Muchas gracias to the beautiful and magnificent casket4mytears, who beta'd this chapter. :) I'm honored, girl.

Voluptuous Vamp, you are the comma queen of my little universe. Thank you just doesn't seem to be big enough, girl.

Some nasty RL circumstances have created a bit of a posting delay, and I thank ya'll for your patience. (See chapter notes at the end, as well) To make it up to you, I'm planning on posting a juicy little outtake for your reading enjoyment. If you have any suggestions, drop me a PM. I have my own ideas (lots of them, in fact) but I always love to hear what pervy thoughts others have, as well.

Please see the A/N at the end for a little update.


The rest of the afternoon was spent in inane conversations, interspersed with laughter. I hadn't even had to talk, I could just listen for once and laugh along with them, and for the first time in decades I was speechless.

And it was a good thing.

Eight weeks had passed since our afternoon introductions at Carlisle and Esme's house. In that time, Bella and I had spent almost every waking minute together, minus the hours she was "on the clock" for work and then the times she went out with her friends on the weekend. Her time as a human was limited, and although we hadn't actually planned when her change would take place, I knew it was approaching. My visions of her sparkling self were coming more frequently.

Planning would come soon, but for right now I enjoyed her warm body against mine. Enjoyed it as often as possible, actually.

This evening, I was with Carlisle and Esme on a hunt. We had stalked the elk (not a difficult task) and had taken down two each. Sated, we sat down on a rocky outcrop before heading back to their house.

"Alice, may I ask you a question?" Carlisle started. Esme laid her palm on his knee, and I could see this question was from both of them.

"Of course," I replied.

He cleared his throat. "Esme and I have been discussing your plans with Bella, and I am in no way questioning your intentions with her. However, have you thought about how this will affect her relationship with her parents?"

I was not particularly surprised at their question. When I told them of my visions of Bella as one of us, they were initially shocked and dismayed, but there was nothing I could do to stop the inevitable. It was going to happen and I had come to accept that. Inside I was thrilled – doing somersaults, actually – at the thought that at some point I would be able to enjoy Bella completely without threat of hurting her, and that we would spend the rest of our eternities together. Still, there were certainly considerations and loose ends to tie up.

Bella had spent much time with Carlisle and Esme since their initial introductions and always her conversations shifted back to stories of her youth, her parents, and everyone present could see her love for them. Her change was going to put a definite crimp in her contact with them.

I had, in fact, brought up the subject with her. I shared with her, in great detail, how the first year after her change would be spent in confinement with my family. She would never be allowed out alone, even to hunt, and she would be accompanied by at least two of us.

Carlisle and Esme had offered their cottage to us, a gracious offer that only I knew about. When I informed them of my visions, we discussed the need to keep her as far away from humans as possible in that tender first year. As much as I loved her, I knew firsthand that there was no way she could be trusted to control her thirst if there was a human within several miles.

My family's cottage in the mountains surrounding Seattle provided the perfect retreat.

The details were still being hammered out, Bella blissfully unaware of the detailed preparations that were going on behind her back. I did not want to stress her out anymore than absolutely necessary. She knew that I was going to be present at all times with her, that Edward and Jasper would be there, as well, and that we were making arrangements to keep her safe, but beyond that she trusted me to take care of the details that only vampires could foresee.

Only the timing remained up in the air.

"I've given it great thought, Carlisle," I responded to his question. "And you know, she's actually started talking to them about this 'trip' she is planning. She even told them it's just a pipe dream right now, but when the time is right she might just take off." Both Charlie and Renee knew that Bella had a good head on her shoulders and quite surprisingly hadn't argued with her. Renee, especially, was impressed that Bella was actually going to throw caution to the wind and take some time for just herself. Renee was quite the free spirit, I had learned from Bella's descriptions of her, and was thrilled that Bella just might do something spontaneous.

Spontaneous, yet permanent, I had told Bella when she had hung up from her conversation with her mother.

She had simply taken my hand, pulled me to the bedroom, and reminded me why permanent was a good thing.

Even Charlie – calm, cool, and collected Charlie – had supported Bella's decision to take some time off for herself.

Things were moving ahead without a hitch. I was so close to having my Bella with me forever, an unbreakable bond within two unbreakable bodies.

Life was almost…too perfect.

"Esme, what do you think? I mean, I know we have discussed all of this and that you and Carlisle understand how much I love her. I just feel like things are going too well. Does that make sense?"

She stood up from her perch and climbed over to sit next to me. "Alice, dear, you have no idea how long I have waited to see your eyes light up with true love. For decades I watched you wandering, searching, and I knew you were having fun. Fun is fleeting, though. We both know that."

I nodded, knowing just how true those words were. Decades of fucking and retreating had taken their toll on me. It was time to settle down.

