DISCLAIMER: The characters do not belong to us, although we would love to have Edward. They all belong to Stephenie Meyer, but we are willing to purchase them if she ever decides to sell!

Author's Note: Thank you for all of your feedback! We are thrilled that you are enjoying this story. Thank you all for your faith in our writing and keeping an open mind. The next few chapters have definitely been the most exciting to write and we hope you will all agree. Enjoy!

VBR & My Bella

Bella was upstairs with the girls while Jasper and Emmett were distracted by the television in the living room. This would be a perfect opportunity to speak with my father. As I made my way up the stairs to Carlisle's study, I wondered what his reaction would be to what I was about to tell him. The door was slightly open, as if he was anticipating my arrival.

"Come on in, Edward," Carlisle called out.

I pushed the door the rest of the way open, and found him at his computer. He was leaning back in his chair, smiling as he watched me take the seat across from him.

I picked up his marble paperweight, turning it over in my hands as I thought about where to start in my explanation. "Carlisle," I started looking up at him. "We have been together many years now and have been through quite a bit. I am sorry for worrying you; for making you think I was being careless with Bella. Believe me, I have never been more careful in all my existence." I paused, holding his gaze, willing him to understand. "Bella and I have pushed ourselves to the brink of madness to be together. I realized after Jacob came here that I could bear it no longer. This constant danger to her life had to stop."

Carlisle's face was filled with understanding, and he nodded once, letting me know to continue.

"Bella deserves to be happy, and so do I for that matter. I know that now. Making her one of us was the only way to keep her at my side, and I will happily bear the consequences…whatever they may be.

"Her life could no longer hang in the balance…because mine hung with it. I cannot live without Bella. I was not being dramatic in Italy, only impetuous. There is no Edward without Bella. My only regret is that the Volturi would have punished you, and our family, for my actions if I had been successful. I am ashamed that I didn't take that detail into consideration in my haste to end my suffering. I will never act that rashly again," I assured him.

After a brief pause, I continued with my explanation. "I know if we had waited to discuss the details of when and how Bella would be turned, it would have been less stressful for all of you. But we truly felt it could no longer wait."

"Edward, thank you for being candid with me," Carlisle said. "Please understand that I was only concerned for Bella's safety. We all were. We knew you were not capable of hurting her in that way, but in the end, we are predatory creatures and can be unpredictable. We only wanted to protect you both." He leaned forward in his chair and rested his hands on his desk. "Have you been helping her to feed, bringing blood back for her?" he asked.

"Yes. I brought her blood on three occasions and took her for her first hunt this morning," I replied. "Carlisle, there are some things I need to tell you about Bella since she has turned. She has certain…abilities. She is not completely aware of all of them yet, but I can see them stemming in her."

"Like what, Edward?" Carlisle asked, concern showing in his face.

"Well for starters, she awoke only hours after I bit her. The pain of the change stayed with her through the next day, but even during that time, she showed more control than I have ever seen in a newborn. She laid there so focused; it was almost like she was 'willing' the pain away. When I left to hunt for her the first time, I came home to discover I could hear her thoughts. She was upstairs showering and I could hear her saying my name and humming to herself. I immediately went to her, wanting to test her a little. Not only could I hear her, but she could hear me. I believe it happened at first only because she was completely relaxed, but over the last day or so, it has become more constant. I'm not sure if she is learning to control it, or if it is just strengthening as time passes."

Carlisle leaned back in chair, seeming to be relaxed, as I finished my explanation. "You and Bella have a very close bond, Edward. We saw that the very first time you brought her home. The changes in her system may just have opened up the doors of communication between the two of you. We will need to monitor it closely to see if she can control it in anyway."

"Carlisle…there's more…when I took her out to hunt, she did it on her own. She mimicked me actually," I said, my voice lower now.

"I beg your pardon?" Carlisle replied in a disbelieving tone, sitting up straight in a movement too quick for a human eye to see. "She did what?"

"We were hunting deer by the pond and I took down a stag. Before I was able to react, she was after the doe and had moved in the exact same way, Carlisle. She snapped its neck like she had done it time and time again," I said, recalling the moment.

Carlisle's eyes went wide. "Edward, I don't want to worry you. After all, this may only be a coincidence. However, I think we should be prepared for anything, especially since Bella was such a unique human."

"Be prepared for what?" I asked, leaning forward across the desk.

"Edward, only trackers are capable of killing as stealthily as a seasoned vampire this early on. They have the ability to predict their prey's reaction to every maneuver, and they can even throw other predators off their scent if necessary," he explained.

