Esme was having a wonderful day so far. She had spent hours at the home improvement store where she had ordered and purchased whatever she would need for her new garden. Knowing that she would have Edward's help brought a smile to her face, and she knew they would have a great time laying out the garden together.

On her way home she hummed to herself while she steered the car in the direction of Forks and her thoughts revolved around spending the next years in this area close to that little town. It was a good place for them – perfect to satisfy their needs. They were surrounded by woods with enough fauna to keep their thirst and hunting instincts under control. Their house lay on the outskirts of Forks, very well hidden in the forest, far enough away from humans to let them be who they were without constantly having to play their roles and having to act human.

Yes, this place was good for them.

Only her children made her worry. She wanted what was best for them, wanted to see them happy and well – but right now they didn't seem like they were enjoying themselves awfully much.

Edward and Rose were her little problem children. They weren't cut out for constant provocations – their personalities made it difficult for them to just shrug them off like Emmett could. And this time they were again well on their way of taking it too far – luckily she had made sure to end it before it could really get out of hand. The sooner they would stop, the sooner they would be able to calm down and just enjoy what the years would bring. Life was too precious to spend it making each other miserable.

She drove onto their path and followed the winding road until their house came into view. It emitted so much calm and quiet - it was a very serene place and she felt lucky that they could call it their home.

The garage door pulled up while she tried to decide when the right time would be to start on the garden, but a quick glance at the front yard and the side of the house told her that she couldn't waste any time. It just didn't feel completely like home yet, she realised, but almost. A blooming garden would give it the final touch.

Parking the Mercedes in its usual spot right next to Edward's brand-new Volvo, Esme sighed as she turned the engine off and enjoyed the welcoming quiet of the house. Being surrounded by noisy humans was tolerable, of course, but it could get a bit too much after a few hours and she was glad to be home again. And although she didn't always enjoy being alone in the house as she was a family person and therefore loved to have her husband and children here with her, she was glad to have a little time to herself. The stress of moving and the turmoil of the last few days were starting to wear her down.

Unbuckling herself, she climbed out of the car and made to walk to the trunk to retrieve her purchases when she suddenly caught a scent that puzzled her.

Rose was home.

There was no doubt in her mind as it was so fresh in the air and not as faint as the scents of her other children. Still, she sniffed the air to check if someone else had come home with her, but it was only Rose. Esme looked around to see if her eldest daughter was in the garage with her and that was when her eyes fell on something that puzzled her even more.

Heat waves were coming off the hood of Rose's car. With a deep frown on her face, she walked over to the red convertible and held her hand over the smooth hood, feeling the hotness of the engine against her palm through the painted metal.

If the engine was hot, then someone had been driving the car. She would guess it might have been Carlisle, who maybe got home early from his shift and then decided to drive to the store and back or to pick up Rosalie, but his scent was barely noticeable in the air and he would have called her.

And then something else caught her eye that made it apparent that he hadn't been the driver of this car - there was a chip in the windshield on the driver's side.

She knew it hadn't been there this morning, and she knew Carlisle would never borrow one of his children's cars and then return them in such a poor condition.

Esme retrieved her hand and crossed her arms over her chest.

She was not amused.

Carlisle was claiming that Edward was pushing his limits lately, but Esme had to say that their blonde daughter was the only one doing exactly that. Why else would she so blatantly ignore what she had been told? And why was she home and not at school?

Then she gasped as suddenly fear and worry crept into her chest, making her reach up to place a hand over her heart.

Did something happen to Rose?

With her emotions changing between worry about her daughter's well-being and irritation about her disobedience, Esme abandoned her purchases in the trunk of the Mercedes and stepped through the door into the kitchen. Who cared about the garden when one of her children might be unwell? She needed to find out what was going on.

But unfortunately her daughter was nowhere to be seen, even though she must have heard her arriving not even a minute ago.

Making her way into the foyer, she stopped at the newel post at the bottom of the stairs and placed a hand on top of it to steady herself while calling, "Rosalie? Come down here, please." It sounded neither scared nor angry, and she was glad that she was able to keep her emotions from showing in her voice.

It didn't take long and she heard the soft sounds of a door being opened and closed again, followed by light footsteps that came down the stairs.

Rose stopped in the middle of the stairs and looked at her mother. "Yes?"

"Come here, please."

So Rose walked on and raised her eyebrows expectantly when she was standing right in front of her mother like she had been told.

"How are you?" Esme asked while looking her up and down. "Is everything all right?"

"Yes, I'm fine."

Good. Hearing her say that relieved Esme and she felt the worry drain from her as now she knew that nothing bad had happened.

"Is there something you need to tell me?" Esme queried, still a little confused as to why her daughter had come home early today. She was the only one here, and that also didn't really make sense. Or was this just about the car?

Rose gazed back at her, her expression unchanging. "No." Did she think she was home because of her? So they could ... talk or something? Ha.

Esme looked like she didn't understand. "Where are you siblings, dear?"

"At school."

"Did something happen that made you come home early?"

