Dark Moon


As we entered the grassy haven that had been mine and Edward's special place, I dropped Carlisle's hand and walked into the centre of the meadow. The emerald green waves were dotted with wildflowers, all dripping liquid diamonds. The rain had stopped and the sun had come out, bathing everything in a golden glow. I slipped my wet coat off and held my arms out, enjoying the feel of the raw sunshine on my skin. The air had turned balmy in the early summer's day. Feeling Carlisle's gaze on me, on my body as I turned to face him, my eyes closed, my arms still raised like a bird in flight, I smiled. His gaze was hotter than the sun.

"Where are we?" he asked quietly. I opened my eyes and saw him, still standing on the fringe of the woodland. Still in the shadows.

"Edward brought me here, the first time he showed himself to me in the sun. Showed me what he was truly like," I replied in a whisper. I dropped my arms, watching him guardedly.

"You are so beautiful in the sunlight. Bella…." He strode forward and hauled me into his arms. I just had time to take in his glowing skin, before our lips met and my sight disappeared. All my senses were focussed on him and on him alone. On the unbearable need stopping my brain from thinking.


We shed our clothes like petals, taking our time, making sure we didn't tear anything. After all, I couldn't bear the thought of the look on Alice's face if we came back with destroyed clothes. Not to mention the chewing down I would receive for ruining a perfectly good outfit. I sighed in satisfaction when I finally got my hands on his warm skin, on the rock-hard planes of his chest. I felt a slight tugging in my hair, before it tumbled down over the backs of his hands where they lay on my bare back. Carlisle's lips broke from mine to trail down my neck, nuzzling down the length of it. I gasped, and arched my neck back. He fell to his knees, kissing down my body, lingering on the flat muscles of my stomach. My hands clenched in the golden splendour of his hair, as my knees buckled and I fell to the floor. His mouth returned to mine, and he tumbled me back onto the wet grass. The crushed wildflowers let off an intoxicating scent, wreathing our already befuddled senses. I gasped and clutched his shoulders as he drove into me. We fit together like corresponding pieces of a jigsaw, perfectly as though we had been made to fit together so well. I rolled him over, and felt his hands tangle in my long hair. I framed his face, looking into his deep gold eyes, seeing desire crystallize in those beautiful eyes. He recaptured my lips and flipped me back onto my back, kissing me as urgently and as passionately as I desired, our bodies fused into one.

What a sight for human eyes! Two glittering immortals, making love in the golden sunlight.

The sun had begun to set when we eventually stopped, as he slumped beside me, pulling me into the embrace of his arms. I rested my head in the hollow of his collarbone, slowing my breathing down. Carlisle stroked up and down my spine soothingly. I traced patterns on his pectoral muscle with my fingertips, working up the courage to ask the question I suddenly desperately needed to know the answer to.

"Just ask me," he murmured, kissing my hair affectionately.

I mock-glared up at him.

"Carlisle, what happened? On that night, five years ago?" I finally did ask tremulously. He sighed, his arms tightening around me.

"Are you sure you want to know?"

"Yes. I need to know," I whispered, leaning on one elbow so I could look into his face.


"It was around six o clock. I remember because Edward was giving Nessie a piano lesson. He suddenly tensed and chaos erupted. The Volturi were everywhere, it was all so fast. Alec and Jane quickly subdued us, long enough to drag us out to the front lawn. As soon as Alec lifted his gift, Emmett broke free and tried to fight. Demetri and Felix tore him apart. Rosalie tried to get in front of the flames when Aro set him alight. She burned with Emmett. They demanded to know where you were, and once they got the information from Edward's mind, they were going to kill me next. Esme somehow got free of her guards and, even though Alec and Jane were using their gifts on her, she never stopped fighting, even when Aro set her alight," Carlisle's voice was deadpan, devoid of life. It hurt my heart to hear his tone, "when I tried to stop them, Jane had me on the ground, burning me with her gift. They had Nessie, they wanted you and Edward, and Caius wanted to keep me as some sort of trophy. Aro didn't want to have me executed so he agreed. They tried to convince Edward to join them, so you would as well, but he refused. He was quite contemptuous actually. That's when Jane used her gift on him. Bella, I fought with all my strength to help him. It felt like my heart would rip in four with the pain of watching my sons, my daughter and my wife butchered in front of me….." he trailed off, looking down at the grass on which we lay.

"Oh God, Carlisle, I shouldn't have asked y…" he cut me off with a kiss.

"Don't blame yourself Bella. Sometimes it's good to get things off your chest. I was more worried about you, in any case," he told me sternly.

