Disclaimer: I do not own nor make profit off of Twilight. It belongs to Stephenie Meyer and Summit Entertainment, etc.
A/N: I love Carlisle immensely. He is definitely one of my favorite characters. I don't see this as changing Stephenie Meyer's canon storyline really, so I wouldn't call it AU, per se. The events might conflict with a few minor plot details from SM's universe. Characters may be a touch OOC at times.
Chapter 4: Sensible
To my amazingly good fortune (or perhaps I was unknowingly sharing the fortune of some exceptionally lucky person out there), Alice's vision didn't go quite the way she originally thought it would. Billy Black no longer was going to be telling Charlie what Jacob knew. Even if Billy did inform Charlie that Alice wasn't at the house earlier in the day, he couldn't have proved it. Alice was present now and if Charlie checked into it, he would see exactly what he had been told was going on. I couldn't have asked for things to go much better after what occurred with the pack.
Having Edward and Alice squished on either side of me into only two-thirds of the couch was unbelievably comforting after the kind of day I'd had. The time spent with Carlisle was enjoyable and a wonderful bonding experience, but the other parts of the day hadn't gone especially well. My bad dreams and sleepless night, being late for work and watching Mike's parents argue, my graceless fall and confrontation with Dr. Bailey, the return of my dreams and the fearful moments in the Mercedes, and finally the incident with the wolves. It was good that Carlisle had been there in between all the bad things, to keep me from screaming in frustration. His presence had helped immensely. All the same, I was beyond glad that Edward was there with me on the sofa, his hard and cold body as familiar to me as breathing (when Edward wasn't dazzling me, anyway).
"Apart from the time I spent with Carlisle, this is the best moment I've had since the six of you left yesterday," I murmured onto Edward's shoulder, simultaneously fiddling with the button on his shirt pocket and gazing into his eyes as if I could happily drown in them. The bandages on my hands made the former a bit difficult, but I wasn't exactly thinking all that coherently with him so close.
"I don't know that my ego would call that a bad thing, necessarily," Edward grinned at me with lazy happiness, running long fingers through my messy dark locks. "But I do truly hate the thought of you having such a terrible time. What happened to ruin the rest of your day?"
"Well, I missed you, of course," I admitted thoughtlessly, still firmly trapped by his eyes, causing his grin to widen noticeably and my face to heat up in embarrassment. If he was trying to draw out my thoughts in as undiluted a form as possible, he had me right where he wanted me. "And then I couldn't sleep well."
The stroking atop my head stilled abruptly and Edward's gaze turned pained. Everyone in the room (and outside of it), Edward most of all, understood that my inability to sleep well was caused by nightmares. My bronze-haired vampire resumed drawing his pianist fingers through my tresses after an awkward pause, saying nothing, but implying everything. Regret, apology, love, guilt, sadness; they were all there in his features for my eyes to see.
"What else made your day so go wrong?" he asked me just loud enough for human ears. I knew nothing more could be said at that point. My nightmares weren't going to simply up and leave without a struggle, and what Edward did or did not do months ago was already forgiven.
"I was late for work," I moved onto the other issues I encountered with decidedly less enthusiasm, mostly because I knew that the coming night would be riddled through with the aforementioned nightmares. "Then Mike's parents were arguing, so I left early to leave them with some dignity before it got too ugly."
"Yes, Mike has actually been a little worried lately," Edward admitted with a small frown. "Nothing serious, but he's not used to them getting so heated. Money has gotten tight enough that his parents are increasingly stressed about what bills they should focus on foremost, although they think he hasn't realized it yet."
"Should you be telling me that?" I asked him with a frown. "It's not actually common knowledge or anything."
"It is, actually," Edward responded evenly. "Mike's father had some hardship paying a number of bills, a few months ago. From there it was somehow leaked that the store wasn't faring well, although Mike doesn't have any idea how it got out."
"The store isn't doing well?" I questioned incredulously, oblivious to any such information. "Are they going to go out of business?"
"Not likely," Carlisle answered instead of Edward, drawing my attention to where he sat on the opposite sofa with Esme curled up catlike against his chest. "Things might be difficult for a while, but I can't imagine they'll have to go out."
"I'm glad," I relaxed somewhat, but worry for Mike and his parents still bothered me. I hated to see them pay me for a tiny little job while still having financial troubles to contend with.
"They'll be all right," Alice popped into the conversation belatedly, startling me somewhat with the confidence and determination that bespoke a vision. "Mr. Newton will take on a side job to counter their strained expenses. Mrs. Newton will take over management of the store for a while. Don't you worry, Bella. Everything will be fine."
"The stories of bears or some such in this area probably frightened off some of the out-of-town visitors," Esme pitched in with a motherly smile. "Once the scare dies down, I'm sure business will pick up again."
"Did you look into their future?" I put the question to Alice, turning towards her a little surprised.
