Chapter Twelve – An Ordinary Life

Edward was quiet as we drove back to Forks. I wondered if his pronouncement that he would never regret his decision to become human had been a bit premature.

"Are you alright?" I asked in a quiet voice. He'd obviously been lost in thought because he turned to me with a slight frown creasing his brow, then smiled and took my hand in his.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking of how life's going to be quite different now. I wonder if I'll be a source of torment to Jasper. Who will hunt with Emmett when he wants to find hibernating grizzlies?" he paused, then added, "Will Alice ever forgive me?"

"She will. Of course she will." I hoped.

"You didn't hear her thoughts!"

"Rosalie handled it pretty well."

"Rosalie took the news better than any of them – how's that for ironic?"

"Better than any of them? Esme? Carlisle?" I thought they'd taken the news with commendable aplomb.

"No, they were genuinely happy. Although both shared natural concern for how this will alter the family dynamic. I hadn't thought too much about that, I must admit."

"All we can do is wait and see what happens," I suggested with what I hoped was sensible assurance, "I know that's not much of an answer, but it's the only answer there is. We'll see them tomorrow, and the next day, and the one after that and the one after that and, eventually they'll see that you are still the same old Edward and we'll all work out a new way of relating to one another."

He looked at me for a long moment then leaned over and kissed me on the side of my mouth. "I love you."

"Uh – that's great, but, do you think you could get your eyes back on the road now."

Edward laughed and did exactly that.

We pulled up outside my house and suddenly I felt awfully conscious that we had no luggage. I didn't have time to ponder the problem as my dad must have heard the car pull up because he came out to meet us.

"Bells, you're home!" he called as he came down the front steps before pulling me into a tight embrace.

"Hey Dad." I said as I returned his hug. I hoped this meant I was forgiven. We weren't usually that, ah, demonstrative with our affections so when we broke apart we both looked at the ground with a certain awkwardness. It was silly. We were both obviously very happy to see the other but that's just us. I don't suppose we'll ever change.

Edward came around the car and joined us, holding out his hand to my father.

"Charlie."

"Edward."

They shook hands briefly. Okay, so it seemed that dad had forgiven me but Edward was still in his bad books. I had my own theory as to why this might be so. I don't think it was personal. I think my dad basically thought that Edward was a nice, decent guy. I think the dislike, the mistrust was more situational, if that makes sense. My theory was that dad remembered too much; he remembered all too clearly what I was like when Edward left. He remembered all the times I'd come to harm in Edward's vicinity. He remembered my seriously erratic flights from home that had been inspired by Edward. So it wasn't so much Edward that he didn't like so much as Edward's effect on me. And now all this was compounded by the fact that I and the person who caused my uncharacteristic behaviours, were now married and it was a marriage that, in my father's eyes, had an incredibly high statistical chance of failure and he was worried about what this might do to me and that it would be worse than the last time we had to go through such a trauma. And so, while I wished he had the same faith in Edward as I did, I could appreciate his misgivings where he was concerned.

"So, how was your trip?"

"Fine dad," I answered instantly blushing. Edward tried not to smirk. Charlie looked slightly uncomfortable.

"You're back sooner than I expected," My dad observed as we walked into the house.

"The weather," Edward supplied smoothly. I nearly burst out laughing at the excuse – we lived in a place where it rained 99.9 percent of the time and we're supposed to have let some bad weather drive us home from our honeymoon? He looked at me with mock sternness for a second then continued, "A series of dangerous tropical storms were forecast for the region. The place we were staying is not really equipped to deal with hurricanes. If we had stayed there was every chance we could have been stranded on the island for some weeks."

"Oh, well that's a shame." Funny, Charlie didn't seem too perturbed on our behalf.

"Oh, we don't mind," Edward added, "In three weeks we take possession of our house in New Hampshire so we thought we would prefer to spend the time here in Forks before we head across the country for college."

"You've rented a house already?" Charlie asked with surprised interest.

"Bought one actually," Edward corrected.

