For A Reason: Inauguration Chapter 13: Imitation, a twilight fanfic

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

A/N: This is an insert-an-OC story that will veer from canon timeline, but the actual canon events will retain great similarities.

Chapter Numbering: Because FFnet doesn't allow for Prologues/Epilogues/Intermissions (which are usually not meant to be labeled "Chapter #") my numbering within the actual chapter will be different than the link FFnet displays.

Music In This Chapter:
I Hate You Then I Love You by Celine Dion & Luciano Pavarotti

Notes:
I would have replied to the reviews, but I honestly didn't know what to say, except a gigantic thank you over and over again. You are all so wonderful!

Previously – Mireille and Edward practiced dancing and Edward sulked. Esme and Alice got Mireille ready for Homecoming. Edward helped Mireille with jewelry and corsage. Alice showed Mireille how to put on a boutonniere. The Cullens took pictures together and Emmett gave Mireille the nickname "Mir" as they left. Emmett drove Edward and Mireille in the Volvo. People stared at the newest 'Cullen' and Edward danced with her to ease the nerves. Mireille danced with Emmett and Jasper. Girls gossiped about Mireille in the bathroom and she was hurt.

Chapter 13: Imitation

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

A/N: This is an insert-an-OC story that will veer from canon timeline, but the actual canon events will retain great similarities.

Music In This Chapter:
I Hate You Then I Love You by Celine Dion & Luciano Pavarotti

Notes:
I would have replied to the reviews, but I honestly didn't know what to say, except a gigantic thank you over and over again. You are all so wonderful!

Chapter 13: Imitation

I wasn't sure how long I stood in the stall fighting back tears, but it seemed too long. Edward certainly was close enough to read my mind, though, and he hadn't sent Alice in. Perhaps it wasn't that long after all.

That blasted bathroom door creaked open again, and I prayed it wasn't someone else with a negative opinion about me.

"Mireille?"

It was Alice, her soft voice just outside the door, and she pushed it open enough to stick her head in. A look of understanding filled her eyes. "Come on out, Mireille."

Nodding too sharply, I waited for her to back out before I opened the stall. Suddenly, Alice embraced me very tightly and murmured firmly into my ear, "Don't you dare listen to what they said. They're just jealous. You are a very sweet person and you don't deserve that kind of talk."

Her kindness, ironically enough, pushed my tears overboard. Embarrassed that I was overacting so strongly, I muttered, "Sorry. This is so stupid… I just… it hurt more than I thought it would."

"It's not stupid," Alice countered quietly, wiping away some of the tears as they fell. "It's hard when people judge you so harshly without ever getting to know you."

"I already guessed they were going to be like that, though," was my weak reply, an unsightly sniffle going along with it.

"It doesn't make it sting any less when you actually hear it," Alice argued, firming up again. "Now, we aren't going to let them think they got to you. That's just what they'd want. So let's clean you up and fix your makeup."

Giving the small woman a slightly watery smile, I let her pull me in front of the mirrors to wipe my face clean of tears and reapply some of my makeup.

"Where in the world did you fit all that?" I asked her somewhat incredulously, allowing my hurt feelings to subside mostly and instead watching as she laid out several products that she must have used on my face.

"Trade secret," Alice winked mischievously, opening the eye shadow container with a quick flick of her wrist. "Close your eyes."

Giggling mutedly, I did as instructed and felt light swipes and brushes along my cheeks and eyes. In no time, I was given the all clear. "There, you're right as rain now."

"Thanks, Alice." I smiled sheepishly, moving into step as she guided me with an arm around my waist.

"It's nothing. We'd better hurry out, though, before Edward and Jasper combust. They were ready to growl at Lauren—"

Blanking out abruptly as Alice kept on talking in a low voice, I realized very quickly why the third girl in the bathroom had seemed somewhat familiar. Granted, I had never heard anyone imitate Lauren Mallory's voice before, but that nasal quality to her voice was directly mentioned in the books.

"—was ready to as well, but thankfully Rosalie stopped him. Not that I blame any of them," Alice was saying coldly as we stepped out onto the dance floor and over to the right, where Edward and Jasper were standing together by the drink table. I briefly wondered if they were holding each other back in the figurative sense.

"Pretty much," Edward admitted darkly, casting an angry gaze across the floor.

I could see a girl with long and perfectly-curled corn silk hair in a strapless, form-fitting, orange taffeta dress, laughing and whispering with three other girls: a heavily highlighted blonde in a vivid purple, one-shoulder taffeta gown; a strawberry-blonde in a strapless, cobalt blue number with sequins and pluming chiffon on the skirt, and one with dark sandy-colored hair in something resembling my great-aunt's ugliest quilt. Her yellowish-white dress was something I wasn't all too sure I wanted to examine, but the thing was so ridiculous that I couldn't help staring a little. Simply put, her grandmother probably hadn't even worn a dress that was so despicably floral.

