Disclaimer: I do not own nor make profit off of Twilight. It belongs to Stephenie Meyer and Summit Entertainment, etc.

A/N: I love Carlisle immensely. He is definitely one of my favorite characters. I don't see this as changing Stephenie Meyer's canon storyline really, so I wouldn't call it AU, per se. The events might conflict with a few minor plot details from SM's universe. Characters may be a touch OOC at times.

ECLIPSE IS COMING OUT TOMORROW… er… later TODAY! Woo-hoo! *dances around*

Chapter 11: Stealthy

My explanations to Edward regarding lost causes had not even slightly dimmed my curiosity about the situation in Ithaca before the Cullens' return to Forks. If anything, my interest had increased tenfold. I required a brief recap of some of Carlisle's behavior in Ithaca before I began asking for further information, which seemed to be exactly what Edward and Alice had wanted me to do.

"Did you see the letter before Esme opened it?" I asked Alice, referring very specifically to her special ability, rather than physical sight.

"No," she shook her head disappointedly. "It wasn't a big decision of any kind, to open the mail, and I obviously wasn't planning on finding out anything like that about Carlisle."

"How did you find out?" Edward asked this time, equally as in the dark about the situation that had happened back in February. Alice was still blocking her thoughts from him. At least she had explained why; she wanted us all to think through it clearly, one thing at a time, until we could determine a plan of action. If Edward were to learn all that had happened, Alice said, then he would probably go and act on his own. Offended though I'd expected Edward to be, he didn't even blink at the remark. He must have known how true it was.

"Esme must have planned to confront Carlisle when he came home," Alice explained, "and I had a vision the moment she decided. But her plan would end very badly if she went through with it, so I told her she mustn't. We talked about the letter for a couple of days. Finally, she called to see what types of cases Carlisle was working with. That changed everything for her."

"She realized how bad he was," Edward nodded in understanding, but his brow was furrowed. "But before that… She was still angry with him after all those months. Wasn't she, Jasper?"

Jasper looked uncomfortable, but resigned to admitting what he knew. "Yes. She was angry still."

"More than you might consider normal for her?" although Edward seemed to be asking, there was an underlying current of confidence in his voice that confused me.

"Yes," Alice was the one that answered him, sending a meaningful look his way. "If you're thinking what I think you are…"

"I am," Edward confirmed through gritted teeth.

"Then definitely yes," Alice confirmed.

"What are you two talking about?" I finally asked, thoroughly confused.

"We're talking about the fact that Esme was speaking with Rosalie frequently during all of those months," Alice's eyes flashed with the same steel as when she had corrected Charlie's assumption that Edward was happy without me. But this time it didn't make any sense to me.

"Why is that important?" I questioned her.

"Rosalie has the frustrating habit of hating Carlisle whenever things aren't going well." Edward answered instead of Alice, his face a mask of burning anger.

"Okay…" I trailed off, still not comprehending whatever the two of them were implying.

"I think they're saying that Rosalie was making Esme feel angrier than she would have in any other circumstance," Jasper replied with some confusion of his own. "Though I'm not sure why that would work. Esme's never listened to Rosalie's anger before."

"Edward was never gone so long when Rosalie spouted her anger before," Alice frowned at her bronze-haired brother, who was scowling quite spectacularly. Mostly at himself, I suspected.

"So, Esme listens to Edward quite a bit, doesn't she?" I suggested.

"Quite a bit," Alice nodded, sighing. "When she and Carlisle have spats—"

"Which is very rarely," Edward threw in quickly.

"—the next person she turns to is Edward," Alice continued as if Edward had not interrupted.

"And I can tell you honestly that it has nothing to do with my ability," Edward added, "She never asks what he's thinking in those times."

"She just wants your honest opinion," I nodded my new understanding.

"Precisely," Edward nodded in return.

"So, without you to turn to," I started up again, pointing at Edward and doing my best to clarify what I needed to know, "The next person she turns to is Rosalie. And Rosalie was really angry at Carlisle for all that time. So Esme sort of… jumped on the band wagon? Why would she trust Rosalie so much? I'm not really sure why she would do that so easily. She seems far more intelligent and independent than this kind of thing."

That just didn't make sense to me. If Esme knew how much anger her blonde daughter felt towards Carlisle, why would she even trust her opinion of him?

