The Human Vampire

Chapter 7 – With One Last Glance (Epilogue)

Edward was right –as always. We didn't have to home school the children for a full month. This time, we enrolled them in private schools because the public schools didn't accept children who had been removed or expelled for at least a year.

After a week of home schooling, the children started actually listening in class. Edward and I decided that if they continued to make progress in the next week or so, we would go to the private schools and get them enrolled.

A week later, we had left Alice and Jasper take care of the children whilst we got them their Chanukah present. They had been nothing but stars this past week –and I'm not just saying that because I'm their mother… well, maybe a bit.

It was now the 8th day of Chanukah and we were all seated around the table. At one end the adults and on the other the children… in other words, the eaters and the drinkers. I was about to give the children their final present. They had been getting hints all week and surprisingly, none of them had guessed anything. They didn't even wonder why they were getting pencil cases and pens and erasers and rulers and textbooks and notebooks and backpacks. They just thought we had gone mad. I looked at my family and saw smiles and heard laughs and felt joy –although that was probably coming from Jasper. I saw that Renesmee was seconds away from falling asleep of her father's chest and that Eytan was lying in a corner somewhere sleeping and that Elisa was lying across her mother and Emmett. I saw that opposite me at the other end of the table, the girls were discussing something about gold with silver stripes or silver with gold stripes and the boys were talking about soccer with their grandfather. It was amazing how fast things had gone from dangerously wrong to amazingly right.

'Kids,' I started, 'are you all don't eating?'

'Yea.' They all answered not getting out of their conversations.

'OK then, who wants to light the last candle?' I asked. Now they all started fighting over who had and hadn't lit one yet and who should do it.

'Alex and Aaiden, you have already had your turn.' I said hoping to calm things down. It didn't. 'I'm going to pick. Cam, you haven't lit any in the past 3 years. Its your turn.' He came up to the menorah and lit the first candle saying the prayer whilst in the background the others sang 'On this night, let us light, 8 little Chanukah candles. Let us fight, for our rights, 8 little Chanukah candles.' Over and over and over again. He lit the 8 candles and turned around and went back to his seat.

Everyone was bouncing in his or her seats. It was time for presents. They obviously didn't know what they were getting.

I looked at Edward who pointed towards the back closet. I went and got the 6 bags, each with one name and the rest of the presents. I stood at the door and waved the children over. The younger ones ran as fast as they could and the older ones walked behind them laughing about something Alex had said.

Gabe was first in line so I handed him his package. Then Sarah, then the triplets, then Brandon, Cam, Alex and Aaiden. They went off in a corner to open their present. I went to Nessie who was surprisingly still awake and handed her her present. Then I handed Camille hers, Elisa's and Eytan's.

I walked over to the adults and sat in my chair. I looked over at the children and had to choke back my laugh. I nudged the others and told them to look. All the children were holding up their uniforms in horror. Brandon then found his file. He opened it and told the others to do the same. Inside, there was his and his siblings' acceptance letters to the school. They then started screaming in joy and Sarah bounced over to us and hugged us with all her might.

'For a second there, mom,' she said, ' I thought you'd made a HORRENDOUS fashion mistake.' Then she looked at Alice and squealed. 'Thank you Aunt Alice!!!!' Next to me, Edward chuckled. Stupid mind reading.

'What did she say?' I asked curious.

'She said she would do something about fixing those 'hideous' uniforms… her words not mine.' He answered.

'They're not that bad.' I answered upset. 'I was even going to get them all together on the first day of school and take a picture of them all together in their uniforms.' They all groaned.

I saw Jasper stand up and walk out. I knew this was my queue and stood up too. I followed him making sure no one had followed us. No one had. We walked out into the cars and got into my car and I drove off. We were soon at our destination and bringing back Alice's Chanukah bundles out to the car. We placed them carefully in the back and drove back home hoping that no one had noticed we were gone.

I walked in first and went to the living room where everyone was now discussing the school ordeal. I pulled at my ear and everyone knew that now had to shut up… except Alice.

'Why did you stop talking?' she asked.

'You want to go and see mommy.' I heard Jasper say as he walked through the doors. By now, all of us had retreated to the back of the room to let Alice enjoy her present in peace. She gasped when she saw the two bundles: One pink and one blue… one girl and one boy. She hesitantly walked forward and took the girl in her arms. She would be crying if she could… bawling even.

'Hi…' she started, 'hi, baby. Hi, beautiful. Hi Salome (pronounced: Sa-lo-may).' She now moved to pick up the boy. 'Hey, you… Jazz.' She looked up at us and looked at Jasper who was beaming and them back at Salome and Jazz. She leaned into Jasper's chest and said: 'Thank-you'.

That night, after everyone had gone home with Salome Jasmine Hale Cullen and Jasper Westley Junior Hale Cullen, and everyone had gone to their rooms to sleep or do nothing for the rest of the night, Edward and I lay in bed thinking. Looked at him and saw that he had his eyes closed and had a smile on his face. He then walked over to the piano and played a tune I had never heard before. I sat up on the bed and looked at him. Once he was done, he said that it was our family's 'theme tune'. I laughed at this. It was a lively tune with major and minor parts… it was perfect.

The following Monday…

'Cam, Alex, Aaiden, Brandon, Sarah and Gabe.' I screamed up the stairs of our mansion to my children. 'Get your sleepy butts down these stairs. NOW!'

I then waited as I had all those years ago and watched as Cameron appeared in front of me and Alex and Aaiden floated down the flights of stairs carrying Brandon and Gabe. Sarah had taken Camille's place at being hard to wake up. I ran up the stairs and shook her out of her bed.

'Sarah, sweetie.' I was now going to use the threat I had used on her older sister those 4 years ago. 'Don't make me get your uncle down here because you know I will.' She jumped out of bed not wanting what had happened to her sister to come to her. She got into her uniform and walked down the stairs with me.

As we walked into the kitchen, I saw all my children sitting at the table. Alex sat on a stool eating a pancake and braiding Lila's hair. Brandon and Gabe were talking about their first day of school and Aaron had Eric and Aaron on his lap and he was feeding them 'planes'. Cam was holding his nephew Eytan and trying to teach him the lesson he knew to perfection. Elisa and Renesmee were in their high chairs being fed by Camille. My husband of 20 years –is that even possible… it feels like 50 at least- came up behind me and kissed the top of my head.

He announced he would be taking Cam, Alex, Aaiden and Brandon, that I would be taking Sarah and Gabe and that Camille would be driving Lila, Eric and Aaron. We all got in our assigned cars me with Renesmee and Camille with Eytan and Elisa. I dropped off Sarah in her fourth grade class and Gabe in his first grade class all the while holding Renesmee. I went home and fed Nessie. When she had finished eating, she put her hand to my face and showed me her holding the picture albums and her sitting on my lap. I went to the shelf where the photo albums were and sat her on my lap.

We started with Camille's. On the front of the pink album in silver lettering…

THE END

Hey everyone, I hope you enjoyed the story. For anyone who didnt det it, this takes place instead of Breaking Dawn. I'm now wrting a story that takes place before Twilight. Thank you to the two people who reviewed... especially s m Neal who reviewed 5 times.