"You were worried," she shrugged. "I wanted to reassure you."
"Aw, Alice," my face flushed with gratitude. "You didn't have to do that."
"But I wanted to." She kissed my left temple and waved me off, focusing on the nails she had just flashed in front of her eyes with dissatisfaction. "Ugh, the color is all chipped."
Everyone except Edward stifled their laughter to a certain degree. If I had been biting my lip any harder, I would unfortunately have drawn blood. Alice rolled her eyes and reached around me to punch my boyfriend's shoulder playfully. He just laughed again and tucked me back under the same icy shoulder, his arm still available to be hit again if Alice so chose. He was probably taunting her, but Alice gave up much easier than she ever had before, instead leaning her dark head comfortably onto Edward's arm. We must have looked like a very odd sandwich, mine and Alice's heads as the bread and Edward's arm as the filling, but it was nice being loved and feeling safe between my boyfriend and my best friend. A sigh of happiness left me, drawing Edward's eyes down to me. Another sudden laugh escaped him, startling me into looking up at him.
"What?" My face was crunched in confusion. "What's so funny?"
"You're wearing my shirt," he chuckled and squeezed me closely to him.
"Oh," I blushed fiercely, deeply mortified at being caught by him. "I must look so silly in it. It's much too long."
"I rather like it on you," Edward admitted mischievously, bending to nuzzle the side of my neck. The tiny smile on my lips only lasted until I turned to look back into Edward's eyes. It was then that I noticed the tint of his irises.
Despite my joy at seeing Edward and the rest of the family after our near-fiasco with the pack, it was obvious that their hunting was unfinished. Except for Carlisle, no one's eyes were yet as light as they should have been. Esme's took on a very dark amber tone. Emmett and Rosalie, wrapped into each others' arms out on the front porch, had beheld eyes somewhere in the range of dark burnished gold when I'd seen them a short time earlier. Edward and Alice claimed eyes nearer to liquid onyx than any golden hue. From the split second that I had been able to see Jasper's eyes, his weren't much better. Even with my disappointment that Edward likely couldn't stay the night, I knew I had to point out what was best for them all. It was also much easier to ensure that Edward was there at school during the week if he had already hunted on the weekend. Spending a day at school without him by my side was a torture I was unprepared to endure as yet.
"You guys must have had a really light meal," I spoke up knowingly, causing a few chuckles from the assembled vampires, except Rosalie. That was somewhat expected, but I was heavily disappointed to find Emmett's amusement so dim and quiet compared to its normal, boisterous amplitude. He had been okay when the family voted on my mortality, but afterward the humor started to thin out, piece by piece, until now he wasn't making any at all. I was glad that Rosalie seemed to have gotten less irascible lately, because Emmett needed more sympathy than his wife's attitude normally employed.
"Your eyes are still too dark. I guess there weren't any irritable grizzlies out there." My attempt to get Emmett's booming humor back into play was fruitless. If he even chuckled, I didn't hear it. The situation warranted a more serious solution than simple jokes.
"Game was rather sparse in the area we first tried and whatever we did get was especially small." Edward shrugged the arm that wasn't wrapped tightly about my shoulders. He glanced out to the porch hesitantly and then cast me a sad, but appreciative look. "So we were heading further northeast into Canada. That's why it took so long for us to get here."
"How did you get here?" Carlisle curiously begged the question. "Alice, didn't you say you would still be ten miles away when the wolves appeared?"
"That's what I thought," Alice sighed in obvious confusion. "They must have taken longer to act after you first came to their awareness. I can't explain it any other way. Oh, it's so frustrating to not see them!"
Alice crossed her arms miserably beside me, even with her head still occupying Edward's upper arm; but no matter how much she huffed and puffed, it was clear she was happy they all made it to us on time.
"Maybe when they saw I was human," I threw in, reaching around my waist to grab Alice's rocklike hand with sympathy, "they were startled enough to hold back from confronting us immediately."
"That must be it!" Alice exclaimed with a sudden, brilliant smile. "It makes perfect sense. Bella, I love you!"
"Thanks," I chuckled along with everyone except Rosalie when Alice turned to kiss my head in gratitude from around her brother's arm. Well, Jasper didn't laugh either, but that was because he'd remained outside after the confrontation, rather than come in. With a disappointed sigh, I realized I would have to do something about that. I didn't really know how to fix it, but it was imperative that I did in the near future. He couldn't keep feeling guilty about the accident at my birthday party.
"You'll figure out something," Alice told me dismissively all of a sudden before bolting off of me, Edward, and the seat, then disappearing out the back of the house. She must have seen some sketchy plans involving myself and Jasper discussing the birthday incident, which explained her comment. As for her bolting, I guessed Jasper wanted to see her, since Edward didn't seem too perturbed. With a slight jolt, I remembered my boyfriend could easily tell me what was going on.