"She is," Edward agreed with a sigh, "but you have to remember something. When Esme was turned, she was frozen in a state where her self-confidence relied a lot on the opinions of others. Particularly men, with her husband above all. After she found her place with us and married Carlisle, that was drastically changed. She still retains insecurities, but very rarely. On those few occasions that Esme and Carlisle fight in any way, her insecurities rear up. Her confidence sinks enough for her to believe the opinion of the nearest person she is closely bonded with. Thankfully she comes to me, for the most part, and I can ease her worries. But during those months in Ithaca, I wasn't there."

"Esme and Rosalie are very close," Alice put in, though no bitterness showed in her voice for the preference. "In the beginning, I think Esme needed a female perspective for a change and Rosalie needed someone to turn to. They have a strong bond. That's why she would go to Rosalie if Edward wasn't there."

"Okay, so Esme was mad for a long time," I recapped. "Then this letter arrived and changed everything. But then what?"

"Oh, Esme tried to stay mad a bit," Edward chuckled a little darkly, but still amused. "But she couldn't have if she tried."

"I thought you were gone at this time?" Alice wryly commented to her brother, but moved on before he could make a snappy retort. "Esme did try to feel mad that Carlisle never told her. In the end, she was just too worried about him. We both were. She asked him to stay home from work one day, secretly hoping to talk things over, but he didn't stay. It was Valentine's Day."

"He didn't know what day it was, did he?" I asked sadly, yet nervously. I had been equally as unaware when Valentine's Day came around. The situation was eerily similar, only Carlisle hadn't lost the love of his life… Or maybe, in some ways, he had. I shivered lightly at the idea.

"I doubt it," Alice sighed deeply, "We decided not to tell him, because we wanted to see how aware he was. Of course, his ignorance of the date only worried us further."

"Didn't you do anything else?" I asked, a little frustrated. "Obviously just inquiring wasn't enough. Did you tell him up front what was going on?"

"We didn't have to," Alice smiled, but not very happily. "Esme almost ran to bring him back home from work, when I saw him. He was going to talk with a coworker that evening, Art Davidson. Art was taking his wife someplace special for Valentine's and would tell Carlisle before leaving. Carlisle would realize just what he had done by refusing Esme's request. He would take off an hour before his shift ended and come home to apologize. But Esme wouldn't have taken it well. She desperately needed some time away for a little while, so I took her shopping. Jasper waited for Carlisle, to explain."

I turned to Jasper, guessing he would take up this part of the story. He proved me right when he spoke next, "If there's one thing that Carlisle would hate himself for, it'd be hurting Esme in any way. He came home frantic, terrified that he'd messed up too badly to fix it. I had to use my ability to calm him; words didn't help at all. I took him hunting once he'd cooled his heels a bit, just like Alice told me to."

"And Esme?" I turned back to Alice as Jasper finished speaking.

"The same at first," she answered. "But Esme didn't realize how long it had been since she'd been out of the house. We were out the entire night. Carlisle was waiting when we came back on the fifteenth. I swear he was more impatient than Edward. And more paranoid."

"Funny," Edward narrowed his eyes at his black-haired sister, to which she shrugged carelessly. Mischief lurked in her eyes, however.

"I've never seen a couple make up so quickly," Alice mused with a little happy sigh, "except me and Jasper."

"And that only because Jasper follows you like a lost pup." Edward smirked at his embarrassed, but proud, brother in revenge for Alice's smart comment.

"Of course," Alice perkily retorted, grinning at her husband. I had the feeling it might spark another round of squabbling repertoire, so I intervened quickly.

"Can we get back to the important topic?" I reminded them somewhat crossly.

"Ouch, Bella," Alice pouted at my choice of wording.

"Sorry," I shrugged nonchalantly. I was more worried about Carlisle's well-being than Alice's pout at the moment.

"Fine," she sniffed delicately, thankfully coming back to the matter at hand. "Well, after the two of them reconciled, we all sat to talk for a while. Nothing important, unfortunately; it might have helped more if that had been the case. Anyway, then we remembered that Rosalie and Emmett were coming home the next night. Esme wanted to have everything and everyone completely ready, so she and I went on a hunt in the morning of the sixteenth."

"Something else happened," I stated when she paused. There was no question in my voice. Alice had clearly been leading up to something big. Whatever it was, I didn't think I was going to like it. As a matter of fact, I knew I wasn't.

"Yes, it did," she sighed unhappily now. "Rosalie and Emmett came home early, while we were still hunting."

