Hi! Yes, I am indeed still alive. I am really sorry that I didn't update at all for months, but real life takes priority over fiction. Too bad, actually, but I needed to work. I'm going to try to give you one more chapter before the new year, as I'm going to travel to the US for a while and most likely won't be able to update at all for a month.
I hope you all have a nice Christmas/holidays and enjoy this chapter.
Disclaimer: S Meyer and JK Rowling own it all. All I own is Vivi.
Chapter 25 - EPOV
I heard Mrs Tonks usher both people to the room we were all in, Esme running at full speed to the kitchen to bring something warm for them to drink.
They both looked like they'd been to war. Their clothes were torn and dirty, there was blood matted to Draco's hair and Narcissa's eye was a sickly shade of purple.
"What do you mean he escaped, where was he?" Mrs Tonks asked as the two Malfoys sipped their warm teas.
"We were keeping him as a sort of prisoner in our cellar." Narcissa said, and I saw Vivi shudder and close her eyes in fear. The images in her head were getting darker and darker, so I swiftly motioned for Bella to go to her younger sister.
Bell caught on quite quickly what was going on and went to aid her sister.
"He didn't actually have his wand since the Dark Lord took it and it shattered during battle, but the one he was using we confiscated. It didn't work well with him, but we found it best to keep it.
"We didn't want him in Azkaban, though he was kept there for a while, but we also did not want to see him roaming around as if he had done nothing wrong. He didn't... doesn't think he's wrong at all. He was a madman, so we thought better to keep him away. But he subdued me last night as I brought his supper. We fought, but he escaped. I'm scared, we all know what he's capable of doing."
I saw the whole story run through her mind as she recounted it, and could see his crazed eyes. Lucius Malfoy was a dangerous man, and right now he was on the loose.
"How did you know where we were?" Dora asked, looking suspiciously at her aunt. "Actually, how did you find us the last time as well, at the Cullen's house?"
"Your mother told me you'd be here for Christmas. As for last time, I believe your friend Parvati, was it? Yes, Parvati let it slip while she shopped in Diagon Alley. I just had to find the right house, which wasn't that difficult at all.
"Dromeda invited us for the feast, but we thought it'd be better if we didn't interfere."
They all nodded. Despite all, the Malfoys had done more than enough to hurt their image with the people in this room, and it would take a while for everyone to trust them, that is if they ever do.
Draco sat silently next to his mother, drinking his tea with a haunted look in his eyes.
Hermione took pity on the boy and waved her wand a few times, making all his cuts and bruises disappear.
He smiled genuinely at her, truly grateful for her help.
Mrs Tonks did the same to her sister, and sent them to the nearest bathroom to get rid of the dried blood.
Meanwhile, people started to say goodbye. Most of the Weasleys went home, Bill and his wife had things to do, Charlie just wanted to go back to work and George had to open the shop. Mr and Mrs Weasley bade us all goodbye before following their sons, and Mr Lovegood left soon after.
Everyone that stayed helped out with cleaning the mess we had done, and by the time we were done, both Malfoys were back, looking cleaner and in better shape.
Mrs Tonks suggested they went to her house, and from her mind I gathered she noticed her sister and nephew made everyone else uncomfortable. They used the fireplace to floo them over and in a matter of seconds, the three were gone.
Tonks claimed she didn't want to leave her mother alone with them, so she asked if Bella minded watching Teddy for a while, which made my love beam and agree quickly. Dora left soon after, telling us she'd let us know when it was safe to go back.
"Maybe we could go out for a bit." I suggested, knowing Bella wanted to be away for a while.
"Think Teddy would like that?" She asked. It was pretty cold outside and she didn't want him to be sick.
"Yeah, we'll bundle him up. C'mon, ask your sister and we'll go somewhere we can talk freely. There's something you should know." I decided on telling them what I had heard before we left Hogsmeade and things I heard in Narcissa's mind just now. Putting it all into perspective was eye opening.
I needed to tell Bella about it. I didn't want her to get mad at me if I held things back.
She went to collect Teddy's things while I put all our gifts into one of those bags Bella loved to carry around. I was done quickly, bringing everything into my car as fast as I could.
Vivi and Bella were saying goodbye to their friends, hugging them and letting them know about the New Year party they would hold at their mother's house. They finished putting on their coats and hats, Bella taking extra care to make sure Teddy was warm enough to go out, and we headed out.
