The characters of Twilight are owned by Stephenie Meyer. All other characters, settings, lyrics, etc. are the property of their respective owners. I am in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise or automotive company. The original content, ideas and intellectual property of this story are owned by Virginia May, March 2010. No copyright infringement is intended.


Chapter One:

"The Prodigal"

Edward~

I was nervous. I was really, truly nervous for the first time in a very long time. I had been preparing myself for this day for the last year, knowing that it would be difficult but willing to make whatever sacrifices I could to be with my family again. My family. Home.

Now that I was less than two miles from our family's newest home, a home I had never seen before, it was far too late to change my mind. As the car rounded another curve and descended towards the looming fog, I got the faintest sense of their thoughts. Like the fog, the images and words were thick and somewhat misty. Amazing that after nearly six decades together, I could become so out of synch with the thoughts of my loved ones in just a few short years in limbo.

It was not as if I hadn't seen my family in the last five years, more that we had not resided together permanently for most of that time. I had been with them on and off, limiting my visits to several months or a year at the most; a decision made during the brief period following the graduation of the oldest Cullen "children" from Forks High School in 2005. They had all relocated to follow me after I left our home in Forks quite abruptly, and quite necessarily. Despite the mistakes and juvenile behavior that led to that decision, they never overtly blamed me. To them, this was just a part of being what it is that we are. Truthfully, I deserved blame. They moved our family years earlier than what was truly necessary and our once well rehearsed and peaceful life together was utterly overturned; all because of me.

After five months of endless debates over where we should go next and what we should do, I'd had enough. With Jasper flat out refusing to repeat high school again, Rosalie whining about how things had been fine before "that girl" pushed her way into our lives, Emmett planning all manner of stealthy kidnapping of said girl, and the Denali sisters putting more than their two cents worth in, I could not endure another day.

My brain was overloaded and my heart was overwrought. Supplement the tension in the household with Alice's nonstop visions causing me enormous temptation and anguish, and I was at the limits of my sanity. I left. I was miserable and furious, frustrated and heartbroken.

It had taken nearly a year on my own to discover the name behind the crushing pain that accompanied my unnecessary breaths. Day in, day out, an ache that never truly went away. It rivaled my thirst in every imaginable way. Dry, burning, and at times, even searing pain. It was pain that could be alleviated momentarily by other things that I loved; music, art, time with my father, mother, and siblings. But none of those things were ever enough to extinguish the ache. Heartache.

I loathed it. Yet, I wouldn't want to go back or live without it.

Son? You look ill. There is nothing to be anxious over, we are all very happy you are home. Let us leave the past where it belongs. You're home, where you belong.

Esme sat smiling at me from the passenger's seat. She had been the lone member of my family to greet me when my flight landed from Tokyo. From her memory of it, I saw that she had nearly bared her teeth at my siblings in order to gain the privilege of retrieving me from the airport. To be honest, she would be the only member of my family that I wouldn't throttle for touching my Aston-Martin, and she knew it too. Her thoughts were kind and full of joy at my return, as well as confidence in the future. She truly believed that the past was swept under the rug and my siblings were as pleased for my return as she was. We were ascending another small hill and the fog began to thin. I suddenly heard her thoughts before she was able to articulate the words.

"Slow here, the next drive is ours. On the..," Esme began.

"Left?" I grinned at her and she laughed out loud.

I've missed him so much! She giggled internally, but her outward composure was eternally Esme; warm, calm and confident."Welcome home, Edward," she sighed contentedly, and reached over to squeeze my hand.

With little warning, the thoughts of the rest of the Cullen clan rang through the relative silence of the forest as we made our way along the winding drive that led to my home for the next several years.

He's here, he's here, he's here, he's here! Thirty-three seconds... Alice was bouncing off the walls.

What the hell? What is Esme doing with the Vanquish? Emmett heard the car.

Is that? Why would she take Edward's car? Jasper picked up on Emmett's confusion.

My beautiful, surreptitious wife! I can't believe she didn't tell me. FINALLY! Carlisle slammed a book closed.

What is with Alice? Good grief, calm down you weirdo pixie! She looks like.. NO WAY! Rosalie's shocked voice was the one that rang out over the torrent of thoughts.

"Edward?" Her thoughts were cautiously hopeful and showed her flying to the front door to watch as the Vanquish pulled just into sight. I could see the top of her golden head at that moment, as she caught first sight of me.

"OH MY GOD, EMMETT! HE'S BACK," she shrieked. Rose was overwhelmed, overjoyed and relieved. Her relief was the strongest sentiment in her thoughts.