There was a bunch of things that had happened, but Rosalie did not feel like sharing. She knew Esme wouldn't listen or even try to understand and that's why she remained silent.

"Rosalie, answer me, please."

She let out a sigh before replying, "I just didn't feel like sitting in class anymore."

"You know I don't like that excuse," Esme said, shaking her head. "You may stay home or come home early if something happens, but otherwise we expect you to attend your classes without complaining and be the responsible person I know you can be. Going to school was your decision, Rosalie."

"I know."

"You got enrolled in Forks High and that means you have certain obligations that you have to fulfill. I think we can ask that much from you and your siblings - to act responsibly and be honest with us."

"Yes." Ha, as if Edward would ever be honest with her ... Esme was being delusional.

"I am glad that you agree with me. So let me ask you again: Why did you leave school early today?"

"I just told you."

"Rosalie."

But Rose just looked at her mother like that was her final answer and she would tell her anything else.

"Fine." Esme shook her head and sighed. "Now apart from you leaving school early for no good reason, is there something else you have to tell me? Please answer truthfully."

"No." She didn't have to tell her anything.

For a brief moment Esme's jaw clenched in irritation. She hated lies and dishonesty, and her daughter was being the exact opposite of honest right now, so yes, she was getting exasperated with Rose.

She gave her yet another chance to come to her senses and admit that she had only skipped so she could drive her car behind her back, but no matter how long she waited or how intense her stare got, Rosalie didn't say anything. She just stood there, holding her mother's gaze like she was intentionally provoking her.

Provocation … always with the provocations. First with Edward, and now she was trying the same with her. Why was Rose testing her like that?

"All right, you had your chance, Rosalie," Esme suddenly said, sounding fed up. "I know that you drove your car, without permission I might add, and I am very unhappy about the fact that you aren't being honest with me, even though I gave you several chances to come clean with me."

"It's my car," Rosalie stated matter-of-factly.

"But I took your keys, because you lost the privilege of driving it," Esme explained, then gasped as a thought came to her mind. "Did you take the keys from my purse?"

Now that made Rosalie snort. So Esme wouldn't put it past her that she would steal from her? Wow, thanks. "I don't go through other people's belongings. I respect privacy unlike some other people in this house."

Esme, although she knew whom this snide remark was directed against, didn't think that rebuking her daughter for it would really make a difference or even matter at the moment. "Then how-"

"Spare keys, maybe?" Rosalie offered before it could get ridiculous.

Esme was positively shocked. The way her daughter spoke to her was more than just disrespectful, and that she took the other set of keys and blatantly defied her was just unbelievable. "You don't even feel bad about deceiving me," she stated disbelievingly.

"You took my keys for no apparent reason, so no, I don't feel bad and I don't regret it."

Esme stared at her for a moment, not knowing were this behaviour was coming from but she wasn't willing to tolerate it any longer. "Rosalie, I want you to go to your room and stay there. I will be there shortly."

That was the first time Rose's expression changed. Her eyes widened slightly, and even though she caught herself quickly and put her cold mask back on, Esme had seen it. "Esme, I-"

"Go."

The determination in her voice made Rosalie give her a look that was unreadable, before she turned around and ascended the stairs.

As soon as Esme heard her daughter shut the door to her room, she let out a groan and leaned against the newel post with her back.

Why was Rosalie being so difficult? Her defiance and disrespect were really getting out of hand and she couldn't just ignore it and let this awful behaviour continue.

A faint sound of a powerful car engine could be heard, and as it got louder, Esme pushed away from the newel and smoothed her brown locks out of her face.

She really hoped that this day would be the last time they would have this kind of stress. Her children couldn't settle in and get comfortable in this new town and their new house as long as they were forced to spend several hours a day somewhere else after school, where they would have to keep themselves busy until they would be allowed home again.

The garage door pulled up and Esme quickly rubbed a hand over her face in an attempt to not let any tenseness show. She wanted to greet her dears with a smile and ensure them that everything was all right - there was no need to upset them or let them know what had happened. She was starting to feel miserable and having to send her children away again was only adding to that horrible feeling. But alas, she was a mother and with that came pleasant and also not so pleasant moments.

The door to the kitchen burst open, and judging by the sounds Emmett was the first one to enter the house. His footsteps were heavy and fast, like he was hurrying to see what was going on. His siblings were following after him, and when they rushed through the kitchen and stepped into the foyer, Esme lifted her head and gave her babies a smile. "You're home already! How was school?" she greeted them lovingly, giving them them her usual warm smile.

Emmett hesitated for a moment. He looked worried, his eyes were darting from his mother to the stairs and back, but he didn't say anything.

"School was good," Jasper answered as his wife and brothers didn't look like they were going to say anything and he felt a certain tension in the room that he hoped to alleviate by answering his mother's question.

"That is wonderful," Esme said and nodded her head slowly. Then it was silent for a moment, in which the smile disappeared from her face. She gave them an apologetic look instead of the motherly smile, and then realised that she better just inform them now. "I know that you won't be happy about what I am going to say now, but I have a favour to ask from you."