"Thanks for the ride." Vivi said as she got into the car, which I had left running so it would be warm enough when they got in.
"Of course. Though I did want to talk to both of you about something. Is there someplace we could talk privately but still take Teddy?" I explained. He still didn't have control over his features, so his face and hair changed a lot depending on what he saw, and even though he was wearing a hat, he loved changing his nose and that would not bode well with muggles.
"We could go to the Leaky Cauldron, or better yet, let's try Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour, he sells hot beverages during winter. It's more secluded than the Leaky Cauldron and less shady. That pub's not for Teddy." Bella argued as she strapped Teddy in and went to the passenger side.
I nodded, taking off towards said pub. It took us a little while to get there due to the snow, but it was still relatively fast. Bella took Teddy from the car while Vivi went ahead and opened the portal with her wand.
In no time at all, the four of us were sitting in an almost deserted Ice Cream Parlor drinking hot chocolate. Well, Vivi and Bella were drinking while Teddy slept in my fiancee's arm and I watched.
"So, what was it that you wanted to tell us?" Bella asked as she adjusted her nephew on her lap.
"First of all, I didn't tell you before because I didn't understand it, not because I didn't want to. It didn't make much sense to me, but after your aunt's visit, it's a bit clearer. Also, with all that happened in the past couple of days I just wanted some quiet time. I think I should have learned by now there's no such thing with you involved." I smiled slightly towards my Bella.
"I also don't want you to worry too much, as I know you're both still working on coming to terms with all that happened."
"Just tell us." Vivi begged.
"It's not solid information, mind you, but when we were leaving Hogwarts, I heard something suspicious from someone's mind. It wasn't clear and I didn't recognize the voice, so I don't know who it was, but basically they were thinking about something else to do to scare 'the Tonks sisters'. The thought strayed to your uncle for a while, so I think he was involved somehow, though I'm not sure how. Now that he's on the loose, it's quite dangerous for you to be alone." I concluded.
"Your aunt was very worried about that, and she didn't want any more harm to come to you. She kept thinking back to all things Lucius had plotted against people, and somehow the connection was there. She also thinks he was somehow responsible for Vivi's poisoning."
Both sisters were staring at me in disbelief.
"When we get back to Hogwarts, I'll try to find the voice I heard. It shouldn't be that hard."
They nodded.
"I knew it wasn't just some school prank gone wrong. Slughorn tried to play it off, but I knew it was intentional. What now, what do we do?" Bella asked me, her eyes begging for some solution.
"I don't know, my love. I do know I'm not leaving any of you unprotected anymore until we go back to school. There's always gonna be one of us with you for now, okay?"
"Edward." She tried to argue, but that was something I wouldn't budge.
"Please, Bella. I know you can take care of yourself, but I could never live with myself if something happened to any of you while I had the power to help. He's a madman on the loose seeking revenge. Please, just go with it for once." I begged.
She sighed, looking at her sister for support.
"He's right, Bizzy. We do have more power with them around, spells won't affect them. It's better for us."
I smiled at my sister-in-law, glad she saw my way.
"Fine, okay. We'll stay over at Mum's and you can stay with us, that way we're all protected. You could get Esme and Carlisle to stay as well if it'll make you feel better."
She was still hurt over what Alice said, so I understood why my sister wasn't an option at the moment.
"It will." I smiled. "We'll take care of it, Bella. It's only for a few days, anyways, we'll soon be on our way to Hogwarts."
"What about Mum, Dora and Teddy? Will they be in danger?" Vivi asked. "As you said, we'll be gone soon."
"I don't think so, but we could suggest they stay in Hogsmeade for the rest of the school year or until he's captured again."
"Okay, so we'll need to go to your house first to grab our things before going to Mum's." Bella started. "I'm sorry, Edward, even without all this I would like to spend the holidays with my mum and sister. Especially after all that happened with Alice. I don't trust her right now and I truly don't want to spend the rest of my break in such an environment."
She looked apologetically at me, but I already knew she wouldn't want that.
"I know, love. And I agree with you, Alice took it too far. Her need to control everything got her out of control. She needs to learn a few things about family values, we all do."
They looked at me, waiting for an explanation.