Edward started growling deep in his chest before Alice even finished. Until I thought over everything a second time and connected the points that were laid out before me, I didn't understand his reaction.

"No," I gasped quietly. "She didn't… But wouldn't you have seen their arrival once the flight time changed?"

"Of course I would have," Alice looked very irritated. "It wasn't their flight that changed. They were going to stop and hunt before they drove home, but Emmett was too excited to see the family. They drove straight through without stopping. Esme and I didn't make it home in time."

"In time for what?" Edward growled, albeit not at Alice, and he truly looked like a vampire then. Darkened eyes and partly bared teeth were not especially unusual for him, particularly lately, but this was one of the more frightening appearances of them.

"To stop Rosalie from letting loose on Carlisle," my best friend answered, looking as murderous as I felt once I heard those words escape her mouth. "For being so 'focused on himself', as she put it, and for giving in to you every time. There were a lot of other things she accused him of, too, but I'd rather not talk about them much longer than I have to."

Between Edward and Alice there passed a look which I knew very well; they would be talking later. And I didn't really think Rosalie would like Edward any better once that happened. If there was ever a chance that she might be afraid of his reaction, I would think this was it. His fury at James and the Volturi didn't seem to be much higher up than the level of rage he appeared to be feeling right then. Something had happened when Edward saw Alice's unfinished thought on the school grounds. I was uncertain what it was, but the level of love and loyalty that my bronze-haired vampire felt for his father was unparalleled ever since.

"He was far from focusing on himself," I couldn't help huffing in anger, knowing my own anger might not ever match the level of the vampires around me.

"Even that is a gross understatement," Jasper shook his head. "I'd say Carlisle was so little focused on himself that he barely even got out to hunt for most of those months in Ithaca. Rarely have I seen him behave like he did. Some of the worst was when Alice asked me to watch him, while she was researching out of state."

All of the memories must have been running through Jasper's mind in clear definition, for Edward shuddered visibly beside me. Tentatively, I reached out to touch his shoulder in comfort. He started slightly from the contact and then cringed away from Jasper as if that would stop the memories from flowing. Jasper seemed to be making an attempt to block his mind, so Edward was spared, but it didn't appear to be very successful. Edward retained a near-permanent grimace that was mixed with subdued horror and muted grief. My fear escalated at the look he was wearing. I wasn't all together sure that I wanted to know what was putting it there. But my curiosity never ceased, it seemed.

"What is it?" Alice asked, at the same time that I questioned, "What are you seeing?"

"Carlisle," Jasper said lowly, a deep emotion buried in his amber eyes that I couldn't decipher.

"During… those weeks?" Alice double-checked worriedly, speaking further once Jasper nodded. "What was Carlisle like? You never told me and I didn't check. It was too depressing before, so I just stopped looking while I was gone."

"I don't know quite how to describe it," Jasper answered with a frown. "He was… shaky. It was completely unique to my experience."

"That doesn't make any sense," Alice frowned deeply. "How could a vampire be unsteady in any way?"

"It wasn't anything I've ever seen in a vampire before," Edward expounded further on the thoughts he had seen in Jasper's mind, sporting a wince.

"I've seen it," I put in with wide eyes. This was exactly what I had thought of Carlisle on Saturday at the hospital. Finally, I could speak of it and potentially get some answers. Possibly, I could confirm my theory about it all.

"How could you have seen it?" Alice scoffed lightly. "You haven't exactly seen a whole world of vampires yet. Plenty, yes, but not that many."

"I didn't have to see a whole world of vampires," I retorted in annoyance, narrowing my eyes at her. "All I had to see was Carlisle this weekend."

"What?" Jasper, Edward, and Alice all leaned towards me in shock.

"He behaved like that?" Edward demanded, eyes fierce. "Shaky, unsteady?"

"Yes." I felt confusion now. Hadn't they noticed Carlisle's behavior at all? "Didn't you notice? I mean, I didn't notice until Saturday when I came up to the hospital, but I'm only human. Surely you guys would have seen it. Your senses are way above mine."

"I didn't notice a thing," Edward admitted, shamefaced.

"Neither did I," Alice looked even more shamed than her brother. "I didn't notice it in the visions, either. He looked completely normal to me… Jasper, did he feel out of sorts to you?"

"No, not at all," Jasper confessed with a frown and creased forehead.