The first two girls must have been the same ones in the bathroom with Lauren. I wondered if the sandy-haired girl was Samantha, who had been listed in the official guide as a friend of Lauren's – that much I had read in random perusals of the book.

"Would you like to dance?" Edward asked me, forcing himself to a calmer state of being.

"Sure," I agreed, smiling a little to take the edge out of my earlier reaction to being criticized. Alice tugged Jasper out onto the floor as well, only marginally taking away the tight expression which spoke to his own anger at how the three girls had spoken of his wife.

Occasionally as we danced, I recognized more students from the books. Eric Yorkie standing off to the side with a couple of other stag attendees was simple to spot with his trademark oily hair. Jessica Stanley's voluminous black curls, let loose for the night, drew my attention to her short, magenta-clad form. Angela Weber was of course tall and thin, wearing a very dull, strapless navy dress and her light brown hair straight as a pin; it was obvious she didn't have the confidence to do much with her hair or clothes for such events, but she clearly didn't want to miss out on the dances either. I really hoped I could befriend her (and possibly boost her self-confidence). Mike Newton, the last one I spotted, was still wearing his hair in spikes and his face had a definite roundness to it yet, although I could tell it was already beginning to shape into a more adult form.

There was a strange atmosphere in the air after I stopped noticing any book-familiar faces. It was an atmosphere which I was incapable of shaking off, and one which was clearly part of the reason Jasper couldn't lose his agitation very well. Something was moving in some of the gathered group that I didn't like the look of. Staring happened even more frequently than it had the first half of the night and whispers started passing around just out of my range of hearing. The whispering, I noticed, seemed concentrated in students who appeared older than most. Seniors, I determined. I couldn't figure out why, though, and Edward wouldn't speak of it. Even when I asked him outright, he shook his head and frowned uncomfortably. I tried to ask as randomly and as quickly as I could, and in different ways, to perhaps startle him into answering me, but he never faltered.

"Just wait," he said sharply at last, his temper getting the better of him. Glaring icily at him for his rudeness, I snapped my dress coat out of his hands and pulled it on without his aid, stalking away and leaving him to get his own coat and hurry after me. Thankfully we were all leaving a little early and no one else was outside to hear or see our spat.

"Don't do that," he snapped quietly, firmly but comfortably grabbing my elbow as he caught up to me outside the main doors.

"Stop being so rude, then," I snapped back, frustrated with the lack of explanations.

Gritting his teeth, Edward kept silent until we reached his car, where Emmett waited with a remarkably stern face. Sitting in the M3 beside the Volvo, Rosalie, Jasper, & Alice looked rather similar to Emmett. Taking stock of their sudden seriousness, I kept quiet only long enough for us to climb in the back seat.

"What is going on, Edward? I want to know," I practically demanded, staring directly at him.

Sighing exasperatedly and reaching over to buckle the seat belt I had neglected, he finally said, "I only want to say it once. Can you just wait until we get home? You'll know then."

Begrudgingly accepting this proposition, I settled back into my seat for the ride home, not even noticing the trees as they flew by.

"Deputy," Edward remarked once, but other than that, the brief drive was all too silent. Everyone except Alice ran in ahead when we stopped in the driveway, right beside the house. The small vampire came to my side, taking some of my things when I got out.

"Is it really all that bad?" I asked in a sigh, searching her face for honesty.

"It could turn that way," she admitted, putting an arm around me as she had done in the bathroom and leading me inside at my own pace. We stopped to remove our coats in the foyer (in which the bench, I noticed, had been put back) when I decided Elizabeth Masen's pearls needed to come off too. Alice took them from me and disappeared to put them away, with the instruction that I wait there for her. Confusion was my primary response to such an odd request, but further than that I didn't speculate because she was already back.

"We're having a family meeting," she explained upon seeing my puzzled face, guiding me to the dining room.

"Did I do something wrong?" I wondered vulnerably, aghast that I might have done something to hurt their chances of staying in Forks.

"No, of course not!" Alice exclaimed, a shocked expression stuck on her elfin features. "Why would you think that?"

"Well, Edward didn't want to tell me and I thought… I don't know. I was just worried and I didn't want to do something to mess up your chances of staying…" By the last word, my voice had become nearly inaudible with mortification over my mistaken guess.