"We all noticed how all of you behave with one another. Your family, the Weasleys, Hermione, everyone. You're not related by blood but still treat each other as if you were. The Christmas party made me realize just how much we lack as a family unit."
Bella opened her mouth to argue, but I kept going.
"We live together and we know almost everything about each other, but we don't act as family most of the time. The roles we play were established by convenience and I never took the time to really appreciate them.
"Carlisle and Esme are truly our parents. They stepped in when we were all lost and confused and helped structure our lives, but we don't treat them like that. It was just a lie we had to use in order to live among humans, though at home we didn't follow that.
"That's why I think Alice acted as she did. There were never any boundaries set when it came to her, or any of us for that matter. She has this need to control everything around her, and we let it happen because no one wanted to upset her. It took you standing up to yourself and your sister for me to realize Alice's behavior was not always good for the rest of us. She needs to learn to respect us and our decisions.
"That is one thing we lack, you know. Respect. I saw how everyone acts around your mother and Mrs Weasley, as if their words are the law. It's not something forced, just like how both of them act around you all. Mutual respect, they know their boundaries and you know yours, which makes your relationship so much better."
"What are you talking about, Edward, I know how much you respect Carlisle and Esme." Bella finally interrupted me.
"Of course I do, but it's not the same. I don't know how to explain it, we just feel different towards each other."
I truly didn't know how to explain it better, so I let it go for now.
Teddy woke up from his nap a few minutes later, looking around confused before seeing Bella and smiling.
"Had a good nap, buddy?" She asked as she played with his fingers.
He gurgled, making some unidentifiable noises. In his mind I could see an image of Bella, Vivi and me, letting me know he knew with whom he was.
"He's hungry." I let her know.
Smiling, she took something from her bag and put it on the table. Before opening, she asked Mr Fortescue if he could bring her a spoon. Teddy was being fed mashed apples and bananas in no time.
We spent the rest of the day talking and discussing our plans. Bella would talk to her mom and sister once we got back, and hopefully we'd be able to protect them from there.
My fiancée also theorized that Malfoy wouldn't do anything right now. She was under the impression some Death Eaters were still out there carrying on with their master's plan, though they were significantly weaker at the moment.
I couldn't help but agree with it. We didn't kill all of them during the battle, and it would be obvious for them to want revenge. This would never end, there would always be someone wanting to avenge someone else.
It was about five when we left to go to my house.
"I have to warn you," I started once I had parked, "the house is really crazy. Alice really overdid it."
Both sisters nodded.
"We'll be gone soon, Edward. I just want to talk to Carlisle and Esme so they can come with us. There's almost nothing to pack, anyways, we should be out quickly."
I nodded in agreement.
Bella unbuckled her nephew while Vivi and I waited. Both girls held on to me as we walked the few steps into the house, scared of slipping on the ice and falling.
They gasped loudly when they saw the interior, but otherwise said nothing. Teddy closed his eyes for a minute, the brightness hurting him.
"Told you." I murmured. "Let's go upstairs to pack."
We all ran up the stairs as fast as we could and soon Bella was throwing everything she had scattered around the room into her trunk. Teddy was sitting in the middle of the bed laughing as he saw his aunt run around.
Since she had only spent a day or so here, there wasn't much of a mess and she was done in under ten minutes. I threw some of my clothes in there, as well as some things I wanted to bring with me. When we were done, I grabbed her trunk and took in downstairs, going back up to get Vivi's.
My family was waiting for me when I got back down. They were all sitting in the living room, half the lights thankfully turned off as they followed my every move.
"We need to talk to you." I said as I sat Vivi's trunk next to Bella's by the door.
"Edward." Esme looked at me with a pained expression. "Is Bella very mad at us?"
I shook my head, letting her know it wasn't her Bella was mad at.
We sat in an uncomfortable silence for another five minutes as we waited for the Tonks'.
The three of them came down, Teddy looking around in fascination now that the lights weren't hurting his eyes.
Bella sat down next to me, her nephew safe in her arms, while her sister chose a chair not far from us. We were all facing the rest of my family.
"What do you need to tell us?" Jasper asked, surely picking up on our emotions.
"Well, as you can see..." I started. "Bella and Vivi decided on spending the rest of the holidays at their mom's house. I will join them as well."
Their minds were strangely quiet for this.