I took in a breath at his last words. "Yeah, about that…she did that, too."

Carlisle turned in his chair and faced the window. "I need to see her hunt for myself to know for sure. We will go out as a family later today so that I can observe her. I do not want to scare her, but if her skills are this developed already, we have to let her know. She will be both more controlled and more dangerous because of them. We will need to caution her and make sure she is completely ready before returning her to Charlie. Her instincts could make her a threat to him, regardless of her control."

"I don't know that we should return her," I said.

"Edward, if we don't return her, we will have to disappear right now. Does Bella want that? Is she ready to leave Charlie? Does she even remember him?"

"We haven't discussed her memory yet," I replied. My mind immediately turned to Bella's earlier thoughts about Jacob, but I would keep those to myself. "Alice and Rose have taken Bella for some girl time. I'm sure Alice will find out for us just how much Bella remembers."

"We will just have to take one thing at a time," Carlisle said, turning back in his chair to face me. "As soon as everyone is settled, we will go out to hunt."

"That sounds good," I said, standing up and setting his paperweight back in its place. "Thank you, Carlisle. It's good to know that I am not alone in protecting Bella."

"Of course not, Edward. You are all my family, and your happiness is my happiness," he replied with affection in his voice.

I smiled and nodded once as I left his study. I stood in the hallway, amazed that I was actually in this house once again. Less than a week ago, I was sure I would never see it, or my family, ever again. As I stood there, I took comfort in the familiar sounds of a house full of loved ones. Emmett and Jasper were still in the living room. They were playing a fighting game and arguing incessantly about who beat who.

The murmuring voices of Alice, Bella, and Rose reached my ears, coming from down the hall. I missed Bella terribly and wanted to be with her, but I knew she needed to be with Alice and Rose right now. Alice must have seen my conversation with Carlisle because she was currently questioning Bella about Charlie.

I picked up on the sound of Esme singing softly in her room. I started in that direction, knowing it was time to talk with my mother.

"May I come in, mom?" I asked, knocking softly on her door.

"Please," she replied.

I entered her room, amazed at how she had already uncovered everything, making it seem like she had not spent months away from here.

She was sitting at her vanity, going through her jewelry box. She was so beautiful, almost regal in her demeanor­, a true lady.

I walked over to the open balcony doors, gently squeezing her shoulder as I passed behind her. Esme and I had been together nearly as long as Carlisle and I had. She had become my mother in every sense of the word over the decades we had lived together. And when I had returned from my rebellious stage, she had been the first to hug me and welcome me home.

"Hello, dear one," she greeted, a smile in her comforting voice. "You look troubled. Is everything ok?"

"Everything is fine…well, mostly," I replied, my voice uncertain.

"Would you care to talk about it?" she asked, turning to face me.

"You know my reasons for going to Volterra," I started. "I just want you to know that I am beside myself at how careless I was in my haste. You all could have suffered the consequences of my actions. You still might for all I know. I just…" I turned away from her compassionate gaze and looked out on the cloudy afternoon instead. "I will make this right, Esme."

"How can you carry all that weight with you all the time, Edward?" Esme asked. "How is it that you haven't fallen and been crushed by it yet?"

Her words caught me off-guard and I turned to see her face, trying to understand what she meant.

"Edward, we are a family. We are supposed to handle all of our matters together. I know that you were distraught, and I cannot say that I would not have done the same if I had lost Carlisle." She paused, the mere thought of losing my father filling her with emotion. "You have spent this life struggling with the idea that you were a monster, not worthy of happiness. And then Bella came along. She opened you up and helped you become the man you thought you never could be. She finally got through that thick head of yours, getting you to believe that you deserved to be happy. But then your noble side kicked in and you left her, destroying the happiness both of you had found together.

"When Alice told us of her vision of Bella jumping, I knew I had lost you. Eternity is a long road to carry the weight of sorrow and solitude, and after having felt the joy of love and togetherness, you would not be able to go on without it. But Bella surprised us all, always so much tougher than we give her credit for. She saved you, bringing you home to us.

"We will not go through that again, Edward. We will handle the Volturi together as a family, if such a time comes." She stood up, resting her hand on my shoulder as she smiled lovingly at me. With her free hand, she opened mine, pressing something into my palm. "I want you to have this, Edward," she whispered. She lifted her hand, revealing an antique silver ring.

"Esme, I couldn't," I said incredulously, staring down at the ring.

