Ellie sat cross-legged on the ground, in a small clearing several miles from the house. She watched with mild disgust as Emmett wiped his mouth and grinned, picking bits of deer fur from his teeth.
"Gross Emmett," she scoffed, tossing a handful of dried leaves in his direction.
He laughed, sitting down a few feet from her, leaning back on his elbows against a fallen tree trunk with his massive legs stretched out in front of him. "Yeah," he answered obliviously, "deer are not my favorite."
She rolled her eyes. "Alice is going to be pissed at me."
Emmett shrugged. "She will be fine. Hell, she could have come along!"
"Why did you kidnap me anyway?"
"It's not a kidnapping when you come along willingly," he retorted, wagging his finger at her. With an evil grin, he added, "Besides, I wanted to hang out with my baby sister before this new guy shows up and whisks you off on your date," stretching out the last word three syllables longer than necessary in a teasing, singsong tone.
Ellie pulled her knees into her chest and groaned. "Emmett…"
"No really, I'm dying to know how this is going to work. Is going to take you out for dinner? Catch of the day – fresh off the street – for him, and the vegetarian special for you?"
"Emmett!" Ellie smacked his arm, regretting the move instantly and cursing to herself. One day she would remember that move was as effective as a human smacking a cement wall. "Ouch!"
He threw his head back and roared with laughter while she held her hand and pouted. "It's not funny," she huffed, gingerly stretching her fingers out and checking for breaks.
His chortles quieted, and he reached over and took her hand, holding it between his own. "Here, does that help?"
She glared at him, but nodded reluctantly as his cool temperature muted the sting. He let go a moment later when the tense lines around her eyes relaxed slightly.
Settling back against the log, he winked at her. "Maybe next time you'll remember to keep your hands to yourself."
She crossed her arms across her chest, but as they sat together, not speaking, she knew she wouldn't stay mad at him for long.
It was easy to be quiet with Emmett. His thoughts were happy and calm, and his mind was very rarely riddled with guilt or worry, unless something was wrong with Rosalie. Most of the time he was happy to just be. Ellie had always been able to find a bit of peace in spending time with Emmett, and she found herself to be quite grateful that he ushered her away.
"So do I get to ask?" he said, breaking their comfortable silence.
"Ask about what?"
"You know about what." The evil grin returned and he remembered Ellie's face when she answered the call from Christopher. Ellie laughed out loud at her own expression – half horrified and half elated.
"Is that really what I looked like?" she sputtered through her giggles, which got louder when Emmett nodded. "Dear god," she gasped, clutching her sides. "I needed that."
"Happy to oblige, ma'am" Emmett said with a tip of an imaginary hat and a slight drawl that hinted back to his southern roots. "Does the lady wish to answer my question now?"
Ellie shook her head, sticking her tongue out at her brother.
"Aw, come on. There's nothing you want to tell us before he shows up here tomorrow night?"
Ellie groaned, throwing her head back and looking up at the canopy of tree branches overhead. "Maybe I can talk him into meeting me...where ever it is he is planning to take me."
"Nah," Emmett disagreed, "You wouldn't do that to Carlisle and Esme.
"You're right," she sighed. "I wouldn't. But it's a tempting thought." She sat up and crossed her legs again, drawing circles in the dirt in front of her. "There's not much to tell you anyway, other than what you've already heard. I don't know that much about him."
Emmett nodded thoughtfully and then jumped to his feet, making a fist and tapping his knuckles against the open palm of his other hand. "Well, Jazz and Edward and me could always talk to him. We could get a little information out of him." He waggled his brows threateningly.
Ellie stood, waving her hands. "No Emmett! Do not embarrass me like that tomorrow." She glared at her brother, and he held her gaze with a grin. "Emmett. McCarty. Cullen. Don't you dare."
They stared each other down until a wide grin broke out on Emmett's face. "I'm just playing around. I will behave. Can't speak for Jazz and Edward, though."
"Ugh," Ellie groaned. "I know. I really should have planned this better."
"Come on," he said, taking her elbow. "I should get you back. Rose will kick my ass for not letting you eat after she made you those muffins and all."
She laughed, letting him start to lead her back. "I missed you Em."
"I missed you too kid," he said.
"Ellie!" Several knocks followed the sound of her name, but Ellie barely stirred.
Alice hissed a sigh, not needing a vision to see that Ellie was not going get up on her own. She knocked again and Ellie rolled over, shoving her hair out of her face, and burrowed further under the covers, ignoring the pestering noise that had begun to creep into her subconscious.
What Alice could see, however, was that Esme was about to appear to admonish her for trying to rouse her sleeping sister. Sure enough, a few seconds later, Esme's hand caught Alice by the wrist before she could wrap against the wooden door again.
"Alice," she warned, "let her sleep."
Alice turned on her heel, her lips forming a slightly manic smile as she faced the family matriarch.
"Esme," she said, "She's slept long enough; I don't have much time. There is so much to do!"
"Alice!" Esme hissed, but Alice had already burst through the bedroom door and into the closet. She followed, whispering furiously. "Alice, he won't be here for hours. She has plenty of time to get ready later."
Alice rolled her eyes, defying her adoptive mother openly. "Four hours, Esme. Four. Hours. And we have no idea what he has planned, or where they are going! This is a nightmare!" She turned her attention to the racks of clothing, frantically shoving large sections of hangers aside.
Frustrated by her lack of insight into how the evening would progress, she stepped around Esme to try and wake Ellie, but Ellie was already sitting up, staring at her sister with a look that was half-irritated, half-amused.
"Morning," Ellie said slowly.
"Morning?! It's three in the afternoon Eleanor!"
Ellie screwed up her face. She'd forgotten that she'd been so off-schedule. Stretching her arms above her head, she watched as Alice began tearing through her dresser drawers.
"Alice! What the hell?"
She jumped out of bed and ran to grab Alice by the arm. "Would you please stop destroying my room." She nudged Alice out of the way, folding the contents of the drawer back up and sliding it closed. "I already know what I'm going to wear."
Alice gaped at her. "You do?"
With a sigh, Ellie put her hands on her hips and rolled her eyes. "Alice, I have been dressing myself for half-a-century, I think I can handle this one."
Alice closed her mouth and her eyes, struggling to see. Ellie glanced at Esme as she stared on in silence, and then waited for Alice to give up and look at her again. When her eyes opened Ellie was standing beside her bed with an outfit laid across it.
She waved her hand over the items and waited. Alice studied her selections – a belted coral sundress paired with a denim jacket and gold sandals. In lieu of her bangle bearing the family crest, she'd chosen bracelet of rose-gold balls encrusted with glittering crystals and finished the look with simple earrings – mint green and gold round studs.
"That's…not bad, Eleanor," Alice murmured, nodding her approval. Ellie would have been insulted by her sister's surprise, but she could see the slight disappointment behind Alice's eyes.
"I could use your help still, though Alice," Ellie said as Esme started to usher the pixie vampire out of the room. Alice turned with a smile.
"Make up?"
Ellie nodded. "And hair. I'm a total loss at what to do with it."
Alice clapped and jumped up and down. "Oh! I have an idea! Go get in the shower," she ordered, waiving her off. "Go!" She turned to run back out the door, yelling down the hall. "Rosalie! I am going to need your help!"
