A/N – Sorry it took so long and for a short chapter (for me anyway). Between the darn Army making requirements of my time and my little internet USB card pooping out on me, this took longer than it should have. *sigh* Thank you all again for the wonderful reviews (103, holy crow you guys are awesome!) and all the alerts and favorites and everything. You are all so wonderful too me. So this is just filler with one or two important things hiding in there. Don't worry if you don't catch them right away, it'll all be coming up shortly.

Back by popular demand is more Esme/Bella time and more from Emmett. Don't worry, you'll get more Bella/Edward time, and soon ;-)

Disclaimer – All the characters belong to SM, I just play with them.

Bella's POV

My mind was rebelling against my body's desire to wake up. It was still trying to understand the dreams I had over the night. It had started with breaking my leg at theater while hanging lights. I knew it was a bad idea, but I just could not let Emmett do something there and I not do it too. I was the one that had dragged him into it so I may as well join him in whatever he was doing. I decided that I wasn't going to be hanging them today, just in case it was foreshadowing anything.

Then I had to have surgery for my leg and came back home only to find out that the family I was living with, my family, were all vampires. The kind that drinks blood.

My mind usually is not that creative, and it obviously was having trouble making sense of all the dreams.

I pulled the covers off to make my way to the bathroom to see if a shower would not help calm me down before school.

Rather than get up I stared dumbfounded at the bulky cast that entombed my right leg. As soon as I saw it, my mind was finally able to register the dull ache that was slowly growing to a consistent pain in said leg.

My leg was broken. If I followed the rest of the sequence of my dream, I had surgery too. If I had surgery, then I had also sat down with my family for a family meeting. They answered my questions about what they were. My mind still could not really wrap itself around the revelations from that meeting.

Alice had demonstrated her super human capabilities. The rest of the family supposedly shared those abilities. Alice and Jasper and Edward had extra 'gifts'.

My brain was still struggling to rearrange my place in the world. If vampires are real and live amongst humans, then what else is real? Ghosts and witches and werewolves and elves… were they just as real as vampires too?

My world had suddenly become much larger and much scarier. How could I, as a mere human, survive in this new world? I would have to ask more questions and get more answers before I could figure all of this out. There were some important points that I needed to resolve within myself now.

I lived in a house full of vampires.

Some of those vampires were having a hard time controlling their desire for my blood.

I had no where else to go.

I decided I needed to talk with someone and try to figure out what my role within the family was going to be. Hmm, not just their family, or my foster family, but my family. I wonder when that changed. Pushing that thought aside for later evaluation I softly called out, "Esme?"

If what Alice had told me was true, Esme would be able to hear me from anywhere in the house. I was not completely surprised when not three seconds later there was a light knock on my door right before Esme stepped into my room.

"Do you need help getting up to the bathroom or to go downstairs?" She asked me. It took me a moment to figure out why she would be asking that, but with my cast, it would be basically impossible to accomplish any of those feats myself. After a moments pause I shook my head. No, I did not want to get up until I had figure things out. Seeing my desire to stay put for now, Esme gently closed the door and walked to sit on the edge of my bed.

"I'm here Bella whether you need me to answer any questions or just need someone here with you." She reassured me. I gave her a small smile to let her know I appreciated her willingness to help and be whatever I needed from her.

I took a few moments to sort out my thoughts, then I asked my most pressing question, "It is all true isn't it? Last night really happened."

"Yes Bella. Last night really did happen. I am a vampire as is everyone else in the family." Esme's voice was careful, as though she was waiting for me to start freaking out.

"What does that mean for me?" I asked hesitantly.

"All that it means is that you have seven very fast, strong and gifted individuals looking out for you." She answered with a smile.

"But I'm causing so much trouble for everyone."

"Bella, we love you and consider you a part of this family. That means we take care of one another."

"And Jasper and Edward? Aren't I making things difficult for them?" Difficult didn't even begin to describe it if what they had told me last night was true.

"I won't deny that there may be some risk in having you here. Do you remember what Jasper said last night, how he sees you as family?" I nodded. "How hard would it be for you to hurt your family?" She asked me seriously.

"Well, it would be very hard and I would feel that I was guilty of the worst crime." She gave me a smile as reward for an honest answer.

"Then you understand how both Jasper and Edward feel about you."

"But Rosalie… she doesn't see me as family." I was upset by that more than I wanted to think.

"Rosalie may take some time to come around, but since we see you as family, she will do what she would for any of us. She may seem mean and jealous now, but just give her time and you'll be surprised by her loyalty." I nodded. "You really are part of this family, Bella. That's all that matters."

I was overcome by so many strong emotions that I was unable to tell Esme thank you: Joy, gratitude, sorrow, guilt, and above all else, love. I felt the tears begin to fall down my cheeks, but there was a smile upon my face. If I had been able to, I would have scrambled to Esme and given her the biggest hug I could. She must have been able to see my intentions because she quickly, for me that is, moved to me and me a strong hug instead.