Charlie nodded his brusque approval. He might not like Edward overly much, but he couldn't argue that he was an efficient provider.

I went through to the kitchen to put the kettle on to make coffee for us all and as I looked through to the lounge to ask if either of them wanted cake with their coffee but my words were stopped by the sight of the photograph of me and Edward at our wedding that I'd given my dad framed and sitting on the mantelpiece above the fireplace. I smiled to myself and discovered that I was pretty pleased with my old man. He was one in a million. I left Edward and Dad talking about the very safe topic of sports and particular results and events that had occurred during the previous week and a half and put out the cake anyway, my two best guys deserved it.

"Coffees' ready!" I called and both dad and Edward came through to the kitchen quickly. Okay, so they still preferred me to be a buffer zone between them. They could only take so much one on one time together. We were all silent while we fixed our coffee the way we liked. Edward didn't really love the stuff but he drank it because it was a very human thing to do. I watched him with disguised amusement as he added another sugar to his cup. But I had a topic of conversation I needed to raise with my father and I had to bite the bullet and get it done.

"So, Dad, we were – uh, wondering if we could stay with you for a few weeks, just until we leave for college," I asked in the most matter-of-fact tone I could manage.

Dad was surprised and he didn't hide it. "Aren't you staying with the Cullen's?" It wasn't an auspicious start.

"We can't, um…" I didn't have a reason prepped

"Our early return caught my mother by surprise. She is in the process of refurbishing my room for us, it is uninhabitable at the moment." Edward lied silkily.

"Oh. Well, in that case, sure. It'll be nice to have you home for a little bit longer. Though I would have thought there'd be plenty of room in that big old house of yours Edward."

"We could probably squeeze in somewhere," Edward conceded. "But I think Esme fears that the surprise would be completely ruined if we were under her feet as she redecorated."

Charlie shrugged, "I suppose, so will Bella's room be big enough to would you rather—"

"My room will be fine dad!" I didn't want to put him out or make coming to stay here inconvenient. Besides, we'd made my small bedroom work quite nicely for the last couple of years, why rock the boat now?

"So where's your stuff, your luggage? In the car?"

Edward and I exchanged conspicuous glances. What the heck were we supposed to say now?

Suddenly there was a familiar musical voice calling out 'hello' from behind the screen door.

"Alice!" I cried with real relief as I literally ran to let her in and hugged her with all the strength I could summon.

"Get a grip Bella," Alice said with a wry smile and I knew myself only partially forgiven

"Dear sister." Edward greeted Alice with formal irony. She was only partially forgiven too.

"I just thought I'd pop over to see if you needed any help settling in or with unpacking your luggage." She looked out the door as she spoke. I followed her eyes and was relieved to see two large suitcases sitting and the rear wheel of Edward's car.

"That would be great," I replied with enthusiasm. "Unpacking is the worst part."

"I'll leave you kids to it then. I've just got to go down the station for a couple of hours," Charlie said as he picked up his hat and coat. "How about we go to the club for a home-coming dinner. Wanna join us Alice?"

"Thanks Charlie, but Jasper and I already have plans."

"Maybe next time."

Charlie left and Edward went out to the car to get the bags. Alice saw him lugging one bag up the front steps, rolled her eyes, then with hyper vampire speed, she raced out to the car, picked up the remaining suitcase, flew up the stairs and snatched the one that Edward was carrying from his grasp. She had them both inside before her brother had even got into the house.

"And you gave up being a vampire for what reason?" Alice questioned with patent disbelief. Edward scowled and, funnily enough, looked more vampiric than ever.

"All right you two, you're going to have to kiss and make up sometime – might as well be now," I said with frustration.

Neither budged.

"Fine. Come upstairs. Let's get these clothes put away before Charlie comes back."

I skipped up the stairs, leaving the other two to follow, first Alice with the bags and then a mutinous Edward.

I moved my clothes around to create some space for Edward's things. He sure did have a lot of stuff.

"How are the pair of you going to fit in here? You'll need a room this size just for the clothes I've got crammed into these cases," Alice said with disapproval.