"When I saw her for the first time in our home," Esme continued, "I was struck not as much by how much she adored you, but rather by how much you adored her. I had never seen that in you before, and it is new for you. The totality of your being was completed by her. As a mother, I can think of no greater happiness than for you to know true love, and there is no doubt in my mind that what you and Bella have is real. Getting to know her more over the last few weeks has taken away all doubt I may have had before."

"When a vampire finds their mate, they go through a permanent and irreversible change. This has happened to you, Alice. The rest is just a matter of details," Carlisle finished for her.

"So you're not upset that our family is growing?"

Esme looked shocked at my question. "How could you think that?"

"I just wonder sometimes if it's selfish of me to want this, to want her with me for eternity. I know the decision is out of my hands, but I just want her to be by my side forever."

Esme laughed and picked up my hand in hers. "Alice, do you think I would be upset if there were one more person to love in our lives? Bella is so easy to love."

And again, for the thousandth time since I met them decades earlier, I was so glad that Esme and Carlisle were my adoptive parents.

We made our way down the small cliff, and back to their house. I couldn't wait to get home and take Bella back into my arms.

While she was still warm-blooded.

-o-o-o-o-o-

"Bella? Bella, baby?" I called as I dropped my keys into the small bowl next to the door of our apartment. I could not make out any sound within the apartment.

A note written on bright pink notepaper on the refrigerator caught my eye. Only Bella would have left a note in the one place in the apartment that I never used.

Baby,

I wasn't sure when you'd get back and I've gone out to see a movie with Angela. I'll probably pick up some groceries on my way home. I talked to Edward earlier today, and he said he and Jasper were going out tonight, and that they hoped you'd join. Call him when you get a chance. See you tonight, baby. Oh, by the way, I left a little present for you in the bedroom. Hope you like.

Yours forever,

Bella

Damn. She wasn't here. And I was, as usual when I thought about her, a little horny. Damn damn damn.

I picked up her note and made my way to our bedroom. The sunset was bright gold enough through the windows. I scanned the room, eager to see what Bella had gotten me. She didn't have the financial wherewithal that I had, but from time to time she would find a little trinket or antique that made her think of me and I cherished each one.

Something told me that anything she would have left in the bedroom would not be innocent.

I did not spot anything out of the ordinary until I approached our bed…and stopped in my tracks. If my heart could beat, I would probably have had a heart attack.

Bella's red lace boy shorts were laid out on the bed, surrounded by 8x10 close-up photos of her wearing them. All around the apartment. A close-up of her beautiful hips lying against the couch cushions. A shot of her sumptuous behind from across the room as she leaned across the kitchen counter (thank god for camera timers).

I picked up her glorious panties, and smelled the distinct aroma of my lover. She had worn these today. It was probably a good thing she wasn't here, because I would have had a very difficult time controlling myself. She knew how much I loved those panties.

More photos lay scattered on our bedspread. They weren't pornographic, per se, instead more like 1950s pinup poses. I could tell she had fun with the camera timer, because I knew there was no way another person would have ever seen her like this to take the pictures.

The last photo was my favorite. She leaned against the doorframe to our bedroom, her head thrown back, neck exposed, with her beautiful chest arching out through a white tank top, and her leg drawn up so the sole of her foot pressed against the doorframe. She was magnificent.

I had never been so grateful for her photo printer.

I flipped back and forth through the photos time and again, relishing each delicious curve. She had to know what this would do to me, and I was determined to show her exactly how much she turned me on when she got home.

We had made love daily – sometimes twice or three times – for months. I just could not get enough of her. As I stood holding her red lace panties in our bedroom, I could only imagine how many ways I would bring her to the edge when she got home.

I was contemplating just how to relieve a little of the tension in my tingling sex when my phone rang. Growling, I flipped it open. "Yes, Edward?"

"Alice! Where are you? Bella said she was going to send you out to play with us tonight."

I cleared my throat. "Yeah, um, I'm coming…I mean, I'll be there in a bit."

"Great. Jazz and I have missed you these last couple of days. Did I tell you about the trip we're planning in January?" I fondled the scrap of red lace still clutched in my hand. "We're going to go back to Isle Esme for a month. We haven't been there since…oh probably 1985. It's so time, don't you think?"

Edward knew just how to spoil a mood. "Yeah, sure. Sounds great. I'll see you guys in a bit, okay? I have to go."

"Great, Ali. Oh, wait, almost forgot."

"Yes, Edward! What?" I really wanted to get off the phone.

"Change of plans from when I talked to Bella earlier today; we want to check out some scenery and go for a run. Meet us at that park near Mom and Dad's and we'll head out to the mountains."

"Fine."