She took a breath so she could continue, but hearing Alice's silent gasp distracted her for a moment. She directed her gaze to her dark-haired daughter and saw just in time how she blinked her eyes a few times like she just had a vision.

Emmett, impatient as he could be, made to walk past his mother and in the direction of the stairs, but Esme reached out and held up a hand to stop him before he could leave the room.

"Emmett, stay down here, please."

He swallowed before looking at her, seemingly still unsure if he should ask something or if he should keep his mouth shut. "But I-"

"Rosalie is home, Emmett," Alice remarked and nodded her head when their eyes met. He hadn't been sure if Esme knew, and he didn't want to tip her off that Rosalie had been skipping. Not that it should be an issue, but seeing how much his wife and his mother were arguing lately, he wasn't sure what Esme would have to say about that now.

The tension left his face - he was relieved that his wife was here in this house and not somewhere where she would be all alone and he wouldn't be able to find her.

Again he made to walk on, but Esme's hand against his chest kept him exactly where he was.

"Emmett, no," she said softly but firmly, shaking her head at him to indicate that he couldn't go upstairs now to see her.

"Why?" he asked. It didn't make any sense to him that she wouldn't let him go find his mate, and so he looked at her with wide, troubled eyes, waiting for her to explain.

"Jasper and Edward, I would like for you to go on a little hunt," Esme said, looking at her two sons standing in the archway. Then she took her hand from her son's chest and placed it on his cheek. "Emmett, Alice? I need you two to go into town and -"

"Yes, I know. We'll do that," Alice replied before Esme could finish the sentence.

While Esme felt relieved that her children would comply with her request and spend the next few hours away from home, Emmett was even more confused than he had been before.

"What? Why?!" he asked, softly encircling his mother's wrist to guide her hand away from his face, then looking in between his little sister and Esme.

"I know that all of you would like to relax for a while after your stressful day at school, but I need to ask you to leave the house for a couple of hours."

"Why? What happened? Is Rosalie okay?" he asked, his voice taking on a hint of worry or panic. Then he took another step towards the stairs and called, "Rose?"

"Emmett, she is fine," Esme assured and grabbed his arm so he wouldn't ascend the stairs to go to his mate.

"What's all this about? What's wrong?" he queried, unable to grasp why his mother wouldn't let him assure himself of his wife's well-being. If something had happened, then he needed to know. He was the first one who needed to know, always. "Rosalie?" he called up the stairs again.

"You need to leave now."

"Mom, come on, you cannot be serious," Emmett argued. "I'm not going anywhere."

"You two," Esme said while looking past Emmett to make eye contact with her two other sons. "Please go now."

"What are you keeping from me? I wanna know what's going on," Emmett demanded. He could easily push past his mother and run upstairs, and he was starting to consider doing just that.

"Rosalie and I have something to discuss, and I need you to give us some privacy," Esme explained calmly.

"Is she in trouble? Mom, I can guarantee you that this is probably just one biiig misunderstanding, really. If something had happened at school then please believe me when I say that it wasn't her," he said confidently - but he wasn't very convincing.

"Emmett-"

"It was me, okay? I did it."

She frowned at him. "Emmett, baby, I-"

"Rosalie is innocent."

A snort.

A tiny snort came from behind Emmett and he turned around to glare at his brother who had dared to make that disparaging sound while he was talking about his wife.

"What is so funny, huh? You know you and only you are to blame for this mess!" he snapped at Edward while his eyes darkened with the stress and anger that surged through him.

"Emmy, come," Alice pleaded, gripping onto his hand and feeling his fingers curl gently around her tiny hands. "Emmy, I'll explain to you. Come with me."

Her large, golden eyes looked up at him, and he stared right back at her, contemplating on what to do. But his anger subsided at that moment and he slowly nodded his head.

"Good." Alice sighed and smiled at him, then tugged at his hand to make him follow her to the garage.

If you got my Rosie in trouble, dude, you will pay.

With these unspoken thoughts in mind and a low growl emitting his throat, Emmett let his pixie sister lead him out of the room to leave the unpleasant situation.

"We'll be back in a few hours, Esme," Jasper said, then slapped the back of his hand against Edward's shoulder to get his attention. "Come, let's go."

Edward swallowed hard when he turned his head back around to look at his mother. He had watched Alice and Em leave, and was now facing his mother standing in front of him.

Esme saw him fidget a little and look to the ground, and so she reached out and cupped his cheek. "Don't be nervous, dear, Emmett is just a little upset. He didn't mean what he said," she tried to assure him, and he slowly lifted his eyes to meet hers.

"Come," Jasper said again, and the pointed look he was giving Edward was finally making him move.

Together they walked to the front door and after saying good bye to their mother, they left the house and shut the door behind them.

Rosalie and Esme were the only ones in the house now.

Two more chapters! At least I think it's only two more ... it depends on Carlisle. Not sure if he wants to make another guest appearance in this story. But I can ask him if you want ;-)

Guys! Thank you so much for reading and leaving reviews, love you all!