'We'll be fine," Edward replied sternly as he flipped open one of the suitcases, looked for a moment then said, "This must be yours Bella and moved to the other case.

"Mine?"

"Alice shrugged. "I bought you a few things. I didn't send all of it on your honeymoon with you – thank goodness. When I think of all those pretty things being ripped to shreds by those nasty vampires, I could just scream."

I was terrified to look at the contents of the bag. My honeymoon packing had given me a reason to be distrustful of her choice in clothes. But, thankfully, the contents of this suitcase was much more practical – beautiful designer jeans, cashmere sweaters, pullovers and coats; much more 'Forks appropriate'. I didn't really need any of the clothes but I didn't want to offend my still miffed sister-in-law. I swallowed my objections and kissed her stony cheek and thanked her sincerely.

"Humph. You can't buy me off with insincere gratitude. I'm still cross."

I smiled at her rebellious countenance then, knowing she needed to get everything off her chest, said, "Okay Alice, let's hear it."

Without hesitation she obeyed my command. "I can't believe you did this Edward! You changed without telling any of us. You didn't even call Carlisle before you made the decision. You changed what you are and you couldn't even be bothered to forewarn us!"

"You're just annoyed because you didn't see it coming," Edward suggested with a hint of steel in his voice.

"Edward," I cautioned, it was better to let Alice have her say without letting this degenerate into an argument. "You wish he'd told you first?"

"It would have been nice. Polite."

Suddenly Edward was speaking vehemently, "I haven't! I won't!"

I looked at him questioningly. He shrugged and informed me, "She thinks I've abandoned the family."

"But you have. You will. I've seen it Edward, It's going to happen."

"No!'

"Edward would never—" I began to say in defence of my husband but that only drew attention to myself.

"And you! You were supposed to become one of us! Be my sister, forever. You and Edward and Jasper and me, it was going to be so great, and now…"

If my lovely sister had been able to cry she'd have been in floods of tears by now. Edward stopped his furious unpacking, looked at Alice with unfathomable emotion and whispered, "I didn't do it to hurt you. I did it to save Bella. This was a decision made out of love not disloyalty or abandonment. I know you don't remember being human, hell Alice, your human years sound like they're best forgotten. But Bella's life is not like that. She has a family and people who love her and potential to be whatever she chooses. And I'm sorry to say, these are things you were robbed of long before you were turned into a vampire. Bella is my world and if me becoming human meant I didn't have to kill her, I would do it again each and every time whether you hate me for it or not. I'll always love you though."

"but you'll die, both of you."

"Yes; which is as it should be."

Alice looked pained and Edward went to her and put his arms around her. They held each other tightly and I was relieved that they'd made their peace.

"Okay," Alice finally said, "I'm going to try and be more understanding. You're human, both of you – It's weird. It's bizarre, but I'm going to get used to it.'

She left soon after that. I was relieved and happy that she'd made the effort to come and see us even though she probably would have preferred to stay angry or ignore us entirely. But we'd made a good start this afternoon and now I was pretty sure that she'd be very helpful in allaying the doubts and misgivings of the rest of the family too. As promised, we went to dinner with Charlie. I couldn't help but notice that my Dad watched Edward eat with fascinated interest. It was not something that Edward had ever really done; sit down to a meal with us. He'd routinely excused himself as soon as food was put on the table. I was worried that the small cosmetic changes in Edward's behaviour were too obvious and that Charlie would notice too much. Even though my father's scrutiny made me kind of edgy I knew there was nothing to worry about. What was he going to say? 'So Edward, what happened? Did you change species since I last saw you?' Not likely. Hopefully he just thought it was because we were married; now Edward had no choice but to eat with us.

Later, Edward and I were tucked up cosily in my little bed. It was beautifully familiar; Edward lying beside me, us kissing for a while until one of us (usually Edward) decided that we'd pushed the bounds of restraint far enough for one night. Except tonight I wasn't so much into the kissing.

"What's wrong?" Edward wondered as he failed to get the desired effect from his mouth on mine.

"It's just weird. Charlie's downstairs!"