"Oh, and Alice?"

"What?" I yelled into the phone.

"How did you like the pictures?"

I clicked my phone shut, but not before hearing the guffaws on the other end. Who else would Bella have trusted to take those snapshots? No one else but her gay vampire soon-to-be brothers-in-law. Leave it to Bella to get Edward past his fear of "girlie parts."

When I found them half an hour later in the midst of the verdant forest, they were laughing already and straightening their shirts. Figures, I thought. I'm Bella-less for at least another hour, and they're getting some. Life isn't fair.

"All right, boys, put 'em back in your pants, there's a lady present," I called out.

"Yes, Alice," they sing-songed back to me. Edward swatted Jasper in the ass and they both jogged up to greet me. "So good to see you, Alliecat," Jasper said as he threw his arms around me. "Glad to see the old ball and chain let you out for an evening."

"She's not a ball and chain, you dork, and she's at the movies with her friend Angela, if you must know."

"So you're all alone, without your little woman," Edward teased. "I'm surprised you left the apartment at all with all the visual stimulation there." He stepped back, knowing I was going to thwack him on the back of the head if only I could get close enough. Sometimes that mind-reading ability of his really worked to my disadvantage.

To be honest, all I really wanted to do was wait at home for my sexy Bella. I would stick out a nice run with the boys, though, and then politely make my goodbyes.

I took off toward the thicker woods, hoping they would give chase. This was one of our favorite games – tag between vampires could be hysterically fun. The ferns and underbrush whizzed by me as I put some distance between myself and my brothers. Edward and Jasper always double-teamed me, though, and I heard them approaching from two sides. "No fair, you two are flanking me!" I yelled.

"It pays to be a mind reader every now and then," Edward called back. "Jasper, hard right!" Damn him, he saw the plan I was hatching in my mind.

"More like a miscreant mind reader, if you ask me!" I teased.

I really couldn't wait to bring Bella out here when she could help me beat them down. Another 15 miles were spent dodging, weaving, and falling back so they sped past me. When it became necessary to evade them, I dug my fingernails into the largest Douglas fir tree near me and scurried up to the top. They immediately followed, but unfortunately for them, their weight caused lower branches to bend, and they found themselves hurtling back down to the earth as the limbs cracked underneath them. "It pays to be a skinny little pixie every now and then," I taunted Edward.

Jasper just grumbled as he dusted himself off. "Damn, girl, and I liked this shirt."

I was over 50 feet up in the air, surveying the forest at night. Despite the fact that I didn't need to breathe, I couldn't help but take a long, soothing breath, inhaling the fresh scents around me. The city lights lay spread out behind us and I thought to myself, I wonder where Bella is right now. She was at a movie with her friend, Angela, whom she had met in one of her college English courses. After graduation, the two remained good friends. Although their movie dates had become less frequent and the two were losing touch with each other, they would occasionally make time on their calendars for each other. Bella told me these nights out would be one of the things she would miss about being human so I never begrudged her for spending time away from me.

The flickering city lights were suddenly shaking, though, when I heard a loud CRACK from below. Oh, for the love of God, I thought. I knew that sound, and I knew that within a few seconds I'd be hurtling down to the hard forest floor.

If they couldn't catch me, my dear brothers would just hack the tree down. The brutes.

A second before the top of the tree crashed to the forest floor, I leapt and ended up rolling, I would like to think elegantly, before standing. "Nice, boys. Did we really need to destroy the flora?"

They each looked at me with winning grins. "I think this means you're it," Jasper taunted. "But before the game commences again, Edward and I have something to show you."

I didn't trust them.

"Alice," Edward whined. "You know we love you. Just come with us. And no peeking ahead."

Reluctantly, I let Jasper take my hand. We were running again. I took Edward's advice and didn't focus on where they were taking me. I would give them this, but I still was leery of anything these two had in mind. Their "presents" were sometimes less than tasteful. However, they had helped Bella with her gift to me, so maybe they weren't all bad.

When I started recognizing the pathless forest features, I knew where we were headed. As the trees cleared and we slowed to an easy jog I saw the clearing before us. "Really? The cottage?" I asked.

Edward led us single file into the clearing. "Alice, we wanted to give you something you would really appreciate."

Jasper squeezed my hand in his and gave me a peck on the cheek. "Welcome home, baby girl."

Our family's small cottage stood in the middle of the clearing. The stone façade that had been left unused for years was now looking almost homey before me. The wooden porch had been swept, and I spotted two rocking chairs next to each other on the porch.

"What's all this?" I asked.

Edward came to stand beside me on my right, taking my hand as Jasper had done on my left. "This," he gestured toward the cottage, "is for you. And Bella." His eyes swept over my face. "Do you like it?"