"Oh, Mir," Alice groaned and sighed simultaneously, shaking her head in pure exasperation, but saying nothing more. Everyone at the table when we approached seemed to be holding back amusement somehow. At the head of the table, Carlisle's mouth was tight from holding back a smile. On his right, Esme held a hand over her smiling lips, and on his left, Edward's eyes gleamed with sharp humor. Emmett shook with chuckles between Esme and a pleasanter-faced Rosalie. Last to catch my eye, Jasper positively trembled with repressed snickering two seats down from Edward. I could feel my cheeks and ears heat up in reaction.

As Alice pushed me ahead of her around the side of the table and took a seat on the other side of Jasper, Edward offered me a helping hand into my chair and wondered irritably, albeit amusedly, "How your mind works itself into these kinds of knots, I will never know."

Glaring instead of blushing now, I folded my arms across my chest and stared at the table. Unwillingly, I felt the irritation fade thanks to Jasper's finger against my exposed elbow. Coughing past a slight chuckle, Carlisle finally began the meeting. "Alice, you only said there is a troubling development amongst some of the students. Can you explain now?"

"It was actually Edward who noticed it first," Alice answered, turning grim. "I told you of the girls who were talking about Mireille. And a little about us…"

The brothers all growled and I could have sworn I felt vibrations from the men on either side of me. Carlisle nodded his acknowledgement, eyeing me sympathetically when I grimaced. Alice eyed me in concern, too, before she went on, "Well, Edward heard the senior, Vanessa Travis, think of teaching Mireille her 'place' in the school."

A loud gasp left Esme and me at the same time, our eyes wide and expressions disturbed. Edward and Jasper each took one of my hands, one to calm and the other to comfort.

"Is that why we left?" I asked quietly, hardly able to believe someone hated me that badly already.

"Not that moment, no," Alice sighed unhappily, traces of anger in her voice. "What settled it was when Rosalie overheard – and I saw – Vanessa, her boyfriend Greg, and her junior friend Whitney planning to jump you after the dance."

"What!" I yelped in deeper shock and added fear.

"I'm sorry," Alice sighed again, her face troubled. "I think it's because they don't feel any resistance to you, since you're human. They don't feel that need to stay away."

"And they are heaping all their jealousy for our family onto the one member they now feel they can safely alienate," Rosalie added coldly.

"That's why you didn't want me walking off by myself," I suddenly pieced together, turning to face Edward with recognition dawning on my face.

"I didn't know when they would head outside precisely," he nodded gravely. "I was afraid they might get even a hit or two in before we could reach you."

"We need to employ deterrents as much as possible," Jasper suggested knowledgeably.

"You obviously have thought out some options," Carlisle sighed, deeply troubled by the developments. "What are you planning?"

"We have to make sure one of us in each of her classes," Edward replied.

"And I'll be coming with her if she needs to use the bathroom," Alice added apologetically. "It's the only safe way."

"But they already have my class worksheet," I said worriedly.

"We can get into the system and change it," was Emmett's blasé solution, shrugging as he spoke.

"Er… okay."

"You'll have to get used to it, Mir," the big vampire laughed, no longer bothered now that we had a plan. "Got to do what you got to do."

Edward snorted sarcastically, but thankfully the meeting came to an end before he could say anything.

"Just be on the alert," Carlisle concluded, focusing on me in particular. "It may not be your usual way, but please be extremely cautious."

Nodding was the extent of my response as we all rose from the table or – in the case of Rosalie, Emmett, Alice, and Jasper – disappeared entirely.

A thought hit me then, however. "What about sunny days?"

"You should probably miss those as a rule of thumb," Carlisle sighed.

"Okay," I sighed also.

"I know you would prefer to stay if possible," he apologetically replied. "I wish you didn't have to miss, but for both our cover story and your safety, it would be best."

Nodding resignedly, I decided changing was my next order of business, so I went upstairs to my closet.

After I removed my shoes, washed my face, and took my hair down, however, I found I didn't want to take my dress off. For a fashion statement, it was remarkably comfortable and the skirt was freeing in a way. After dances in high school, I had always felt a strange urge to keep the dresses on after I returned home. I was never sure why.

Scuffing the carpet on my way into the main area of the room, I wondered why the girls at the high school would be so angry that they would want to hurt me. It bothered me more than I had admitted or shown at the meeting downstairs, much as I tried to quell the feeling. Slouching overtook me and I sighed as I sat disconsolately on the edge of the bed facing the office space.

"You aren't the first one they've decided to haze," Edward spoke consolingly from behind me. "It's not because of anything you've done."

I just shrugged. Did it matter much anyway? They were doing it to me regardless.