"What did you see this weekend, Bella?" Edward turned to me with a thoughtful, if slightly concerned, expression.

"Well…" I deliberated for a moment over what was the most vital, before I decided that it all was, "You have to remember, this all from a human perspective. Some of the things I pay attention to may not be things that all of you would care much about under normal circumstances."

"We understand that," Jasper was the one who responded, followed by belated nods from Edward and Alice.

I took a big breath for courage. "The moment he came into his office, I noticed that something wasn't right. You all are so beautiful, so stunning, to look at. When Carlisle stepped in… he was like a so-called sunny day here in Forks versus a sunny day in Phoenix. That's how much less stunning he was. I mean… I think one of my first thoughts was that he couldn't have dazzled anyone if he had tried as hard as possible."

"That should be… impossible," Edward said, disturbed. "It's inherent in each of us. Our looks just… dazzle people. You've pointed it out yourself."

"Look, I was dazzled by Carlisle yesterday," I sighed exasperatedly, but a little embarrasedly at my admission. "I looked right into his eyes and stopped breathing, completely bedazzled. There was absolutely no… 'dazzle factor', if you want to call it that… in his looks on Saturday."

"What exactly was, then?" Alice prompted me impatiently, brows furrowed.

"I guess you could have said he looked ill," I began again, throwing Alice a dark look and thinking back about my time at the hospital as hard as I could. "If vampires got sick, anyway. Black eyes and some of the darkest smudges I'd ever seen. And then… normally his skin seems to have a... a sheen to it. Sort of like well-polished wood. Maybe it's because the sparkles in your skin are… dormant when not in the sunlight or something, I don't know. Whatever it's actually for, that sheen was missing. His hands seemed to tremble—"

"Tremble?" Edward interrupted in utter bewilderment, "What do you mean by that?"

"I don't know…" I released a sigh of frustration, "trembling. His hands were unsteady, shaky, although it was barely perceptible to a human eye. If a human's hands shook in a similar manner, it never would have been noticeable. But because he's a vampire, because I know that vampires are never shaky like that, it was a big thing. Even his voice sounded slightly unsteady. And though I know Carlisle is immune to human blood, I was shocked when he didn't realize my hands were cut and scraped. It was like he didn't even smell it at all. When I told him and he started to work on my hands, he didn't say much of anything to me. He always talked to me before, made me feel less like a hospital patient… Everything about Carlisle screamed fatigue. The corners of his mouth, his sighing, running his hand through his hair… and he was working really slowly on my hands, even compared to human speed. I know it sounds crazy, but all I could think was that he was weak, fragile, vulnerable."

None of us spoke for a long moment. I allowed the three of them to dissect what they would from my information, sitting quietly in my own contemplation.

Finally, shaking his head in confusion, Edward spoke, "I don't understand this at all. None of it makes any sense."

"I think…" I started to say, mind lingering on my previous theory, but it seemed a little foolish now. I went silent.

"What, Bella?" Edward pressed me to finish, holding my hand reassuringly, "What are you thinking?"

I smiled at the phrase, liking how normal it sounded. "I was thinking that… Well, I formed a theory about Carlisle's behavior that day. It sounds kind of silly now, but…"

"Tell us," he urged me with a small smile as well. "Rarely are your ideas bad ones."

"I was just thinking," I started once more, blushing at the compliment, "Carlisle has never drank human blood, ever."

Nods answered my conclusion.

"The rest of you act really aggressively when you don't hunt," I excitedly presented the rest of my idea. "I think that… since Carlisle has never tasted human blood, then he acts more like a human when he needs to… feed. That would mean he gets weaker, rather than more violent."

Edward seemed to seriously contemplate it, turning it over in his mind for a minute. "That sounds fascinating… but I'm not really sure if I believe it."

"Why not?" I demanded, feeling mildly affronted.

"I think it has merit," he hastily offered with a gesture of surrender. "But I really think that it's just Carlisle, himself. The force of his gentle personality coming to the fore, if you will. Most everything about Carlisle is much more human than any other vampire we have ever seen or heard of. This unusual behavior you've described almost seems logical, now that I really put thought into it."

"I agree," Jasper added solemnly, still lost in some thought of his own.

"I suppose that makes sense," I grudgingly admitted, although I was still inclined to believe that my theory had a great deal going for it.

"Still," Alice piped up, "none of this explains what is troubling Carlisle now. Why his emotions are so messed up. If anything, we've just eliminated one of the hundreds of possibilities."