I couldn't move. I shook my head slightly.

"Do you love it?"

I still could not regain my faculties. All I could do was nod once.

"Great!" Jasper announced. "Now let's show you around."

My brothers walked with me slowly up to the two steps that led up to the porch. "After you, Ma'am," Jasper said as he bowed. "Ladies first."

"But…you two did all of this?" I asked incredulously. "When?"

Edward chuckled. "Well, you have been spending an awful lot of time holed up in your apartment with your woman lately. We had some time on our hands," he said as he pushed the sturdy wooden front door open. "This is our gift to you. We know that you and Bella will need a comfy place for a year or so."

The last time I had been in the cottage, I had been helping Esme cover the furniture and preparing it for the next few decades we would be away before our move to Canada. That had been almost 30 years ago. As I walked through the front door, I sucked in a deep breath.

Lamps were lit around the living room, their warm glow casting over the freshly reupholstered furniture and side tables. Stacks of wood surrounded the stone fireplace. The wood beams on the ceiling had been stained and stood in stark contrast to the cream ceiling paint that I knew was fresh. Stone floors had been cleaned of their decades of dust. Small trinkets that I had collected over the years of our family's travels – seashells from the Atlantic Ocean, books from antique shops in New Hampshire, photo albums from decades of our family's history – adorned two shelves along the walls. A deep mahogany bookcase held hundreds of books, which would come in handy during that rough first year together once Bella was changed.

I was speechless. "You did all of this…for me?"

Edward pulled me into a hug, Jasper caressing my back. "You are our sister, Alice. Now don't go getting all emotional on us. It's for Bella, too. She deserved a nice place to while away that first year."

I took in everything around me, from the feminine touches they had placed generously around the room. My eyes fell upon the large overstuffed sofa that sat facing the fireplace.

"Red? You gave me a red sofa? It's just like the one in our apartment!"

Edward rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I have seen, much to my dismay, how attached you were to that piece, so it just seemed fitting that you have one here." He definitely had witnessed my thoughts of what I loved to do to Bella on that sofa, and I giggled.

I glanced at the hallway entrance. "And down there?"

Jasper patted my back. "You'll just have to go see for yourself, darlin'. That was the fun part of the whole design."

Squealing, I pranced down the hallway and into a large bedroom. After a dramatic intake of air, I came to a stop on the plush cream-colored carpeting. I was standing in what, I was sure, would be Bella and my bedroom, but it was like nothing I could have ever even hoped for. The king-sized sleigh bed was decked out with a cream and soft pink satin duvet along with what looked like ten feather pillows. The light knotty pine walls were left almost bare, except for a single shelf along the far wall that held photos of me, Bella, and the two of us taken over the last few months. Some were taken without me even knowing, and I was astounded at the beauty of our intimate and candid moments together.

"We left the closets empty," Jasper's voice came from behind me. As I turned, I saw him leaning against the door frame with his hands in his pockets. "We thought you might want to handle that yourself, when the time comes. We weren't sure when you planned to change her, but if it's a month from now or a year from now this place is ready."

"This is…this is more than I could have ever dreamed of, you guys." I danced to clutch them both to me. "Thank you so much!"

They hadn't just restored this cottage. They had blessed my relationship with Bella. I never loved them more than at this moment. "You two are just….you're just…."

Edward laughed. "Why, the pixie's speechless! Ssh, Jazz, let's just enjoy the silence." A moment later, he took my face in his hands and looked in my eyes. "We love you, babe, and we love Bella, too," he spoke softly. "As much as we fought it at the beginning, we both see that you two are most certainly meant to be together. Seeing you happy makes us happy. And doing this for you has brought us a lot of joy. Now, don't ask me to get more schmaltzy than this, or I might just have to kick your ass again."

Standing on my tiptoes, I threw my arms around Edward's neck and planted a kiss on his lips. Before Jasper could complain that he was being left out, I jumped in front of him and planted one on him, as well.

We laughed and walked back into the living room. "Please, Alice, promise me one thing," Edward chided. "Keep your thoughts to yourself about that bed. You're such a perv."

Any smartass remark was cut short when suddenly my vision clouded and the haze rolled in like a freight train. A flash of light…smoke…screams…my worst nightmare coming true…

My voice bellowed through the cottage. "NO!"


Chapter Notes:

I don't know how to say "thank you" to each of you for reading and following this little story. What originally started out as a one-shot quickly took on a life of its own as the girls kept asking me to tell their story.

Like I said up top, RL is throwing some curveballs to me that are making it difficult to write as much and as often as I had planned. I'm getting back on track, though. Alice and Bella are screaming for some alone time, so there will be an outtake on its way soon...

Big peryy hugs to you all,

twisted