Author's Note: Wow! 30 chapters and you are still with me reading! Thank you so much! This was my first serious fanfic that I ever published, and although I've finished a few since then, The Gift holds a special place in my heart as I continue to update it. We haven't heard from Edward in a while, so let's spend some time in his head.
EPOV
The news about the situation in Seattle was disturbing, but I was determined to make sure that Bella didn't worry unnecessarily. It shouldn't concern us at all that someone had created a bunch of newborns and allowed them to run wild, yet I was terrified. It was hard to hide my true feelings from Bella, not only sharing thoughts as we sometimes did, but because she had gotten so good at reading my body language. She always knew when something was wrong or when I was lost in thought.
Distracting her with sex was fun for both of us, but I knew that I wasn't fooling her. She knew that there was more than I was letting on to the situation. Always caring for others, Bella didn't press me for answers when we shared thoughts. She was patient to let me come to her with my worries. I didn't like lying to her though after all we had been through and hiding any thought more serious than a gift or surprise for her felt like lying.
I didn't want to detract from the bliss of our now extended honeymoon with such fears, but I knew that they would only bother me until I shared them with my wife. I also knew that the longer I hid them from her, the more upset with me she would be, knowing how I tended to suffer in silence. There would never be a perfect time, so I made her a nice dinner and sat down across from her while she ate.
"Love, there's something I want to talk to you about. Well, it's about the situation in Seattle." I decided to just get it out so she wouldn't think the worst.
"Is that what's been bothering you the last night or two?"
"Yes. I'm sorry for not mentioning it to you sooner, but I didn't want to scare you."
"You think there's more to it than Carlisle was letting on?" I forgot sometimes how scary perceptive she could be.
"I do. I don't believe anyone in Forks is at risk. I just think it's an odd coincidence that it would happen so close to our family."
"I agree. Who do you think is behind it?"
"I don't know. That's the scary part. I texted Alice some last night and she can't see who it is either."
"Is there anything we can do to help them?"
"Honestly, no. I would be crazy with worry at having you in the same vicinity as a bunch of bloodthirsty newborns. I wouldn't be much good to them. And we don't want to risk the Volturi finding out that you're human and you know about us."
"I guess the longer we wait to research, the more risk we're putting on the family." Bella never responded how I expected her to.
"Please don't worry about that. If there were any risk bad enough to threaten our family, I would change you in an instant. We're alright for now."
"Edward, I want to be your mate forever. If you need to change me, then do it. I promise I won't regret it."
"I know. Let's not rush though."
"Can we call and talk to Alice?"
"Alright. But finish dinner first?" I smiled at her softly, hoping that she wouldn't worry too much.
"I'm spoiled." She smiled back, happily eating.
"Then should I not mention the cheesecake in the fridge?"
"You had a whole cheesecake delivered for just me?"
"No, I made you one. While you were sleeping."
"But how did you -?! Oh, right, the mindreading. Crap! You saw my weird dreams last night?"
I laughed loudly at her embarrassed expression and her nervous blush. She had been having a rather interesting nightmare last night. In her dream, she had stumbled to the fridge after our hours long lovemaking session only to discover that we were out of cheesecake. She nearly woke up from how much it scared her, but I was able to keep her calm by kissing her face and humming her lullaby.
"Seriously, Bella. Of all the things to be afraid of in our family. Running out of cheesecake?"
"Hey, at least I wasn't running from a giant cheesecake."
"No, that wouldn't have been quite as entertaining." I chuckled. She was smiling, yet glaring at me, pointing a fork at me like she wanted to say something but couldn't quite decide. "I'm not afraid of your fork, my love."
"You should be."
"What are you going to do? Try to stab me with it? It will only bend."
"Are you telling me you have tried to stab yourself with a fork?"
"I share a home with Emmett. He's attempted to stab both me and him with almost every inanimate object in the house, or thrown it at me, or something in the last few decades." She laughed and my anxieties were calmed for the moment. Everything was right in my world when she was safe and happy.
When she finished eating, I took her plate to the sink and sliced her some strawberry cheesecake, sitting it in front of her and kissing her cheek. "Do you want a fat wife?"
"I love my wife in any form. Besides, we discussed this. If necessary, I would refer to you as 'rotund.'" I emphasized the last word, wiggling my eyebrows and making her laugh. "But you're perfect. Enjoy your dessert and then we'll call Alice."
"How can someone who doesn't eat cook so well?!" She was nearly moaning at the taste of it. I couldn't help but to laugh at her and just be happy in the moment. I loved her so much.