"I also wanted to ask if Carlisle and Esme would mind joining us." Bella asked.
They all looked at her, their thoughts showing they didn't understand the request.
"Her uncle is a crazed man." I told them. "And I don't want them unprotected, no matter what. We aren't susceptible to spells, so we can help."
"And I'd prefer if Carlisle and Esme could come with us as well." Bella finished off. "It would help keeping Edward from going crazy." She winked at me. "And I'm sure my mother would appreciate it as well."
"Are you sure, Edward?" Carlisle asked in his mind. I nodded at him, smiling slightly in silent conversation. Besides the protection help, it would be a good opportunity to talk to them both about our discoveries.
Esme and Carlisle seemed to have a quick silent conversation, and I pretended not to hear as they decided.
"It would be an honor." Esme finally answered, and my Bella let out a sigh of relief.
"Guess I did screw things up." I could hear Alice's thoughts, but for now decided on ignoring her. She would need more than that to earn my trust back.
We waited another ten minutes for them to gather their things, making small talk with Rosalie and Emmett. We told them what we thought about Lucius and his escape and what to look for on the news to see if it's related to him.
When Carlisle and Esme were ready to go, we bade the others goodbye and let them know we'd keep in touch and that that New Year party at the Tonks' was still on.
They followed us on their car, both showing a bit of relief from being out of the strained environment that was created in our home.
"This is a nice house." Esme said as we walked in. We both parked in their garage because of the cold, and the girls had ran in while I took care of the bags with Carlisle.
"Thank you." I heard Mrs Tonks reply.
"Mum, they're going to stay here until we go back to school." Bella said as we all sat down. Narcissa and Draco were still there, sipping their tea and looking better than a few hours ago.
"Why?" Mrs Tonks replied, merely curious.
Bella rolled her eyes at me, "Protection."
"Oh, and we'd be a lot less worried if you, Dora and Teddy stayed in Hogsmeade for the rest of the school year." I said before I lost them. "We don't know what's going to happen, but Bella had some theories that we don't want to prove right."
"Please, Mum?" Bella added. She didn't like having to rely on others for her protection, but that didn't apply to her family. She would do anything for her family.
They all agreed quite easily, which made me sigh in relief.
Esme and Mrs Tonks started a conversation about the house, while Carlisle looked around in fascination. Most things inside were magical, from pictures to clocks to fireplaces, and it was all incredible to him. I could tell he would enjoy his time here.
They stayed up until around midnight. Narcissa and Draco would spend the night before going back to their house, and they retreated early to the guest room.
When all the Tonks were fast asleep, I went downstairs to talk to my parents.
"Thanks for agreeing with this." I said as I sat down in front of them.
"It's no trouble, Edward." Esme smiled at me. "It gave us the chance to leave the madness that is our house at the moment."
"Yeah, sorry about that." I replied, running my hand through my hair.
"It's not your fault, my son." Carlisle said. "Alice got into this because of her actions alone, and not you nor Bella had anything to do with it. I confess I didn't like it when Bella first called attention to it that day, but I can see she was right."
I nodded. I knew my family hadn't liked it much when Bella called Alice out on what she was doing last summer, but I'm glad they're seeing it now. Bella was right, and it took her – an outsider – to show us how we were all behaving as a family.
"There's something else we need to talk to you about, but I want Bella here for that."
"You made a decision?" Carlisle asked, and I merely nodded in response.
Leaving them to it, I went back into Bella's room where I spent the rest of the night.
Her aunt and cousin left the next morning, and we all seemed lighter once they did. We spent the day going through all the Christmas gifts we got and sorting them out. Bella was delighted with the new books she got, and it made me happy to see her like this.
Once they had lunch, Bella and her family sat down again on the living room floor with parchments and ideas. I made my way to them, but Carlisle and Esme seemed reluctant to join us.
"Esme, what do you think about this centerpiece?" Bella asked as she showed my mother a picture they had come up with. Esme beamed, sitting down next to Bella to see all they had done so far.
"I wanted you to help, Esme." Bella whispered as they looked through things. "That's another reason we chose you two for this protection thing. I'm not comfortable with Alice at the moment, but I didn't want to keep you out of anything. You're important to me."
Esme's smile was beautiful as she heard that. She was scared my Bella would shut them all out because of what my sister said, but she's not like that.