"That narrows it down, at least," I pointed out fairly, while still feeling a little downhearted at her point. "Less things that could be wrong."

"At least there's that," Alice sighed, "but really, this means that what Jasper and Edward just saw wasn't even important to what we're discussing. Not really."

"Do you think it's just all kind of crashing down on him?" I suggested hesitantly. "I mean, I know for a fact that when I was… numb… I wasn't actually dealing with my problem. I was pushing it away until I could handle it."

"Or until it just blew up in your face," Alice pointed out bluntly, eyeing Edward speculatively from the corner of her eye. He flinched almost imperceptibly. I didn't want to know what he was thinking about.

I exhaled heavily in annoyance and slight anger. "Yes, until that. Now stop talking aboutthat and leave Edward alone. Got it?"

Alice looked away from Edward immediately, but his face didn't lose any of its tension.

"And you stop it, too, Edward!" I barked authoritatively at him, at which Jasper pressed his lips together to contain his smirk. Edward smiled wanly back at me, but some of the stress lines did fade from his forehead and eyes.

"Moving on," I spoke again, taking a breath. "That's a possibility, isn't it? He was just so numb at first, that he didn't recognize what he was feeling underneath that haze. Then, after he came out of that numbness, he stepped up to be strong for everyone else and so pushed away his feelings still. This weekend was the rare time that he was able to actually let his feelings out freely. My dream, what I was talking about out loud, could have reminded him of everything that he'd repressed. From what Jasper and Alice said, I was pretty detailed about my dream."

"I agree with that theory," Jasper said lowly, to which Alice nodded in a very somber manner. "It does sound as though Carlisle would do exactly that."

"What did you dream about, Bella?" Edward questioned quietly. "Carlisle didn't give any details, except that it was a reaction to Solimena's work."

"The Volturi were… attacking us," Alice answered stiffly for me. I was grateful for the reprieve she offered; just saying the name still sent a shiver down my spine. The vicious flashback and dream that I'd had did not help.

"You… spoke aloud?" Edward cautiously ventured this question. "Often?"

"Very often," Jasper murmured so low that I was force to read his lips to understand. Strain showed thickly on the blond-haired vampire's face as he spoke. "And very… detailed."

"Ah," was all Edward said at first, but a moment afterward he flinched more violently than ever before, his topaz gaze upon Jasper's conflicted face.

"I'm sorry," Jasper swallowed convulsively. "I didn't want to make them relive it."

"I understand," Edward nodded tensely, but he truly looked as though he did understand.

"So?" I said slowly, drawing out the word, "Do you think that's it?"

"Yes." A carefully composed mask had settled onto Edward's beautiful face. I hated that look with a passion, but I didn't think I could do anything about it now. Perhaps only once Carlisle was healed could anything be done at all.

"What do we do, then?" I felt helpless to aid Carlisle in this. I had enough trouble remembering my own dark ages. How could I help the gentle doctor with one of his? Especially when he wouldn't let people help him without strong coercion?

"I don't think any of you three can do anything," Edward sighed heavily. I would have bet that the weight of the world was carried within that single sound.

I could only imagine that Carlisle had felt similarly when he finally agreed to leave Forks. By choosing to leave, he had ultimately – and unwittingly, for the most part – chosen to leave behind someone he considered a daughter, break apart the bonds of friendship and love that had formed between me and the rest of his family, uproot that entire family from a place they had been happy, watch them gradually fall apart, watch his eldest son disintegrate into misery, and let the same son go off on a sojourn he may never return home from (and almost didn't). If that wasn't the weight of the world, then nothing was.

"Surely we can do something," was my feeble reply. I didn't really believe that any more than my bronze-haired boyfriend did. Only one thing caused Carlisle to be numb for as long as I had been during those awful, empty months. And that was Edward. Only Edward would be able to truly start Carlisle on the path to healing.

"This all started with me," Edward firmly, but sadly responded. "I don't believe Carlisle would listen to anyone else at this point in time. You, perhaps, Bella. But until I clean up the mess I left, no one else is likely to get through to Carlisle."

"You'll talk to him soon, won't you?" I chewed on my lower lip in anxiety. "He needs you to help him so much."

"I know, love," Edward put his hands on either side of my neck, gazing lovingly at my face and dazzling me with those gorgeous topaz pools of his. "I know you don't want him to hurt any longer than he already has. Neither do I."

