Disclaimer: I do not own twilight or any of it's characters.
(AN: really sorry that its taken so long to post this... had an essay to do, did it with three days left, all happy, but then as i went to print it off my computer crashed deleteing ALL MY WORK in the process, had to do it again, very upset, but i did eventually finish! haha... sorry to bore you with that... just needed a rant.
this chapter is very rosalie based, because i love her... as i love all of the cullens, but i havnt really written much about her in my stories as of yet... so here you go!
thanks again to all my reviewists! :) xxx)
I explained everything to Rosalie. I started from the beginning; well Sara's beginning. I told her about Sara being alone since birth – both her parents abandoning her, apparently too young to cope and how it put her off ever having children herself. I told her about Sara being brought up in a children's home – full, uncomfortable and overcrowded, never being loved or cared for. I told her about Sara's dreams which told her how to get what she wanted and how they showed her our family. Rosalie sat still all the time, her expression depressed and concerned. Her thoughts were giving the same impression.
Oh my dear, I didn't think things like that still happened. How could someone ever abandon their child... their baby! Her thoughts drifted off to an image of a baby boy with black curly hair, an image I had never seen before. Although I had heard Rosalie's horrific story before, I had never known her to think about it in such detail.
It was really no surprise that Rose had such a naturally ruthless and un-caring approach to other people when in the heat of her transformation all she could feel was resentment and hatred. She, more than anyone else in our family, deserved the most respect and admiration for being able to find even a single atom of love and sensitivity within her.
Suddenly, she caught my eye. I had not realised that I wasn't looking at her. She was smiling, her eyes full of joy looking as if they would well up if that were possible.
"Toby..." She said, almost struggling to get the words out.
I stared at her confused. I had not expected this reaction.
He doesn't realise he did it, she thought.
"Did what?" I asked.
She laughed once to herself. "You were just telling me your thoughts." She smiled. "You really didn't realise?"
Everything I just thought she heard?
"Hmm..." She sighed. "Maybe you were just so passionate about it that you crossed over your thoughts without knowing." She said, with a smug smile on her face and flicking her hair over her shoulder.
"Don't make me take it back." I joked, embarrassed slightly.
She smiled to herself, looking at her feet. She ran to my side hastily and wrapped her arms around me. "I'm sorry, for pre-judging everything. I didn't have any right to. I did exactly the same to Bella and within a year and a half... well, I couldn't imagine my life without her. I'm not going to make the same mistake now. And what Sara has been through, when she was young... well no one should ever have to go through that. I'm so lucky – we all are – to have such a loving family. A family that would do – and has done - anything for each other. It's easy to see why Sara's dreams brought her to us, hey?" She smiled.
The sound of a whimper coming from behind me distracted me. Both Rosalie and I turned our heads to see Esme standing completely still, one hand holding a plate of sandwiches and pressing the other close to her chest. Standing next to her was Emmett, resting his hand comfortingly on her shoulder; and Alice and Jasper holding each other's hands lovingly, as were Bella and Edward. Mum and Dad both holding Joy in their arms.
Rose laughed angelically, "They're lovely, but nosey as hell!" She laughed.
Everyone walked off again, apart from Esme and Emmett. They stood, unmoving.
"I tell you what," Rose continued. "I'll say hello to Sara properly when she comes back down stairs. Make up for my rude behaviour before."
"Thank you, Rose."
"You're welcome, my favourite grand-nephew!" She was like a different person. I had never seen her smile for so long before... well, apart from when she looked in the mirror.
I heard Edward laugh from the other room.
Then we all heard the sound of a chair scraping along the floor in Carlisle's office - unmistakably human.
Rosalie stood up. "Better look busy..." She joked. She walked towards Esme and took the plate of sandwiches from her hands.
Esme smiled back at her lovingly. "Proud of you",she mouthed, tucking in a strand of Rosalie's hair. My beautiful daughter.
Rosalie turned on her heels and started to walk towards the staircase, just as Carlisle and Sara appeared at the top of the stairs. I ran to her side, forgetting how impossible it was to stay away from her.
I looked down the stairs to a smiling Rosalie. "I thought you'd be hungry." She said, handing the plate to Sara.
"Thank you, I'm starving." She replied.
"I'm sorry for earlier. I'm just very... protective, of my family. But after getting the opportunity to hear your story... to hear what happened to you..." her face suddenly changing in to a disgusted expression, "well, I can guarantee that I'll be just as protective of you." She smiled again, looking at Sara. "What I guess I'm trying to say is, welcome to our family."
"Thank you." Sara said again, her breath stuttering slightly as she breathed in.
Rosalie smiled, turned around and walked into Emmett's open arms. "Don't expect me to be this nice everyday... that was a special occasion! I've being nice enough to last for the rest of the year!" She joked, quietly.
"Make that a few decades!" Emmett teased back, followed by the stifled laughs of the rest of my family... apart from an unaware Sara.
"So," I said, turning back to her. "When... when is it going to happen?" I asked, almost choking on my words. I tried to keep the powerful image of Sara's transformation out of my head, but I couldn't.
"Carlisle was slightly concerned about my age. I've only just turned sixteen... we talked about the, um, implications." Her mind filled with images of herself, not being able to control herself. These were not her visions, just her worries. Followed by a part of the conversation she had with Carlisle.
"I believe that the reason Edward had such... difficulty... when I changed him, was because of his age. All of his teenage angst and rebellion... something that every teenager goes through, was multiplied during his transformation. He was by far the youngest of our family when he was changed."
"But he was ok, in the end I mean." Sara asked.
"Yes, but it was a struggle." He sighed. "But then again, I was by myself. We have twelve extremely strong, capable, knowledgeable... and loving people here that will help you every step of the way." He leant forward and put a supporting hand on Sara's shoulder.
Carlisle stepped forward, once again putting his hand on her shoulder. "We discussed everything. I'm confident that Sara will be able to cope when she is changed, especially with our help," he directed towards our family, "but to be on the safe side, I'd like to wait a few months at least. Sara will mature a lot in that time."
Alice took in a small gasp of air, unnoticeable to Sara's ears. "Ooh, Spring!" Alice said positively. "Early March." She added.
"March then." Carlisle summarised. "I'm sure this will not be a problem, but is everyone... comfortable with Sara living here until then?" He said, looking around the room, knowing that Sara had nowhere else to live.
"I doubt that any of us could even smell her in this house... what with the stink of dog everywhere!" Jasper joked, followed by a customary hit around the head from my Dad.
"We'll just make sure that we hunt at regular intervals," Esme suggested. "Make sure that there is no discomfort or temptation. We're all so used to being around humans now... there shouldn't be any problem at all." She added, confidently.
I turned back to Sara. "Is that ok by you, love?"
She nodded. "Thank you... everyone... for accepting me. For inviting me into your home. Your life. Your family." She choked on the last word and tears started to fall, like small crystals, down her face. She was suddenly surrounded by Joy, Alice, Bella, Esme and Rosalie. All racing to wrap their arms around her first, but they were all beaten by Jasper, obviously sensing the pull of her emotions before anyone else. Without even regstering the scent of her blood, he ran to her, placed one hand on her upper arm and his other wrapped around her shoulders. "I just love you all so much already. I don't know what I'd do without you." She whimpered, wiping her tears away.
"We love you too." Esme said, comforting her. "I don't think there's anyone more deserving of so much love."
Sara was held in this embrace for a few minutes, no one really knowing how to end it. Well, apart from Emmett...
"So," he sighed, and paused. "Anyone for baseball?"
"NO!" We all shouted.