AN: SM owns twilight.

Chapter six.

I awoke with a tiny, furry paw swatting my nose. What the...? Oh yeah...it's Rufus!

I wiggled my arms out from under the covers and patted his head. He meowed; I guess he must be hungry. Ange did say something about kittens needing smaller, more frequent meals than adult cats.

"Come on baby, let's get you fed and I'm sure you need to go to the loo by now too, I know I do."

I held him in my hands, he was too small to try coming down the stairs all on his own. He ate and drank like the starved waif that he was, and then did his business in the litter tray, like a pro.

Well, apart from his excited attempts to dig his way to the bottom of the pile of litter, he was as good as gold.

"Rufus that's great, you got the hang of it so quickly!" Said I, the proud mama cat.

I had my breakfast, after doing the saliva indicator, measurement thing, which told me that I was still ovulating. The Cullens and I had agreed to see each other tomorrow.

Today I was free and I thought about what I needed to help me get some other paying work apart from Esme's allowance. It needed to be work which I could do from home, and that wasn't physically stressful, and preferably work which kept my brain active.

I knew there were some great online job sites, but my prehistoric computer was pretty much due to die anytime soon. I didn't even trust the damn thing to send me my e-mails properly.

I took a breath and decided to go and pay for something better.

I needed to upgrade soon, to obtain something new, something that worked, that was light and easy to carry. Should I think buying a new laptop or a fancy i Pad or an equivenant android?

I would definitely need to upgrade my Internet provider too, and buy an upgraded modem with WiFi. While I was thinking about it, I should also replace my crappy, old printer.

Mmm, looks like I'm going to have a trip into Port Angeles today. They have a couple of good computer stores in town there now, and I'm sure the shop assistants could offer me suggestions as to what I needed to buy.

It was dawn, and Rufus and I were enjoying our breakfast. The sky was unusually clear, with deep pink and rose lighting up the horizon.

On a whim, I decided to ring my old environmental science professor, we got on like a house on fire and I knew he would be up really early at dawn, counting birds.

I know it sounds odd, but it was his long-time passion, monitoring populations of seabirds, he had published some studies on their decline in numbers over the years.

He and his wife lived right on the coast, near a large bird rookery. He did his bird count daily, without fail. The only ever times, he missed his bird count, was when he was out of the state at a conference, or was severely restricted to bed. Like after he experienced a massive coronary, and his wife and doctor made him stay in bed, instead of gallivanting around the countryside and cliffs, with his binoculars and a notebook, counting birds.

"Yes?" I heard the wind blowing, through the mouthpiece; he must have been on a windy stretch of coast, probably standing on his favourite cliff top.

"Prof Aro, it's me Bella Swan, how are the Tufted Puffins and Storm Petrels this fine morning?"

"Bella, how the hell are you? It's like you just dropped off the radar, where are you? I haven't seen you in months!"

"I'm in Forks, Washington; you know where I grew up? I had to come home to care for my Dad, he died last week."

"Oh, that's sad, how are you coping? Are you coming back to give me some help here? I'm not getting any younger, and Pia is complaining about me not retiring as soon as she wants."

"Oh?"

"Yes, she wants me home, where she can make me grow ... petunias and help her knit throw rugs or something awful. She wants me to settle down! I told her I'm the kind of guy, who no matter how old he gets, doesn't want to be fenced in... and that I really hate those stupid god-damn petunias."

Poor Sulpicia, she was a lovely lady, who worried constantly about her husband falling off a cliff, during his early morning bird count.

"Really?"

"Yes, so Bella when are you coming back to finish you studies? I have some great projects for your honors project, you could take your pick, being my favourite student and top of the class four years in a row."

"Well Prof, I'm busy with things here, and its very likely that I'm going to be stuck here in Forks for a while. What I was ringing about was... to see if you needed some administration or marking work done? I need something I could do on-line and send back to you, via e-mail... or maybe you know of someone else in the department who wants some work done?"

"Hmm, what?... marking or reviewing papers for me, or maybe setting up my course work on line, for those students who study by distance?"

"Yeah, I know there wasn't any work available a few months ago, when the Uni had all of those financial cutbacks, but maybe that kind of work could benefit both of us, if you have any Prof."

"Sure, they keep pressuring me to get up to scratch with all this fancy, new-fangled, on-line stuff, in order to make the university more efficient, and bring in more on-line students...but it's getting too much for me Bella. On top of that, my eyesight isn't what it used to be, and all of that reading I have to do for the student's exams, reports and research papers is driving me nuts."

"Uh..."

"Yes, I've got it! I'll pay you a wage, out of my discretionary budget. You can assist me, in getting on top of my entire under-grad, student marking to begin with. After that, we can get stuck into placing all my course work into the correct on-line format, and meeting the university's strict requirements for their distance ed. students. That way... I get to keep my job, and you get some work too!"

