"How was your trip?" Charlie asked as Edward carried Bella's bags in the door for her. Edward grinned, and Charlie blushed and shook his head. Teenagers.

"It was great, dad." Bella said. "The baseball game was entertaining."

"Who are you and what have you done with my daughter?"

"Edward cussed." she laughed. "It was hilarious."

"I got to take Bella to see my family home. The one that belonged to my birth parents. Carlisle and Esme kept it for me."

"That's great." Charlie said.

"Thank you for helping her plan the surprise."

"You two deserved it. What is that you have in your hands, Bella?"

She nervously tucked her hair behind her ear and showed him. "Prints. To decorate our house with after we're married. Edward bought them for us at the museum."

"At your age, you're supposed to decorate with movie posters and dumb stuff, not fancy art prints." He laughed. "But I suppose these do suit you better."

Edward carried Bella's bags up to her room and then came back down the stairs, kissing her on the cheek. "Goodnight, love."

"Goodnight. You'll pick me up for school in the morning?"

"Wouldn't miss it." he smiled, saying goodnight to Charlie, and going home to hunt and spend a few hours with his family.

"Now, how was it really?" Charlie asked, leading her into the kitchen for a before bed snack.

"Great! We had a lot of fun. Edward was so excited about everything. I don't think I have ever seen him as excited as when he saw the baseball jerseys in his luggage. Alice slipped them in there for me. He insisted on renting a car like I told you he would, but when they didn't have anything crazy, he got stuck with this total mom van that he kept insisting was luxury." she giggled.

"Him driving a mom van? I hate I didn't get to see that." Charlie laughed, knowing how much Edward loved his cars. The entire Cullen family, really.

"I took pictures." she laughed. "I took a lot of pictures."

"Good. How would you like to spend this Saturday with your old man?"

"Alright." she smiled. "Fishing?" she added with a wrinkled nose.

"Shopping. It's time I redecorate this place. I thought we might go spend a day in Seattle. Maybe eat something we can't find in Forks? Buy some decent pots and pans for the kitchen?" Charlie looked at his daughter hopefully, excited to shake things up and stop holding so much onto the past.

"Sounds great, dad." Bella agreed.

"I was going to ask how your trip went." Jasper started as they sat down for a counseling session together, "But it's clear on both of your faces that it was the time of your lives. Now, you know I'll always be here for the two of you whenever you want to talk or hunt or do almost anything but this is your last official session. I consider you both well on your ways to healing to the point where I'm not necessary anymore."

"You're always necessary." Bella said.

"As a brother." Jasper agreed.

"As a pain in my ass." Edward grumbled.

"He cursed!" Jasper shouted.

Bella laughed. "Again." Whatever had changed in Edward lately, she loved this playful, mostly carefree side of him.

"Again?!" Jasper shouted. Edward just grinned at his brother. "I thought we considered Emmett the pain in the ass."

"We do. The much bigger one, at least." Edward agreed.

"Anyhow," Jasper started, giving Edward a look that screamed 'We'll talk about this later' while teasing him with his thoughts. "Is there anything that you two would like to talk about?"

"Not really." Bella said.

"Then I'll give you some tips on going from here. Healing takes time. Everything won't be perfect overnight and that's OK. You might still struggle somedays with nightmares, though not for much longer with your impending change, or flashbacks.

It's not that you have an occasional fear or bad thought but what you do with it that matters. You may still have urges, like Edward smelling human blood. Remember that the choices you make and how you learn from mistakes are what define who you are. Not your thoughts. Not your past. Some things might still be uncomfortable to deal with and that's OK. That's normal.

And remember the whole family is here for you if you need us. Even if you have a nightmare or flashback, it's not a setback. It's just what it is. A flashback. A nightmare."

"Thank you, Jasper."

"My pleasure. Now, I believe my wife wants to kidnap you to discuss wedding planning. I suggest you run, personally."

"I'll strongly consider it." Bella said, smiling down at her shoes. Edward kissed her head, grateful for how far along they had come.

"We need to finalize the guest list." Alice said, appearing in the doorway with a smile. "Come on Bella, I picked up your favorite dinner."