"I've spent many a night in this very position with your father in the house the whole time. Why is it suddenly bothering you now? Usually you're fairly keen," he teased gently.

"Yes but now he knows you're up here with me – before he didn't. What must he be thinking?"

Edward smirked. 'Truthfully, he's trying desperately hard not to think about it. He wants to go up to bed but he's worried about what he might hear."

"Ugh!" I rolled over onto my side and Edward spooned in behind me. "Can't you pretend to snore or something?"

Edward laughed softly and kissed my neck below my ear. "Go to sleep Bella. Oh, that's nice of him."

"What?"

"He's resolved to go fishing for the week-end. We'll have the place to ourselves."

I slept the seep of the dead that night. The emotional stress of our flight from the island, the return journey and breaking the news of Edward's change to the Cullen's must have finally caught up with me. I woke late, still yawning and alone. I went downstairs and found Edward cooking eggs and Charlie looking pleased that he had shown such initiative. Charlie was easy prey for anyone who wanted to sweeten him up with food.

"Morning Bells," Charlie said as I sat down at the table. Edward kissed the top of my head as he put a plate of eggs and toast in front of me then sat down in the vacant chair beside me.

"So, what have you kids got planned for the next couple of weeks?" Charlies asked between mouthfuls.

"Planning our move mostly," Edward answered. "We've got to pack. That will be quite a task. And then we'll have to organise transportation of our belongings."

"And finalising our enrolment, we'd better take care of that too."

"Of course we'll see my family..."

"And I need to catch up with Angela too."

Charlie nodded, "Well that should keep you busy."

"Yeah, but other than that we'll probably just be hanging around."

"Hanging around," Charlie repeated dryly. I think he thought that I meant 'hanging around' as a euphemism for something else. "Well I'm going fishing for the weekend with Billy. You'll have the place to yourselves for a couple of days. I'm also pretty busy at work so I won't get in your way while you…hang around."

Edward was trying not to laugh. I did not want to know what my father was thinking!

"Um, speaking of Billy, you should go and see Jacob sometime. He's been asking after you."

"Subtle Dad."

"He's been a good friend to you Bells, don't forget about him just because you're married and heading off to a fancy college."

"Yeah, I'll go down and see him in the next few days."

"Okay. I'm heading down there now. I'll tell him to expect you."

Charlie gathered his fishing gear and packed some supplies for a week-end of fishing then left. I waved him off and watched his truck disappear from view. Meanwhile, Edward had cleaned the kitchen and came to find me where I was sitting on the front steps.

"I'm just thinking that I'm a really crappy friend."

"You're too hard on yourself. We've only been back a day and we have had other things to deal with."

"Yeah, but I didn't even think of him, not till my Dad mentioned his name. And I really should ring my mother too. Add crap daughter to that list."

Edward pulled me close and I looked up into his face and kissed him lovingly. Then I went in and phoned my Mom.

We had a long chat, she telling me about Phil's latest mishap and the new yoga slash meditation group she'd joined. I gave her a much scaled back version of our honeymoon. It was nice. There was no fighting and no dire warnings, it was just like old times. Once we were done I went to find Edward; he was pouring over the literature Dartmouth had sent.

"Mom says hi. She can't believe we're spending these weeks with Charlie when we could be anywhere else. She thinks you must be mad, or very tolerant."

Edward laughed. "That's not far from what your father was thinking either when you asked to stay here. You should have heard his thoughts at breakfast…"

I quickly put my hands over my ears, "I don't want to know!"

We were still laughing about it when a voice interrupted our hilarity.

"So you are back. Honeymoon not everything it was cracked up to be?"

"Jake!" I ignored his sarcastic greeting instead saying, 'It's so great to see you." I went to hug him. He stiffened visibly. I hugged him anyway. He relaxed and returned the embrace.

"What?"

"You're still…you're still you."

"Of course I am. What did you think was going to happen?"

"That he bit you and then you'd slaughtered a village in Chile or wherever it was you went and so you came back early to avoid making any more mistakes."