"Don't. I can handle it," I protested, resting my cheek on his chest, over the space where his heart had once beaten.

"You can. But you've been having to handle 'it' alone for too long. Not anymore," Carlisle whispered into my hair. I felt my heart melt fully at his words. I wouldn't have to be alone anymore. Sure, Jake and his pack had been company but I had yearned for gold eyes, marble skin and quiet voices. I had yearned for home.

I felt his lips on my neck, kissing down the column of my throat. I swallowed hard against the hot trail he was leaving behind. The need was building again. That craving I had once discussed with Edward was insatiable. I lay my head back and let it take me.


That's when the sun appeared from behind the clouds once more, I looked up and I saw them. There on the canvas-like clouds were Esme and Edward. They were smiling down at me, their eyes full of love. Esme's hair was still the brightest caramel; Edward's the red-bronze I had first fallen in love with. Every perfect line of their faces was preserved in the gold-tinged clouds, their golden eyes sparkling with the light of the setting sun. But with the light of the sun, the vision faded.

"Bella? Are you alright?" Carlisle asked me, suddenly appearing in my eyeline. He flicked a stray lock of hair from my forehead, and kissed my forehead.

"Yes," I said, " I have a feeling everything's going to be alright,"

Our lips met again with perfect synchronicity.

Later, I turned to Carlisle and sighed.

"We'll have to go back or Alice'll be sending out a search party," I said, sitting up and grabbing my clothes. Carlisle, leaning on his elbow, watching me as I dressed, grimaced.

"She knows exactly where we are," he sighed, grabbing his shirt nevertheless. When we were decent we stood and began to run back home, Carlisle turned to me and said.

"What will we tell them?"

I grimaced. The question wasn't an easy one.


"Alice will already know and Jasper too. Nessie….we'll have to take it slow. She just lost her father, we can't just spring this on her," I said. What would my daughter think of my loving Carlisle? At the thought I looked at him as we ran, side by side.

He was everything to me. Father, friend and now lover. I couldn't lose him.

"We'll take it slow," Carlisle agreed.

Soon we neared the house. Before we became visible, Carlisle pulled me into the copse of trees and kissed me voraciously. I sighed and rested in his arms.

"I love you, Bella," he whispered against my lips when we broke apart.

"And I love you, Carlisle," I replied, my voice sure and steady. Together hand in hand, we turned and walked towards our doom.


"And what time d'you call this?" Alice demanded petulantly, despite the massive smile on her face.

"Alice, give them some breathing space," Jasper said jokingly, placing an arm around her shoulder. We had just walked back through the door and Alice had, quite literally, pounced on us. The flat screen was on, displaying some random chick flick that no one was paying any attention to. I suddenly spotted Nessie's and Jacob's heads peering over the top of the sofa, and I groaned. This was not how I wanted to tell her.

"Alice-"

"So, have you two got anything to tell us?" Alice inquired, a smug smile dawning on her face. The proverbial light bulb went off over my head.

"You saw this, didn't you?" I growled. She nodded, her triumphant smirk growing bigger by the minute. Nessie stood up and started walking towards me, her face grave. My heart sank. "Nessie, I….."

Suddenly a huge smile painted her face. "Mom, chill. I thinks it's great, and we kinda knew already. Y'know from Alice's vision," she said sheepishly.

"Yeah, a bit weird, but hey! Oww!" Jacob's words trailed off when Nessie punched him in the gut.

"Whoops, sorry Jake!" she cried, covering her mouth with her hand. Jake's eyes were watering slightly.

"S'alright. Just a kidney shot," he mumbled. The moment of levity passed and I remembered Nessie's words.

"Hang on, what d'you mean you knew from Alice's visions? She told you?" I glared at Alice. Alice just shrugged.

"Don't look at me like that, Bella. I didn't tell her anything. Nessie hasn't been entirely forthcoming about her gifts," she told me, glancing at Nessie. I looked at my daughter and felt the proverbial penny drop.

"You can read minds now too."

Nessie nodded, looking decidedly ashamed of herself. "I was going to tell you, Mom, but…."

"It's alright Renesmee. You've had to keep your abilities a secret for a long time, don't worry about it," Carlisle suddenly interjected. Nessie shot him a grateful look.

"So that little stunt back in Volterra. That was a new ability?" I asked tentatively, the puzzle pieces beginning to come together. She nodded.

"It's kinda of like what you do Mom. You can negate all mental gifts with your shield, which you can use to protect yourself and other people. I just turn gifts back on their users, instead of just negating them," she explained cautiously.

"My daughter the super hero," I muttered wryly. Nessie smiled. Alice was looking smug.