Even since I could occasionally hear and share her thoughts, she still surprised me and caught me off guard. She challenged me in the best ways possible: to enjoy my life, to love myself as I loved her or at least to start to, to learn new skills – including cheesecake baking.
Bella finished her meal and stood up to come kiss me. I lost myself in her for a while, happy to return the kiss and run my fingers through her hair. I enjoyed the smell of her and the feel of her warmth, even if her breath were slightly too food like for my liking. She sighed and pulled back.
"Let's call Alice." My phone started ringing before she could even finish Alice's name. Bella giggled. I stood up and led us to get comfortable on the couch.
"Hi Alice." Bella answered.
"You wanted to speak to me, sister?"
"You already know what we're going to ask."
"You know I do. I wouldn't worry yourselves. Right now, it looks like they are going to stay confined to Seattle. They are waiting on something. I can't really see too much about them and it's really frustrating. But the Volturi are watching and waiting for them to do something really obvious so they can step in. I'm afraid all we can do is wait, for the most part."
"For the most part?" That hadn't slipped by me even if Bella hadn't noticed.
"Emmett and Jasper are on their way to Seattle to sniff around and see what they can find out."
Bella looked scared. I had to clarify for her sake. "And will they make it home safely?"
"You know they will, or I wouldn't have let them go!" I didn't mind invoking the wrath of Alice if it made Bella feel better though. Her expression eased.
"I'm scared that there's more to this." Bella said.
My sister hesitated. "To be honest, Bella, we are too. But we just don't have any proof or any reason to feel that way."
"I feel so useless. I mean, I'm having an amazing time. I'm very happy to finally be alone with Edward. But I miss you all. And I'm worried."
"Me too." I added quietly.
"I promise to call you all with any updates. They seem to be laying low for now if that's even possible for newborns."
"Thanks." Bella said.
"Carlisle wants to speak to you all one more time. I love you both."
"We love you." Bella replied.
"Hi kids!" Carlisle enthusiastically greeted us.
"Hi dad." We said together, smiling.
"I've been doing some research, as promised. Our talk with Nahuel was really helpful. I think a baby would be possible for you two if you'd like to try. It's not going to be without its risks and complications though, but you both know that. I want to examine Bella beforehand, a female colleague of mine can do the intimate parts if you prefer though, Bella. I'd want to see your blood samples and things like that for myself. We will need to do all we can ahead of time to make sur that your body is healthy and well nourished, because the fetus will take most of its nutrition from you. I know you always say that Edward is trying to fatten you up, but you may want to actually let him do just that ahead of time." Bella laughed softly, even though she was still a little nervous.
"What did I say?" Carlisle asked, amused.
"Carlisle, he made me an entire cheesecake while I slept last night."
"Only because you had nightmares that we were out of cheesecake!" I added, laughing too.
"Wow." Carlisle said. "My son the chef." He was chuckling quietly. "Anyhow, at first, proper human nutrition will be plenty. But at some point, it will need to be supplemented with blood. I think that animal blood will be alright, as long as we supplement that with extra nutrients from food, or IVs if you can't stomach food at that point. So, there are the easy parts."
"Me, who can't stand the smell of blood, drinking blood is the easy part?" Bella asked.
"I'm afraid so. Hybrid fetuses are very fast growing. You can expect to be pregnant a month, maybe three months at absolute most. Either the fetus will bite its way out, or one of us, preferably Edward I'm sure, will have to bite its way out of you. You will have to be changed right at the moment you finish giving birth, before your heart can give out from the strain of labor, which means unfortunately you'll be in a newborn stage for at least the first few months of the baby's life."
"Sounds alright so far." Bella said. I wasn't too sure, but I knew we'd talk after the call.
"There's one other thing I want you two to consider very carefully. This is risky. I would absolutely love and welcome a grandchild, as I know would Esme. However, there is still a risk of you dying during pregnancy or childbirth. I don't mean this to scare you. But one possibility is that your heart could give out while you are carrying the child. This happened to one of Nahuel's would be half-sisters. The baby was alright, but the mother was not. Now, if something happened, we could change you with our venom at that very second, assuming one of us is always with you, but we have no idea what would happen if we changed you while pregnant, and if the baby weren't yet viable. I'm not sure if we would be able to safely remove it, or if you would become eternally pregnant."
Bella's face went white with shock and she looked like she might want to cry. I took her into my arms. "Thank you, Carlisle. We really appreciate the time and effort you've put into this. We're going to give it careful consideration."