It was also unmistakably obvious that my mother and youngest sister had taken advantage of not having a mind reader in the house one final time.

He'shere,he'sreallyhere,Edward'shere,Edward'sback! He'sback,he'sback,he'sback...

Alice's thoughts were practically indecipherable, a running jumble of mental squealing. Rosalie was oddly mirroring the mental hysterics of our sister. I was going to get a headache at this rate.

"He's home," Alice called, sounding as relieved as Rosalie felt. Quickly the rest of the house was filled with similar thoughts.

I smiled as the emotion became almost overwhelming; joy and pain woven into one. Part of the reason I had stayed away was this wildly overwhelmed feeling. The love my family showed me, the love that motivated their thoughts and actions towards me; it only compounded all that I felt. I was learning to push the heartache aside and just accept their warmth towards me, but it was still mildly difficult. I was no longer the baby boy of the family, the odd man out who had never known what he was missing. I was different now; changed forever by finding the one thing that I didn't know I was missing, and then losing it. I loved each of my family members, but they could not replace the love that I could not have.

I knew that were I human, my heart would be hammering, my eyes would be welling with tears and I would be near shaking from an excess of adrenaline in my system. However, I was fortunate enough to be a vampire; there would be no outlet of emotion through various physiological responses. I would just have to suck it up and take a deep breath, steadying my emotions and control by sheer willpower.

Despite the pain that I actively had to work against, my smile did not fade. The intensity of excitement and joy in the family's thoughts increased tenfold when Jasper, who was hurdling down the stairs and across the foyer caught sight of my car rolling to a stop in front of the large house.

"Edward?" Jasper was shocked and his thoughts flitted to his wife and the utter disbelief that she had managed to keep this from him. He briefly worried that she hadn't been able to see that I was coming, but then went back to astonishment. I can't believe it, that little sneak! "Alice, you are in big trouble." I heard him grumble at her and laugh at the same time.

"I know Jazz! And I don't care! He wasn't sure until this morning; I didn't want to jinx it. He's really home!" She squealed again and threw herself into Jasper's arms. After I cut the engine, they turned to smile excitedly at me.

You look like a deer in headlights. Take a breath, Edward. Esme squeezed my hand and opened her door. I briefly berated myself for not being faster and thinking ahead to get the door for her. This was all just somewhat distracting.

I did feel a little like a small animal frozen in the path of an oncoming vehicle. My head was suddenly overwhelmed with the chorus of familiar mental voices that I had missed so much. Although I was relieved to be returning to them, I hadn't been prepared for the sheer volume of those voices and the intensity of their joyous thoughts. I had not only spent the last few years avoiding or virtually ignoring the minds of both strangers and casual acquaintances, but this time my family knew that I meant to stay for good, and they were powerful in their enthusiasm.

Carlisle stood outside the car and opened the door for his wife. "Let me get that for you, my darling."

She took his hand and smiled at him. In his mind, I could see the excitement radiating off of her and how that made her even more attractive to him. They stood a modest distance from one another, longing to embrace but consciously choosing to deny the urge in an effort to make me more comfortable. In all honesty, the well meaning gesture and corresponding thoughts that accompanied it made me more uncomfortable than if they were to just act as they normally would.

I removed myself from the cocoon of my vehicle and stood. "Please, do not behave differently for me. You were not meant to change a thing because of my return. I would not have come back if I was not at ease with all of you, and everything that living life together entails. Hug her, Carlisle." I grinned and walked around the car to greet my father. He pulled Esme to his side and kissed her cheek before greeting me as the prodigal for the second time in our history.

"Welcome home, son."

"Thank you, Carlisle. Dad..." I said warmly, pulling away from his embrace and meeting his eyes.

As was customary between us, he added a mental statement to his verbal greeting. You have made all of us very happy, thank you.

I nodded once and was immediately assailed on either side by my sisters. Alice was on my right, jumping up and pulling herself onto my back before kissing my right cheek. Rose simply took my left hand and squeezed once. She smiled as genuine a smile as I had ever seen from her, and when Alice slipped down I pulled them both into a hug.

"I thought you'd never come back. I am so sorry for throwing an ultimatum down the way that I did, Edward. Thank you for coming home," Rosalie said quietly. She added in her mind, I just couldn't bear to lose you again, it got harder every time you left. I do love you, you know. Her eyes were closed and she looked uncomfortable.

"I know," I whispered, just for her. I kissed her cheek, and then Alice's. "You, too," I said to my tiny sister.

