A/N: This series takes place as part of my chapter fic, Best Laid Plans, as outtakes and extras for that. Orbital is the first of them, and is a compliment to Chapter 14: Moving Out. If you have not read that chapter of Best Laid Plans, I highly suggest waiting. It will be much better, and make a whole lot more sense. I plan to post more in the future, so make sure to add it to your updates if you want to find out when they are done. Thanks!

Disclaimer: I own nothing. All characters from and references to Twilight and the Twilight Saga belong to Stephenie Meyer. No money is made from this writing, and no copyright infringement is intended.

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Orbital

I parked the car at the front of the house and slid out, adjusting my outfit. The small house was still, save for the hurried footsteps that were coming from the living room. Back and forth they went at a pace that was slightly abnormal. I smiled to myself as the image of an irate and worried Charlie flitted back into my head. He was pacing around the room, his mood flip-flopping between being so angry he'd turn a bright, beet red and so worried that he'd nearly have a panic attack.

Bella was so misguided. I wish I had been prepared enough to stop her before this got really bad. She'd been so set on this stupid plan of hers, though, that she failed to listen to reason. Even from me. Now that we were this far in however, it had to play out naturally. I'd done my best to convince Edward of that. It was the only way that it would work out.

I skipped up the steps, preparing myself for the breakdown that was Charlie Swan. He wasn't an overly emotional father, but I knew his concern for Bella was washing over him. He was distraught. They'd never fought, not really, even when she had gone to Volterra to save Edward. He'd been upset, and she'd even threatened to move out then if he hadn't accepted Edward back in her life, but it waned quickly into acceptance and he never actually thought she'd do it. Now that she made good on the threat, he was devastated. And angry. And devastated.

I rapped lightly on the door frame, watching the vision of our conversation play out in my head. At least I knew he'd be receptive. Bella was lucky I already knew how this would go, or I wouldn't even be there. Edward had been right about one thing: our being involved wasn't fair to Charlie. He was only acting out of love and concern for her.

He came to the door and threw it open, his eyes darting from side to side. He must have suspected Bella with the way his expression drooped when he saw me, but she'd never knock, and I knew full well that she wasn't coming home anytime soon. He should have known that too, and actually, he probably did.

"Hi, Charlie," I said, sympathetic to his forlorn expression. He stepped aside, letting me by him.

"Alice," he said in greeting. I could hear the mixture of emotions in his voice at my presence. He was sad. He was outraged. Charlie had no hard feeling toward me personally, but despised the fact that I was there. I meant only one thing: that Bella was with my brother, and that, he hated.

"How are you?" I asked. He frowned a little and huffed, the two actions seemingly unconnected. I smiled sadly at him. I hated to be in the middle, but Bella needed me. Then he shrugged and didn't answer me, so I continued. "I'm here to get some things for Bella."

He motioned up the stairs for me to go ahead. At human speed I went up to the second floor into Bella's room. I smiled as I opened the door and was met with the scent that was just so her. The room was neat and tidy, only a few things lying haphazardly out of their place. She had her laundry done and folded on the bed, ready to be put away. I went over to the clothes and quickly categorized what she had there, grabbing a few pairs of her jeans and some of the nicer shirts she actually owned, three of which I bought for her. I pushed aside the worn sweatpants and t-shirts she insisted on wearing, keeping as much distance from them as I could. It was good that bad fashion couldn't rub off on someone. Good fashion, however? I was hoping I'd at least be able to dress her up a little now that she was living at the house. Maybe a fashion show, or shopping in my closet! I got excited at the idea just as a vision of her walking around uncomfortably in a pair of gorgeous Louis Vuitton ankle boots. I smirked a little at the image, as she shot me a nasty look.

Shaking out of my vision, I went back to the task at hand. Jeans, check. Tops, check. I gathered a few pairs of socks and as many decent pairs of panties I could find. I tried as hard as I could to put the old pair of granny panties in the duffle bag I'd set out, but my hand would just not allow it. I didn't care what she'd say. It was a good thing I planned ahead and purchased several new pairs of pajamas, and some lovely under things for her. There was no way I was going to let her sleep in the house—down the hall from my brother—wearing the poor excuse of sleepwear that she deemed appropriate. She had to accept it. It was all part of the deal when she decided to move in by us. She was my best friend, and I loved her, but she had to take all of it if she was set on being with Edward, and part of that was dealing with me. There was no way my sister was going to dress like a hobo.

Thoroughly sure that I had gleaned all that I could from her pitiful excuse of a wardrobe, I headed across the hall and got a few of her other necessities, placing them in her toiletries bag. Most of it she really wouldn't need, since I'd already known she'd come, and stocked up the bathroom attached to her suite, but I wanted her to be comfortable at least a little bit. Clothes first, make-up and accessories later. Baby steps.

I headed down the stairs to find Charlie waiting patiently in the kitchen, just like I knew he would be. He stood against the counter, his eyes drawn to the floor. I walked over to him.

"All done," I announced. The poor man looked pained at this. He glanced at the duffle on my shoulder and sighed deeply. It was as if I was taking more of her. Her things leaving were just another sure sign that she had, in fact, moved out of his house. Then his face twisted with a new realization, one that I thought he'd already made with my presence there. Perhaps it hadn't really hit him until that moment.

"She's with him, isn't she? She ran to him." The venom in his voice rivaled ours at that moment. I reached over and put a light hand on his arm.

"She's safe." I knew that this was what truly mattered to him. But it didn't soften him much.