"Of course it matters," he sighed, walking around the bed to face me. When I refused to look up from my feet hanging off the side of the bed, he knelt before me and lifted my chin with his fingertip. "I just want to make sure you aren't blaming yourself for their decision to be bullies."

"I'm not," I replied honestly. "I've just never had to face this kind of… of… persecution, I guess. I'm not used to being so blatantly despised."

"I know," he allowed gently, pulling his finger away. "Try not to let it get you down. Vanessa and Greg will be gone by June. I've heard their thoughts about college and getting out of this place for good. Whitney doesn't really want to join in on their hazing anyway, so once the seniors are gone, she won't even bother with that behavior. We'll keep you safe until then."

"Thanks," I smiled slightly at him, though I was still feeling a little down.

"Why don't we put some music on?" Edward suggested on a much lighter note, standing in a lightning quick movement and offering his hands to me. "Pick whatever you want. As a matter of fact, why don't you dig through your CD case? I'm curious as to what you like that I don't have."

"And probably won't ever have," I said wryly. "Celine Dion will never be your style, for one thing."

"Do tell," he chuckled, letting me walk ahead of him.

"Do you mind if I listen to her?" I made sure, looking over my shoulder at his good-humored face.

"I did say pick whatever you want," he pointed out.

After picking out one of my Celine Dion CDs and putting it in, I took a seat on one of the two armless, pale aqua chairs that flanked the hall on either side, Edward's dark gold drapes for acoustics covering the pale gold wall behind them. Edward slipped onto his reupholstered sofa, bravely facing the music he could hardly be a big fan of. Everything went fairly simply for a while, Edward behaving quite kindly about my musical preference, until it got to track fourteen 'I Hate You Then I Love You'.

I'd always enjoyed the song's mixture of Celine Dion's voice and Luciano Pavarotti's – the mix of pop and opera. But two minutes into the song, Edward gave me no warning when I heard something that threw me for a complete one-eighty.

"You make me long for you…" came a loud and false Italian operatic voice from behind us, clearly trying to match the way Pavarotti sang the words.

Turning slowly around, my jaw fallen open and eyes nearly popping out, I found Emmett standing in a more casual outfit of jeans and tee shirt at the end of the hall as he continued to imitate Pavarotti's part of the song. Thirty seconds of staring at his dramatic face and listening to his purposely ridiculous attempts, and I got a second shock in the form of a high soprano imitating Celine Dion's part just as exaggeratedly as Emmett, "Then I love you… I love you more…"

Alice appeared at Emmett's elbow, also in a more casual outfit, the two of them now feeding off of each other and getting more melodramatic every time they sang a new line. When they finished the soft, slow ending with a cheesy look of adoration, I sat gaping in blatant disbelief, only vaguely recognizing Edward's heavily muffled snickers. Alice found time to snap a picture of me in my frozen pose and Edward bent over with laughter.

"Well, how was it?" Emmett had the gall to ask, grinning wider than should be allowed after such a disgustingly blasphemous performance. Edward finally exploded with laughter and I could hear a matching laugh somewhere on the other side of Emmett and Alice, the combined roar startling me into facing that ducked head of bronze with saucer-sized eyes.

"Is he serious?" I asked at last, my voice high and incredulous. More laughter broke out and I did not get an answer. The blank look on Emmett's face told it all, anyway.

"Come on, Em," Alice sighed, shaking her head in mock sadness. "Some people just don't appreciate artists."

"See if we serenade you again," Emmett scolded, shaking his finger at me like I was a misbehaving puppy before he left with his tiny sister.

"You should have seen your face," Edward still laughed, though now capable of sitting up. "It was absolutely priceless."

"That was complete misrepresentation," I retorted. "I loved that song and now I don't even think I'll be able to listen to it again without cringing."

"He just thought you needed cheering up," Edward murmured hesitantly, his smile becoming more serious. Pretty much instantly, I felt ungrateful.

"I'm not trying to give you a guilt-trip," he told me before I could even wonder. "I would probably be just as annoyed if Emmett and Alice did that to me. Actually more so… I'm just letting you know Emmett didn't intend to ruin the song for you."

"Sorry, Emmett," I muttered almost under my breath, ashamed of being so touchy about a stupid song. "And Alice."

"It's okay." It was Alice who appeared in the alcove again, looking quite accepting. "Emmett would say the same, but Rosalie is kind of upset with him."

'Why?' the question rang in my mind. I knew better than to say it aloud with Rosalie possibly listening.

Edward left and then reappeared with a pad of paper and a pen, scribbling a note at a human pace and offering it to me.

She secretly loves Celine Dion and Emmett knows that, but he still made fun of it. He wasn't thinking; he just didn't like the sad look on your face downstairs, so he wanted to make you feel better.