"Thank you, Esme." I finally managed to tell her through my sniffles. Crying, even out of happiness, can be as embarrassing as crying out of anger or sorrow or embarrassment.

"Good, now that you are already wet, what say you to a nice shower to get rid of some of the stress from the last few days?"

My eyes lit up for all of two seconds before they dropped down to my cast.

"Um, is that possible with my cast?" I asked.

"Don't worry, Carlisle showed me how to wrap it up and Alice's shower has a very cozy seat as part of it already. She said to go ahead and use it." She gave me a wonderful grin I couldn't help but return. "And after that it's breakfast for you. Then you are going to help me finish designing your room."

I looked around the room we were sitting in. "But it's already done." I told her. If this wasn't done, then what did done look like?

"This is temporary." She gestured to the whole room. "I did not know you, so I went generic. Now that you are here to stay and will be home with me for the next week or two, you are going to help me get it right."

I was overwhelmed by her kindness and love – just how special did this family think I was? They put so much effort into me and making me comfortable. All I could was smile and shake my head, not to say 'no' but just to show my disbelief.

She knew what I meant and rather than respond, she just picked me up and rushed me to Alice's room.

I was so startled that I closed my eyes in alarm and only opened them after I had been set down, some two seconds later.

It took me a few minutes to recover enough to mumble, "Please warn me next time. That will take a while to get used to." All I got in response was a tinkling laugh.

Emmett's POV

Lunch time is the hardest time of the day for me, for us. It is the one time that we are forced to deal with the overwhelming scent of all the student body in one enclosed space.

And it was so boring!

There was absolutely nothing fun to do. No interesting conversation to over hear, no wrestling with Jasper. I couldn't even take my wife and enjoy the secluded spots within the school and brighten both our days. She did not want to deal with getting herself put back together and god help me if anything happened to her hair.

Couldn't keep a guy from fantasizing though. I took a few moments to think about some of the kinkier things I wanted to do with my luscious wife before a very pointed cough from Edward interrupted them.

"Hey, I was just getting to the good part!" I complained. Rose was never more beautiful than she was when her clothing was disheveled and her hair tousled. Yum.

My thoughts started right where they had left off and Edward growled, effectively ending them.

I pouted, "you're just upset 'cause you ain't getting any." Rose slapped me upside the head as she tended to do when she was upset with me. Except this time there was a promise to continue those thoughts later. She knew what I was thinking. I grinned at her and got another smack. Oh yeah, this was going to be fun tonight.

Alice and Jasper both grimaced. She may not be able to hear my thoughts, but she saw my plans and he could feel the lust, so I had effectively sexually frustrated my brothers and sister. Score!

Rather than start something here at school with Edward or Rose, I returned to my original thoughts, though I made a mental note to continue where I had left off when we got home.

So no conversation and no wrestling. It's as if the world was slowly trying to torture me to death. Well more dead than I already am.

Today was an exception to the rule, excluding my achievement just now.

There were all sorts of crazy rumors running rampant through the school about Bella. I couldn't help but laugh at some of the more ridiculous ones.

Jessica Stanley was telling Lauren Mallory one of them right now. "I heard that she was trying to commit suicide. She just couldn't handle the stress of living with the Cullens of top of everything else, you know."

I snickered, she hadn't heard that from anyone, she had made it up on the spot to impress the other girl. Edward gave a half-hearted laugh, but I noticed his eyes had darkened around the edges. What's got your panties in a bunch? I thought you were used to this by now.

He just growled at me. That was getting really annoying. I just laughed, something was really irritating him and I wasn't going to let up until he told me what.

"I don't like that they are talking about her like that." So that's what it was about. Cold and aloof Edward's shell was breaking… I wonder what that meant.

"Oh, you should hear what Newton is going to say." Alice quipped.

She had such a big grin on her face and Edward was merely murderously glaring at her. I knew she was blocking her thoughts and I loved it. I never bothered since it usually wasn't worth the trouble, but it was fun to watch Alice at work.

That was when I heard Mike Newton and Tyler Crowley as they walked into the cafeteria. "I think Cullen convinced his brother to push her off so he could catch her and try to be the hero." Mike was telling him. "It won't work though. She'll see right through it and come running to someone that will really care for her." His chest puffed out. He looked just like a peacock trying to parade around.

That alone would have been enough to have me laughing, but the look on Edward's face was priceless! I burst out laughing, holding my sides to keep from pounding the table to pieces. I scared away a few freshmen at the next table.

"So Edward… are you… gonna ask me… to push her… down the stairs next?" I managed to say between laughs.

Jasper and Alice were laughing just as hard and Rosalie was glaring at all of us. She hated it when someone called attention to us. Her glares only made me laugh more 'cause they were nothing on Edward's.

"Or we could try the roof next time. I think it's higher." Jasper added. Now Edward had to split his death glare between both of us.