"Yeah, I'm out of control and living with my Dad. You're mental."

"Sure, sure, but this is what you've got me imagining Bella."

"Well I'm not a vampire."

"Yet…"

"So you know about me and Edward getting married?"

"Yeah, your dad came down and told us all about it after you left on your honeymoon. Thanks for the invite, by the way."

"It was small, only a couple of guests. I wanted only people who were happy for us to be there. Sorry, didn't think you'd qualify."

"So that's one big day done, when's the next one?"

At this point in the conversation Edward stepped forward and held out his hand, "Jacob. It's good to see you."

Jacob's face showed obvious distaste at the thought of shaking Edward's hand. But manfully, he did it anyway. Suddenly the expression on his face changed. The aversion changed into suspicion. He took a step back, then took an obvious sniff of the air in front of him, processed the information garnered for a moment and then his mouth fell open. He was completely dumbfounded. He swore forcefully then demanded, "What the hell? How the f**k did you do it?"

"Language Jacob," Edward censored, enjoying the moment of triumph way too much.

"You're not a vampire anymore! You smell…"

"Human," I supplied with an affirmative nod.

Jacob looked from one of us to the other in complete shock. He fell to the couch and said, "well, you'd better tell me the whole story now.'

So we did. It sounded unbelievable even to my ears and I'd witnessed the whole thing; I could readily understand why Jacob was in a stunned state of astonishment.

"That is…freaking incredible! If I couldn't smell it I wouldn't believe it." Jacob said still shaking his head in bemusement. "Too bad really, I liked you being a bloodsucker; I was sure Bella would come to her senses at the last minute and you'd have to piss off again. Now I guess she's stuck with you."

"Jacob!"

"Ah, come on Bells, he can take a joke. I'm glad you won't be getting, um, changed anytime soon."

"I highly doubt it!" Edward said at his haughty best to Jacob, an arched brow showing his displeasure.

"What?"

"What!"

Jacob and I both said the same word at the same time though with totally different inflection.

"Jacob was just thinking that now the playing field has been evened out and that without the…lure; was that the word you used? Yes? Without the lure of vampirism it will only be a matter of time before you see me for the jerk I am and give me the flick."

"I highly doubt it," I replied, using Edward's exact wording to phrase my rejection of the notion.

"I wasn't serious," Jacob explained sulkily, "I never would have said anything. How the hell was I supposed to know he could still read minds?"

Suddenly I wished that Jacob could meet someone, a nice girl who would be understanding and accepting of his situation. He was still so young, despite his hulking frame and mature countenance. He was really still a boy. Suddenly I felt so much older than him.

Later, after Jacob had left we went to visit the Cullen's. The task of trying to decide what to take out of 100 years of accumulated possessions was exhaustive. My packing was a snap; the sum total of my things would maybe fill two or three suitcases but Edward's things would fill a truck all by themselves. Plus, Esme kept suggesting other things to take, like the grand piano, various works of art and certain appliances that had been purchased purely for my benefit anyway. Emmett and Jasper were helpful too, in moving heavy boxes and their speed helped in reducing the time it took to get the packing done. They teased Edward mercilessly about his loss of strength and speed. He took it with good grace. I left the three of them to it figuring that it would be a good opportunity for them to sort out how this new situation was going to work.

I mostly hung out with Alice and Esme and talked. Rosalie came and went she was busy refurbishing a vintage car and was lamenting the inconvenience of a particular missing part. I wished she and Jacob could be friends. They had more in common than either of them could ever imagine. I also knew from past experience that Jake had the instincts of a bloodhound when scavenging for parts; maybe someday…

Alice and Esme were abuzz with excitement for a new project they were developing. It was a business venture of sorts, a foundation that would use some of the accumulated Cullen wealth to help the underprivileged. Alice's future sight made the acquisition of wealth ridiculously easy and as she and Jasper had elected not to go to college for the time being, they'd decided to put some of that money to good use. They were in the process of setting up a web site and registering as a charitable institution. Both the founders were very enthusiastic and it was hard not to get caught up in their excitement, especially with Alice saying that I should come and work for them once I'd finished college.