"Oh," I sighed, again feeling ashamed of my negative reaction. Why couldn't I have just laughed? It was pretty funny, now that I thought back on it. As a matter of fact, if I had been reading a fanfiction story where Emmett and Alice did that, I would have cracked up.

"Don't worry about it so much," Alice tried to reassure me, smiling convincingly. "You've had a nasty shock tonight. And remember to change out of that dress before bed. You'll be achy all tomorrow if you don't."

My lips twitched. "Okay."

"Night, Mir!" she chirped and sped out the door. I didn't bother to say goodnight.

"Would you like to sleep now?" Edward inquired. "It's been a long day for you."

"I guess I should if I want to be up at a reasonable time tomorrow," I admitted, rising from the chair and moving into my closet to change into a pair of white and pink pajamas.

Edward already had a soft classical piece playing just loud enough for me to hear from the bed and the covers of said bed pulled down for me. The vampire himself waited at the foot of the bed, searching for something in the cushioned bench.

"What are you looking for?" I asked through a lengthy yawn, stretching my arms above my head comfortably.

"Gatsby," he murmured absently, rising from his bent position with a thoughtful frown on his face. "Do you know where it went?"

"I thought it was in the window seat," I commented with a frown of my own as I tried to remember where I had seen the book last.

"I could have sworn it ended up in here," he said, pointing down to the bench. "Are you sure it was in the window seat?"

"Oh!" I exclaimed as I recalled finally. "It was mine in the window seat. I don't know where your copy went."

"Strange," he uttered with pursed lips. "I'll have to look for it."

"Just use mine," I shrugged. "I'm not going to need it while I'm sleeping, you know."

"If you don't mind," he acquiesced.

I shook my head, climbing into bed and pulling the covers over me while he searched out The Great Gatsby in the window seat.

"Goodnight, Edward," I yawned again, settling further into the blankets. It was amazing how quickly sleep crept up on me once I was cocooned.

"Goodnight, Mireille," Edward responded and removed himself to the alcove for the night.

The next morning I woke up earlier than I had expected, feeling strangely energetic – enthusiastic, even – as I washed up, brushed my teeth, and later pulled my hair back into a high ponytail. I didn't think much on the reason for it, but I was glad when Edward let me know Jasper wasn't around to be driven crazy by my unexpected emotions.

"Where is he?" I questioned him through my closet door, which I had left open a couple inches so I could talk with him while I changed into dark gray pants, a light pink sweater, and sequined flats to match.

"Hunting," he answered simply.

"I'm guessing Alice went with him?"

"Yes. Emmett and Rosalie went, too."

"What about you?"

"I went with Carlisle and Esme last night, a little while after you fell asleep," he explained.

"Oh, that's good," I said, pulling on my jeans. "By the way… um, this is kind of an embarrassing question, but how are you ignoring my mind right now?"

"By focusing on Carlisle's," he confessed laughingly. "He's reading a Lithuanian medical text for me."

"You asked him to do that?" I giggled a little.

"No, he just knows me all too well," Edward sounded highly entertained.

"And now he's probably grinning over this conversation," I laughed, finally slipping into the flats and exiting the closet to find Edward smiling himself.

"He is," was the amused reply. My good humor was thoroughly disrupted when I noticed the Twilight books sitting on the chair by Edward's closet.

"I hope you don't mind," he frowned slightly, catching the slight downturn of my thoughts. "On Wednesday, you said we would discuss them today, so…"

"I did, didn't I?" Much as I became nervous about the family reading the books, I realized now that my enthusiasm was also caused by the day's events. "When are the others coming back?"

"Alice said they'd be here in an hour," he answered more comfortably. "After you eat breakfast, Carlisle wants to talk for a few minutes about the books."

"Okay," I nodded, wondering what he would wish to talk about, but not asking. I would find out soon enough anyway.

Breakfast was just as rushed as my energy pushed me to be. Within fifteen minutes of sitting down to eat eggs, fruit, and yogurt, I was heading upstairs with Esme to Carlisle's office, where the patriarch and Edward sat talking in low voices. Their conversation ceased when I entered the room, though I could tell it wasn't because they were hiding anything. Just simple courtesy.

"Hello, Mireille," Carlisle greeted me with a smile. "How are you this morning?"

"Energetic for some reason," I confessed lightly, taking the seat parallel to Edward's in front of the desk while Esme moved to perch on the arm of her husband's chair. Carlisle's arm slipped unconsciously about her waist. "Must be because we're planning to discuss the books or something."

"That's good," he chuckled.

"You wanted to talk about them, right?" I prompted patiently.