"I guess that's worth a little wedding planning." she agreed, getting up to follow Alice but stopping momentarily to hug Jasper on the way downstairs. He smiled, not just at the sweet gesture but at how much she trusted him to willingly come that close while still human after what had nearly happened at her birthday party. Alice winked in a way that said 'I told you so' as she turned to lead her favorite human downstairs.

"You sure you want to invite your mother?" Alice asked with gentle eyes.

"It might be my last opportunity to see her. She's my mother, you know? I would still like to have the opportunity for a pleasant last memory together." Bella had thought hard about the decision for a long time but decided it was best. She didn't want to live her life with regrets over not seeing her mother one last time while she could.

"We'll see that she's seated near Esme and Carlisle as much as possible. And Carlisle has already handled any other situation we can think of that might cause trouble. We have backup plans on backup plans." she giggled in her adorable, girlish way.

"If I break a heel?"

"Please, we own more shoes here than a shoe store." Alice rolled her eyes.

"If someone drops the cake?"

"Only vampires are allowed to handle it until it's time for the humans to eat it." she smiled.

"If Edward puts his shirt on inside out?"

"Jasper is supposed to stay at his side while he gets ready and prevent that."

"The wolves you all were talking about?"

"Have reluctantly agreed that you're a willing participant. I hear Charlie had something to do with that, though he doesn't know the details of either side's dislike for each other or what we are."

"If Charlie has a panic attack?"

Alice just grinned. "He'll be fine once he gets a good look at you in your gown. He's going to be so proud."

"You've seen it?"

"Several times. It changes a bit each time, but he's always thrilled to see you and escort you down the aisle."

Bella released a breath she hadn't realized she had been holding. "I'm going to spend the day with my dad in Seattle this weekend. He wants to redecorate his house."

"Good." she smiled. "Don't let him talk himself into green paint. If he doesn't regret that on his own, I will see that he does."

Bella laughed. "OK."

Saturday came quickly with studying for final exams and last-minute wedding prep taking up almost all of Bella's free time. Edward stayed with her Friday night and kissed her gently awake Saturday morning.

"Love? It's time to wake up. I have to go home and your father will wake up soon."

"I don't wanna. Bed is warm." Bella grumbled.

Edward chuckled. "Indeed, the bed is warm and comfortable. You promised, though. Don't you want a proper goodbye kiss before we're apart for an entire day? Or would a rushed peck on the cheek as I leave in front of your dad suit you better?"

"Hmphf" she groaned, tossing the blankets back and sitting up with a pout. Edward leaned in and dazzled her with his breath and glowing golden eyes until Bella couldn't take it anymore and pushed her lips against his for a kiss, morning breath forgotten.

Edward laughed when he pulled back after a few minutes. "I thought you would prefer a proper sendoff."

"I expect a proper welcome home too."

"Yes, love." he laughed. "Not a morning person?"

"We stayed up too late last night."

"We always stay up late."

"You don't sleep."

"True, but we still stay up too late for you."

"I can't wait to not need sleep anymore."

"But then you won't get to wake up to this handsome face." Edward teased.

Bella blushed and smiled then. "Suppose not. Sleeping has its perks then." She stood up and started preparing things to get ready for the day and picking out a comfortable outfit. "Shopping with Alice is one thing. Shopping with dad ought to be interesting. I bet he will drag me to the sporting goods store. I'm going to text you if he bores me to death."

"I hope you do."

"What will you do all day?"

"I might go for a run or a hunt with Emmett. I'm sure if Alice sees me sitting around relaxing, she will find something needing done for the wedding." he laughed. "I swear it's all she thinks about."

"Me too."

"I've heard some other rather interesting thoughts from you lately when you've let me hear." he grinned and Bella blushed.

"Those thoughts were still related to the wedding!"

"True. Can't I have just one brief glimpse of your dress? A hint?"

"No. I thought you liked sticking to tradition anyhow."

"Indeed, I do. But the anticipation is killing me."

"Good thing you're immortal." she laughed, picking out a pair of jeans and starting to get dressed.

"May I brush your hair?" he asked. She smiled and handed over the hairbrush as Edward came up behind her. "It's so soft and such a lovely color. There are hints of red in it I bet most humans can't see."

"I can't imagine what you will look like with new eyes. You're already absolutely gorgeous."