"Do you really see that?" I asked, partially excited, partially suspicious of the idea.

"No, I don't see it. Not yet. You've still got to decide on the direction you'll take at college, let alone a career."

I laughed. It was true. I had to give that college information some more attention. Yes I'd chosen my subjects, but I hadn't done anything about registering for them. Maybe I'd be more motivated if I didn't feel like a fraud. Why Dartmouth? But, on the other hand, who was I to look an Ivy League gift horse in the mouth? It was a great school for Edward and where he went, naturally, I would follow.

Later in the afternoon I went to find Edward. I found him in his father's study. He and Carlisle were involved in a deep conversation regarding scientific principles and chemistry. One word caught my attention; 'venom'. I knew they were discussing the cure. My suspicion was confirmed when I saw the singed notebook open and under scrutiny.

"Are you going to try and recreate it? I asked them as I sat down beside Edward.

"Maybe, there are a lot of holes to try and fill," Carlisle replied. "This is not something we could reproduce overnight. It might require years of work…commitment."

"Between the two of us I'm sure we could find the answer," Edward suggested with evident enthusiasm.

"Edward," Carlisle cautioned, "You told me yourself that the man who formulated the anti-venom went mad, sacrificed everything in his quest for the formula. You have a life now, opportunities. You must think very carefully before you put all that in jeopardy in the pursuit of a pipe dream."

"A pipe dream?"

"Edward, did you ever think that this all happened to you for a reason? It didn't happen to me, or to Rosalie. It happened to you. Maybe this is a mystery that doesn't need solving."

"But—"

"I know you want us all to have the same choice you had but perhaps this is the way it's supposed to be. You're the one who fell in love with a human girl. You're the one the scientist found. Your mother and me, your brothers and sisters – we're all relatively happy in our own way. This is not worth throwing your life away over.

"Not worth— how can you say that?"

Carlisle reached out and shut the book. "Think over what I've said.

Edward and I went home soon afterwards. Edward was quiet but I didn't force him to talk about what was on his mind. I cooked dinner and we ate in companionable silence then went up to bed even though it was still relatively early. It was lovely to crawl into our little bed and into Edward's waiting arms.

"It feels like so long since I held you," he murmured.

"Like a lifetime."

He kissed my forehead and my cheek then found my waiting mouth and once again I was reminded of how different it was kissing him human as opposed to when he was a vampire. His lips were warm and soft and pliant and it was absolutely lovely and wonderful but I still had to open my eyes for a second to check that I was kissing the right person. I found two hooded amber eyes looking back at me. I caught my breath. It was the most forceful, most beautiful reminder that I was indeed kissing my Edward even if the feel of his mouth on mine was sort of a new experience.

"Am I doing it right?" Edward asked quietly.

"What?" Had my stupid thoughts been so obvious?

"This – kissing, I mean. Is it as good as it was before…?"

He let his sentence trail off and I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

"Of course it is," I protested a little too vehemently, then took a breath, calmed my thoughts and replied properly. "You are, as always an excellent kisser. It's just that I'm used to you feeling, um, different. But I assure you I'm getting used to it very quickly…Is it different for you?"

Edward thought for a moment then answered. "It feels— better, like we really match now, if that makes sense."

It did. I always felt we matched but still, I knew exactly what he meant and to prove it I sought his mouth again to continue what we'd already begun.

It felt almost like the first time all over again. Like we were doing something completely new even though we'd become very well acquainted with each others body during our honeymoon. Each moment was a discovery, a revelation, all over again. Edward's new body was fascinating. Instead of coolness, now it enveloped me with warmth and it was intriguing to touch and explore the softer feel of the toned contours of his body. I trembled as he touched me in return; yes, there was definitely something to be said for a warm hand as opposed to a cold one.

"Edward."