"I think we might be in luck," Alice's distracted voice called our attention to her suddenly.

"What is it?" Edward asked. Hm, so Alice was still blocking him. That was interesting.

"Bailey is giving Carlisle the coming weekend off as well." The hazy look left the pixielike vampire's face, replaced by relief. "You can take him hunting on Friday."

"Good," I exhaled in relief. "Now you just need to go suggest it to him."

"Perhaps you could suggest it?" Edward offered pensively, "I think after Saturday, Carlisle would listen to you if you asked him to hunt. And I'm afraid Carlisle won't be very keen on this trip if I'm the one to ask him to go."

"Why not?" He had lost me. There was no real reason why Carlisle would listen to me over Edward. At least, there were none that I could realistically imagine.

"He…" Edward paused in indecision, but spoke further with some difficulty and bewilderment. "Carlisle has been blocking his mind. Except for a few thoughts last night, I haven't heard any of his thoughts since Friday."

"What?" Jasper exclaimed while Alice asked, "How long?" Both of them were wide-eyed at this revelation from Edward. As for me, my worry grew exponentially. Carlisle was so bent on protecting Edward that he was able to keep his mind blocked for almost a full three-day period. That couldn't be healthy for Carlisle to be so tense and guarded every moment of the day.

"It's true," Edward shook his head in great consternation. "That's one thing that I need to talk with him about."

"So you think he's too worried to talk with you?" I asked him in understanding. It looked like Carlisle would listen to me after all.

"Yes—"

"Oh!" Alice started suddenly, cutting off Edward and shooting up from her seat on Jasper's knees like she'd been burned. "Charlie's leaving the station."

"Aw, man," I groaned. "We haven't even figured everything out."

"It'll be enough for the moment," Jasper consoled me calmly, rising to stand beside his dark-haired wife.

"We'll go and bring your truck back now," Alice added. "I'll see you soon, Bella."

"Bye," I sighed, smiling slightly when she popped over to hug me before rushing out the front door behind Jasper.

Edward remained sitting beside me, but we both knew he was going to have to go before Charlie saw him. All the same, we silently sat wrapped in each other's arms for as long as we could before my dad arrived. Edward's lean chest was my hard but wonderful pillow while he affectionately nuzzled all the way from my collar bone to the top of my head, inhaling the 'bouquet' he had once compared my scent to. My truck's roar was a welcome sound when I knew how Charlie would have reacted to knowing I had skipped more school.

The slamming of Charlie's car door only ten minutes later alerted me to the fact that Edward was pushing his time limit quite a bit. "Edward!" I hissed anxiously at him, my eyes as wide as dinner plates.

"I love you," he whispered with that crooked grin that I adored so much, barely stifling his chuckle, and before I knew it I was sitting up with my hair and clothes straightened and no sign of anyone having been here with me. Realizing I was just sitting there on the couch doing nothing, I jumped up and ran into the kitchen, making myself the quickest and most basic sandwich I could so that Charlie wouldn't be suspicious. I wasn't quite sure what I was even eating, except that it was something to slap on two slices of bread in a pinch.

"Bella?" Charlie called out in the midst of hanging his belt and jacket up.

"Hey, Dad." I called back from the kitchen, making certain that my sandwich was very visible in my hand as he came to the doorway. I felt bad that dinner wasn't ready for him, but there would be a game on at some point that would distract him enough for me to get it done.

"Hey, Bells! How was the weekend with Alice?" His smile was wide and pleasant as he came up to grab his Vitamin R out of the fridge; it was that crinkly-eyed grin of his younger days that made me smile, too. Obviously this weekend had gone very well and the Quileutes had not said anything to make him suspect out-of-the-ordinary circumstances from me or the Cullens. For that, I was grudgingly appreciative. Not that it negated the wolves' behavior on Saturday at all, but it did make some things easier.

"It was great," I enthused, still smiling and eating my unappealing snack. "Alice made sure I enjoyed myself." Actually Carlisle did that for the most part, but Charlie didn't need to know that.

"She's a good friend," Charlie shut the refrigerator door and nodded definitively, surprising me with his sudden approval. I knew he adored Alice as if she were his daughter, too, but he didn't normally just burst with appreciation on a whim like this. Maybe I had been too quick to give the Quileutes such easy credit; it sounded as if something had been said to trigger Charlie's defensive side. Carlisle and Alice would be Charlie's heroes forever, from what I could see, and I knew he respected Esme as well. Cullen-bashing would not have been tolerated well on my father's part, no matter how little he liked Edward.