"My man," I high fived Jasper, "I think it'll work. After we break her other leg though, nothing like two broken legs to make a gal fall in love." I smiled over at Edward before continuing, "that is, if someone wants said gal to fawn over him. He probably wouldn't know what to do with her once she did." I couldn't help but add that last part. Edward never looked at the girls that threw themselves at his feet. He liked to play the brooding musician role too much.

"Oh really? Do you think so Emmett?" He shot back at me. "I bet I can woo any girl here and have them eating out of my hand in a week."

My eyes lit up. I loved to bet with anyone about anything.

"You're on buddy, except it's not just any girl." I smiled evilly, my earlier thoughts having given me inspiration that was just perfect for this moment. "You've gotta woo Bella. It's only fair since you can't read her mind." I rubbed my hands in anticipation. "Now, if I win, I get to tell her about our little bet and I get rights to say whatever I want about you and your 'charm' with the ladies until Esme tells me to stop." I was liking this game a lot.

"Fine, but if I win you don't get to say anything about me and my 'charm with the ladies' until we start school next and you will immediately stop thinking about my sister in any way that I deem inappropriate while in my presence." He nodded to Rose so there was no doubt about who he meant by 'sister'.

I thought about it for a moment. "Deal." We shook hands across the table, me with a huge grin. I knew I was going to win. He was just as determined to win, but not as confident. He had his work cut out for him with Bella and he knew it.

"She's not even here! You don't have to keep this charade anymore!" Rose screamed at me. We were standing outside the theater and she obviously did not want me to continue my new hobby.

"But babe, I want too. They let me play with all sorts of fun toys." I complained. I really had enjoyed messing with the stuff in the tech booth and lending a hand when they needed help setting things up on stage yesterday.

Plus, Bella would be disappointed if she knew I stopped while she was gone.

Rose just turned on her heel and left. I knew she was mad at me and I would probably have to beg and crawl on my knees for hours before she would even look at me, but the make-up sex would be great.

Smiling, I walked in the theater and went to find Chris.

"Great, I wasn't sure if you were going to be coming back again." He started, barely looking up at me. "Would you mind finishing with the lights? We're behind schedule and really need to get the stage set up as well."

"No problem." I told him and strolled down the catwalk. I still liked the idea of playing with Rose up here. It would be a lot of fun.

It didn't take me too long to get the rest of the lights hung. I worked a little faster than I probably should have, but no one was paying any attention, least of all Chris. He was distracted by something else on the sound board.

"Damn it, why won't it work?" He mumbled to himself.

I decided to make my presence known to him before I got back to the booth. There was no point in scaring him even if he was too distracted to pay attention to his instincts telling him that I was not what he thought I was. "What's the problem Chris?"

"This piece of junk is determined to frustrate the hell out of me and just will not work like it's supposed to."

"Why don't you take a break and I'll try messing with it and see if I can find anything in the manual." I told him as I gently pushed him out of the way. He barely nodded before he stalked out of the room and down to speak with Ms. Morgan about the technical difficulties the technical director was having with the technical equipment. It was just too much!

I started messing with the machine and was able to deduce the problem and fix it in about four seconds. Of course, Chris couldn't have heard the slight sparking from a faulty wire inside the board or the disconnect due to extra carbon build up from said sparking wire, but hey, not everyone can be perfect.

After an appropriate amount of time, I turned it back on and cranked out the Tool cd that had been in the stereo system hooked up through the sound board.

The looks that Chris gave me were somewhere between annoyed and grateful. I smirked and gave him the thumbs up sign.

The actors had decided that they couldn't act under such extreme conditions and demanded that I either turn it down or they get a break. Feigning ignorance, I turned it up louder. Schism was one of my favorite songs after all.

Ms. Morgan apparently decided that this fire was not going to be put out easily and told everyone to be back in fifteen minutes in their set construction clothes for the last part of rehearsal.

I worked with Chris to set up the lights on stage and helped out when I was needed with lifting or moving the heavier stage props or furniture.

In short, I was having a blast and actually felt useful. It's not like I don't feel like that at times with my family, but usually they just see me as the inappropriate and immature kid that never grew up.

They were right too. But I still had the side of me that liked to help and actually do something worthwhile. The only time they used my strength or skills was when they needed help with a fight or demolishing something, rarely for making or fixing something.

I was suddenly able to see why Bella liked working behind the scenes. She got to help and be very useful, but did not have to deal with all the attention and praise that others got.

She was special, that's for sure.

I decided I was going to try to talk Carlisle into letting her come here even if she wasn't going to school yet so she could get back to what she enjoyed so much. I wouldn't let her do anything stupid like hanging lights or play with wires or anything.

I wasn't as smart as some people in my family, but I wasn't slow either. Bella just required extra careful handling.

Plus, I wanted to get another chance at our bet. I was determined that one of us should have won and I was going to make it be me.

A/N – Again, short, but hopefully still fun. Let me know what you think and if you have any ideas that you want added or some fun pranks for Bella and Emmett to play. Edward POV coming up, so please don't kill me for not having it here. Please review and give me any of your thoughts, suggestions, remarks, criticism, whatever. Help me make this story even better!