Author's Note: Thanks everyone for your patience with the website issues where the last two chapters weren't showing. Everything appears resolved now. I hope.

Fluff chapter, but don't go anywhere just yet 😉 We still have a treaty and Victoria to deal with, and many unanswered questions for Bella when she wakes up!

EPOV

Emmett was the first to walk into the house when we returned. "I would like to publicly announce that my brother is a dumbass!" He was laughing loudly as he went to greet Rosalie.

"Emmett!" Esme shouted, walking down the stairs. "Don't be mean to your brother like that. What on Earth are you talking about?"

I ran upstairs to see Bella. Alice was in bed with her, snuggling against her, as the coolness of our skin seemed to help the burning. The ladies had given Bella a bath and dressed her in a comfortable sweatsuit in my absence. I was glad to see that Alice hadn't gone overboard.

"Sorry I scared you like that Alice."

"It's alright. I'm just glad to know it wasn't real." she said, smiling as she got up. She had already had a vision of Emmett, Jasper and I finding the 'body.'

I happily took Alice's place beside Bella, caressing her face and kissing her nose. "You amaze me. You had faith in me when no one else did, not even me. You knew the truth, I'm sure, although I don't know how. I look forward to asking you about that in the future. I love you, Bella." I kissed her head and held her close to me.

She was quiet, still greatly pained. Her body was twitching even though she was trying to keep still and calm for our sake. I knew that the pain would intensify as it spread throughout her organs over the next few days.

I was feeling remorse for hurting Bella, but also a surge of joy not only at my innocence, but that Bella would finally be my equal. No longer would her life always be in danger around me.

Once again, the family assembled in the room around Bella, just like they had that morning. Charlie sat at Bella's feet. Carlisle and Esme were smiling gently at me.

"Edward." Carlisle started. "Why don't you start by telling us what you and your brothers learned?"

"We went to every park within a few miles radius of here and none of them looked like my memory or Alice's vision. Only two had river access but Jasper and Emmett didn't pick up my scent at all or any evidence of a body nearby. We retraced my steps by going to the woods where I hunted yesterday morning. We did find an old tire swing, a river, and a floating cougar carcass with a vampire bite."

"And I haven't stopped laughing since!" Emmett added, chuckling loudly. That was the truth.

"Yeah Eddie, you really showed that cougar who's boss!" Jasper joined in with Emmett's laughter.

"It's a good thing all you did was drink its blood!" Emmett's thoughts were rather crude and inappropriate. Jasper's thoughts echoed them.

"What a weird way to dump a body. Any human would have found it!" Emmett continued.

"Maybe he intended to come back to finish the job later!" Jasper said.

"Enough, boys." Carlisle started. "I'm really glad to know that you're innocent, Edward."

"Me too." Glad was a serious understatement.

Me too. Charlie thought, although I didn't think it was directed at me, I was still glad to hear it.

Carlisle continued "We have travel plans to discuss. It should be late enough that we can get Bella into the vehicles we rented without anyone noticing. I propose that we take her to our property just outside of Columbus. It's within a day's drive and in a heavily wooded area. We also haven't stayed there since it was just Edward and me, so no one will know us. All good so far?"

Everyone nodded. "Alright. I'll drive the SUV with Esme, Charlie, Bella, and Edward, that way Charlie can use a row to sleep in and Bella can stretch out in one as well. The rest of you can take the sports car comfortably. Emmett and Rosalie, why don't you go fill the cars up and pick up dinner for Charlie, so we don't have to stop on the way?"

Rosalie and Emmett reached for each other's hand and left to complete their task without a further word. As crude as Emmett could be, he was a dedicated brother, and I was grateful to have him.

"Jasper, do you think you could help keep Bella calm or sleepy just until we get her in the car and out of the driveway?"

"I'll sure try." She will be fine, Edward.

"Alright, then it's settled. We'll leave when the others return."

Everyone left the room except for me and Charlie. I wasn't going to leave Bella's side again. Charlie's thoughts were quiet. The few thoughts of his I could hear were focused on Bella's comfort and wondering what two vampires who hadn't eaten in a few decades would possibly bring him for dinner.

"Maybe a nice deer or mountain lion." I said. Charlie glared at me, but his expression softened a little when he noted how carefully I held Bella. "I'm sorry. I've spent too long around Emmett today. His sense of humor can be infectious."