"Of course. Don't worry too much about this thing in Seattle. If I know the Volturi, they will have it handled in no time. I hate for them to send the guard so close to our family and friends, but that's what they exist for and I'm sure everything will be alright. Don't you two get too attached to our island. I'm sure Esme and I will want it back eventually." He chuckled softly.
"Too late." I joked, thanking Carlisle again as we ended the call.
I noticed the salty smell of Bella's tears and I held her to me, rubbing her back. I kissed her hair. "My love for you is unwavering and absolute, no matter what we decide."
"I know."
"What's got you scared, sweetheart?"
"I can't imagine how awful it would be to have to be changed with a baby still inside of me! The fact that any woman could have to go through that." She shuddered.
"To our knowledge, no one has, if that helps. The only hybrids the family could find killed the mothers in childbirth."
"Those poor women."
"I agree. It's awful. Those monsters had no right. The women had no idea what they were carrying."
"But you don't see yourself as one of those monsters?"
"Should I?"
"NO!" She shouted. I clearly had misinterpreted her meaning. "I'm sorry." She whispered. She put a hand on my cheek and I eagerly reached for her as well.
I'm glad you don't think of yourself that way anymore. You're not a monster. I'm going into this willingly, knowing what I would be carrying if we choose to. I just feel so bad for the ones who didn't have a choice.
Me too. I'm glad it isn't widespread. The only other cases we knew of all stem from Nahuel's father. And he's believed dead.
I'm terrified.
Me too. But there's no pressure. There's no rush on our decision.
I don't want the family in trouble if the Volturi decides to pay them a visit and discovers I'm still human.
Alice will see if they intend to visit the family. And if they do, they will simply tell them that we are enjoying an extended honeymoon. There's no need to elaborate.
But you told me that Aro can read every thought a person anyone has ever had with a touch.
That's true. But Aro wouldn't dare leave the castle for something so petty. They will send a few people from the lower ranks of the guard, likely with Jane, Alec, or Demetri supervising. I promise you; I won't risk your or our family's safety for this.
Bella was assured by the sincerity of my thoughts. She took a deep breath and tried to calm herself down.
What would you think of me if I had to drink blood? While I was still human? Doesn't it disgust you?
Do you really think if my mate, my wife, the love of my existence, had to drink what I drink on a regular basis while she was carrying our child despite her disgust at even the smell of it, that I would be disgusted? Don't you think amazed or awed are better terms?
You mean that?
You hear it from my thoughts yourself, my love. I'm not hiding anything from you. Ask me anything you want to. I admit to being hesitant to tell you about my suspicions with the newborns, but I didn't want to scare you.
Do you want a baby?
Yes and no. I would love to have our baby, but I'm still terrified of losing you. Or you being frozen pregnant like Carlisle mentioned. I showed her my daydreams of holding a tiny baby in my arms that looked like Bella, perhaps with my hair or my natural eye color, and loving it every bit as much as I loved her, although in a slightly different way. But I also showed her just how much I needed her in my life too, and how I couldn't bear to lose her.
Me too.
Do you think his precautions would help?
Absolutely.
Do you think it's worth the risk?
I don't want to answer that for you.
You promised I could ask you anything. Please?
I do. But only if we are extremely, extremely careful. We would need to follow everything Carlisle says to the letter. I would want you with at least two of us at all times, preferably always me or Carlisle so that we could change you confidently. I know that Carlisle would succeed. And I know that I would do my very best to, sharing thoughts with you if possible so I'd know if I were hurting you too much or not getting the venom in properly. And we would need to wait at least until the newborn situation is resolved in Seattle, so that the Volturi doesn't find you as a newborn while they are investigating. I let her see that my thoughts were sincere. I showed her just how protective of her I intended to be if she were carrying our child and to what extremes I would go to save them.
I love you.
I love you too.
Edward, you have grown so much. You aren't just saying no like you would have before.
You've changed me, my love. I will do everything in my power to minimize the risk to you and to see that you are safe, but I'm not going to deny what we want. I can't imagine what would have happened had I never come home, or had I drank your blood. It was my turn to panic, but Bella never allowed that for too long.
She instead showed me the memory of our sweet reunion after I had been gone for so long and how complete she felt when she could touch me and kiss me again. She kissed me in the present moment and my thoughts cleared. I simply went back to spending time with my wife. While earlier kisses were passionate and filled with desire, these were kisses of comfort, of love. We decided that we still had a lot to get through together, but for tonight, we were content to snuggle and watch a movie while we waited for updates. We would try to not dwell too much on things we couldn't change.
