Disclaimer: The characters you recognize from the Twilight Saga belong to S. Meyer, but all the other characters belong to the very talented writer yay4shanghai. You can find her fabulous stories, as well as very good spin-offs written by ari11990, dll10, Guzhong, intiMACYx33 and liljenrocks, in my favorite list, so go check them out!

AN: Thanks so much for all the reviews you've been leaving me, your support is more than I could've asked for! And of course I'm always very grateful to yay4shanghai, for beta'ing and lending me her wonderful characters to play around with ;)

The grand master plan

~*~

POV: Phil

~*~

"Well, let's hear this master plan of yours." Solace was so sure himself when it came to ladies that he'd better have come up with something good.

"Oh no, it doesn't work like that. I don't even know her, how would I know what she'd like? No, you're gonna have to come up with the actual plan, I'm just here for guidance." I waited for a sign that he was kidding, he must be, because the Solace I knew would never leave me hanging.

"Are you serious? What good will that do me, I was the one who screwed it all up in the first place!" I screamed.

"Chill out man, I said I'd help you and I will, so just tell me more about her," he urged, and I did.

I told him everything I could think of, not just for the master plan but because I wanted to. Solace had been my best friend since the days when I still thought girls were icky, and with his current situation he hadn't had a chance to meet her.

I started with the major things, like her love for dancing and the role her daughters played in her life, then moved to all the little things that would seem insignificant to anyone else but made her this larger than life figure in my world. Her dislike of lying and anything fake, her preference to extra-chunky peanut butter and how she could stubbornly hold on to a notion no matter how ridiculous it was. I gushed about how on occasion she would let go of her poise releasing her inner child, and how amazing it was to see such a beautiful and graceful woman act like one of her daughters.

Then I got an idea, I knew just how to show her that I was serious about sharing my life with them. In that second it was entirely clear how to show her how much I cared, not just about her but also her girls.

When I ran it by Solace, he completely agreed, this was a plan that shouldn't fail. I was psyched. I had thought of a solution all on my own, one that would say exactly what I wanted it to, while at the same time getting them to move in without a second thought. I wanted to get started as soon as possible, but I'd need help and I knew just who to call, though it would have to wait till morning.

Before getting started on my project I needed to call Tara, I hadn't talked her since she made me leave yesterday, after she'd hit me. Physically it hadn't hurt me, emotionally was another story, for her to slap me, it took a lot, she wasn't one to go around putting her hands on people. I put my thoughts on pause, when I heard the phone ring. I waited for her to pick up, she did, but only to say that she'd already told me that I wasn't supposed to call her, I couldn't even get a word in before she hung up again.

The next morning I waited patiently for it to be a reasonable hour to call before I dialed Claire's number and explained the master plan.

"That's a brilliant idea Phil, she'll love it!" When I called Claire, she was instantly enthusiastic.

"So you'll help me?" Without her I wouldn't be able to pull it off.

"Of course I will, but it'll have to wait, right now I'm going over there, to see what the damage is. I'm really sorry about dropping the ball like that, when she was talking about your temperature, it was out before I realized you hadn't told her yet." She felt really guilty, though no one held blame but me.

"Don't worry about it Claire, this is all on me, I was the one who messed up. Will you tell me later how she is? I'm worried about her, I tried calling her, but she's not talking to me," I pleaded. She agreed and hopefully through Claire I would be able to get some idea on how she was for however long she kept me away.

That plan backfired on me when Claire came back a few hours later, stopping by to give me a piece of her mind. I should have expected that, of course Tara would tell Claire everything, who else was she supposed to talk to? She couldn't exactly tell her co-workers about imprinting, nobody else knew, so non of her friends could possibly understand her situation. Claire was really angry at me for actually mentioning the other women, which had been a stupid thing to do, I'd admit. According to her, I should be glad that I had thought of something so sweet, to make it up to her because I had been a major jerk.

~*~

"Let's get started shall we!" Claire took over on the creative and planning department of our project, while I did anything that required brawn as well as making sure I got everything on the list she made for me.

It was a long process, but it was so cool to see the progress, with each day that passed. There was a lot of stuff I could do, but certain things required Claire's capable hands. Seeing Claire at work was a unique process, she was really good at this, combining colors, and arranging shapes, her talent was obvious. It took weeks, since time was something Claire didn't have to spare, but the end result was worth it.

With a good feeling and no actual plan I left for Port Angeles that day. I wasn't sure what I would say but I'd wait outside Chloe's school and bring them straight back here, or at least try to.