"Is Jasper okay?" I asked and turned to look back at Edward's contented face, my brow raised in question.
"He went back for the things Carlisle had to leave in the glade." He smiled my favorite crooked smile and kissed my forehead languidly. "Alice wanted to go and speed him up, in case the wolves come back to prowl in the neutral territory."
"She didn't see that, did she?" alarm crept into my voice at the thought.
"No, nothing like that," Edward reassured me, holding me closer if that was possible. His tone seemed honest, but at the same time something wasn't quite right. "She's just impatient; doesn't want to wait on the off chance that she does see anything."
"Oh," I accepted his explanation with tiny sigh of relief, relaxing back against his granite side. He at least didn't seem worried. I supposed that I didn't need to know everything Alice did. "That's good."
Edward continued to stroke my hair comfortingly for a long while, occasionally laying a loving kiss onto the top of my head. All the while, my thoughts traveled down random paths; nothing very important passing through… until I remembered my truck. It was still back at the hospital, left there this afternoon after Carlisle took me away in the Mercedes. I just decided to ask Carlisle and Edward about going to get it, when Alice popped back into the room like a bullet.
"Good idea," Alice told me in approval and I could only blink until I realized we were going to get my truck after all.
Alice dragged me out of Edward's embrace, to our extreme reluctance. I thought of asking him to come, too, but Alice stopped me cold a moment later. "Edward would be seen, Bella."
"Fine," I sighed in resignation. The tone of my best friend's voice said it was a vision, not just a precaution.
"Carlisle, you too," Alice insisted, but certainly made no move to pull him up as she had me. "We have to make it look good."
"Very well," Carlisle agreed and Esme shifted off of his lap as reluctantly as I had left Edward's embrace. It made me feel very good inside to compare my relationship to theirs. They were so obviously in love with each other and had remained together for almost a century.
I thought of bringing a jacket with me, mostly because I needed to hide Edward's shirt from public sight. Before the thought really even registered, Alice was there with one of her less stylistic jackets and my keys jingling in her hand. The three of us – Carlisle, Alice, and I – headed out to get into the Mercedes not a minute later. Despite myself, I glanced warily towards the trees surrounding the property, while images of the wolves snapping at us flashed around my head. Alice dragged me into the back seat with a reassuring word and Carlisle slid into the driver's seat.
"I wish you could have spent the night as I envisioned," Alice offered the morsel of thought up with a pout as Carlisle backed out of the garage and took off towards the hospital at high speed. "You were going to love it."
"I wish it had gone that way, too," I told her with a calm front, but the shiver that rolled down my spine easily notified Alice that I had a very different reason for wishing it.
"I know." She gave me a reassuring hug and I sighed gratefully into her stony, purple-clad shoulder. "Let's not think about it anymore."
"Gladly." That was very easy to agree to. Carlisle glanced back at us with an unreadable look on his face, but kept his thoughts to himself.
There was more silence for about a minute before Alice turned to me with a very tense expression, quiet unlike her normal self. "Bella?"
"Yeah?" I looked at her questioningly, worriedly even.
"Jasper will difficult to corner," she began pensively; her brows furrowed deeply. "I know you were planning to talk with him about your birthday… so I suggested the idea to him. He was very upset and refused outright. And even if I kept it a secret that you might be coming over, he could smell you from a mile away and run off before you got there. I honestly don't know what to do about it right now."
I was actually very glad that this subject was coming up. If anyone could help me talk to Jasper, it was Alice.
"When you say suggested," I presented the question without really thinking it through, "what did you actually say?"
"I told him that you needed to discuss it with him," she told me honestly, looking a little worried at her word choice. "Though that might have sounded as if you were angry… Oh, that wasn't a good way to put it. How stupid of me. I should know Jasper better than that."
I didn't like the frown on her face; it was unnatural for her bubbly personality.
"Maybe if I wrote him a note first," the idea came to my mind suddenly, "and I told him that I wasn't mad? I could write it when we get back…"
"Maybe," Alice agreed tentatively and then her eyes briefly went into the trancelike state that alerted me to her having a vision. "…Yes, that will help."
"Okay," I felt relieved that I could do something to help. "I'll do it when we get back. That way, Jasper can ponder it without interruption once you guys go back to the hunt."
"That's fine," Alice nodded, relief also coloring her voice. "Deputy in forty-four seconds, Carlisle."
The car slowed almost immediately, Carlisle coming within the speed limit just as we passed Charlie's deputy. Once out of sight, the speed ratcheted upwards again for all of the two minutes it took to arrive at the hospital and pull up by my old Chevy.