"Yeah, she really is," I nodded in serious agreement, deciding to lay low about my suspicion for the moment. "My best friend."

"Good," Charlie nodded that stern, no-nonsense nod again. That confirmed my belief like nothing else could. "The Cullens are a good family. No reason for anyone not to be friends with them."

The strain and difficulty it took my father to include all of the Cullens, rather than just excluding Edward completely, was admirable. He was definitely not a fan of my vampire boyfriend, but I think even he realized that Edward was only human, in a manner of speaking. My victory smile threatened to break out, but I recognized swiftly that only a very rude and critical argument would have caused Charlie to praise Edward in any way, no matter how small. The almost-smile nearly became a frown until Charlie turned to look at me again.

"How's Dr. Cullen?" Caution filled Charlie's voice for the first time since he'd come in. Immediately, I was wary of what he was thinking.

"He's good," I carefully replied, "Didn't feel very well on Saturday, but he was better today. I guess a break from work was all he needed."

"I'm proud of you, honey." Charlie puffed up with pride at the reminder of my help in that particular matter. No doubt he bragged to anyone he saw at work today. The thought made me flush dark pink, but I was glad that he was now distracted from his original line of questioning.

"Maybe you shouldn't be," I joked, hoping to change the subject more thoroughly. "I forgot about dinner until just now. Me and Alice just got to talking and… well."

"Aw, you deserve the break," he smiled at me again. "Don't worry about it tonight. I'll order a pizza."

"Dad, really—"

"No, no," He shook his head side to side. "Forget it tonight."

"Sure," I sighed a little and gave up. Charlie was set on pizza. I might as well be grateful he wasn't spearing me with uncomfortable questions that I couldn't answer about my weekend. "I'm going to start my homework."

"All right," Charlie nodded once, patting my shoulder as I walked by him towards the stairs.

The rest of the evening went by quietly, if you didn't count Charlie yelling at the TV. For the life of me, I couldn't have determined what upset him so much about the game, but then I didn't really understand it that well to begin with. The basics of baseball were only known to me because of the Cullens last spring. Beyond that, I was hopeless when it came to sports knowledge (or ability).

Homework took much less time than I expected, even when I added in the time it took to shove a couple pieces of pizza in my mouth. Now, with nothing to do and an open window, I wondered when Edward would get here. He wasn't visiting tonight, as Charlie well knew; that might have a little something to do with his good mood, but I didn't dwell on that for very long. I also wondered what Alice, Jasper, and Edward had come up with to deal with Carlisle. What my role in convincing him of the hunting trip would be, I didn't know, but I hoped they figured it out soon. I sighed deeply in both boredom and worry, although thankfully for once the latter did not outweigh the former.

A glint of light from the corner of my eye gathered my full attention; Edward's CD of compositions lay on the top of my dresser, as yet unused since the night of my eighteenth birthday. For those months without the Cullens, I hadn't been able to find it thanks to Edward's hiding it under my floorboards. Not that I would have been able to listen anyway, what with the condition I was in. In the first few days of our return to Forks, Edward had admitted to where my things were. But I had been so occupied with catching up my schoolwork, marveling over Edward's honest love for me, trying to figure out the Jacob situation, and convincing Charlie that I wasn't running off again, that I hadn't given it a thought. Now, even when I did have time, I always hesitated from playing it. The reason wasn't exactly clear to me, but I had to admit a certain apprehension emanating from a rather ridiculous fear… If I went back to a routine that was too familiar to the old one – the one before Edward had left – maybe it would end the same. I knew it wasn't logical, per se, but in other (more important) ways, the fact did have some truth. Nothing could go back to exactly the way it was before. Not that I wanted it to. I was telling the absolute truth when I'd vaguely explained that to Alice after my nightmare the previous evening.

With a burst of courage and a deep breath to fortify myself against the irrational fear, I reached out for the clear case and headed over to my CD player to put in the disc. I sat on my bed, facing the headboard, while waiting for it to begin. Soon enough, the sweet melody of my lullaby wafted into the air around me. Each beat struck a chord inside of my heart and I found myself hitting the repeat button, so it would play over and over. After all that had happened, after all the heartache and fear I had faced… the notes that Edward's long fingers touched were made all the more beautiful and meaningful. He loved me. How I had denied it for so many months was hard to understand. Now, it was so incredibly obvious that I was sniffling and crying over it.

