I guess it was inevitable that my mother would return. It was also highly likely my father would appear at exactly the same time she would be there. It had seemed like permanent bliss as the days merged together, as Leah and Edward became the two stars floating around me as I prepared for school and I learnt many things about being a part Cullen...

It had seemed our little wonderland would last forever.

Xx~xx~xX

"So you go shopping monthly?" I asked him.

He was wearing shades-expensive ones and a shirt in a muted green colour. I had said he looked goofy when he had asked for my opinion and he had shrugged, stating that his care for fashion began and ended with Alice Cullen and as she wasn't around... he could get away with a faux-pas.

I laughed, saying his hair and the green were an odd contrast. And he pointed out that my eyes were green and my hair a similar shade to his... that had shut me up. My eyes, hair and skin were an odd contrast together.

"We'll, it will be monthly now" he sighed "Alice isn't here to force us to do it weekly"

"Weekly... huh" I mumbled, following him into the large department store, shoving my hands into my pockets. "Leah went to the vet?"

"You saw the note" he murmured.

"I thought we agreed you will pretend to not hear my thoughts" I grumbled.

"I am just wondering why you are asking about something you already know" he chuckled, not taking his shades of in the dim store.

I looked around us-at our reflection in a passing mirror; we were so entirely alike and incredibly different... he had convinced me to wear a dark green hoody (I think he may have a secret wish for a twin...) after failing to get me in a shirt and I had down right refused to leave the hoody down. It was pulled over my face and in the reflection-Edward was smiling knowingly while I seemed to be pouting...

"You are allowed to miss Leah" he chuckled and I frowned at the back of his head. "And you are sulking... you have been for about thirty minutes. Do you want me to call her so she can reassure you...?"
"I prefer you when you are broody" I snapped and he laughed out loud-a weird clear sound.

"You are always broody too" he chuckled.

"I wonder were I get it from" I murmured, picking at a section with various hoody's and jeans.

"Hmm, Jacob was never the brooding type... just... angry..." he said thoughtfully "Maybe before he... well, hit his uhm... growth spurt..."
"You knew my father when he was kid?" I guffawed and he paused his retracting of anything I put in the basket back on the rack.

"Not a kid... not really" he said slowly, not looking at me. "Just an irritating teenager who refused to stay in La Push"

"Freaky" I exhaled.

"Can we try something outside of jeans, hoody's and t-shirts?" he asked wearily.

"I am not dressing like a dork" I breathed. "You are really making me look bad..."

"Are you referring to the giggling happening at the other section of the story, in the ladies department" he asked amusedly.

"No" I lied, thinking how if I were with Leah-she would have tried to pimp me out.

"She pushes you to have girlfriend?" he asked.

"No mind reading for the last time!" I said too loudly and he shushed me.

"Okay, I apologise... not that I can help it" he said and I could imagine the smile in his eyes behind his dark shades. "I suppose we should continue the tradition?"

"What..." I asked and then caught on "No, we have no need to go over there..."

Xx~xx~xX

Today I learnt that my Cousin-Uncle-Grandfather Edward has a weird sort of humour and too much confidence after he stops being depressed about everything.

I also learnt that what I had thought to be a dorky outfit somehow managed to make five college girls hover around us for thirty minutes and inadvertently do most of our clothes shopping for us. He was in a good mood-a very good mood-and although it made me feel good too, he was irritating. He was caught between asking me a thousand questions and demanding a thousand answers. I was not a good conversationalist to begin with... but it helped that I seemed to be the only person-I wasn't sure how far this went but it was nice thinking I was the only person-who could successfully hide his thoughts from him with a little effort.

"Are you hungry...?" he asked.

"Hmm" I breathed, tired of walking all over the place-buying random things and watching as Edward managed to attract every possible female we came in contact with, with little knowledge of the action. Even if I did try to get a girlfriend... I wouldn't do it with him as my wingman...

"I know a nice little restaurant..." he said, pushing his shades up slightly.