"You're going to figure out how to make a vampire blush one day, I swear."

"Good." she said. He laughed quietly.

"It sounds like your father is waking up. Finish dressing and I'll give you a proper goodbye kiss before I escort you downstairs."

"You better."

"How was school this week?" Charlie asked. He started the small car rented as a surprise so he wouldn't embarrass his daughter being seen in the police cruiser shopping in Seattle.

"Good, boring. Everyone is stressing these final exams so bad. I think I'm as prepared as I can be. Except for math. It's hard to remember all of the formulas and things."

"I was never really one for math either." Charlie agreed.

"I'm going to kill him."

"What?" he looked at his daughter momentarily.

Bella held out a black metal credit card. "Murder. You wouldn't arrest your own daughter, would you?"

Charlie laughed loudly then. "I might. Depends on how badly he deserved it. I can think of at least….a dozen ways to hide a body if we need to." he winked before turning his attention back to the road.

"He slipped this in my pocket this morning. I swear it wasn't there before!"

"I wouldn't put it past him." Charlie agreed. "Maybe it's in case you wanted anything for the wedding? I would say that he should have just told you that but I can see why he didn't." Bella grabbed the phone from her pocket and started frantically texting. "Hey, I can think of better ways of pissing the kid off than writing him a novel." he laughed. "Why not teach him to never give you his credit card again? Go wild with it? I wouldn't normally encourage such a thing but…might get your message across."

"No. He would be thrilled. Do you realize he turns Alice loose with this all the time? Alice!"

"Good lord." Charlie sighed. "More money than common sense?" he teased.

Bella giggled. "You could say that, at least where I'm concerned."

"You're his kryptonite then."

"You could say that too." she agreed with a smile.

"How about we stop halfway for a good breakfast somewhere other than the diner?"

"Sounds great, dad." Bella said. She erased the entire text message that hadn't been sent yet and simply replaced it with 'Thank you. Dad told me to go wild. At least he was amused.'

Edward's response was almost instant. 'Please do. I would be so happy. Have fun.'

Bella laughed. "Alright then, Edward is buying everything I want today."

"Good!" Charlie agreed, turning the radio up a little bit on a classic rock station they both liked. One thing Bella had always loved about Charlie is that he didn't feel the need to always talk to enjoy spending time together.

"Who buys these things?!" Charlie asked, holding out a jar of fake, plastic seashells. "Why not real ones? We're right near the beach! Decorating is...weird."

Bella laughed. "Dad, you haven't redecorated since shag carpets were in style."

"Hey! No making me feel old today."

"How about this?" she asked, holding out a plastic strawberry with googly eyes and its tongue sticking out that was clearly meant to sit on a shelf.

"How about no?" he said in a firm voice, making Bella crack up laughing.

"Fine." Bella said, walking over to a section of prints the store had from local artists. "Some of these are really pretty. I like this one." She pointed at a photograph of a sunset over some cliffs.

"That's beautiful. Good eye." Charlie smiled, picking it up. "And not too expensive either. Too tasteful to be something your mother would ever pick out. I love it."

Bella smiled. "We could get some dark purple curtains. They would bring out the purples and pinks in the photo. Or gold to accent the frame."

"Who are you and what have you done with my daughter?"

Bella blushed. "Too much wedding planning with Alice. She had me look at fabric samples of over fifty shades of white the other night. Fifty! I swear I could only tell like three of them apart. I thought white was just…white."

"You learn something new every day." Charlie agreed. "We'll go to a restaurant supply store next and get some real, proper kitchen stuff. What do you say?"

"Sounds good. You aren't worried about how much we're spending?"

"No. Didn't I tell you?" he laughed. "I off handedly mentioned that I was considering traveling a little and seeing what existing beyond Forks one day at work and you know how gossip spreads like wildfire. A panicked mayor came into my office while I was pretending to do paperwork while I stared off into space yesterday." Charlie laughed again, his eyes twinkling with mischief. "And he gave me a raise after obtaining my promise to not go anywhere anytime soon except for a week vacation or so when I want it."

Bella smiled. "And to think, I've been using Edward's credit card when you're the one that's loaded."