We spent the afternoon planning and organizing everything. Bella had to choose her sisters' and friends' dresses, but almost everything else had been decided.
When night came, Bella and I took the opportunity to talk to my parents. She hadn't told her sisters about her plans yet, but we wanted to tell Carlisle and Esme together.
"Is something wrong, Edward?" Esme asked, her beautiful face marred by a frown.
"No, nothing's wrong, but we wanted to tell you something. It is of the utmost importance that you do not tell anyone else, though, no family, no one at Hogwarts, no one."
She nodded with her eyes wide open, wondering in her mind what was going on.
Bella took my hand in hers as we got comfortable on the couch. Esme did the same to Carlisle, who was smiling softly, knowing what we were going to tell her.
"Maybe I should go get that present you got me?" Bella said. I nodded, and asked her to bring the one she gave me as well, so we could tell both of them we were absolutely sure about our decision.
She was back in no time, holding two small boxes in her hands.
"Carlisle knows a bit about this, but we wanted you to know as well, Esme." I started, suddenly getting nervous and repeating myself.
"A few months ago, Bella made an astonishing discovery." I smiled at my fiancée. "She found a book that told us about something so improbable, it took me a while to just get around to the idea."
"What is it?" She asked in her mind, obviously anxious.
"She found out that, if a male vampire mates with a female human, she is able to get pregnant."
I could hear Esme gasp loudly as she reached for Carlisle's hand once again.
"It shocked me as well, and it took me some time to reach a decision. Bella is adamant we go through with it, and being here, seeing her with her family, her nephew, I know she'll be the best mother in the world. And I want it. I truly do." I said as I handed them both gifts.
"The decision was not easy, there are so many factors we still don't know about it and I got the feeling the author of the book truly wrote all he and the hybrid knew."
"Hybrid?" Esme asked as she opened Bella's tiny box, cooing over the small shoes.
"Yes, he was half-human and half-vampire. He said he could eat human food or drink blood, he had a heartbeat and he had a lot of vampire characteristics, such as speed and overly acute senses."
Esme had now opened the other box, her eyes getting misty as she once again saw the small bracelet.
"Our child will be half and half, but we have the advantage of my world to help us." Bella continued. "My mother is very good with healing spells, and it would probably be a good idea if both her and you, Carlisle, were in the room during my labor."
Carlisle nodded gravely, knowing the main point of my refusal at first, but Esme was puzzled.
"The human died, Esme." I told her bluntly. "The hybrid bit his way out."
My mother covered her mouth with a hand in shock.
"That's not going to happen, though. As I said, my mother can heal me very quickly."
"What else do you know?" They were both eager now.
"Well, we know he grew up quickly, but that can change apparently. He looked like an eighteen-year-old though he was over fifty at the time. His eyes were normal colors, his was brown and he had dark skin, since he was a descendent of an Amazonian tribe."
"This is wonderful." Esme looked at us in awe as she still admired the tiny contraptions in her hands. "Why does it have to be a secret?"
Bella sighed, resting her head on my shoulder.
"It's a difficult subject to many." I started. "I know you are very rational, and we didn't want to keep you in the dark, but you've seen how everything has been lately. The others are not ready to know, and we also don't want to get anyone's hopes up. What if it doesn't happen?" I told them.
"We also know about Rosalie's desire to be a mother." Bella continued. "And we just don't want to deal with her knowing about it before time." She looked apologetic. "I know you always wanted a child as well, Esme, but I know it's different with you."
"I just wanted my own child back." She sighed, understanding where we were going.
"I know Rosalie wouldn't let it go. She would exhaust all possibilities before realizing no one in my world could change her back into a human, nor could we make the changes her body would need to go through."
Esme nodded, "You're right. I do know it's not possible, and I have made peace with it, but we all know Rose." She smiled slightly. "I won't tell anyone, but can I just say now I can't wait for you to make me a Mémé." Her smiled got bigger.
"Mémé?" Bella asked with a smile.
"It's 'grandma' in French, plus it goes well with my name and when I don't look old enough to be a grandmother out here in the muggle world, we could still use it." She smiled brightly.
"You're right, it does sound good." Bella agreed. "What about you, Carlisle, what do you want to be called?"
He truly gave it some thought before replying, "Oh well, if Esme's going with French, I wouldn't mind being Papi." He smiled.