"Number one..." I said slowly "You don't eat. And number two... why are you wearing shades!"

"I have sensitive eyes" he smiled, leading me left of the street and grumbling that I was walking too slowly.

"That's a lie..." I scoffed.

"No, not really..." he chuckled, indicating that the next shop was the little restaurant in question "I have very sensitive eyes... not necessarily bad eyes"
"So what do the shades do then?" I asked him.

"No, they don't stop my x-ray vision" he laughed, never completely staying out of my head. "That is such a Bella... uhm, let's sit at the back"

We walked in and a young woman tended to us, turning the whole way to glance at Edward-who was pointedly ignoring her exaggerated smiles and humming a tune. We sat at the back... we sat at the very end of the empty restaurant...

"So what are you having?" I asked him, pushing the menu over to him. "I'll have what you are having"

"You are way too smart for your age, kid" he laughed.

"You are way too young for your age, Grandpa" I said deliberately and he laughed loudly.

"You like chicken..." he said flipping through the menu "Have the chicken peri-peri and pineapple pizza?"

"Are you having that too?"

"This is too strange" he murmured. "When I met... Isabella... she made me eat her pizza"

I frowned at him in confusion. Isabella wouldn't be able to eat-like him-so why would she be running around trying to get him to eat pizza.

"I am not even going to try and make sense of that" I sighed and he smiled sadly, his head still bowed as though he was reading the menu but I had learnt from Jasper that all the Cullen's could read a whole newspaper in mere seconds...

"Will Leah be joining us" I asked.

"Do you want me to call her and ask her if she wants to come?" he asked knowing full well that I didn't want to appear like some baby and kid for always wanting Leah around. I shrugged my shoulders and glared at the wall.

"It's okay for you to miss her" he murmured. "She will be very busy with work and you with school..."

"I am not missing her" I lied. "I saw her in the morning"

"Right" he chuckled.

"And what's with you and women anyway!" I deflected-trying to rile him up. It wasn't an easy thing do when he was so adamant at being sunshine and joy because of our hanging out. Even harder if I enjoyed hanging out with him just as much and felt guilty for always wanting to have Leah with me...

"What about them?" he laughed.

"All the... the..."

"Ladies" he wiggled his eyebrows and I couldn't help myself then from laughing. "It's a Cullen thing"
"Guess I got the short end of that in the genes department" I murmured-thinking that my Dad only seemed capable of scaring people when he was really a big softie with penchant for gardening and walks on the beach...

"You got the better end, Charles" he whispered. "Do you want a coke with your chicken?"
"Can we try for tequila?"

"You can try all you want..." he laughed and then took his shades of finally, peering up at me before acknowledging the waitress with a smile "One coke and Chicken Peri-Peri Pizza"

"Only?" she asked and he laughed making her blush.

"Yeah, only"

"What's funny...?" I asked him when she stumbled away. "Are you getting some kind of high from that?"
"This day has been all about de já vu" he chuckled. "I wonder what it means"

"It means you have lived it before" I said slyly.

"I know what... oh, never mind" he smiled. "My glasses are off"
"Hmm, yellow today" I said thoughtfully. "Maybe green tomorrow?"
"I am afraid the option of green has long flown out the window"

"Jasper's eyes were yellow today too" I said "You and him went hiking the day before..."

"We can go hiking tomorrow, if you want" he sighed.

"Will my eyes..."
"No, your eyes will always be green... thank God" he said sternly.

"I guess that's you closing that chapter?"

"Yep" he said popping the 'p' like my dad used to in the good old days.

There were little markers that everyone did that reminded me they once lived together happily. Little things that had rubbed of all of them. Like how Leah and Rosalie refer to my dad as 'Fuzz-Ball' or 'His-Alphaness'... thinking they are talking in a code I can't dissect.

How Emmett says "Sure, sure..." A very 'Jacob Black' thing.

