Bella's small spot of strangeness is inspired by Luna Lovegood (Harry Potter).

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Twilight.

Chapter. 10.

"Daddy! Daddy, no… Carlisle please, save him… Save him for me." I watched as my father's throat gets slit in front of me. I couldn't get to him, someone held me back from him and everytime I fought to get out of their grip I cried out in pain. Carlisle wasn't there but I knew he would come, he has to, he always does.

My dad is trying to get to me but the wound on his neck is gushing blood and he's losing energy fast. I'm screaming for him to leave me, to try and get out but there's someone in the corner, watching and laughing. The laugh is distinctly feminine but I can't see her and I have no idea what to do. I'm stuck, I can't help and all I want is for Carlisle to come and save my dad.

Right before I feel the familiar whack of pain in my skull I see her begin to walk out of the shadows. Smiling menacingly as she watches whoever's behind me hit my skull, her pink lips curl into a snarl as she speaks.

"He's mine." She whispers to me before Carlisle runs into the house, my father cries out my name for the last time before he dies and I black out.

I woke up screaming. I felt the strong, cold arms around me and knew that Carlisle had stayed with me, but I knew he couldn't stay right now.

"My mum will be here any minute, thank you but you should leave so she doesn't catch you. Come out of your room after she's in here to check everything's alright." He nodded, hissed my forehead and left. It was only a minute or so after he left that my mum came barging into my room and threw herself down next to me on my bed.

"Honey are you alright?" She asked, putting her arms around me and running her fingers through my damp hair.

"Yeah mum, it was just a bad dream, I'll be okay." She sighed and pulled my head down to her chest. She lay back and I lay on her, thankful for the comfort from my mother.

"I thought the dreams had stopped." She said, her voice showing her strain at my pain.

"I think it's just because of what's happening today." I looked at the clock on my bedside to see it was five in the morning, way too early for Renee to be up. I watched as Carlisle politely stood at my bedroom door, looking pretty well bedridden for a man that doesn't sleep.

"Is everything alright?" He asked as mum waved him into the room and he came to sit on my other side.

"Just a bad dream." Mum explained for me, not stopping the soft movements of her hand in my hair. Carlisle nodded and put his hand to my head.

"You feel quite warm, would you like me to get you a glass of water?" He asked.

"Please." Was my reply, I wasn't really in the mood for words. I watched as he walked gracefully into my bathroom and I heard him turn the taps on and let them run for a second. I focused on the noise, on mums breathing, on my own breathing, inhaling and exhaling, trying to keep my mind off the nightmares and what I know is to come today.

Carlisle came back with my water and mum made me sit up as I gulped it down.

"You should try to get more sleep honey." My mum spoke once I'd dried the entire cup of water. I shook my head knowing that the nightmares would only come back if I tried to find unconsciousness again. "You have to get some rest Bella, you can't be tired today." I shook my head again and mum sighed.

"Well, I'm usually awake early, why don't I go make me and Isabella some breakfast and she can join me in the kitchen while you get some more rest Renee, you look tired still." Mum looked at me for a moment and I smiled at her to let her know I was okay with Carlisle's suggestion.

"Alright then, thank you Carlisle, and make sure my baby eats well this morning, she'll need her energy." He nodded and with one last hug my mum left us.

The second I heard her door shut I pulled Carlisle on to the bed and crawled onto his lap. I rested my head on his shoulder and faced down so my face was pressed against his marble skin. After he put the covers around us we didn't move for a while. He just held me and let me think.

Eventually I pulled myself away because my stomach began to growl and my nose was numb from being pressed against his skin for so long. He led me downstairs in silence as I wiggled my nose around and rubbed it trying to get some feeling back to no avail.

It's a strange sensation, having a numb nose, and I found it occupying my thoughts probably more than it should have. I didn't even notice getting downstairs and into the kitchen until Carlisle called my name rather loudly from his spot stood at the stove.

"Yes?" I asked, only just noticing his strange look of part bewilderment part amusement.

"What are you doing?" He asked as I continued to play with my now returning to life nose.

"My nose was numb because of your skin, it's a strange sensation having a numb nose, isn't it." I barely noticed the words coming out my mouth until they were out and the amusement won on Carlisle's face. Although, he quickly composed himself, probably realising that today isn't a day for laughter, yet it's probably what I'll need the most.

"No, Bella, in fact I don't think I've ever had a numb nose." He handed me a plate of eggs, bacon, sausage, beans and toast and then started making coffee. Mmm, coffee!

"Well, you should try it sometime." I dug into my food as Carlisle began preparing the coffee and was finished by the time he set the cup of steamy creamy liquid in front of me.

