We ran home - if we left our car there, there would be a reason to go back. The run was relaxing and prepared me to enter reality. We were about 2 miles outside of the Cullen estate - Edward stopped dead in his tracks. I sniffed the air to see if there was something unusual, but all I could smell and taste was moss, trees, nature, and him. I pulled my shield in tightly around the two of us.

"I don't hear anything." He said. I listened to the night and heard animals running opposite us, and the trickle of the river off to our left.

"I don't hear anything either, let's go." I picked up the bags that I had set on the ground when I thought there may have been danger.

"No, I don't hear any thoughts." Edward whispered as if concentrating too hard to speak any louder. "It's like no one is out there."

"Like someone shut it off?" I said.

"That can't be possible."

"Maybe we aren't close enough yet."

"Maybe something is wrong." He combated and took off again. The only time I beat Edward in a dead run was when he let me, he would stop every couple seconds and let me catch up, we were home in less than a minute.

Every light was off and not a sound came from either house. I searched for the patter of Renesmee's heart beat or the loud thumping of Jacob's, nothing - Edward wasn't the only one freaking out.

"Anything yet?" I asked.

"Nothing." He said, "Go around to the cottage and I'll check around the house."

"I think we should stay together."

"Bella! Go to the cottage."

"No! I am staying with you."

Edward didn't respond to me he just slowly crept towards the back of the main house - I followed, I was a vampire now; he couldn't act like I was still human, still fragile. You'd think the last few days would have opened his eyes to it.

The back door to the house was left opened, I flicked on the lights - we didn't need them but it was a habit I wasn't able to break. From all directions I could see people jumping out from behind furniture and doors.

"Surprise!" Alice yelled as a chorus of voices followed.

"A party?" Edward and I questioned in unison.

"It's Bella's and Nessie's birthday! Of course a party. You didn't think you were the only one that remembered did you?"

Nessie took after me about presents and parties; we all decided high school was the only gift she wanted. We each got her a card, Edward composed a song, but a party wasn't in the plans. Since her actual birthday was 2 days ago, I thought we had gotten away without one.

"Now be quiet and turn the lights off or you are going to ruin the surprise." Alice demanded. "And don't worry, she'd going to love it." She whispered to us.

"How did you get everyone to think nothing?" Edward asked, still wondering how the cunning Alice eluded him.

"We had help!" She said as she nodded in the direction of Zafrina, the woman who could cloud your mind with whatever she wished. She had once helped me train to spread the shield I now held in place around so many. My shield reached to Nessie and Jacob and I knew they were about to pull into the driveway.

"They are almost here." Edward, Alice, and I called out together. I looked around at all the faces hidden in the shadows, I felt the warm energy of the wolves, the cold abyss of the vampires, and the pulsing blood of the humans, everyone we knew had showed. It was the largest grouping of our kind I'd seen since the day we had to confront the Volturi together. Renesmee meant so much to them all that they came for her 18th birthday party. Jake and Ness pulled into the garage in Jacob's Audi; I could hear them giggle with delight just being next to each other. It warmed my cold heart to know she had her own Edward.

They came up through the front door, and just like I did, reached for the light. When we heard the flick we all jumped out again and yelled "Surprise!"

Jacob's face instinctively snarled up until he realized who it was jumping out at him.

"Happy Birthday Nessie!" Alice yelled out as she flitted her way over to them.

"Thank you so much Auntie Alice." Renesmee's eyes scanned the group taking in each face and remembering the last time she'd seen them. With each one her smile grew - Alice was right, she loved it.

We all spent the night laughing, Nessie went around greeting everyone and bringing them up to speed a hand to their cheek - she'd learned how to share with more than one person, anyone touching her skin she could send memories to. Eventually she got to the whole room and back again.

"Mom, dad, can we talk to you a minute?"

"Of course honey!" Edward said. The four of us excused ourselves and went up to our cottage.

"You are trying very hard to keep your thoughts from me." Edward noted.

"And you look very nervous." I added.

I had an idea what was going on, and watching my daughter and best friend squirm under scrutiny was fun.

"Nessie is 18 now." Jacob started.

"Yes?" We said.

"Well, we think, well, I asked."

"Mom, he asked me to marry him." Renesmee places her hand in my hand and her other in Edward's. She showed us the date they had went on. The restaurant Jacob had taken her to - Bella Italian, the same place Edward and I went that night in Port Angeles. I chuckled as I watched Nessie order the mushroom ravioli and coke as I had. After dinner they had walked around town, Jacob took her to a park bench in the middle of town. I saw him from her eyes; they clouded over with tears as he got on one knee. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a ring that looked familiar to me.

"From the moment I saw you I have been trying to put the words together to tell you how I feel - I have never been able to. But I am going to try. When a wolf howls at the moon it's because that was what he was made to do. When your father turned your mother it was because that was what he was made to do. When I kiss you it is because that is what I was made to do. And if you'll let me, I'd like to do it forever. Renesmee Carlie Cullen, will you marry me?"

She cut off the connection there; she knew we didn't really enjoy kissing Jacob through her mind.

"I said yes!" She screamed as she shoved her ringed hand in my face. The ring that Edward had told me belonged to his mother, handed down from her mother, a family heirloom he must have passed to Jacob to give to our daughter. He knew what was going on and didn't tell me.

My instinct was to be happy for my daughter, but I remembered being 18 and being proposed to. Then I felt Edward grab my hand and I couldn't be anything but overjoyed for my one and only child. We all stood and hugged each other, congratulating the newly engaged couple.

"Now let's go tell everyone else." Nessie said, her voice so elated she sounded like Alice.

"No need. They're all here." Edward said, as he opened the door and pointed out all the nosey faces. I couldn't believe this was my family; life didn't end when my heart stopped beating - it barely began.