"Leah says you smell" I blurted.
"She smells too" Edward laughed, watching me closely like I was a bag full of goodies and excitement for his sole amusement.

"No..." I sighed. "She says you don't bath... and I actually have never seen or heard of you taking a shower or anything"

"Do I smell to you?" he asked and I sighed, shaking my head.

"But dude, seriously... a shower is only five minutes..." I frowned.

"On the subject of showers..." he murmured and I blanched, quickly busying myself with my drink when it arrived-pulling on all my focus to block my shower-hour moments this morning.

"When are you going to wash your hair?" he asked and I sighed in relief-he frowned at my reaction and I guessed he was trying to pry into my mind now.

"I did wash my hair" I breathed, taking another sip of the drink.

"With soap?" he asked dryly.

"With water"

"It's oily" he said frowning. "Try shampoo..."

"It's my hair and maybe I like it oily" I said stubbornly.

"The oil is what is causing your break out" he countered, raising an eyebrow. "You have your hair all over your face, hiding your eyes... you are such a good looking young man"
I had to laugh at that; I always found it funny when he let his 'teenage self' go and revealed his true age.

"You have been bugging me about my looks for a day straight" I mumbled through a mouth full of pizza. "I don't bug you about dressing like an accountant"
"You don't?" another eyebrow raise.

"If it's in my thoughts it doesn't count" I murmured, drinking the cold drink. "And have you thought that maybe the break out is a sign of... I don't know, puberty for some of us real teenagers?"
"You have your father and mother's arguing methods" he said dryly and I shrugged.

"Did you have bad skin once?" I asked.

"You would have to ask Carlisle that" he sighed.

"Did you ever have problems with... girls?"
"I never had time for them" he murmured.

"So you were kind of gay"
"How does 'not having time for girls' translate as gay?" he asked frowning and smiling at me simultaneously.

"I am just wondering what you were doing with your time... how many years ago is it?" I asked and he chuckled.

"Now that there is my method of sourcing out information" he laughed. "Plenty of years Charles"

"Okay... uhm..." I thought for a minute and gave up, figuring that he would only answer in more non-answers. It still felt good that he tried to answer my questions... Leah always panicked and rambled before pitching and stuttering nervously till I gave up out of pity.

"What grade are you going to be..." I asked instead when the questions-that were plentiful before-ran out.

"With you?" he said frowning that I hadn't caught that little detail. "We will be in the same grade Charles... you are sixteen and I am seventeen"
"I am not sixteen yet" I murmured.

"What are a few days, Charles?" he chuckled.

"Or a few years... till you are seventeen again"
"I get it..." he smiled. "You know... you can stop the allusion and innuendo's"
"But its fun!" I laughed.

"It is, isn't it" he smiled. "We should get you home... Leah might be having a mini panic attack too from being away from you"
"I was not having a panic attack"
"Yes..." he breathed. "You were only attacking me"

Xx~xx~xX

"...and they brought in this injured wolf..." Leah continued, dancing about the kitchen and making a production about fixing desert. It was only ice-cream... she only needed a scoop and two bowls-there was no need for all the hand gestures and smiling.

I get it, you are excited to be working somewhere and having something to do either than hovering around a fifteen...

"Sixteen" Edward murmured and I paused my internal ranting. He fixedly paid attention to Leah when I huffed angrily.

"Sixteen?"Leah asked.

"Lucky number" he murmured, pushing the glass bowl to me.

"You are so irritating" I murmured and Leah paused her scooping of the ice-cream to look at me in surprise. "I meant Edward"

"Whether he is irritating or not..." she whispered dangerously "You don't to say it out loud"
"He'll know even if I think it!" I hissed at her-confused at being so angry at her suddenly.

"He has a point" Edward said dryly. "Ice-cream in Alaska?"
"Shut up" Leah hissed-pulled into my moody aura.

Xx~xx~xX

It would be my birthday tomorrow.

Sixteen. For only one time.