"You must have been hungry." He commented and it made me think of my father, it was the kind of thing he'd say if he had ever seen me eat that fast.

"Yes, I must." I said and I was surprised at the lack of concentration in my voice, I sounded miles away. Carlisle seemed to catch the mood change and didn't press it. He washed the dishes and it made me think of how brilliant Carlisle would be as a stay at home dad; A House-Husband. I was shocked even more at how much I liked the idea of Carlisle being the House-Husband. He's had years to practice his calling, at least if he was I'd be able to go out and get a job and not have to worry about who would be cooking and cleaning and looking after the kids. For a moment I realised how weird my thoughts had become, but today I didn't seem to mind the strange, today was strange, I mean, how many eighteen year old girls find their dad brutally murdered and then find themselves living and having breakfast with their vampire ex-boyfriends father and thinking about how good of a House-Husband he'd make on the day of her own father's funeral. All very strange.

I sipped my coffee and watched as Carlisle then went on to clean the whole kitchen including my cup once I'd finished. By the time Carlisle had finished cleaning the kitchen and I'd finished watching him my mother had joined us.

Carlisle passed her the plate of food he's been keeping warm for her and made her a cup of coffee.

"Thank you Carlisle, that's very kind of you." He smiled in return and I swear I saw my mother swoon. I caught her eye and rolled my own and she just looked at me as if to say it was completely innocent. Sometimes the fact that my mother constantly acts like a teenager is a good thing, those times are not today.

Carlisle washed my mother's dishes as she finished and then sat with us at the table.

"Bella the car will be here in about an hour and a half so you'd better go get a shower and get ready." I got up and watched as my mum smiled towards Carlisle and I had to roll my eyes again. It was the day of my father's funeral and all she could do was try to flirt with Carlisle.

"I suspect we'll have to do the same." Spoke Carlisle and he followed me out the room. Renee wasn't far behind us.

The first thing I did when I got in my room was get a shower. I took longer than I expected because it felt so nice and relaxing standing there in under the water. Actually, that's a lie. It took so long because half way through I closed my eyes and tears began to drip down my face. I sank to my knees and cried and cried and I didn't think anything would be able to come out of me later because I cried so much sat there on the shower floor.

I was sure Carlisle heard me bawling my eyes out because after I'd finally composed myself enough to actually wash I got out the bathroom to hear three soft knocks coming from my wardrobe. I smiled despite the pain that was hitting me hard in my heart at the thought of never seeing my father again.

I opened the door, not bothered that I was still standing in just a towel. He pulled me into his arms, clearly my lack of clothing didn't bother him either. I tried not to cry, one lone tear fell from me and onto Carlisle's black button up shirt. He pulled away slightly to wipe the remaining wetness from my cheeks and our eyes met. Mine filled with sorrow at the loss of my father, his filled with sadness at seeing my pain. He kissed my forehead and then my cheeks and I was sure he was about to kiss my lips. I wasn't sure if I was ready for our relationship to take that step, but I knew I wanted Carlisle to do it, I wanted to feel his lips against mine. I started to move closer to him and we were millimetres apart when my mother knocked on my door. Carlisle sighed softly and brushed his lips ever so slightly against mine for less than a millisecond and then he was gone.

I suddenly wanted a real kiss, some real physical comfort from him that I knew I could only want from him. Instead I had to settle for a bare brush of his lips that left tingles running down every one of my nerve endings.

I called for my mum to wait as I put on some underwear and then the black dress I had picked out. It was something Alice had bought me and it seemed as if she had bought it specifically for this occasion. It was simple, black and fit comfortably snug against me. I slipped on some tights and my black flats before opening my bedroom door for my mum. She sat me down and silently did my hair in braid that I remember Charlie telling me I looked beautiful with. It almost brought on the tears but I held them back for my mother's sake.

We seemed to sit there in silence for while after my hair was done and eventually Carlisle came up to inform us that the car was here.

We got in the car and silence fell between us. Renee held my hand as we drove to the church. Once we were there I stood as people gave me their condolences and hugged me and began to cry. It felt like forever as we waited for over three hundred people to arrive and then even worse through the service. Angela's dad did a great job, he didn't say much about God or Jesus and I knew Charlie would have appreciated it; he wasn't exactly much of a Religious person.

I didn't cry as it went on, I didn't shed a tear when I was mentioned and I watched as other people cried their eyes out for their Chief, their friend, mentor, someone they loved. I listened as my mother shed all the tears she could muster, I sat there as she clung to me for the support she should rightly be giving me. But I didn't shed one tear myself.

Then Billy Black was wheeled up to the front of us all to speak about my beloved father.