While the project was being completed, I kept calling Tara but to no prevail, she kept telling me to leave her alone. As the end line of the project came closer, I noticed I was calling her less, respecting her wishes but also scared shitless. If she didn't like what we had done for her I'd never be able to get back into her good graces. I missed her so much, I longed to have her with me, to feel the touch of her smooth skin on mine. I tried not to remember the sight of her under me, or how much I loved it when she called out my name. At night in bed, whenever I was able to catch sleep, I'd dream about her, but then I'd wake up again, to find myself alone, and utterly disappointed.

When it was finally time to present the surprise I had for her and the girls, I was jumping out of my skin with excitement. If I got her here, I'd never let her go again, she'd be mine no matter how hard I had to beg. As I left my home I checked over the results one last time, before I made my way over to Port Angeles, to talk to Tara for the first time since our fight. I'd watched her on regular basis, mostly at night, but I always kept my distance, afraid to make matters worse.

When I parked my car, I saw her before she saw me, and when I saw little Ava standing next to her, I realized how much I had missed the little ladies. It felt good, so good when I saw Chloe come towards me, happy to see me, and a moment later both of them were in my arms. They were all giggly and excited when I told them that I had surprise for them and their mother, but that Tara needed to come with us, in order for me to show them.

Tara's eyes didn't show the anger I had expected, she seemed as happy to see me as her daughters, which gave me an extra boost to follow through on my plans. She agreed to come with me, and I drove them to my house, where I showed them what Claire and I had been working on. It was obvious they loved it by their reactions, I watched them explore, letting them have their moment, but he second the girls left us alone, I gave in to my need to have her close. As I gathered her in my arms, where she fit perfectly, nothing else mattered, the world could catch on fire for all I cared.

~*~

POV: Tara

~*~

Nights were the worst. That's when I actually had time to think about it, and I did, all night long. My mind wouldn't stop spinning, sleeping had become a luxury, one my brain apparently couldn't afford any longer. So often I thought I felt his presence and when I squeezed my eyes shut it was as if he would be there under my hand, if I just reached out for him.

Every night I'd lay there, unable to turn off the tumbling thoughts, constantly second guessing myself. After a few days, most of my anger had dissipated, but enough lingered to make me refuse to talk to him, though his absence was affecting me more and more each day. It was as if I couldn't exist without him anymore, which was a scary thought on its own. I was raised to be an independent woman and now I was putting everything on one man.

He'd call at least a few times a day, at least he had at first, the number of attempts to reach me had decreased over the weeks. Something I stupidly felt sad about. It was completely unreasonable to want him to call when I didn't intend to answer them. Well I answered them, but only to tell him not to call anymore, and if I was perfectly honest, to hear his voice even if only for a second. As of recently he had started to listen to me. Was it pride that made me feel this way? My thoughts were so annoyingly contradictory.

Though I told him not to call, and was irritated when he did, I felt neglected and refused when he didn't, and secretly expected him not to listen. I found myself glancing at the clock around the time my phone would usually ring, and felt the emptiness inside me grow when it stayed silent.

At times I would scream at myself. You stupid girl! Obviously you want conformation he still cares, if you miss him so much, why don't you just give in already, what if he actually moves on?

And that was another thing, I wasn't sure whether or not Claire told me this to scare me, or if she was really just worried I might lose him, but she told me that on rare occasion an imprint could be denied. Up until then, I felt sure I could take all the time I needed to mull things over, he'd still be there if I changed my mind. Now I wasn't so sure anymore, would he move on? Intended or not, the idea put fear in my heart.

Was it possible that I might have overreacted, that in my anger I had refused to look further than what was in front of me. It could have been very possible that Phil hadn't meant it like that, so it would have been unfair of me to shut him down like that. Even more, that I was continuing to do so right now, I should have given him the chance to talk, the moment my anger had been turned down a few notches.

Maybe it was the fact that my birthday had passed, unknowingly to most, with only a call from my parents, which made me realize how lonely I was. Chloe wasn't even six yet, she might know when my birthday was but how would she know that day had arrived. Claire didn't know, Phil didn't either, so the 17th of May 2034 passed silently, without it being mentioned by anyone that it was my 27th birthday.

It was then that I had started to doubt my reaction to Phil weeks back, maybe I shouldn't have been so hard on him, wasn't it sweet in a way that he was so set on protecting us? Since I was being so hesitant on what to do, I decided that next time he called, I'd hear him out, but that was the thing, he hadn't called once today. His last call had been yesterday, and I'm sure my decision to give him the opportunity to speak had been initiated by the fact that my phone hadn't rang at all since.

