Timeframe: Chapters 41/42 of Tenebrous

"What sort of thing do they offer for a girl in exchange for marriage now, anyway?" Caius asked, pacing about the room. Caius' pacing had always been something of a pet peeve for Marcus, though now it was making him uneasy, too.

"Nothing," Aro said, the only one of the three that seemed truly relaxed. He seemed almost offended at the dubious looks he received from Caius and Marcus alike. "Who is the mind reader here? I've seen Rowan's mind, and from what I've gleaned there's no such tradition anymore. Not to mention I don't believe Edward gave anything in exchange for Bella."

"Bella's father is human," Marcus pointed out. "Emmett is a vampire like us. Not so ancient, obviously, but not from this time. Have you read his mind to know what he expects?"

"Well, no," Aro admitted, frowning. "But he seems as modern as the rest of them."

"Modern enough until we ask for her hand and he asks where our payment is," Caius said.

"What would he even want?" Marcus directed this question to Aro, who had the highest odds of knowing. "Goats?"

"Goats? Don't be ridiculous," Aro said, rolling his eyes. "Obviously he'll want something more modern."

"It's not like money is an object. Just give him whatever he asks, so long as we have his permission to marry Rowan," Caius inputted.

Marcus shrugged, agreeing. His brother did have a point. "Sounds reasonable enough."

"Alice informed me that Rowan will be busy for another hour at least, so we should go now. That will give us enough time for any negotiation," Aro said, standing and moving towards the door in one smooth motion. Marcus stood too, following him and Caius out of the room.

He was certain that, if vampires could vomit, he would. What if Emmett refused permission? Caius, of course, would suggest they just go through with their proposal regardless, but that sort of underhandedness didn't sit right with Marcus' stronger moral compass.

Emmett and Rosalie were waiting in the kitchen when Marcus and his brothers arrived. "Alice said you wanted to talk to us," Emmett said, leaning against the counter with his arms crossed over his chest. On a diet of human blood rather than animal, it was Marcus' opinion that his strength would be greater than Felix's.

"Did she mention why?" Aro asked, taking a seat at the table across from Rose and motioning for Marcus and Caius to do the same.

"No, but I can guess," Emmett said, finally seating himself next to Rose after she sent him an exasperated look. "You want our permission to marry our daughter."

"Yes, precisely," Aro said, nodding.

Emmett's face was impassive, and lacking Aro's telepathic gift, Marcus had no way of knowing what was going on behind his tawny eyes. Marcus only knew of the solid silver cord that connected the two together. It was only rivaled by the brilliant golden mate bond that tied he and his brothers to Rowan. "She is our mate, and you can be assured that we will always cherish and protect her."

"I should certainly hope so," Emmett said, and Marcus detected an undercurrent of seriousness to the playful words. "But she is our daughter, too. We didn't get a chance to spend the eighteen years - at least - that a parent gets to spend with their child before they're married."

"We could be persuaded, though, if you'd be willing to give us certain things in exchange for her hand," Rose added, glancing at her husband out of the corner of her eye. Emmett nodded in agreement. It appeared they had discussed this beforehand.

Caius sent Aro a triumphant glance, which Aro promptly ignored. "Of course, just name your price. Anything you want."

"A private tropical island, a royal blue SSC Ultimate Aero, and a herd of two hundred goats," Emmett listed, smirking.

"Done," Aro agreed.

"What the hell will you do with two hundred goats?" Caius asked, disbelief coloring his tone.

Emmett shrugged. "Dunno. Maybe Jasper will want to try ranching with them."

"You overheard our conversation," Marcus accused, more amused than anything.

Emmett let out a booming laugh as Rosalie rolled her eyes, speaking over her husband. "Of course we did. And we don't want even one goat, let alone two hundred of them. Really, we didn't want anything. But we couldn't refuse the opportunity to make you sweat a little."

"You can have the island and car anyway," Aro said, waving a hand. "You have loved and protected Rowan for five years, it's the least we can do to repay you."

"She's our daughter," Emmett said. "We will always love and protect her, no repayment necessary. But, if you insist…"

"We do," Caius said. Emmett grinned.

"Do you have the ring yet?" Rosalie asked, looking immensely excited.

"Of course. That, however, is a surprise. Not even our elite guard have seen it. Rowan can show you after we've proposed," Aro said.

Marcus, feeling immensely relieved, smiled at the two people to whom he owed so much. "Thank you for entrusting your daughter to us."

"I know there are none better for her. But take care of her or I'll rip your heads off, kings or not." This time, there was no doubt that Emmett was deadly serious.

"She's safe with us," Caius promised. "If we failed her in such a grievous way, you could take our heads and we'd thank you for it."

"I need to come up with better threats, then," Emmett said, his usual grin returning to his face. "Now all you have to do is ask her. Trust me when I tell you that this was the easy part. Asking her is much worse."

An entirely new sort of nervousness shot through Marcus. "I believe you."

"Good luck," Emmett said, smirking.

Rosalie smacked his arm. "Quit scaring them. She'll say yes. You'll see."

"We shall see," Aro agreed, and Marcus could tell from over two millennium's worth of experience that his brothers were just as nervous as he was. And if Caius, who barely knew fear, was nervous?

Marcus wondered if vampires could vomit after all.

⊱ ────── {.⋅ V ⋅.} ────── ⊰

I hope you enjoyed this second bonus chapter! I have one more coming after (at some point), but in the meantime, check out my newest Twilight story, Pomegranate Seeds! It is a not-quite-historically-accurate AU starring an Alistair/OC pairing. Be sure to let me know what you think about this fun little bonus chapter and I will talk to you in the next!