and kissed him back. "I know." She sighed as she closed her eyes. She wanted to wake up with the feeling of his kiss in her lips.

~M.S.I.H.~

Maria opened her eyes and touched her lips. She could feel it; she sighed as she looked at her wedding band. She made the sign of the cross while she looked at her Virgin Mary's Icons. She got up and went to the kitchen for a glass of water. When she cleared her mind from all that happened, new thoughts emerged. I have to bring the girls to Greece. Here lies their destiny and they have to fulfill it.

She sat down on her favorite chair and started thinking about how she would bring them home. She would make a plan, first thing in the morning. Now, she was determined to start living again, not only because she promised but also because her heart was full of love and her life's aim was to make her eggones happy, until it was time for her to go. Until it was time to join her Yiorgos.

Okay, this was The Vision Outtake. I do hope you enjoyed it. It gives you insight about what happened some years before the actual story.

Maria and Yiorgos would love your reviews….

See you soon

xxx