"Not exactly," he hedged, obviously curious. "…I found some other items of yours."

"What do you mean?" I wondered in surprise. "We searched everywhere, didn't we Edward?"

"Everywhere that was available at the time," he corrected with a wry expression.

"I don't get it," I admitted, frowning very deeply.

"When you searched the house," Carlisle started to explain, "I had left my case of journals and paperwork in my office at the hospital. It was only Friday that I brought it home. And only today that I looked through it."

"What was in it?" was my stunned inquiry.

"The first thing I noticed was this manuscript," he told me, tapping a loosely bound stack of paper on the desk before him. "I only read the title, which I recall you telling me about."

"Midnight Sun," I labeled it without even looking at it.

"Yes," he nodded. "But there are also these smaller, bound packets. I believe they are those outtakes and extra scenes you mentioned."

Almost dazedly I lifted up each packet and read off the titles. Sure enough, they were the various extras that Stephenie Meyer had posted on her website.

"But why are they printed? I never had a physical copy of any of these. They were all on the computer."

"Maybe in the future you typed them yourself, so you would have a physical copy," Edward mentioned with a shrug.

"I guess that makes sense," I sighed. "I did start to type copies of the books, since I was writing… well…"

I didn't want to admit I had been typing a characters-read-the-book fic. That was irony of the worst kind.

"A characters read the book fic?" Edward quoted, stamping out a grin viciously. "I guess you didn't spare any expense this time, did you?"

"Shut up!" I exclaimed, laughing a bit and trying to shove his immobile body.

"All right," Carlisle laughed, holding his hands up to stop our quibbling.

"Now," he continued after we had calmed. "Mireille, there's more."

"More?" I half yelped. If it wasn't any of Stephenie Meyer's writing… "Oh no! Please, don't tell me my stories are there!"

Carlisle and Edward's grinning faces sent me groaning miserably into my hands, "This is going to be awful."

"It will not be," Edward ribbed, poking my shoulder in an effort to have me look at him. It failed, I was proud to say.

"Mireille, we won't read them if you don't want us to," Esme laughed understandingly. "But we are all rather curious how you wrote about us before you actually met us."

"And I think it's ironic," Edward added, "that only significant things have shown up for you. It makes me think these are important, too."

I couldn't speak. My face would probably never return to its normal color if they read my stories.

"It's entirely up to you, my dear," Carlisle offered, chuckling as my face flooded with red. "I just wanted you to know they are here."

Not once would I ever allow myself to read those stories, even for myself. Edward would be able to see it, so there was no way.

"I'm not going to blackmail you or anything," the vampire in question scoffed. "I just find it fascinating, that's all."

"Carlisle," I forced my self to speak at last, "Did you read anything of those?"

"A line or two," he admitted, making me groan again. "But only because I wondered what they were. After I realized, I stopped reading. I am sorry, though."

"Why does this have to happen to me?" I asked myself. "Of all the embarrassing things…"

"It's not like you knew us then," Edward protested. "It's not going to make us angry. As long as you don't have Esme married to… Emmett… Well, that might disgust us or make us laugh, actually, but that's not the point."

Esme blanched at the suggestion of her and Emmett married, and under better circumstances I would have joined Carlisle in muffling laughter. Sighing, I finally said embarrassedly, "After you have read all of the books and extra scenes… I'll think about it, okay? Just don't expect it, please."

"Very well," Carlisle chuckled again. "Aside from that, I wanted to talk to you about your education."

"What about it?" I inquired nervously, still mostly looking at my feet.

"I wonder if you would like to have lessons for the rest of this semester," he suggested. "To catch you up on the things you remember and help you understand things you've never taken."

"That would be nice, probably," I agreed, daring to catch his eye. Kind was his gaze, so I didn't look away.

"Most of the lessons would have to be on the weekend, since I work and the others go to school. But if there is something you could learn from Esme, then that could happen during the week. Now, as far as what your lessons will be, that depends on what you desire help with."

"Everything," I responded flatly. "Maybe even some subjects I was supposed to have learned before this semester, like geometry and world history."

"All right," he nodded, turning slightly businesslike as he wrote down my preferences. "So lessons in geometry, algebra, Spanish, English, history, and chemistry?"

"That sounds about right," I nodded, feeling the blush finally fade from my cheeks.

"When would you get up in the mornings?"

"I don't know. I want to get up early so I get in a routine for school, so…"

"How about six o'clock?" Esme suggested. "It usually takes you a little under an hour-and-a-half to get ready and have breakfast. And school starts at seven-thirty, so that's exactly enough time."

"Works for me."