"Really? You'd do that for me? Thanks so much! It really means a lot to me Prof. There might even be some occasions that I can travel down to see you in Monterey and see you for short periods. Then we can get this work sorted out face to face." I squeaked in excitement.

"I think that would be perfect Bella! I could stop worrying about the higher ups being on my back, and you could keep in touch with the latest goings-on around campus, as well as help an old guy like me out."

"Prof, you're not even eighty yet! You aren't really old, until you turn the big eight zero you know!"

"Well, I sure feel it! So I'll send an e-mail, with all of the job details we just discussed. I'll set up Gianna with your details, so I can employ you properly. Would you be able to come down to see me some time next week?"

I should have finished my first lot of inseminations with the Cullens by then. I would be free to do my thing for a week or so, until I needed to be back in Forks, for the next round.

"I'll be able to drive down and see you, by next weekend, is that ok?. Can I stay at your place while I'm there Prof?"

"Yeah, sure, there's always a bed here at Casa di Volturi for you Bella! If Pia found out you were staying somewhere else, I wouldn't hear the end of it!"

"Is it ok, if I bring my new kitten Rufus? I adopted him just yesterday and he's still really a tiny baby."

"Sure as long as he leaves my puffins and petrels alone, he's more than welcome. Pia loves cats; she'll probably want to knit him a little coat while he's here." Aro chuckled.

"Thanks, I can't wait! I should be arriving there on Saturday afternoon."

"Ok, I look forward to it my dear, see you then, ciao Bella!"

I made up a warm bed for Rufus in the laundry. I was hoping he would be ok for a couple of hours while I was away, buying a new computer and printer setup.

My phone rang, it was Esme.

"Esme, hi."

"Hi, how are you this morning?"

"Fine, I'm just about to go off and shop for a new computer in Port Angeles."

"Oh, ok...um I was wondering... if you would like to... maybe... come by this morning while you are still ovulating, and do another session with us? Carlisle is working the afternoon shift permanently now, so we can see you in the mornings, and we don't have to try and juggle his work around your cycle."

"Well, ok that could work. I'd be glad to."

"And while I think about it, Carlisle has access to lots of nearly new computers from the hospital, as they are forever upgrading them. I'll see if he can get you a nice one with his staff discount."

"Esme, that's not necessary."

"Oh but I don't mind! I want to help!"

"We'll talk about it when I get to your place, ok?"

"Sure, sure!"

I huffed, it was lovely that she was thinking of doing this for me, but it felt a little...motherly, or ...controlling or something.

Wait! I had to stop myself getting all grumpy and negative, just because she cared and was generous.

We had to get along and be happy in each other's company; otherwise, this surrogacy situation would get really weird, really fast.

I just wasn't used to being fussed over and nurtured. My parents never did, it was a complete novelty, something strange and new, having someone else anticipate and care about my wants and go out of their way for me. To make me a priority, a valued important person in their lives.

If I just relaxed and went with the flow, I'd be more likely to get pregnant, and more likely to have a successful outcome for them, rather than if I was tense and struggling with the situation.

I breathed slowly and deeply, letting my mind relax.

I topped up Rufus' food and milk, and placed a couple of hand-warming gel packs, into his bed with Charlie's old sweater.

I placed him there so he could enjoy the warmth and patted him.

"Its ok sweetie, I'll only be away for a little while, you can keep nice and warm in your new bed."

He purred loudly, he seemed to have accepted me as his...surrogate mother!

I laughed to myself... it was incredibly ironic that I was doing this on two fronts, for both Rufus and the Cullens, within twenty four hours of each other.

What was the universe trying to tell me I wonder?

I also had the promise of doing some excellent, mind stretching, paid work from home! Yay!

Things are really looking up.

Things went pretty much the same this morning, as yesterday's insemination session. Except for the champagne and signing a bunch of papers.

I lay back on the downy pillows and watched Keira Knightly as Elizabeth, yelling Matthew Macfadyen, the brooding Mr D'Arcy, in the 2005 movie version of Pride and Prejudice. I sighed, they were great together and the location was amazing.

I wondered if Carlisle's sperm was doing a dance around my cervix, and I hoped that it was deciding to try to move along, right into my uterus in search of my egg.

There was a gentle knock on the door, and Carlisle entered, holding something small and black.

"How are you Bella?" He asked smiling softly.

"Oh, you know, same old, same old"... I joked.

"Ha! I hope it's not getting too boring for you already?"

"No only kidding! Next week I'm going to get some paid work, that I can do at home and here, with my environmental science Professor, Aro Volturi. It will mostly be online, reading and marking papers and such, for his undergraduates. Later there's more work, pulling his whole course curriculum together, in order to present it on-line, for the distance students studying with the university. They are an ever growing sector of the student body."