Alice got out with me and hopped into the passenger side of the truck with her usual spry step. The roar of the engine startled me and the both of us laughed while I pulled out of the parking spot. Alice was much more enthusiastic now that we had a plan of action in reference to the Jasper situation. As a result, the return trip seemed much quicker, even with my truck's limited speed. Coming up on the diner on our way back, I could see why Edward would have been noticed on our little excursion. It seemed like every student from Forks High School's senior class was congregating there. With the number of kids there, I couldn't believe that I had missed it on the way into town. Angela and Ben waved at us when we drove by, which Alice and I both returned with a smile.
We were soon following Carlisle's black Mercedes through the nature-lined drive that curved up to the Cullen house, and parked in the driveway. Before the roar of my truck had even died down, Edward was at my door and helping me out. Alice disappeared around the back of the house in a barely-visible blur, probably to find Jasper. I didn't bother questioning when Edward lifted me into his arms to zip back into the house and I easily allowed him to assist me in removing the borrowed jacket. He silently took my hand and led me to a side table which I remembered as housing a pad of paper and pen. Accepting the pad and pen with a smile, I moved to settle myself at the dining room table so I could write my note to Jasper. Edward did not sit with me, but stood leaning over the back of my chair, lips resting on the top of my head and his comfortingly cold hands lightly massaging my shoulders.
Carlisle was long-settled with Esme again by the time Edward and I sat back down onto the opposite sofa. This time, Esme was curled up beside Carlisle with her small arms wrapped about his middle and her head of caramel waves tucked up tightly into the crook of his neck.
"You'll make sure Jasper doesn't leave before I can give him this, won't you?" I spoke up softly, the first words I'd said since entering the house.
"Of course," Edward smiled genuinely at me, pulling me back into his lap with a peck against my lips. "But Alice will pretty much have that covered."
"True," I agreed with a happy sigh, leaning my head onto his chest contentedly as we lapsed into a comfortable silence.
"Bella," Edward went on to say after a brief pause, with his eyebrows lowered in dismay all of a sudden, "something about tonight bothers me…"
"What is it?" I prompted him when he didn't continue.
"What exactly did you think you were doing," he asked, glancing down at me accusingly, "latching yourself onto Carlisle with five werewolves staring you down? The thought of you in such easy range is paralyzing."
Just the mention of the threat on Carlisle's life sent my temper rising. That was the part of the ordeal with the wolves that I hated the most. Jacob's accusations I could handle; even his hateful attitude against the Cullens was something I could deal with in some way. But the near-attack on Carlisle, who had done nothing to deserve it, was positively infuriating. I folded my arms petulantly, very similar to Alice earlier. Carlisle and Esme watched us in interest from their sofa, clearly just as interested in my thoughts on the matter as Edward was. Rosalie led a still-quiet Emmett off the porch and away from the house, leaving the four of us alone together in body, even if not in auditory range.
"I wasn't going to leave him!" I replied with difficulty through the grinding of my teeth and the three of them seemed more confused by this.
"Staying where Carlisle could protect you would have been better for all concerned," Edward insisted, deepening the furrow of his brows as his incomprehension increased. "Much safer for you, in particular."
"They were going to attack him!" I half-shouted back at Edward, startling both him and his parents with my vibrant outburst in the quiet house. "They wouldn't have left him unharmed. If I had left Carlisle to stand on his own, all five of them would have jumped him without a single shred of compunction! With me wrapped around him, they couldn't get a piece of him without hurting me, too. They couldn't get him if I was right on top of him. It kept him safe."
A moment of silence washed over us with stifling intensity, the likes of which made me cringe inside. The three vampires stared blankly, uncomprehendingly, at me. It was like I was telling a very bad joke and the punch line just didn't hit home yet. Way to go, Bella.
Edward was the first to break from his surprise, eyes tight but glassy as he replied, "You… are a silly, irrational, ungodly stubborn, and fantastically beautiful person, Bella. But never – I mean never – do that again. I don't think I can take that kind of fear again, especially right now."
"Um…" I didn't quite know how to respond to that.
Edward grimaced and held me a little tighter still. "We'll talk that over later… Otherwise, thank you for protecting Carlisle."
"I thank you, too, Bella," Esme smiled, looking as near to tears as a vampire could ever get. "If anything had happened to Carlisle…"
From the trembling of her body, the caramel-haired mother of the Cullens was trying valiantly not to give into tearless sobs. I felt my own chin wobble a bit at the thought of her and the others living without their husband and father for the rest of eternity. The vampire in question took a minute longer to come around, but when he did, it wasn't the typical cool-mannered Carlisle I thought it would be.
"Isabella!" he scolded me sternly, frowning mildly my way. Mild-mannered as the doctor was, it was easy to see how Carlisle maintained the behavior of his children. One disappointed look or word was enough to send me hiding in the sand, and I hadn't even lived with it for almost a century.
"Yes?" I replied meekly, shrinking into Edward's side a little, who squeezed my shoulders and chuckled quietly. Rather an unsympathetic chuckle, if I was allowed to have my say, but then no one was asking me.