"I'm surprised Carlisle would allow this. He doesn't seem like the kind of man that would do something like this." I knew that he was referring to the fact that he'd let Bella move in without question. I was sure Charlie felt a little betrayed at the fact that Carlisle had chosen to take her side rather than hauling her back to him. But Carlisle didn't look at Bella like a sullen teenager trying to fight with her father. He saw Bella as a grown woman who had chosen the man that she wanted, and run to him in her time of need. He was a little too idealistic in that respect, because truthfully, it was a mixture of both Bellas. She was a sullen teenager that wanted the safety of the man that she loved.

What was more, neither Esme nor Carlisle could turn her away, because they loved her. They had a need to protect her as much as Edward did, and they couldn't send her packing when she obviously needed them. But Charlie was right. As a father, Carlisle should call, just to let him know she was okay. I made a mental note to pass that along when I got home.

"He wouldn't turn her away. Neither would Esme. None of us would. She needed somewhere to go, Charlie, and it may seem like this doesn't affect her, but it really does. More that you know."

He "hmphed" and crossed his arms. "Well, if she wasn't so damn stubborn, we could have talked it out."

"You were willing to talk to her about it?" I asked incredulously. I knew the details of their fight. I'd tried my hardest to keep it from Edward, because it wouldn't have helped the situation he and Bella were in, but I'd seen the whole thing, right down to the last door slam.

"Well, she could have gone to Jake's at least. They'd have taken her in too."

"That's really what you'd want? I'm not trying to get in the middle or start arguments, but did you even know why she was so angry in the first place? Did you know what he said to her? And didn't you tell her she'd have to stay away from both of them?" I put my hands on my hips and challenged him.

He looked up at me, and could tell that I was not letting him off that easy. I didn't think he was wrong about their fight, as much as he was…misinformed. Such was the case for all the men in Bella's life at the moment. He fumbled a little with my set expression.

"Listen, Alice. I think you're wonderful, and I'm glad that Bella has you as her friend. And I'm glad that your family is so good to her," he said, hesitating. Then he sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "But he's… well, I just don't like it. I don't understand it."

I softened, and relaxed next to him.

"What don't you understand?"

"You should have seen her, Alice. In all my years, I've never seen anything like the shell that she became when you guys left. It was like he took her soul with him. And I know that sounds cheesy or fuddy-duddy, or something like that, but I don't know any other way to describe it. She was here in body, but it was like she was empty. It scares me Alice."

I smiled at his admission and raised my eyebrows at him. He'd just singlehandedly answered all his own questions. That was as good a description as anyone could have given for what happened, and why she was with him now. What he didn't know, was that it did the exact same thing to Edward.

"I don't get it," He continued. "It's like, no matter what he does, she can't stay away from him."

I shook my head.

'Charlie, she can't." He furrowed his brow and looked at me like I was speaking another language. He was male, and he was the single father of a teenage girl, thus rendering him automatically almost clueless. But he was must more astute than he let on. He already knew that they were connected in ways that the average father would never understand. Edward had indeed taken Bella's soul with him when we'd left…and he'd left his with her. I sighed.

"Edward and Bella are like planets in orbit with one another. Their paths are set together, and their gravity pulls them that way, always and forever circling each other. There's no helping it. Edward wasn't always on that particular orbit, but when he met Bella, he was altered. Charlie, I know that sounds frightening and ridiculous, but I promise you, he'd rather die than hurt her—he loves her with his very existence and nothing can change him again that would change that. You don't think he's good for her, but I promise you'll never find anyone that loves her more than he does. Even Jacob Black can't love Bella the way Edward does. Jacob might love someone else that way someday, but he doesn't now. Not Bella. Not ever."

He stared at me for a long time, tears welling up in his eyes. It probably wouldn't help them, but I wanted him to know that Edward loved Bella more than anything. As irritating as my brother could be with his stubborn character and his angst, he was the best thing for her. They had flaws, no doubt, but they needed each other. They were made for each other.

"How can I just let her go, Alice?" he whispered.

"Just because she's with him doesn't mean she's not with you too. You are the two most important people in her life. She loves you both."

He didn't smile fully, but the sides of his lips turned up ever so slightly, and his eyes softened. I smiled, putting my hands on my hips again.

"Would you believe it if I told you that Edward advised her not to stay? To come back home and make up with you?"

His eyes shot up to meet mine and he looked utterly surprised.

"No," he said, completely unconvinced. He looked a little confused. I nodded.

"It's true. He thought that it would hurt both of you to fight with each other. He doesn't want that."

He sighed, running his hands through his hair. He seemed to be wrestling with something, and I waited. Finally, he spoke.

"Alice? Will you tell her to call me?" I smiled widely, and put my hand back in the crook of his crossed arms, squeezing slightly.

"Of course," I said. "Though she is Bella, and even I can't make her do something she's hell bent on not doing."

We both chuckled at that and I turned to leave. He walked me to the door, watching me as I got in my car. I waved goodbye to him, pleased that I'd be able to tell Bella that Charlie was waiting patiently for her phone call. And then I saw it. In my head, my phone rang. A second later, I felt the familiar buzzing in my pocket. I groaned.

"Yes, Edward," I said, not even needing him to speak. "I'll follow them."

He thanked me and told me all the things I already knew: 'don't let her see you,' 'stay far away that he can't catch the scent too well,' and 'call me if anything should happen.' As if I'd ever let anything happen to her!

"Oh, god," I sighed as I hung up the phone. "I hate walking the dog."