"Oh that's great, it will stop you getting too bored here when you get sick of watching costume dramas, and won't be physically stressful at all."

"Although Carlisle, after 150 of exactly the same exam answers, it might end up being really monotonous." I chuckled.

"Well, about that, I've got an i Pad here that you can have, if you want. I never use it now that I have upgraded my phone. I wiped the small amount of personal info on the i Pad, so it's yours to use as you want. If you don't want to use it, it will just sit here in a cupboard, till next time Esme has a clean out, and it will be almost worthless by then."

"Ok, ok, ...you've managed to make me feel, like I'm somehow doing you a big favour, by taking it off your hands...how did you manage to do that Carlisle?"

"Years and years of training to get my patients to follow my medical advice...I always make them feel like they are really helping me, because the vast majority of people don't want to help themselves at all!"

"Huh, ok that's interesting to know."

"He passed me the i Pad."

We spent the next hour looking at all of its features and he showed me how to load up some useful new apps. He had magically loaded it up with credit before giving it to me, so purchasing new apps was effortless.

I loaded up some photos from my phone, to show the Cullens my little Rufus. He came onto the screen looking as cute as ever, especially with his mouth and whiskers full of milk from his first meal.

Esme came in; she smiled as I told her about the wet, bedraggled ball that I found half frozen on the doormat yesterday.

"Poor little thing, it was wonderful Angela could help you. She's a nice friendly girl. We should introduce her to our nephews Carlisle."

"I don't know Essie; those boys aren't necessarily looking for some nice girl like Angela Webber to settle down with ...they are most probably still busy sowing their wild oats! Don't you remember what happened last Thanksgiving? With Jasper bringing one girl here for lunch ...what was her name? Alice, that's it! She was so small; she looked all of thirteen, for heaven's sake! Then some older woman called Maria, who was easily not a day younger than forty, and dressed in that tight leopard-skin top, with her assets on full display came a-knocking. She was crazy and kept coming around here all weekend, making Alice cry and trying to drag Jasper off to be with her!"

I snorted, he sounded absolutely charming... like a real wild boy! Playing both ends of the spectrum simultaneously. Ughh!

"Please, don't remind me!" Esme said, rolling her eyes. "And then there are Edward's adventures, with those damn Denali triplets. I mean to say... I don't think I've ever been so embarrassed. I don't know what possessed him, to think it was fine to bring all of the triplets along, camping with us. Didn't he think that we would hear every single, little thing they got up to, while they were all sharing a tent? Honestly!"

I rolled my eyes, those two nephews sounded like disasters waiting to happen! I'd make sure to warn Ange, and share the wacky stories of them and their multiple partners. So she could give them a really wide berth.

"Please don't feel you need to introduce me to them! I don't think I'm up for that sort of wild behaviour!" I pleaded in jest.

I doubted if I would be someone who would be included in the Cullen's Thanksgiving dinners or camping trips.

I was just the surrogate. I needed to remember that!

"Oh no dear! I wouldn't want you to have to deal with them like that ...they are nice boys in their own way, except when it comes to making good choices with their girlfriends." Esme sighed.

"You are way too good for any of them Bella! I would never let them get their claws into you. Anyway, you've got a brilliant academic career ahead of you; you don't want to be tied down with either of those miscreants." Carlisle said intensely, looking at me.

Maybe I was valued by them? It sure sounded like it! Carlisle wanted to support my studies. They both did.

Shook my head, who knows what kind of future I was looking at?

"Do your family know you've started trying this new arrangement with me yet?"

"Umm, no not yet, we were thinking of telling them, when and if we manage to get a positive outcome. Once you get pregnant and have a healthy progression with the pregnancy...maybe we could tell them then." Carlisle said, I got the feeling he wasn't that keen to share the news with them right now, which was fine with me.

"Ok, so no rush then? That's good, because otherwise it's going to be tricky trying to explain it. I wonder what's going to happen, once I start showing a baby-bump? I hate to think of the wacky rumours, that will be circulating madly on the grape vine around town then!

"We could have a suitable story ready, or you could go somewhere else for the last few months of the pregnancy, when you are really showing."

"I could maybe head back to Monterey California, and stay with my friends Aro and Pia Volturi, they would make sure I would be fine, until the time for the birth."

"How about we think about all of our options, and discuss them next time you come. Want to do this again tomorrow?" Carlisle asked me.

"Yeah sure, same time, same place." I grinned.

"Thanks Bella, we're really hopeful, aren't we Essie?" she nodded and they both hugged me. It was sweet.

"I'll do my best! I can only hope your swimmers know where to find my egg." I mumbled into their warm embrace.

We all started giggling.

Who would have thought, that anything about this process could be funny? But it was, hilarious in fact! We rolled about, laughing so much so that Esme and I ended up with tears in our eyes, doubled over, gasping for breath.

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