A/N

Heading back into the fluff, this is a lot tamer than the last chapter. As always, I don't own Twilight. I just appreciate the loan.

Challenge #8 – Talk My Ear Off

Date Posted: 3/7/2013

Fandom: Twilight

Rating: K+

Genre: Canon

Content Descriptors: Mostly Fluff

Character Pairing: no pairing this time, the entire Cullen clan's involved

Nessie POV

"So what are we studying today?" I asked Grandma Esme as I arrived at the main house.

"It's time we went through some of your biology requirements. Jake has his GED test coming up soon, and from the practice test we ran through, there were a couple areas to catch up."

I nodded. "Daddy was reading me a book about dragons last night. Are there any animals like that? I think hunting them would be fun, if there aren't too few of them around."

Jake walked into the room at that moment. "You want to go on a dragon hunt, Nessie? I'm not sure how we'd pull that one off, but let's see what we can do."

We walked over to the laptop Grandma had set out for today's lesson. "So how do you guys want to look this one up?" Esme asked.

Nessie shrugged. "I think we should just type in 'dragon hunt.'"

Dad walked in and frantically shook his head. "Some people use that term in not such a nice way, sweetie. What kind of dragons do you want to hunt?"

"What kind of dragons are there?"

Esme answered, "That's something you need to find out."

I typed in 'living dragon' on the search and soon found something called a Komodo dragon, then turned the laptop around so everyone else could see.

"I found something called a Komodo dragon. They don't look very yummy."

By this point, the rest of the family had arrived for the day and settled around the room.

Uncle Emmett added, "But they look cool. I wonder what it would be like to hunt one."

I wrinkled my nose. "Is there anything you don't want to drink?"

He thought for a second. "Not really. It's more about the hunt, though."

I kept looking for more information on Komodo dragons. "I found something interesting," I announced. "They're a lot like you guys. Komodo dragons are venomous."

Mom frowned. "I don't think it'd be a good idea for you to try and catch one, then. We don't know what the venom would do to you."

"I'll be careful, Mom. Besides, we haven't gone anywhere but shopping in forever. The last time we went anywhere other than a mall was before I started school."

I turned and typed some more. "Komodo dragons are in Indonesia, so we'll have to keep everyone indoors except for at night unless it's cloudy. Hmm. I wonder how often that is."

Alice started looking distant as she tried to scan for possibilities while I continued searching. "It looks like January is a month that has some monsoons, though the sun still appears occasionally in the afternoon."

Alice's attention finally returned to the present. "I can't see any major disasters if we do this, but it's a bit fuzzy. I presume Nessie wants Jake to come along. I don't think it would hurt if we went for a day or two."

Grandpa added, "If we go in January, I can write a note to excuse Renesmee from school. They'll believe it if I say she has the flu. It would probably look more normal anyway."

Aunt Alice picked up the other laptop Jake usually used for his studies. "There are some beachfront resorts that look promising. Nothing like the place Bella, Edward, Jake, and Nessie went to on vacation."

Mom and Dad looked at each other. "As long as we can keep Renesmee from getting bitten," Dad said.

Jake chuckled. "I'll be there. Do you think I'll let one of those freaky-looking things get anywhere near Nessie?"

Mom laughed. "True. I don't think I have any objections. Jake, when do you start at the garage?"

"Next month," he answered. "After I take my GED test, I start. But I think I can get out for a couple days."

Esme pulled out a binder from her desk. "I don't see anything coming up in the family schedule. Carlisle, you have some days off from the hospital coming up on January eighteenth through the twenty third."

Aunt Alice bounced. "There are some fashion shows being held in Paris about that time. Would anyone mind a pit stop?"

Both Mom and I glared at her, but she was beaming. Mom rolled her eyes but asked, "One day only?"

Aunt Alice nodded. "That's fine. We don't even have to stay overnight."

Mom looked at Grandpa. "Does anyone in this family know how to fly? I'm still not too sure how I'd manage on a commercial flight."

Grandpa nodded. "We actually have a jet in the family, and all of us except you, Renesmee, and Jacob have pilot's licenses."

Mom took the laptop from Aunt Alice. "Just what are you getting in to? I won't torture Alice with a place like we visited, but I don't think we should go too over the top."

Aunt Alice stuck her tongue out at Mom. "Are you ever going to get over your aversion to nice things?"

Mom shook her head. "I just don't see the sense in spending enough to support a small family for an entire year on just one trip."

Dad rubbed a calming hand on her shoulder. "I want Renesmee to see as much of the world as she can."

"Fine, we'll go with this place on the beach. It won't be too bad."

Jake headed for the door. "I've got to go tell my dad and Sam I'll be going with you guys. I also have to get the time off from work."

Aunt Alice had taken the laptop back. "Do you have enough clothes that aren't cut-offs, Jake? I can order you a couple things."

He shook his head. "I'll make sure I have a nice outfit or two. You don't need to get anything for me."

Aunt Alice rolled her eyes. "You're going to eventually have to get over your dislike of me shopping for you if you're going to be a permanent member of this family."

I growled. "If? Jake is a permanent member of this family. But, Aunt Alice, he's not your Barbie doll. He's mine."

Tinkling laughter filled the house. "So you want to take him shopping, then?"

I looked over at Jake. He looked hopefully toward the front door, relieved to be getting out of being Aunt Alice's living dress-up doll. "Sure. But we'll wait until it's closer to time to our trip."

Jake left, and everyone else drifted off to plan. "What's for breakfast?" I asked.

"What would you like?" Mom answered.

I grinned. "Bacon, but please don't cook it too much."

Mom went to the kitchen to get breakfast ready for me and said, "I'll just get it a bit crispy around the edges."

"That sounds good, Mom. And can we bring Grandpa Charlie and Aunt Sue along this time, too?"

Mom froze. "Grandpa Charlie likes to keep things 'need to know' only. I don't know how well behaved everyone will be around him."

Aunt Rose said, "I'll sit on Emmett, if I have to. We can send him and Sue off for a day while we go hunting."

Uncle Emmett pouted. "I'm not really that bad, am I?"

Aunt Rose laughed. "Please don't make me answer that."

Mom stuck her head around the corner. "Breakfast's ready."

I ran off to the kitchen to eat and left everyone else to plan.