"I don't want to see you do anything like that ever again," Carlisle repeated Edward's sentiment sharply, although he softened into his normal, gentle features immediately upon seeing my slight wince and Esme's still-trembling features. "But thank you for your protection and your care. Your instincts were on target, I imagine."
Having said his piece, Carlisle turned his gentle attentions to Esme's emotional upset, kissing and embracing her with more sweetness than even Sam gave Emily. The thought of the wolves made me wince, but I ignored the discomfort in favor of watching Edward's parents with interest. Their hair reminded me irresistibly of french vanilla ice cream and melted caramel, mixing fluidly together as Carlisle softly leaned his head onto the top of hers. Unlike with Sam and Emily, I found myself able to stare rudely at the couple, entranced by the lovely devotion of their romance. Carlisle and Esme's dedication to each other was so pure and beautiful, I couldn't look away until Edward spoke again.
"Hopefully nothing like that will ever happen again," Edward suggested with a mildly conciliatory smile, placing another kiss to my forehead.
"Maybe," I threw in the agreement cautiously. Edward sighed once he recognized the stubborn set of my features, tipping his head onto the back of the sofa and closing his eyes tensely. He hated to see me put myself in harm's way for any reason, but I wasn't about to change it. When someone I loved was in danger, I was going to protect them, simply put.
"We have to get a move on," he changed the topic too easily, but I wasn't in the mood to be stubborn in the last few moments I would see him until Monday.
"Oh, yeah," I sat up straighter in his lap with determined purpose, but the disappointment in my tone was fairly obvious. "You have to leave right now?"
"We really should," Alice's perky voice as she danced back to us couldn't fail to brighten my outlook a little bit, despite missing Edward already and hating the tension between us over our disagreement. "You'll be back in Edward's presence by Monday."
"Of course," I agreed with false energy, looking at my bent knees uncomfortably. If there was a little bit of a strain in my voice, I just couldn't help it. "It's just one day."
Edward's granite arms enfolded me faster than I could blink and it took a moment for my arms to respond automatically in kind, wrapping hesitantly about his neck. I raised my head and looked at him somewhat apologetically, our point of contention forgotten for the moment. As he kissed me, his almost-fully dark eyes seemed to melt into absolute sweetness; the same sweetness that I had just witnessed in Carlisle's eyes when he looked upon Esme. Soft though the contact of his kiss was, I had a little trouble breathing. Edward smiled a tiny bit at that.
"I'll see you Monday morning," he whispered with a loving smile once he pulled away just enough to press his forehead to mine. "I love you."
"I love you," I returned the sentiment when my breath was back to normal. "Catch a lion for me."
Edward smiled fully at the latter comment, placing another peck on my lips as he stood. Esme moved in to give me a light hug, still cautious, but a little more openly affectionate now that she had some small nourishment in her system from their brief hunt.
"We'll see you soon, Bella." She then flashed out the front door just as Jasper reluctantly entered the room from the back and walked forward to wait beside Edward.
I turned to him with a hesitant smile, which he returned equally as tentatively while Alice stepped up to my side. Jasper was obviously uncomfortable and I knew he wouldn't come close enough for me to give him my note. I gladly took out the note I had written and gave it over to Alice, so she could pass it to him. Alice accepted it with a grateful smile and took me into a hug. Tiny she might be, but the pixie hugged me so strongly that I was lifted off the couch and a few inches off the floor.
"Bye Bella," she chirped quietly in my ear, smiling again as she pulled away and set me on my feet. "Try not to corrupt Carlisle."
"Ha!" I scoffed in reply and she giggled at me. "Impossible, Alice. He's Carlisle! Pure and incorruptible to a fault."
"She has you pegged," Edward teased his father with a smirk that Jasper was echoing to a tee. Carlisle rolled his golden eyes in exasperation at me, but his thoughts and emotions must have been even more annoyed, for Jasper snickered quietly after a moment and Edward laughed with joy. The sound was beautiful music to my ears; better than any symphony.
"Oh, get moving," Carlisle's sigh was annoyed, but fondly so, and he swatted his sons away. Edward just grinned outright at that and flashed away with a smirking Jasper and giggling Alice, who pecked Carlisle's cheek as she danced out the door and pulled it shut behind her.
"Well," Carlisle looked back at me with good humor after a moment in which I suspected he was following the last sound of the family's footsteps as they left the area. "Now that I'm incorruptible, I suppose I'll have to enforce bedtime like any disciplined parent would."
I grinned at him at the thought, but the absence of Edward combined with idea of sleeping made a fearful amount of nerves collide in my stomach. The coming night would be a long night without Edward. I frowned worriedly and Carlisle, of course, had no difficulty picking up on my obvious discomfort very rapidly. Having such an open face was definitely a disadvantage, in my opinion.