"I wouldn't go that far. How about we check out, go for kitchen stuff then find us a bookstore? It turns out I don't mind a good novel since I've read a few with you. Plus, there are a few things Carlisle recommended on C-PTSD."

"I'd love that." Bella agreed.

"How was your day?" Edward asked, hopping through Bella's window, and making her jump.

"You scared me!"

"I missed you." Bella looked at him and tried to fight a grin. "Oh, I see how it is. You aren't going to say you missed me? Didn't you miss me too? Perhaps I should just-" Edward stuck his foot out the window and raised an eyebrow at his fiancée.

"Don't go."

He smiled and took her into his arms. "Why no I missed you too?"

"I had a great time today. I am very happy to see you though."

"Alice said you threatened to murder me earlier." Edward tried to hide his smile by resting his head on her shoulder.

"I got over it pretty quickly though. Isn't that an improvement?"

"I'll say. You actually used my credit card. Alice was telling me every time you decided to buy something. She was too excited."

"Too excited. That's Alice." Bella said, forgetting what else she wanted to say when Edward looked deeply into her eyes. She leaned towards him and kissed him softly. Edward had other ideas. With hands on her waist, he pulled her body tightly against his and used his tongue to seek hers out, carefully keeping her out of his mouth and away from sharp teeth.

He smiled and took a step back when she was flushed and panting. "That's the kind of welcome home I was looking forward to." he laughed.

"Why did you slip it into my pocket? You could have just asked me to use it."

"And be around you for the death threats, my terrifying little human? As cute as they are, I think my way was more peaceful."

"This time."

"There's no need for a next time. See, once you become Mrs. Cullen, you're getting one of your own. I could get you one now if you prefer-"

"No."

"So difficult to spoil." he grinned, grabbing her hands, and pulling her to sit on the bed with him. "I'm glad you had a good time with your father. You deserve that. Jasper and I had a long talk today. I think I was finally able to return the favor a bit. We talked through a lot of his trauma and time with the vampire wars in the South. It seems he let go of a good bit of guilt that he's carried for over a century recently."

"Good, it's about time."

"I agree. He's also been working with Rosalie. She's gradually accepting the good parts of our immortality. Her and Emmett are going to start their own fund to benefit children in the area who can't afford things like school supplies and summer camp fees. To try to make sure everyone has an equal opportunity. Since they can't have children of their own, Rose decided to spoil all of Forks. And it will give her something productive to do. She's very excited."

"That's beautiful." Bella said.

"Alice has been excitedly predicting the stock market all day, when she wasn't spying on you, of course. I did ask her not to."

"What all did you two see?"

"You laughing hysterically at your dad in the bookstore."

"I found him in the romance novel section!" Bella said a little too loudly, cracking up laughing again. "Just didn't expect that."

"You smiled picking out knifes."

"Dad was telling me all the weird excuses people have given him for stabbing people. She stole my French fry was my favorite."

"Someone got stabbed over a French fry?"

"Not fatally." Bella laughed.

"Alice saw the two of you talking about your mom on the way home."

"I decided to invite her to the wedding. Dad isn't happy about it. I realize I don't have to. But it might be my last chance to see her. I still have some good memories mixed in with the bad. I'd like to have her there."

"It's completely your choice, love."

"That's what dad said too." Bella said, pushing hair behind her ear.

"You got us some new books to read."

"I did."

"You also bought my wedding present. Alice wouldn't show me what it is."

"Good. You don't need to know what it is."

"I thought the trip covered it."

"Mostly." Bella hinted. "That's all you're getting out of me."

"Fine." he said, laying back on the bed. "I won't pry. Come snuggle?"

"Gladly."

"I could tickle it out of you."

"Don't you dare!"

Edward laughed. After all they had been through together, he was so happy to see Bella smiling. She smiled, teased, and even allowed him to spoil her a little. Edward relaxed and reflected on how far they had come and how much better they both felt to finally release some of their years worth of guilt and fear. Neither of them were perfect but they were perfect together. It felt as if their very souls were in harmony. He couldn't wait to marry this human.

Author's Note: I know this chapter was a bit short but a lot happens in the final two! They should more than make up for it. I know updates haven't been the most regular lately. Thanks for sticking with me and still reading!