Billy had tears in his eyes and track marks on his cheeks, but he sat up strong and held his head high as the entire church fell silent to listen.

"Charlie was a great man, and a great friend. I had known him my entire life, we grew up together and even though we didn't go to the same schools, we didn't hang in the same crowds, we always stayed friends. He was with me through the good and the bad as I was him, we were more like brothers. He was with me when I had my first drink of beer, when I caught my first fish, when I met my wife Sarah. He helped me when I got cold feet before my wedding, when I almost broke down at the thought of becoming a dad, and when I lost Sarah and became paralysed in an accident. He never judged, never listened to rumours and always only trusted his own opinion on people. He looked out for this town as the Chief just as he looked out for me when we were kids. I never thought I would be standing at his funeral, to be honest I always thought I'd go before him and I hate that I'm standing here fifty years too early.

"Charlie's death has shook us all, he was not only a fighter but a good and honest man and he didn't deserve what happened to him. He did what he could as the Chief, as a friend and as a dad to his brilliant daughter Bells."

Billy looked right at me as he spoke his next words, the words that had me breaking down in tears.

"I remember when he told me he was going to be a dad, he was so excited at the thought of having you, holding you and raising you. I joked that he would want a strapping young boy to be just like him, to teach sports and fishing, but he shook his head and smiled and he said, and I remember to this day, he said 'Billy I'm not having a boy, I'll have a little girl and she'll be beautiful like her mother and smart like her father and she'll be the most brilliant you girl anyone will ever meet, she'll be kind and sincere and she'll make me proud.' I grinned at him and joked some more about a daddy's girl. Bella I'm telling you this because the day he died he turned to me and smiled, the happiest I'd seen him since you were born, and he said just four words, 'I told you so'. He's proud of you Bells." He turned back to everyone and continued.

"That's the kind of man he was, Our Charlie, proud of his daughter, his town, his job and everything that came with it. He was my best friend, my brother and he never let me down. I'll miss you Charlie and I don't know how we'll all go on without you. We love you." The tears were running freely for both me and Billy and I had my head pressed firmly into Carlisle's chest with my mum hanging onto my side.

My dad's body was wheeled away in its box to be cremated. I didn't want to stay for that part so we all gathered outside. Some people told me they were going home to grieve alone and wished me the best, some gave my mother dirty looks as they told me how sorry they were and how much they had loved my dad, some told me that if I ever needed anything I could go to them. I let it all pass and as the crowds thinned out I inhaled a deep breath to calm myself. I was thankful that the tears had stopped but it felt like they were still close to overflowing.

Jake wheeled Billy over to me and I bent down to hug him. We stayed like that for a while and I realised that I felt like it was only Billy who's grief could even compare to horrible pain that had now begun to engulf my entire chest.

We pulled out of the embrace and there was new tear marks down his face.

"Bella, we're having a bit of a service at my house, a bit of a barbeque in Charlie's honour, thanks to the nice weather, if you, your mother and Doctor Cullen would like, you can join us." I smiled and hugged Billy, agreeing without even bothering to wonder why he was suddenly okay with Carlisle being on the reservation. I knew from some stories Jake had told me that the Cullen's weren't allowed on the rez.

We drove in silence again and I wondered if this was becoming a regular thing.

We followed Billy and got to the rez pretty fast. Once inside Billy's house I realised that this wasn't just a small gathering of Charlie's friends, half the reservation was cramped into the small house and backyard and it wasn't hard to notice that we were the only people from Forks who had been invited.

Again, a lot of people offered me their condolences. I smiled and nodded and hugged and became increasingly more overwhelmed and I found that the only thing that steadied me was Carlisle's hand wrapped around mine and that had been there since we had arrived at the church.

The gathering was nice. I ate and listened to people's stories about my dad as best I could without crying out at the increasing pain in my chest. The grief and hurt of my dad's death was finally taking over and I couldn't stand it.

By the time it was three in the afternoon I had to leave. Carlisle told Billy and he took me home. My mum decided to stay because she was catching up with Sue Clearwater, her grief long forgotten; my mother, so easily distracted.

Carlisle took me to bed. He wrapped me in his arms and wrapped us both in the covers. He rocked gently as I let it out. I let it all out.

I cried and screamed and begged for my father to be alive. For my daddy to come and hold me, to tell me it was all okay, that he was here to help me, he wasn't dead. I wanted so much to turn back time and take my father to the reservation with me, to get Billy to bring him down that night, to not have him to die for no apparent reason. I wanted my daddy back, but I was never getting it.

Thanks for reading. Leave your thoughts.

KV :'( A Tear For Charlie!