There is nothing special about the number-I always associated sweet-sixteen with girls and Alice and Rosalie's phone calls from Spain (they never stayed for long in Alaska-it seemed more like they were checking on things than anything) were a serious of high pitched giggles on what I would like and what Leah would give me. Irritating Leah with her oblivion that I was not ready to start school-the day which happened to coincide with my birthday and her new job was keeping her away from me...

Not that I needed her. I didn't need her... or did I dream of her as the injured wolf... or feel terrified when she was away for too long... like some animal would hurt her in the animal hospital... there were only bunnies in there... no need to worry about Leah and feel...

"Are you going to get out of there any time soon?" she knocked hard on the bathroom door and I started, knocking my head on the open medicine cabinet door. "What's going on in there...!"
"Could you..." I stammered angrily, shutting the door with way too much force so it swung back and broke of on the one hinge. "Fuck"
"Charles..." she breathed in warning. "What is going on!"
"Can I have fifteen minutes to myself without you checking if I am drowning on my own spit!" I yelled and she shrieked, stomping down the stairs and I heard-something that I knew I was not supposed to be able to hear under any normal and natural circumstances to my biology-I heard her mumble about how this is how it had started with Seth.

"... taking fifteen minutes to yourself... better make sure he doesn't waste it all for his hand..." her voice disappeared and I stared at the mirror in horror.

I felt like Peter Parker waking up the next morning after being bitten by the radioactive spider except... this wasn't great.

I looked like me-but more like Dad. My face wasn't as skinny and gauntly, my nose still managed to be too straight to fly as a Quileute and my eyes... I looked like me, like Edward except like... this wasn't making sense. I was too tall...

I shouldn't be this tall over night. My skin was riddled in angry pimples and although my face had filled out some-my eyes were larger. And darker... not bright green...

I guess this is why Sweet-Sixteen is only reserved for the girls.

Xx~xx~xX

"Stop staring" I grumbled, pouring more milk over my second helping of cornflakes. "Leah..."

"You..." she gasped, placing her hand over her mouth and not stopping her staring.

"It's a growth spurt" I mumbled, spilling milk from my mouth and cornflake bits. "You have a brother... you know about it"

"Yeah... I know about it" she whispered turning away and busying her self with the dishes. "Edward is here... he said he wanted to go hiking with you or something"

"Hmm" I shoved another spoon of cornflakes in my mouth and awaited Edward's silent entrance...

"Leah" he breathed, standing by the door and almost startling me.

"Hmm" Leah managed, washing the dishes too noisily. "I have... work... but maybe I should stay"
"You are so obviously telling him something with your thoughts" I groaned preparing a third bowl and finishing the milk.

"No, just that..." she smiled a fake smile "Your asthma may act up with the hiking"
"I bet Edward knows how to do a heart transplant" I said derisively.

"I do" he said. "Have you checked his temperature Leah?"
"What!" I yelled pushing out the chair and they froze in fear and expectation. "The hell... what is wrong with you two today!"
"Let me check your temperature" Leah said calmly.

"With your hot hand?" I scoffed. "It's just a growth spurt... it's just a job you like and it's just high school and stupid sixteenth birthday. Why are you all being so weird!"

She placed her hand on my forehead anyway and I rolled my eyes. Her hot hand lay over my forehead for a second and she sighed in relief.

"Normal" she breathed.

"Normal" Edward repeated, all humour from the previous day gone. "Maybe we can stay inside instead..."

"Or maybe we can go hiking like you promised" I snapped.

"You didn't even want to go hiking yesterday" he said a feint smile on his lips.

"Maybe you and I will stumble on whatever magical place Leah likes to go to late at night" I hissed, storming out of the kitchen and ignoring their shocked expressions.

Xx~xx~xX

The trail was long.