My girls had been worried about me and though I tried as best I could to appear cheery whenever they were around, they weren't blind, they could see I was sad. More than that, they missed him too, they had gotten used to having him around on a regular basis, and when he suddenly wasn't there anymore, it was weird for them. Over a dozen times, they had asked me if I would stop being mad soon, because they wanted him to come back.

I could hardly believe it, had I managed to find a good man, get him to fall for my girls as well as for me, and then chased him away? When it was time to pick up the Chloe from school I had put a halt to my internal rambling, on the last day of the week, I called Ava with me and left with thoughts still swirling through my head. As I waited outside for Chloe, I felt it, I felt him, but I wouldn't dare look for him, afraid that it was my imagination going into overdrive. When Chloe came at me running though, pointing to something behind me, I knew he really was here.

Gathering the courage to turn around, I saw Phil's car parked a little behind us, with him leaning against it, until he pushed himself off of it and came towards us. My heart wanted to jump out of my chest, my whole being was happy to see him, and all I wanted to do was run to him and throw myself in his arms. To my envy, that was exactly what my little ladies were doing. Chloe was a little hesitant, she'd never even hugged him before, but she was now. Ava held nothing in reserve, flinging herself at him at full speed, totally confident he'd catch her, which he did of course.

Smiling brightly, the three of them came at me, but his face took on a more cautious expression, when they drew near. They were talking about something enthusiastically, sneaking glances at me while they did, they were concocting something, that much was clear. I couldn't help but feel relieved, that he hadn't given up on me yet, and found myself curious about their plans. When they were mere feet removed from me, Ava came at me.

"Mom, you have to come with us! Please, please, pleeeeaaase!" She begged, while tugging at my hand forcefully, trying to pull me towards his car.

"Will you…come with us? There's something I want to show you, maybe we can talk a bit after?" Phil looked serious, a lump formed in my throat at our close proximity, so instead of trying to speak, I just nodded.

He made sure both girls were secure in their seats, which were still in his car, before getting in himself and driving off, to an unknown location. Soon it became evident he was heading towards LaPush, and eventually it turned out our destination was his house. He'd shown me around the first time I'd been here, but the only time the girls were here they were too distracted to pay much attention to it. Right now they were though, gawking at the sheer size of it, they practically ran in when he opened the door.

"If you'd follow me ladies!" He said as he gallantly held out his arms invitingly towards the stairs. What awaited us there, I could not have anticipated.

"Oh My God!" My jaw dropped.

The girls ran back and forth from one side to the next. Enthralled by Phil's surprise, I too was completely blown away by what he had done for us to say more. He had totally redecorated and refurnished two rooms for Chloe and Ava, across from each other, and not too far from the master bedroom. They were gorgeous, and it took my breath away that he had gone through such extreme measures. The fact that he had known this would mean more to me than any sort of gift, told me he knew me a lot better than I had realized initially.

Chloe's room was a soft pinkish lilac, with circular shapes, varying in color and size, on the front and back wall, as well as the ceiling. On one of the walls there was a black flower like drawing and a big orange lamp, made up out of three cylinders cut askew, hung from the ceiling. The curtains and the bedcover shared the same pattern on a soft purple surface. On the outside of her door, black and white ballet shoes were painted, instead of a name tag.

Ava's room was completely different, as bright and colorful as she was. Her walls were painted sunshine yellow, while the furniture was bold and colored in blues, greens, oranges, and pinks, and covered in cheerful prints. On her door there was a drawing of four butterflies. Just like for Chloe's room, there was no actual nametag, but an image that represented the girl who was designated to sleep in the room, this one was just as fitting as the ballet shoes were for Chloe.

While we were in awe over the girls rooms, he looked on, as we took in the surroundings. My eyes met his the moment the girls ran to the other room again, and I gushed. I was so touched he'd done this, it was clear how much we meant to him, how much I meant to him. He beckoned me over to him with one crooked finger pulling me into his arms, the moment I was in reach. I melted against his chest, my face disappearing in the crook of his neck, never wanting to resurface.

"Thought you'd like it," he whispered into my hair, as he held me close against him, and I knew I was home.

AN: Pictures of Chloe and Ava's rooms can be found on my photobucket account, photobucket(dot)com/asagarimelody, in the yay4shanghai universe - Just My Luck album.