"Would you like your lessons to cover an average school day?" Carlisle asked. "Or would you like them spread out more, so you can take breaks in-between?"

"Spread out," I immediately answered.

"All right. What I want you to do, then, is work on laying out a plan at some point tomorrow. List everything you'd like to spend time doing throughout the day, your meals, and your lessons. Then try mapping out a schedule you feel comfortable with."

"All right," I agreed easily. It actually sounded fun; like I was putting together a puzzle.

"As for reading the books," the doctor continued, "We'll have to create something of schedule for that, too. We can start today, however, if everyone agrees."

"We do!" Alice cried excitedly as she burst into the room, laying a cheery kiss on the crown of my head, pulling me to my feet, and dragging me out the door as she called behind her, "Bring all the books, the extras, and the manuscript, Carlisle!"

Her father, mother, and brother's laughter followed us to the stairs shortly before the three people themselves did. Quicker than I had expected, the entire family gathered in the living area – even Rosalie. She and Emmett shared a couch, as did Carlisle and Esme. Edward and I took the chairs, and Jasper and Alice sat on the floor in front of the hearth.

As Edward laid all the books and writings in front of us on the huge coffee table, Alice added more quietly, "Mireille has some points to make before we begin, so we need to listen."

In spite of my nervousness, I tried to remember everything I had thought about warning them of, or explaining beforehand.

"Well, the first thing is just… remember this has not even happened yet. I don't feel it would be fair to get really angry or yell at anyone for something they haven't said or done. A little reaction is understandable, since none of us are automatons, but please don't start screaming at someone or… blaming them for things that haven't occurred."

I couldn't help my gaze sliding to Rosalie, who I was sure would be furious when she saw how Edward kept messing up around Bella.

"I'm guessing you mean me, in particular?" she asked dryly, raising an eyebrow at my brief glance.

"Well in Twilight, especially, you kind of flip out on Edward," I tired to carefully word my answer, though it wasn't working out quite how I'd hoped. "I just would prefer if you didn't do that here. Mentally or verbally. There are things you won't like and I know I can't stop you, but… I'm just asking you not to go calling names…"

My words softened to practically nothing at the end. How in the world could I convince Rosalie to not be angry? It seemed an impossible task. Feeling uncomfortable under her steady golden stare, I fidgeted and shrugged, looking down at my hands.

"What else did you want to say?" Carlisle intervened gently.

"Um… well, Esme," I started more nervously than ever, trying still to keep my words kind. "Edward's behavior in the books can be rude and… well, kind of dumb sometimes. No offense, Edward."

"None taken," he smirked while Emmett laughed loudly.

"Anyway, I don't know how big you are on pointing out rudeness and all that, but I think you might want to ease up on it while we read. It's only going to get people down if their every little word is scolded and reproached."

"I try not to be too demanding on that count," Esme actually laughed. "I know that everyone's sense of humor and rudeness can be quite different from mine, so I do try to curtail too much reprimanding. Thank you for reminding me, though, dear."

Breathing a sigh a relief, I moved onto something else. "Okay, another thing is you, Emmett."

"What'd I do?" he instantly asked. Everyone laughed at his quick expectation of having done something wrong.

"Just limit the making-fun, please?" I begged with the best puppy dog pout I could muster.

"Uh…" Emmett tried to reply, scratching his head in some confusion as he tried to get past my pouting features. "Okay…"

"Thank you," I smiled sweetly at him in gratitude, ignoring the restrained laughter from the rest of the family.

"Oh, they learn so fast," Alice sniffled as if she were letting go of her baby for the first time.

"Alice? I'm almost twenty-one years old here."

"Oh, shut up," she giggled, reaching over to push my knee lightly.

"One thing I wanted to say is for you, Edward," I informed him seriously.

"Yes?" he prompted with equal seriousness.

"You have to have hope. Got me?"

Tilting his head to examine my earnest face, Edward stretched out his arm across the space between us to take my hand in his. "I'll try."

Smiling at his willingness, I figured it was time to admit to something I had been concealing for a few days. I didn't allow myself to focus on Edward's confused face.

"Jasper?" I addressed the former Major hesitantly after a minute, but found I couldn't push the words out of my mouth when he looked at me expectantly. Instead, I looked to Alice to see if my question would be all right.

She answered my question with glazed eyes. "It's all right, Mireille. You can ask him."

"Ask me what?" Jasper queried patiently, leaning forward in interest.

Taking a deep breath, I asked, "Would Maria have any reason to come after you?"

Taken aback, Jasper's eyes widened slightly. "I don't know. I mean… I realize she lost a lot of territory without my ability under her control, but when we met her again in Calgary, she left fairly peaceably. For her, at least. Why are you concerned about that? Do the books…?"