I didn't mind; something about being away form the house felt good. Maybe the house had begun to feel like a prison or mental institution. Even with all the laughs Edward, Leah and I managed there was always that one factor looming in the corner like an elephant. Where was my father...? The Cullen's had started to leave their home almost like they were swapping turns for guard duty or something...? Why was I the freaky one among them with my normal age, normal sicknesses and muted senses.

Just normal Elephant's in the Room.

"...and he jumped right" I continued enthusiastically "And I was certain he was a goner... I mean, that cliff in La Push is really high! But Seth... he just emerged at the bottom, safe and sound. Of course I wasn't allowed to do that because of the asthma and I can't swim... I think Dad and Leah were just being their normal over protective fun poopers..."

"Hmm" He chuckled. "How dare they stop you from cliff diving just because you have asthma and can't swim?"

"Exactly!" I exclaimed ignoring his sarcasm "I doggy paddle really well!"
He laughed. He laughed hard and for a good fifteen minutes, closing his eyes but never missing a beat with out slow trekking through the dry cold woods.

"... You want to hear more or are you going to give yourself a headache from all the laughing" I chuckled.

"I don't get headaches" he said dryly.

"Try listening to Leah singing..." I grumbled. "Now there's a headache machine"

"How is that going?" he asked mysteriously.

"What?"

"Pretending you don't miss her?" he said. "Just ask her if you can hang out at the hospital..."

"I don't like animals" I grumbled. "They get my allergies worked up"

"You aren't allergic to dogs" he stated.

"I think Leah is happy about that" I murmured, remembering our one neighbours Labrador she had fallen in love with. "She loves dogs but never gets one for a pet"
"That would be funny"
"I guess all our moving or something" I sighed and then stopped abruptly, Edward pausing and looking at me worried.

"My asthma..."

"It's acting up?" he asked, reaching in his pocket for my inhaler.

"No..." I whispered, feeling my neck. "No, not at all... how strange..."
"Strange indeed"

Xx~xx~xX

"It may have been her eyes I fell in love with" he whispered airily and I rolled my eyes, causing him to chuckle.

"You all have the same eyes" I sniggered. "You may as well have fallen in love with your own eyes, Edward"
"Her eyes were brown once..." he whispered detached-he was a thousand years away from me. "Like your mother's. Deep and wide and depthless... her skin pale..."

"Guess she kept the skin"

"Guess she did" he said snapping out of his droning depression.

"What colour were your eyes once?" I asked him carefully, not really expecting an answer.

"Green..." he stated, moving ahead of me. "Exactly like yours... not as large. I have no idea were you get such large eyes..."

"All the better to see you, grandpa" I murmured but there was no humour left in me.

Xx~xx~xX

"So how exactly did Carlisle save Emmett's life?" I asked.

"I... okay, I am going to tell you Charles and I am trusting you to take what I say as it is and never repeat it"
"Yes" I said a little too excited and he frowned at me suspiciously "Oh, come on... I deserve to know my family history at least!"
"Rosalie saved Emmett from the bear" he said slowly and I felt my eyes widen "And then Carlisle saved Emmett's life by... healing the wounds"
"She shot the bear?"

"Mhmm" he murmured, continuing up the mountain and then pausing abruptly-staring at a little clearing were there were no shadows and the sun filtered through easily, causing the snow to glisten.

"I sweat the weather man said it was overcast today" he hissed. "This is why I never bother with news when I have Alice Cullen... as reliable as a wolf not eating a whole pie..."

"Quil once ate a whole pie Emily had baked" I laughed. "She wasn't impressed..."

"My point exactly" he sighed. "We have to go around"
"Why!" I gasped-forgetting that I had promised myself to be well behaved and not show that hiking was working muscles that were not used to being worked.

"I don't want to tan" he mumbled already moving deeper into the woods.

"You need to tan" I yelled at him. "Pale know-it-all telepath!"

"Very Bella" he laughed.

"It's very Charles, thank you very much!"

Xx~xx~xX

"So Cullen's don't do sun?" I asked, huffing and grateful when he finally stopped.

"You got all of that because I wanted you to go the long way and do more exercising?" he asked.