"Can I get in on some of that action?" Emmett's voice called over my reunion with the girls. "Come here, lil' brother!" He laughed and then made a single bound until he was standing in front of me pulling me into a near bone-crushing man hug. He patted my back and then smiled widely at me, "Welcome home, dude."

"Thanks, Emmett," I said, laughing lightly.

Jasper made his way down the porch steps and Alice flitted to his side. He looked down at the ground and then up again to meet my eyes. I really, really missed you man. Almost as much as Alice did. She said you'd stay for good if you came home again?

"Yes, I will," I pledged, in answer to his silent question.

"Good. Welcome back." He stuck his hand out and I shook it firmly. Jasper had always been a man of simple, but important words. He never showed emotion unnecessarily, but that did not diminish his ability to convey the depth of his thoughts or words. All that I needed to know was in his hand shake and simple words. He was my brother in every sense of the word.

For both of us, the separation had been a mixed blessing. Until we had been apart, Jasper had not been able to recognize how bonded he had become to any one of us. He always believed he was here for Alice, but he knew now that he stayed for himself as much as for her.

Even I had failed to realize the intricate weaving of our individual lives and gifts into a cohesive identity. I had felt a part of me was missing without the security of Carlisle and Esme. I felt like there were pieces of me that didn't make sense without having Emmett or Rose to make fun of them. And then there was Alice, and Jasper. Not only could they identify with being different from even other vampires, not only could they relate to the added burden of having an extra sensory gift, but their abilities complemented my own in a very significant way.

When we were separated these last months, it was like I only saw minds in one dimension. When Jasper and I were together, I got an added layer to that dimension. When Alice entered the equation, it was like having a 3-D computer rendered model available to us. At least, it was that way for me. I wasn't entirely sure if they felt the same, but after hearing that I was needed, again and again over the last five years, it was quite likely they did. The relief that accompanied their thoughts also told me they felt somehow complete where they had once felt lacking, as did I.

"Are you ready to see the house, dear? Or shall we get a bite to eat first?" Esme winked at me from where she and Carlisle now stood several feet back from the rest of us. Carlisle looked at all of us indulgently.

I could tell from their thoughts that the expected response from me was split right down the middle. The women wanted to show me the house, the garage and the grounds. Esme hoped that I would feel welcome and loved in our new home, Alice was waiting to see my reaction to a surprise she was hiding the details of, and Rose was just hoping I'd show some sign that I really meant to stay. The men however, wanted to hunt. Carlisle was hoping to see that I had maintained a healthy appetite, Jasper was thinking it would ease the awkward feeling that was brewing within, and I could just tell Emmett was chomping at the bit to race me and would rush Esme until he got his wish. He was mentally chanting the word hunt as a mantra.

I had to laugh. "Okay, okay, we'll hunt first. Then Esme may show me the house at her leisure, Rose can pull my car in the garage, and Alice can tell Rose how we will make room for the new addition I purchased while I was still in Europe. Is that acceptable?" I pointed the question at Emmett, who smiled broadly.

"Hell, yeah! Sounds good to me," he resounded, before reconsidering and turning to Esme. "If, that will be okay with you, Mom," he said with some chagrin.

"Of course, Emmett. If... Edward? That is what you would like to do?" She raised a knowing eyebrow at my brother and I and smiled. Alice and Jasper chuckled, and Rose hummed a small, but pointed "mm- hmm" under her breath before smacking Emmett's arm lightly.

"I'm home. We have all the time in the world, and I honestly can say that neither activity would make this moment any more real. It's real; I'm here where I belong, with you. I care for you all more than I could ever express in words. My only desire now is to show you with my actions instead."

I looked up into the eyes of my father, my creator, and my friend. Carlisle nodded once, and spoke with confidence befitting the patriarch that he truly was. "You already have. Welcome back, son." He smiled and I swallowed the lump in my throat that rose with his proud and confident words. Then with a quick wink, he took Esme's hand and led the Cullen family through the large expanse of manicured lawn that gave way to the wooded forests.

As I followed them into the unknown future, I knew that I was home. But somewhere, in the deepest recesses of my heart and mind, a momentary thought made its way to the forefront of my consciousness. For the briefest of moments, I imagined a world where a beautiful chocolate-eyed beauty might have run at my side, a world where the mysterious Bella Swan might have been part of my family.

Impossible...

But, a vampire could day dream.


A/N:

Thank you to Project Team Beta, specifically cullennite21 and Say Goodbye Again for their lightening quick services and assistance on this chapter and the prologue.

Extra special thanks to Essay33 for being more than just a beta! She was the sounding board that helped me get a grip on writing Edward for the first time and has made this story more than what it would have been without her. Thanks Ann!