With the whisper of his name he covered my body with his own. I watched his face as our bodies became one and saw that this was a completely new experience for him. His face was filled with amazement. It made our love-making all the more incredible. It was different for me too. There was no underlying fear that I might end up inconveniently dead. I felt uninhibited and safe, maybe because this place, this bed, was the scene of so many intimate moments between us. It felt completely natural to be here sharing this amazing experience. Edward and me in my bed; It was all my fantasies come true at once.

Edward's expression changed suddenly. Agony and ecstasy suffused his features only this time he didn't have to flee from the temptation to bite me. Now he thrust faster, compellingly me to go with him to the edge of rapture. I shuddered beneath him; experiencing an intensity of pleasure I'd never imagined possible. I looked at my beautiful husband through half-closed eyes, breathing heavily while a satisfied smile haunted my lips and marvelled as he too experienced the culmination of our loving. He collapsed with spent exhaustion and kissed my throat and jaw line before rolling to my side and pulling me close. He was breathing heavily too and looking at me in wonder.

"That was…"

"Amazing. I know."

"Not that it wasn't good before but—"

"I know."

"This is the way it's supposed to be. It feels more…complete, if that makes sense."

"It does. You got to feel the climax too and you didn't have to leave, that's a bit of a bonus too."

"Is it supposed to make you so exhausted?"

"Yeah, I think it is."

We laughed and held each other close and fell asleep together in a cloud of contentment.

Life resumed a normal pace from then on. We fell into regular routines. We visited Edward's family most days. Alice took me shopping, playing dress-ups as usual. Esme helped me pour over multitudinous mail order catalogues looking at furniture for our new house. We finally got all our subjects picked and our university schedules sorted out as well as completed our registration. The fact that we really were going off to that fancy college finally began to sink in. Edward was going to go to medical school (again) he didn't mind redoing the course because the field of medical science is fast paced and ever changing. It had been a while since he'd updated his skills. And of course, this time he could take a different approach, be more hands on and be actually involved with people and patients. Charlie, Edward and I rattled along nicely too. Thankfully, Dad had stopped running in fear and finding other things to do just in case he intruded on us having loud, obnoxious, honeymoon sex. Not that we ever did; Edward and I had learnt to be very quiet whilst otherwise engaged. Charlie had gradually grown more comfortable with the situation and so had we. It had got to the point now that the three of us were quite companionable and Dad often remarked that he would miss us when we went away. Charlie had even gone so far as to invite Edward to go fishing with him. Dad didn't really want to ask and Edward didn't really want to go but they went and even though, by the rather slim accounts I'd received, they each hated every moment of it; they still deserved credit for trying. They only did it for me so I couldn't help but be grateful to them. We'd made a lot of progress, but some aspects still required baby steps. I don't know if Charlie would ever fully forgive Edward for the runaway marriage, for breaking my heart or just for entering my life with the force of a volcanic eruption. And of course Edward could read all his thoughts and knew what he was really thinking, which didn't really help a whole lot. Sometimes it seemed convenient to be able to read minds but really, I didn't envy him that particular skill. I tried not to think about the underlying mechanics too much. Instead I just chose to concentrate on the fact that they were making an effort to get along, even if it was only for my sake.

Jacob seemed better too since he'd found out that Edward was now human. His demeanour towards me changed. I think he began to look on me as quite the old married woman, almost like a sister. I was happy with the change. I didn't miss the unrequited love at all and it was great to just 'hang' out with him again, the way we had in the summer that Edward had vanished. And while I don't think Edward and Jacob would ever be best buds, no objections were ever raised if I decided to pay a visit down to La Push and they tolerated each other quite admirably if Jacob spent a day with me in Forks. I could live with that.

Naturally, the town had very much enjoyed the scandal of Edward and me running off to get married once the news started to spread around. Consequently, we were the fodder for gossip and innuendo for a number of days which was a little hard to bear, but thankfully, that too passed when something new and more exciting cropped up (the theft of a canoe from outside the Newton's store in broad daylight proved to be a surprisingly adequate distraction). So with a week to go until we were to leave for college everything was pretty much peachy. Until Alice arrived at the house one morning after Charlie had left for work. She said one word – "Volturi"