"Yes..." I breathed, bracing myself on my knees and waiting for the wheezing to begin. "I did, actually"

"Have you ever considered that we like being pale" he asked arching his thick eyebrow.

"Rosalie goes on about how pretty my skin is" I murmured, ignoring the memory of how I thought she was talking bull because I happened to have a very big red pimple on my forehead that day.

"Rosalie loves babies" he shrugged. "It's a coochie-coochie catch twenty-two"

"Did you just call me a baby?"

"I said Rosalie likes babies" he smirked "It's your choice on how you want to decipher that piece of information, Charles"

"We reached the top" I huffed. "Let's go back... before you have to carry me home when I can't breathe anymore"

Xx~xx~xX

The journey back was easy, Edward was back to his new happy self and humming different tones and promising to force-teach me to play them on his piano. I had almost forgotten that the next day was my birthday... and school. I had completely forgotten that Renesme Cullen had promised me she would see me on my birthday...

We were about fifteen minutes from the house when Edward had stopped suddenly. He had been exceptionally quiet for the past five minutes, moving slower and deliberate and giving terse answers to my questions.

"What is it...?" I asked but he didn't move. Literally remaining like a statue, not even his chest seemed o be moving as a sign of breathing... I thought he was having a stroke.

"Edward" I stammered, my blood rushing in my ears. He didn't acknowledge me... only remaining frozen in front of me.

It was then that I heard my mother and father's yelling from the house and just like this morning I knew I wasn't physically supposed to be hearing it. Nor was Edward... but he had been able to hear them for a good thirty minutes...

"Stay!" Dad begged.

"Jacob..." she whispered. "I am here for him..."

"Then stay for him!" Jacob shouted. "You want me away... I will stay in the fucking forest Renesme...!"

"I won't leave Nahuel!" she hissed. "Can't you understand that he gets me... why do you insist on this... Let it be!"
"Let it..." he roared. "You left me! You begged me for sex, you begged me for Charles and then you left me...!"

"Charles...?" Edward murmured and I realised I was shuddering, my vision popping and blurring. "You can hear that, Charles?"

"... you left us" Dad continued and I knew he was crying. "You left... with Bella to be with... Nahuel and his father. You and your mother left... to be... do you know how fucked up..."

"That is something you don't understand" Renesme breathed.

"I don't understand that my imprint left me to be with another man and managed to hook her married mother to said man's father?"

Edward was frozen again; his expression hard and unforgiving and I couldn't manage. The world was whirling and I could hear from the house that my mother knew someone was outside, now that they had paused their arguing momentarily. I knew this feeling... it had happened before when I had broken the dining table and Leah's vase.

I still hadn't gotten around to the vase...

It felt like blacking out only somehow I saw La Push; it was the dense forest and I was running through it too fast, the trees whizzing by. I blinked rapidly, wiling the vision of trees to desist and the heat and stinging in my veins to abate. They were rushing towards me-from the house-and after a second, I could see clearly again. I was on the forest floor and my body was on fire... it was another episode only Leah wasn't here. I could see my whole arm lying out before me, covered in leaves-I was sweating. The tendons stuck out angrily; dark black under my paling skin.

I was on fire... I was burning...

"Charles!" Renesme called.

"Move Edward, Nessie..." Dad mumbled, picking me up from the ground-I realised I was crying and groaning, the pain unbearable. "I'll get him inside, the telephone... that would be Leah"

"What happened to his clothes?" Mum cried. "Get him clothed... my baby..."

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Uh, it took another while... but it's getting done. The plot comes and goes. I thought I might as well establish Edward and Charles relationship while I work on the plot separately, so that's what this was. As well as an introduction to the imprint of Leah.

Anyhow...

Suggestions, likes, dislikes... queries and the such are always welcome and help to know were to improve in writing and plot so don't hold back.

Review... if you have something to say

Till next time, and I am praying it's soon...

Tj