"Bella?" Velvet cascaded over my ears in beautiful, welcome waves of contentment despite the concern that was present there. I turned away from the CD player to find the most beautiful creature I'd ever seen standing against the backdrop of the open window; his pale skin glinted in the partial moonlight, arms reaching partway for me and his face a mask of worry.

"Edward." I smiled at him through my tears, but I couldn't stop crying long enough to reassure him I was okay. Instead, I stumbled my way off of the bed and into his granite arms, with which he immediately caught and steadied me. I wrapped my arms about his waist as tightly as possible, on a full crying jag now, and every time I opened my mouth all I could find to say was 'I love you.' Edward repeated the phrase back to me every single time, his voice infused with more concern each time he did so. He pulled me onto the bed and into his lap and ran his fingers through my dark hair comfortingly, but I knew I was driving him insane with worry. That thought pushed my sentimental side away enough that tears stopped pouring out of my eyes, at least.

"Are you all right?" he murmured anxiously against my right ear, placing a gentle kiss beneath it.

"Yeah," I whispered into his chest, sniffing a bit. "I'm okay."

"Are you sure?" he asked, tightening his grasp on me perceptibly.

"Positive." I nodded lightly against him before pulling back enough to look at his face. "I'm sorry I made you worry."

"Don't be sorry, love," he replied, brows furrowed as he traced my cheek with his fingertips. "You're really all right? Should I turn that off?"

"No!" I gasped incredulously at his suggestion. "Don't you dare!"

"But it's upsetting you," he insisted with a deeper set to his brows. He opened his mouth to say more, but I reached up to cover it with my hand, effectively stalling his protestations.

"Please, I want to hear it," I told him forcefully. "It isn't upsetting me. Promise. I just got caught up in the moment. It reminded me how much you love me. And how much I love you."

He smiled my favorite crooked grin at that, though very subdued, and began trailing a comforting icy path with his long fingers, from my left temple to my chin. Two pools of liquid topaz traveled the expanse of my face as I leaned up for a kiss, bringing a heavy blush forth in true form. Edward chuckled low in his throat, leaning down to acquiesce my unspoken request, and then I was lost in heaven. Without thought, my hands traveled to his messy bronze hair and captured whatever strands were available to pull him even closer to me, despite the fact that I was rapidly running out of air. I felt him smile against my lips just as he pulled away, too soon as always.

"Hi, by the way," I gasped quietly, making a concentrated effort to breathe properly against the effect of his beautiful eyes.

"Hi," he returned with a real grin that time, easily laying us down with a blanket quickly wrapped around me to shield from the chill of his skin. I snuggled down into his embrace as closely as I could, feeling more at home than ever.

"Charlie?" I asked, abruptly remembering my father, downstairs watching a game the last I knew.

"Snoring on the couch," Edward grinned still. "The Mariners won. He had a bit too much Vitamin R in celebration of the occasion."

I bit my lip, but couldn't quite contain the giggling that quietly escaped at the sight I envisioned in my head. Charlie was probably passed out, one arm and leg hanging onto the floor and his dark hair crushed against the cushion. An empty can of Rainier would be on the floor beside his hanging arm.

"Sounds just like Charlie," I smiled indulgently.

"Alice said he won't be waking until the morning," Edward confirmed my lone worry almost as if he knew – okay, so he probably did know, thanks to Alice – what I was going to say. Ugh. He didn't have to read my mind to find out what I was thinking.

"Good," I sighed in contentment all the same, just happy to have him there in my arms. "I like this."

"That makes two of us," Edward smiled a full-blown crooked grin, melting me into a puddle of goo right then and there as I stared up into his beautiful golden gaze. A pink blush flamed on my cheeks in response.

"I love you," I repeated the phrase that I didn't believe I would ever tire of saying to this angel of mine.

"And I love you." He smiled much more sweetly, more lovingly, now. "Always."

"Always," I smiled around the word, drawing entirely different connotations from it than I expected Edward was. No matter. We meant essentially the same thing. That would do for now.

"Sleep, love," he murmured softly, laying one, brief kiss on my forehead and my lips. My eyes closed of their own accord, lending my sight to an oblivion that was filled with very pleasant dreams of my angel and I.

A/N: Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed Chapter 10: Strange!