"D'you want to see what my vision showed?" Alice asked in a triumphant tone. Nessie gestured with her hand and I understood. Nessie could now not only implant her thoughts and memories into other people's minds but read them as well, like her father. She could show me what Alice had seen of mine and Carlisle's future. I sighed, and stretched my hand out.

Renesmee touched my hand and Carlisle's hand, and I gasped.

Alice's vision was as clear as crystal, like watching a soap opera on the finest high-def flatscreen.

Carlisle and I stood before our family's grave, embracing passionately. Then the vision changed. Us lying entwined in the meadow; sitting watching TV together with Nessie and Jake at our feet, Carlisle and I clutching each other desperately on a smoke-filled field with strange mounds all around us, us again standing beneath a flowery arch, gazing avidly into each other's eyes as we said our wedding vows, then again it jumped. And it sent shivers of happiness and wonder through me. We stood on the porch of our house, hand in hand, as Jake and Nessie played with a little girl with chestnut hair and black eyes on the front lawn. I held a tiny baby in my arms, black-haired and brown eyed that smiled beatifically up at me. My grandson. Carlisle leaned over and kissed me then kissed the baby boy's forehead tenderly. The vision faded.

"Whoa," I muttered as I blinked and the image rush faded.

"Well that was unexpected," Carlisle said in agreement. With that Alice, Nessie and Jasper all burst into laughter. I glared at them.

"Quit laughing, you lot!" I said mock sternly. Alice paused in her mirth long enough to choke out.

"Sorry, Mom,"

I growled which caused all of them, Carlisle included, to start laughing uproariously. I rolled my eyes.

"Well, we'll have to start planning the wedding then," Jake said. There was a smirk floating around his lips. My eyes widened. Alice's expression turned calculating.

"Alice! Don't you dare!" I growled.

"Don't bother fighting Bella. I'll only win," she said. "Anyway, congrats you two,"

She stepped forward and embraced me and Carlisle warmly. "You both deserve all the happiness in the world,"

Jasper hugged us wordlessly, before he collected his wife and they disappeared outside to hunt. I looked at Nessie, still unconvinced by her sanguinity.

"Mom, it's ok. I am really happy for you guys. You belong together, and I know you'll always love my dad. But that doesn't mean you have to live eternity alone," she said, taking my hand and squeezing it gently. I smiled sadly and stroked her soft hair.

"Thanks, Nessie," I said, before I hugged her tightly. She kissed my cheek, then let go and hugged Carlisle.

"So do I start calling you 'Dad' now?" she joked. Carlisle embraced her tightly and shook his head fondly. When she stepped away from us, she grabbed Jacob's hand. "See you in a few," she called over her shoulder.

"Hang on, where are you going?" I asked.

Jacob resisted her tugging on his hand long enough to say, "Just down to the reservation. The tribe's having a bonfire again,"

"Have fun!" I called, slightly rueful. I would have loved to hear Billy tell the legends of the Quileutes again. But we were not allowed in La Push. I shook my head when I heard the rumble of Jake's ancient Rabbit as it pulled away from the house.


"I think that went well," Carlisle sighed beside me, one hand in his pocket.

"At least we don't have to sneak around now," I sighed in reply. I turned into his arms, and relaxed against him as they came around me. "Alice's vision was interesting,"

"Yes, very."

"What d'you think that was? That image of us on the smoke covered field? It looked familiar," I murmured. The image had given me a strange sense of foreboding. I suddenly felt his lips on my hair.

"Stop worrying about the future. You'll get frown lines," he joked.

"Ha, ha," I muttered, but I stopped frowning anyway, relaxing into his arms again.

"I am not going to worry about the future; I'm just going to live one day at a time," Carlisle continued, as he kissed down my forehead and nose to my lips. I melted into his arms.

"But if we do ever get married, I am running away to Vegas this time!" I warned him jokingly, when he drew back, our collective breathing ragged and shallow once more.

"Poor Alice," Carlisle sighed teasingly, before he suddenly swept me off my feet and into his arms.


As he carried me upstairs to the suite he had shared with Esme, I felt the need start to break though again, the inchoate longing that was solidifying by the minute. I'd never thought I would feel like this again. He set me down on my feet in the cosy, pale blue painted room, the rising moon painting shafts of silver over the furniture. I looked out of the bay windows and waited.

"Bella," he whispered suddenly against my neck, brushing my hair aside. His lips brushed delicately over my skin, before he exhaled against it, at the join of my jaw to my skull. His arms came around me, and I let the need free. When our lips met, there was no thought, no conscious decision. Just us, and our need for one another.

Our clothes really didn't stand a chance this time.