I sighed in relief when Bella announced she was going to bed. It had all gone better than expected, though I still had some things to discuss with my parents.
I went upstairs to see Bella to bed and came back once she was fast asleep.
Sitting down on the sofa, my parents soon joined me.
"I'm glad you chose this, Edward." Carlisle clapped a hand on my shoulder. "You'll never regret it."
I nodded. "I know. We still have some things to go through first, like the wedding, deciding on where we would live for a while – it's going to be some time before we move again, so we have to choose just right. We'll most likely stay in England, maybe buy a house somewhere near Bella's grandmother's house. Her sister will be living there, and probably Mrs Tonks as well.
"We would like to have our own house, but we don't want you too far away. Things might be strained now, but you are my parents and I will always want you around, especially if we have our child."
"I know Alice hurt you, guys." Esme said, putting her hand over mine. "And I see where we all went wrong with her. I think we should all sit down before we go back to Hogwarts and talk it all out."
"It's not just her, Esme. Didn't you see the way Bella, her immediate family and her friends behaved around each other? Those people are family. It doesn't matter that most of them are not blood related, they still treat each other as if they were.
"I have seen Hermione's protective streak when Rosalie tried to explain her actions. I know they would all do everything for each other, no matter what. Can any of us say that? Can we face each other and say we know one another so well there's no need to ask for respect, or quiet time, or even an honest opinion?
"We don't. I can say I know you all most of all, but it's not my own doing. I never had to try because I could always hear what you were thinking. I never asked you what your favorite flower is, Esme, but I know it's lavender because you thought about it once.
"Or you, Carlisle, we never truly talked about your struggles or weaknesses even though I know them all."
They looked at me intently, and I knew I had their full attention.
"I think that's what happened with Alice, and what could happen with the others. We enabled her, never truly telling her to stop and relying on her for decisions. It was wrong of us, but it was wronger of her for letting it happen, because she knew about it and basked in the attention.
"Rosalie needs to learn to respect people and she has to realized things won't go her way just because she said so. She should accept defeat once in a while, and listen to people. Have you seen how all the younger crowd in Bella's group treat the adults? Mrs Tonks, Mrs Weasley, even Mr Weasley who is more laid back, they all have Bella's and everyone else's attention. They are respected and they respect in return.
"That's something else we need to work on. It doesn't matter you barely look thirty, you are our parents and we should respect you no matter what. I was guilty of disrespect over stupid things, and I apologize again for that. You didn't have to keep us around after we were used to this world, but you did. The least we can do is treat you like the mother and father you truly are." I ranted.
"Jasper and Emmett aren't as bad, though Emmett should learn a thing or two about respect. I know he likes to joke, but sometimes it goes too far and no one tells him that. Jasper is the opposite, I can see he sometimes doesn't feel comfortable at home with us. Have we made it so hard for him to accept us as such?"
"I see your point, Edward." Carlisle interrupted me, "and you're right, we should revisit our family life. Esme's idea is good, we should have a meeting with all of us, Bella included, to discuss everything. She was the catalyst, but we'd been sitting on this for over fifty years."
"It's not her fault." I tried to defend her.
"We know, Edward. She was right in calling out Alice's behavior the first time, and though it's hard to admit, she was right in not involving everyone in her wedding plans. She has her priorities and maybe we should all see the way she behaves around her family and ours to see just how different it is."
"You've seen how she's been the past couple of weeks." I told them. "Just stay here for a few days and you'll see how her behavior differs. She's a lot more carefree around here, which is expected since these are people she's been around since she was born."
Esme nodded. "She needs to start to trust us again."
"She trusts you, Esme. She wouldn't ask you to help her with something as sacred to her as our wedding if she didn't. And you as well, Carlisle, she trusts you as well. The one thing I know for sure, though, is that it will take a long time for Bella to trust Alice again, maybe it won't ever happen.
"What she said hurt my Bella deep. It's one thing to not agree with something, it's another to criticize everything and insult others. Combined with Alice's behavior all those months ago, towards the family member Bella loves the most, it'll be difficult for them to be true friends." I gave them my opinion.
"I agree." Carlisle sighed. "And I never thought I'd say this, but I'm on Bella's side with this. My daughter went too far with her criticism."