"No, she never appears in them," I quickly reassured him. "The only time she's brought up is when you finally tell Bella your story."

"Then why?"

"I just… I don't really know how to say it… I've had a strange feeling for a few days."

"What kind of feeling?" he asked me as calmly and as practiced as if he were talking Alice through a vision.

"A feeling that I'm going to meet Maria."

The room erupted in shocked exclamations, even from Edward and Alice, but Jasper stayed remarkably quiet, a pensive and calculating look on his face.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Edward demanded, aghast at my hidden feelings.

"I didn't want anyone to freak out," I rapidly defended myself. "Maybe it's only because of me reading Jasper's story that I started feeling like that. Maria freaks me out as a general rule, so maybe I was just being paranoid. Maybe I'm still adjusting to being in a totally different world from what I've known…"

"That night," Jasper spoke calmly, pushing the feeling through the room, "when we first found your certificates and the books, you felt a sudden spike of hate… Was that for Maria?"

I merely nodded my assent.

"And you also feel that you'll meet her somehow?"

"Yes," I added very quietly, blue locking with bright gold.

Jasper was silent for a long moment, until he finally frowned and spoke, "I can't explain why, but I believe Mireille may be right."

"What?" Esme gasped concernedly. "But that would mean…"

"Death," Rosalie bluntly put forth, though her eyes were steely. I shivered unconsciously.

"Or change," Edward suggested more quietly, taking my hand again.

"If Mireille turns out to have a gift that is noticeable in this life, then yes," Jasper agreed with his brother. "Maria has a distinct sense about gifted vampires, although she does not know what the gifts are. She has no actual ability like Eleazar has. Just intuition. Perhaps that is all Mireille has, but I'm afraid of risking that assumption."

"As am I," Carlisle added gravely. "Mireille, do you feel that this is a very imminent danger?"

"No, not really," I shook my head. "More like it will happen eventually."

"At least there's that," Emmett frowned.

Jasper again gazed at my face, but I was unable to read his expression. At last, he spoke. "I don't ever want you to meet that creature, Mireille. I hardly know what I would have to do to prevent it, but I would do most anything to keep someone from being forced into the kind of life I once led. I don't want you to become like me."

"That depends on how you mean," I argued softly, daring to reach for his clenched hand. He stiffened, but Alice gently stopped him from moving. "If you mean living through the hell that you did, then I agree. But if you mean your personality… Well, I hope I can have as much dignity and strength as you've had."

"Don't argue!" I snapped commandingly as he moved to interrupt, startling him. "No one could live through that and then lead this kind of life without strength of character."

Pausing to take in the force behind my words, Jasper finally nodded, "Thank you."

"Welcome," I mumbled, slouching back in my seat and watching Alice wrap her tiny arms around Jasper's chest.

"I don't feel there is much we can do if we do not at least catch a glimpse of our futures," Carlisle said in conclusion. "Let's start reading, shall we?"

"I think alternating chapters of Twilight and Midnight Sun should be read until the end of the manuscript," I suggested.

"A good idea," Carlisle agreed.

"Oh!" I recalled suddenly that certain people should probably not read certain chapters. Like Rosalie reading 'Port Angeles'. I winced at the implications of that. "Some of you probably shouldn't read particular chapters of the books, so I need to know the chapter title before you start reading. If I stop someone from reading, please don't be upset."

"After each chapter we'll just hand the book over to you for a decision," Alice agreed, handing the first book over to me. "Why don't you start?"

"Actually," I hesitated, laying the book back down, to everyone's curious stares. "I have one last suggestion to make."

"We're listening," Edward replied for all concerned.

"I think you should read them aloud, but at a vampire pace," I announced. Protests arose, but I waved them away. "I've already read the books. I don't need to go through them again to know what happens and how I feel or what I think about it. But I think for time purposes we could finish most of this very soon and plan as soon as possible for any changes that need to be made. What I do ask, however, is that you stop at the end of the first chapter, at least, and we'll all discuss it. Otherwise, it's more productive for me to wait out each chapter. While you're reading it together, I could even make a list of who is best to read each chapter."

"That does sound like an exceedingly wise plan," Carlisle smiled. "But why don't you take a few minutes to work out the readers beforehand? We have time for that if we're reading at our speed. Does everyone agree?"

Nods around the room convinced me we could begin and I removed the glossy book cover to have only the matte black binding underneath. As I opened the cover of Twilight to write down who would read each chapter, I felt my fingers tingling in anticipation of a very rough journey for me and my new friends.

A/N: Thank you to everyone who reviewed Chapter 12: Irksome!