"What's wrong?" he asked me gently, pulling me into his right side comfortingly. To my utter chagrin, I found myself wanting to explain to him all about my fears. The entire day seemed to be made up of confessions and admissions.
"I… it's no big deal, really," I still did my best to downplay the issue, not wanting to worry Carlisle overmuch.
"Tell me anyway," he insisted kindly, leading me to sit on the sofa that we had occupied that very afternoon when discussing souls and vampires. Sitting made me feel extremely restless, like I had to walk to stop myself from sleeping and therefore succumbing to nightmares, but I forced myself to remain and talk with Carlisle. He might even have something that I could take; something that would give me a dreamless sleep. I wouldn't know until I asked.
"It's just the dreams."
The words were quiet in the house, feeling so empty now that the others had gone. By now, Edward and the others were probably halfway back to wherever they had planned to hunt.
"Ah, I see," Carlisle nodded in understanding. "The same as last night and this afternoon?"
"Yes," I nodded my agreement tentatively, eyes riveted to my lap.
"Would you like to talk about them?" he offered quietly, solemnly, matching my declining mood very well.
"No, not really," the confession slipped past my lips bluntly.
"As you wish…" Carlisle conceded gracefully and it eased my conscience that he didn't seem offended. "Is there anything I can do to help you find rest tonight?"
"I don't know." I shrugged my shoulders, not looking up at him. "Unless you have a big fat pill that will keep my sleep dreamless."
"I'm afraid not," he chuckled, strained thought it sounded, and I glanced up to find the skin between his brows pinched as if in pain.
"Well, I guess I'm stuck then," I said heavily, slumped into his side in frustration and disappointment.
"How long have you had these nightmares?" Carlisle continued to question me for some reason, confusing me somewhat by his persistence.
"A while." Admittance came much harder with that thought, knowing as I did how much the Cullens hated their choice to leave Forks and all its repercussions.
"Always the same as this one?" At that point he went further, even, than I thought he needed to.
"No," I answered with furrowed eyebrows, turning to look at him in silent curiosity. "They changed after the… after Italy."
Courage failed me before I could say 'Volturi' and I had no doubt that Carlisle sensed the change in wording with ease.
"Edward hasn't mentioned them." Carlisle was really pressing the issue. It made me uneasy at first, as I hated thinking about the nightmares so much, but I decided to trust his judgment. "Believe me, he would have vented about them to me."
"Well, that's understandable." The words were mumbled, but he heard me all the same, his eyes becoming fiercer than before. "I haven't had them in front of him. Not the real bad stuff, anyway."
"I thought so," Carlisle smiled in sudden triumph, slight thought it was, once again surprising me.
"What do you mean?" I asked him worriedly. "What are you thinking?"
The irony of that question was not lost on me, but Carlisle was speaking again and I wanted to comprehend his thoughts rather than dwell on a private joke.
"You know as well as I do," he scolded me very lightly, "that Edward's presence keeps your nightmares at bay."
"So what?" I decided not to argue the point. It was true and besides that, I was much more curious what Carlisle was trying to say.
"Perhaps another of us would be an adequate substitute," he suggested, much to my surprise.
"But…" No particularly good arguments were coming to mind, especially when I remembered that with Alice there after my cliff-diving stunt, I hadn't had the dreams either. It did seem plausible. "You'd get tired of it, a whole night just sitting with me."
"I would not," Carlisle persisted much more gently. "I'd be happy to help."
"You really wouldn't mind?" I needed the reassurance that he wouldn't be losing an entire night thanks to my helplessness.
"Of course not." His voice was firm. I couldn't deny his willingness. "I would feel terrible if I didn't at least try to help you."
There was nothing more to say and I really did want to get some sleep that night. Sleep free of nightmares was so unbelievably relieving to my mind.
"Thanks, Carlisle," I gave in with a relieved sigh, rubbing my forehead tiredly. "That's more of a relief than I realized."
"You're very welcome," Carlisle smiled warmly, but it was followed swiftly by a thoughtful look. "Esme and I are very sorry we didn't have a bed ready for you, by the way."
"It's okay," I assured him with a careless shrug. "I mean, it's not like I planned my argument yesterday afternoon or anything. Alice couldn't have seen that I'd need one until it was already too late to get one. Whose bed did I get, anyway?"
"Mine and Esme's," he chuckled. "I'm fairly certain it's the only one that is in stable condition at the moment."
Carlisle's face was a picture of both embarrassment and amusement. Redness flooded my face as I realized what he was implying about Edward's siblings, causing him to laugh outright. That, of course, only made my cheeks flush deeper.
"I don't think I needed to know that," was my mortified remark and we both laughed at that.
"I'm sorry," he apologized with a slightly chagrined countenance. "That's one thing that will take you some getting used to, particularly with Emmett and Rosalie around."