We spent the rest of the night discussing things, getting to truly know each other. It was amazing how much I still didn't know about the people I have called my parents for over a century.
When dawn broke, I knew the Tonks' would awaken soon. When we heard Teddy's cry, Esme got up almost immediately, though I stopped her before she could do anything.
"Just stay here and observe." I asked her.
She sat back down with a small smile and we quietly saw as Mrs Tonks got into the kitchen to start on breakfast.
It wasn't long before Dora and Teddy made their way down, both smiling as she softly sang some lullaby to him.
She sat him down in a high chair and walked over to her mother to peck her on the cheek before anything else.
"Watcha cooking?" She asked as she looked over Mrs Tonks' shoulder.
"Just omelets. Nothing fancy." My mother-in-law shrugged her shoulders as she continued to mix the ingredients.
"Everything you do is delicious, Ma." Dora smiled as she finally got around to getting Teddy's food. She fed him some mushed fruits and he happily ate it all as she playfully made sounds.
Not even half an hour later, both Bella and Vivi came down the stairs hand in hand, both looking groggy but happy. They both made a beeline for their mother, kissing her cheek and wishing a good morning before checking the stove. Bella greeted her older sister and nephew with a kiss, making faces so he would laugh.
Vivi did the same and rushed around the kitchen to set the table, while Bella lightly bumped her mother away from the stove so she would sit down. Bella liked to cook and she didn't want Mrs Tonks to strain herself after the past couple of days.
With the table sat and the food ready, they all sat down to eat. They spoke about their plans for the day, and Bella's sisters got really excited when she suggested they get Hermione and Ginny so they could go look at dresses.
It was only after they were done eating that Bella noticed us sitting in her living room. She smiled brightly at me and motioned for me to join them.
Doing what I had been doing since getting here, I greeted Mrs Tonks with a peck on the cheek, before doing the same to Dora and Vivi. Teddy got a rub on his head since his face was covered in mush, and finally I sat down next to Bella, pecking her lips lightly.
At first I wasn't comfortable about doing it in front of her mother, but Mrs Tonks just said it wasn't inappropriate to show such love, so I just went with it.
"Did you talk?" Bella asked as she peeked into the living room again, where Esme and Carlisle were sat with their heads close together, talking softly.
"Yes, it was a really good thing as well." I beamed at her.
"Don't you look handsome smiling like that, my son." Mrs Tonks smiled at me, though all I could do was stare at her in shock.
She had never called me that, so it was an appropriate response.
Judging by Bella's gasp next to me, she didn't know about it either.
"What? You're about to marry my child, Edward. I've got to know you so much better this past few days, and I wanted you to know I do consider you as my son, just like Remus."
Dora smiled slightly at the mention of her late husband, but all I could do was get up and hold myself so I wouldn't crush my mother-in-law with the hug I gave her.
"Thank you, Mrs Tonks. You don't know how much that means to me."
"Oh, enough with the missus, Edward. My name's Andromeda, use it. Maybe when you're ready, you'll call me Mum."
I nodded as she patted my back, our awkward position not even slightly putting her off.
"Now call those parents of yours over here, we have so much to talk about."
Carlisle and Esme had heard, so they walked over to the kitchen just as I was sitting back down. Bella looked at me with tears in her eyes as she wrapped an arm around my torso, resting her head on my shoulder.
"I love you." She stated.
"I love you, too, sweetheart." I didn't have anything else to say.
While my family was crumbling right in front of my eyes, it felt amazing to know I was included somewhere.
"I see it now, Edward." Esme told me as she sat down next to Mrs – I mean, Andromeda.
"It's truly a beautiful thing to see, Edward." Carlisle put in his two cents as he got comfortable.
I wish things had been different with my sister and subsequently all that it led to, but I couldn't regret getting to know Bella's family. They were an example of what it should be like to live in harmony. Of course they have their fights, but it never gets to insults or demeaning the other.
If anything, these people have taught me something I hope to share with my siblings and parents.
Despite it all, respect was the one thing we truly needed and really lacked in our household.
Maybe after this talk I am dreading, things will get better.
One could only hope.
Hope you liked to see a bit more inside Edward's mind. He's more rational than canon, btw. And most things I wrote here I truly believe, regarding the family. The way I saw it in Meyer's books, they lacked a lot of things.
Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays.
Review?