Charlie was silent for a moment, his thoughts also guarded. "I wanted to kill you a few hours ago. I still kind of want to kill you. But then I see how you are with Bella and how her whole expression changes when you walk in a room. I can't deny that you love her. And that maybe you weren't yourself when you bit her. I'm still angry. But I know this is what she wanted. And if Bella is happy, then I'm happy for her. And I'll try to like you."

"Thank you." I said sincerely, looking at him. His acceptance, however reluctant, meant the world to me. I knew how happy it would make Bella. He stood up and left the room, leaving us alone.

I held Bella, kissing her hair and her face, and humming softly to her until everyone was ready to leave. She whimpered a little when I let go of her. "Shh, it's alright love. I'm just standing up to carry you out to the car. I won't go anywhere without you. Never again."

When everyone else was ready, I picked Bella up and walked carefully down the stairs and out of the house. I sat in the large back row of the SUV with her head in my lap. Alice loaded a few suitcases into the small space behind the back row and a beaten up red bookbag. "Bella's." she said to my raised eyebrow. I had been so out of it when I bit Bella that I hadn't even noticed.

Alice then handed me a silver iPod with matching headphones. "Emmett said he enjoyed hearing you or Rosalie playing piano during his change. We've loaded this with some of the stuff we know you and Bella like in case no one feels like talking during the ride."

"Thank you, Alice. For everything. Thank you all." I said at a normal volume, knowing that all the vampires could hear me. I would thank them much more sincerely for their months of putting up with me and helping me later

The ride was uneventful. Charlie, exhausted from barely sleeping the night before, slept most of the ride in silence. He dreamed of fishing and had a nightmare of getting behind on his paperwork at the police station. Carlisle and Esme were content to hold hands and listen quietly to the radio. I put the headphones carefully in Bella's ears and shuffled the music for her. I stroked her hair and her face and calmly counted my blessings throughout the night.

When we arrived at the house, I got Bella settled in one of the bedrooms and stayed with her as everyone coordinated moving our belongings. Alice gleefully took the opportunity to order new clothes and things for Bella and of course, herself as well. Esme went grocery shopping for Charlie. Rosalie and Emmett started working on moving our vehicles to the new house.

Charlie came to check in on Bella an hour or two later, after showering and getting woke up. "How is she?"

"Still burning, but she's calm. Carlisle thinks her change is going a little easier than ours did because she knows what is happening to her and what to expect."

"None of you knew what was happening when you were bit?" He was surprised.

"No. Me, Esme, Rosalie and Emmett were all changed when we were dying. Alice doesn't remember her change. Jasper was attacked when he stopped to help some women who appeared to be traveling alone."

"What was yours like?" He was curious. That was a good sign.

"The most intense burning you can imagine, as if the flames of Hell themselves are after you. That's one of the reasons I didn't want this for Bella. It's incredibly painful to change. Carlisle told me what was happening, but he sounded like a weird dream. I didn't believe him at first about what I was. But then I felt the thirst. Vampires who only hunt animals are always thirsty. We can't escape it. Animal blood does help some, but it never completely goes away."

"When is the last time you killed a human then?" He didn't want to focus on how much pain Bella was in.

"1931. If we aren't counting Bella."

Wow. It's easy to forget how old he is. "Why did you stop?"

"I felt like a monster. I didn't like taking lives. Even though I deliberately chose to drink only from predators and those who would hurt women and children, it still felt wrong. It's kind of like playing God."

He had many unanswered questions in his mind but eventually chose one to start with. "Was that another of your objections to biting Bella?"

"Yes. I wouldn't dare risk her soul and make her a murderer like me."

"You really believe she's going to wake up with no soul?"

"I used to. But now…no. I could never believe that about Bella, despite my feelings about myself."

Charlie stared at me for a long moment. He was struggling with his own battling feelings. He hated to see Bella losing out on so much, like growing old and experiencing life, but he also saw me as a lost teenage boy who loved his daughter more than anything and was forced into this life without choice.

He knew that Bella would never feel unloved or unwanted. He also knew that she would never have to get sick or worry about money or a job. She would be free to enjoy her life, travel and do things he wishes he'd done when he was younger.

"I'm going to go find some breakfast. Yell if she needs me." He said, walking downstairs. It seemed that, at least for now, he was determined to be around for Bella and base his feelings on hers when she woke up.

I was grateful to finally be settled back in with my family complete, especially the beautiful angel I held in my arms.