"Okay," I started uncomfortably, although thankfully the heat was fading from my face. All the same, I really preferred a change of topic. "I think I'm hungry."
If his repressed grin and dancing golden eyes were anything to judge by, Carlisle wasn't fooled in the least. He moved with me as I headed toward the kitchen, however, nary a word of my avoidance escaping his lips, as per his gentlemanly disposition.
"It's a good thing there are leftovers." He allowed a bit of his grin to peek through as he commented, "Not such a waste, after all."
"I decided to mind my own business about that, I'll have you know," I wagged a finger at him with an amused smile trying to turn my lips upward.
"Consider my words rescinded," Carlisle raised his hands in mock defeat, but the smile never left his face.
"All right then," I finally let my smile come through as I took the leftover food out of the refrigerator. "I guess that's okay."
He chuckled while pulling out a few pans in which to reheat the dinner. The kitchen was mostly silent as we worked together to make my leftovers edible once more; the only sounds being those of stirring, some bubbling, and the quiet clangs of utensils and dishes against the stove and countertop. Finally, I had warm food, a fork, a napkin, a glass of milk, and a seat next to Carlisle at the dining table. Silence remained prevalent in the room as I ate; the same comfortable kind that had encroached during my early dinner. I felt no need to disperse it until I set my plate aside some time later.
"It's even perfect when it's reheated." Humor laced my voice as I spoke, but I was aware of tiredness setting in; my eyelids felt a little bit heavy. I decided that the sofa sounded much more comfortable than the dining chair. "Do you have some magical cooking abilities or something?"
"Of course," Carlisle agreed mischievously, taking in my barely-repressed yawn with keen eyes as we rose to head to the couch, "but it looks like you're far more interested in the tallying of sheep than discussing my cooking abilities."
I grimaced in displeasure and half-fell onto the soft cushions. "Ugh, I can't hide anything."
"No, I'm afraid you can't hide much in this household," he responded laughingly beside me. "Am I to assume you don't wish to go to bed yet?"
"You assume correctly," I nodded, slumping back against the couch to get more comfortable all the same.
"Well, then I'm going to change," Carlisle stood from his seat again as he spoke. "Why don't you think of what you'd like to do?"
"You'll be back here before I can even begin to think!" I told him incredulously.
"I'll move at human speed," he dismissed my worry before disappearing upstairs at an ironically inhuman speed.
With a sigh, I determined to think of something before he came back, but I was getting sleepier by the minute. I would likely fall asleep right in the middle of whatever we were doing, anyway. Something simple would be best and I knew exactly what we could do.
"Carlisle," I tentatively called out, hoping he would forego that human speed now. Just as I had guessed, Carlisle came back downstairs in a breeze barely a millisecond later, dressed in a familiar combination of a button-up shirt, sweater, and scarf. The scarf and button-up were both a light gray that contrasted nicely with Carlisle's dark blue sweater. He did happen to surprise me by having on a pair of dark blue corduroy pants to match his sweater.
"That was quick," he offered the thought and took a seat beside me, arm sliding up onto the back of the couch.
"Yeah," I just shrugged, already feeling the slight heaviness pressing on my eyelids. "I just thought we could watch a movie, if you don't mind."
"It looks like a very relaxing idea," Carlisle agreed and eyed me amusedly, but did not comment on my growing drowsiness any further. "What were you thinking of watching?"
"I don't know." I shrugged again. "Something easy and familiar, I guess. So I don't feel bad for missing any of it… Do you have any Disney movies?"
Blood rushed to my cheeks from embarrassment, but Carlisle didn't appear perturbed in the least.
"You'd be surprised how popular Disney has been in our family." He shook his head indulgently. "Esme is particularly fond of Snow White."
That fact made me snort with laughter.
"What's so funny?" Carlisle inquired with some surprise.
"I'm sorry," I flushed tomato red, but couldn't erase my smile. "It's just ironic that she loves Snow White. The first day I visited, I thought that meeting Esme was like meeting Snow White in the flesh."
"I rather like the sound like of that." Carlisle smiled affectionately at the comparison. "At least, in reference to the Disney version. Snow White was very sweet and big-hearted, just like Esme."
"Even better." I smiled with him. "At first, I my only reason for thinking it was because she reminded me so much of a fairy tale. Now I have a real comparison... Is that her only favorite?"
"Oh no," Carlisle chuckled. "She loves most of the romantic ones. Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, The Little Mermaid, and the like. The Rescuers is also a favorite of hers, though."
"What ones do you like best?" I questioned him, voice heavy-laden with curiosity.
"I was intrigued by The Hunchback of Notre Dame," he answered a bit dryly, raising a pale brow more sardonically than I expected, "but Pinocchiois my favorite."
"Do any of them interest Edward?" I asked of him, not expecting much in the way of agreement. Edward didn't exactly remind me of a Disney kind of guy.
"Not many," Carlisle replied with a shake of his head. "His favorite is Pinocchio, the same as me. Fantasia caught his eye as well, but only because of the music."
"No surprise there." I rolled my eyes good-naturedly, but Pinocchio being a shared interest between Carlisle and Edward made me a bit suspicious. "Why do you both like Pinocchio so much?"
Carlisle paused, pursing his lips in thought, before apparently deciding something. "It reminds us of his independent years and his eventual return."
"Oh…" I blinked rapidly, surprised by the admission. That was one thing I hadn't expected to hear. Looking over at Carlisle, I could see that he was very uncomfortable with the topic of Edward's rebellious times. "…Does Alice have any favorites?"
Changing the subject so abruptly didn't even faze Carlisle. He actually smiled, a tiny grateful upturn of the lip.
"Take one guess," he offered and his eyes suddenly twinkled brightly with good humor.
"Alice in Wonderland?" I raised one dark eyebrow knowingly, joining him in an indulgent eye-roll as he nodded.
"Along with a number of others," he added more kindly. "She and Esme share an interest in the princesses. Rosalie, as well, although for her it's more of a bland fascination with Sleeping Beauty."
The reason behind that particular film choice for Rosalie was pretty obvious. Beautiful Princess Aurora would definitely remind the blonde vampire of her own flawless beauty.
"I'm almost afraid to ask about Emmett and Jasper," I tentatively told Carlisle a moment later, causing him to chuckle heavily and pass a hand over his eyes as if he was embarrassed to tell me.
"Monsters, Inc. for the both of them," was his eventual answer, one pale brow raised in dry amusement.
I laughed out loud. "Why am I not surprised?"
"Jasper took an interest in Alice in Wonderland, too," Carlisle remarked innocently, and I burst out laughing again.
"What about you, though?" he inquired after my laughter died down, his other brow rising to meet its twin in silent curiosity.
"Beauty and the Beast," the answer came quickly and easily to my lips. That had always been my absolute favorite Disney film, even before I realized the connotations it carried for me and Edward, "Snow White and The Fox and the Hound tie for second."
"There is irony in that," Carlisle repressed his smile valiantly, but he could not subdue the spark of sadness which flashed in his honey-gold eyes at the same time. "If I may ask, why those?"
"Snow White is just a very sweet story," I started with the easiest explanation. "The romance between the Prince and Snow White is very innocent and true to the heart. I like that... The Fox and the Hound… I don't know exactly, but I just think it's a good story. You know, two people becoming great friends despite adversity."
I could only shrug at my inadequate description, but Carlisle nodded in understanding.
"Beauty and the Beast is a very different romance," I explained thoughtfully, "It's pretty much the only one where the characters fall in love based on their personality rather than just their looks. I love the other romantic tales, but they all focus on the physical appearance mostly. It's like, 'Oh, you're beautiful. Oh, well you're beautiful, too. Let's get married.'Very stupid, if you ask me, but it's only a fairy tale I guess."
"True," Carlisle replied simply, moving casually to retrieve the DVD from the Cullens' massive collection. While he started up the movie, I hunkered down into the sofa with my arms pulled up around my knees, Edward's shirt sleeves hanging far over the tips of my fingers. Just about the only skin visible on my body was my face, neck, and toes; the last of which I studied absently for a moment. The out-of-date movie previews startled me into realizing that Carlisle wasn't in front of the TV anymore. My steady seat suddenly moved so that the sofa was parallel to the TV, ripping a shocked yelp from me. I turned about wildly, coming face to face with a chuckling Carlisle as he sat beside me.
"Don't do that!" I scowled at him, but moved to bundle myself up to his side anyway; the weight of my eyelids was getting ridiculous and I had no wish to fall asleep without at least an icy arm to try and counter my nightmares.
"My apologies, Bella," he pronounced solemnly, but his unrepentant smile gave away his amusement. I didn't give him any response. The movie was starting and I wanted to watch some of it, even if I fell asleep somewhere in the middle.
Sure enough, my eyes were drooping deeply by the time that Be Our Guest was half of the way through. A long yawn stretched my mouth wide open while Cogsworth and Lumiere were standing in the spotlight being rained on by salt shakers. My head fell forward uncomfortably a few times as I dozed on and off, and after something like the sixth time snapping up in a start to find Beast gifting Belle with the library, I drowsily recognized that Carlisle was rearranging my mostly-limp body to lay out on the sofa on my own.
But my sleepy mind rebelled against the idea and I latched onto his sweater tightly, forcing him to half cradle me against him instead. His gentle laugh rumbled a little in his chest and a tired, but pleasant sigh escaped me in response. All I could hope as oblivion overtook my weary mind, was that the comfort I felt was exactly what was necessary to combat the shadows that always invaded my dreams.
A/N: Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed Chapter 3: Strong!