"Edward, there were so many times I wanted to give this to you, but I thought you might think it silly. But when we almost lost you, it became all too clear to me that you still do not understand how much you mean to this family. This is my grandfather's ring—it was the only thing I had left of him after he died in the war. It was a source of solace for me when I was a little girl, making me feel safe when I was afraid. I want you to have it because you remind me so much of him. He was the heart of our family, taking care of us all and defending us to the end…just as you will always do for us." She smiled at me, beaming with pride.

I stared speechless at her, the ring in my hand suddenly heavier. I slipped it on my right ring finger, admiring the intricately woven silver band. I glanced up at Esme, resolute to keep my voice steady. "I cannot put into words what this means to me, mom. Thank you…for everything." I put my arms around her and held her. This woman was my rock.

"Now enough of this sadness and apologies. Let's get back to our family," she chuckled.

I held my arm out to her, happy to once again have her forgiveness and unconditional love. She wrapped her arms around mine and we walked toward the stairs together.

From everyone's thoughts, I knew they had congregated in the living room…everyone except for Alice. She was waiting to ambush me at the end of the hall.

Esme smiled up at me, knowing my fate. "Good luck, son" she giggled, releasing my arm and heading down the stairs.

"Soooo, big brother," Alice said, bouncing in front of me with her hands behind her back. "It seems you have had a busy couple of days."

"Alice, please make this short. I know you mean well, but I am at my limit for heart-to-hearts. I have also been away from Bella an obscene amount of time. So if you don't mind, say whatever it is you are blocking me from hearing and let's go join our family."

"I am just amazed that you actually went though with it, Edward. I know you love her and I knew she would one day join us, yet I worried it wouldn't be you who changed her." Alice grabbed my hand, yanking me close to the banister and nodding toward Bella. "Do you know why her memory is so sharp?" she asked. Her question threw me off since I had been bracing myself for questions of a much more…embarrassing nature.

"What do you mean by sharp, Alice?" I asked.

"We were discussing the last few days at first. Of course, she remembers that clearly since it was just after her change. But eventually, the conversation led us to Jacob showing up. She remembered every detail about your fight with him with perfect clarity. I also questioned her about Charlie and Renee. Edward, she remembers pretty much everything from the moment she moved to Forks. My whisking her away on shopping sprees is a bit fuzzy for her, but I am sure I can refresh her memory of that quite nicely," she added giggling.

"What else does she remember?"

"She remembers a few things from being a child, mostly times when she seriously injured herself. She is as strange a vampire as she was a human," Alice mused.

Bella looked up and smiled at Alice and me, waving slightly.

"She misses you, you know," Alice giggled. "The whole time she was with Rose and me, we could tell how much she was missing you."

Carlisle had his arm around Esme as they stood at the bottom of the stairs, looking up at Alice and me. "Shall we have a little family meeting?" he asked.

"This should be interesting," Alice said, her eyes letting me know our conversation wasn't finished.

We headed down the stairs together and then into the living room. Jasper and Emmett had stopped playing long enough to uncover all of the furniture, making the house feel more like a true home again. Rose and Bella were inspecting their work, teasingly criticizing the boys for the few spots of dust they could find.

I came up behind Bella and kissed her neck while my arms wound around her waist.

She turned in my embrace and whispered. "I missed you." She didn't give me the chance to reply, using her new strength to pull me to her and kiss me deeply.

I smiled when she finally released me. "I love you, Bella. And I missed you, too. It's been too long since you were last in my arms. Are you ok?" I asked.

"I am fine, thanks. I had a great talk with Alice and Rose," she replied, smiling as her fingers tugged on the hairs at the nape of my neck.

Alice cleared her throat, breaking up our moment. I turned my head to see her sitting with Jasper on one of the loveseats, while Rose and Emmett cuddled on the opposite couch. Bella sat next to me on the main sofa, her head on my chest. As I caressed her hair and shoulders, Carlisle began to speak.

"Hello again, everyone," he chuckled. "I hope you are all settled and more comfortable."

We all smiled and nodded in response.

"I was thinking it would be a great idea if we all went hunting together," Carlisle said, looking at all of us. "It will be a wonderful learning experience for Bella since we all have different hunting styles. How does this sound to you, Bella?" He looked to her, waiting for her answer.

"I think that's a great idea, Carlisle. Thank you," she said, smiling.

Every member of our family had been watching Bella, and judging by their thoughts, they were all surprised at how normal and in control she was.

"Awesome! We get to show off for newbie," Emmett bellowed.

I growled half-seriously at his remark, knowing he had a limited way of expressing himself.

"I was thinking we could go further into the woods and up into the mountains," Carlisle added, ignoring Emmett's comments.

"We should all stick together so we can assist Bella with whatever questions she may have," Esme suggested. "Emmett, do try and keep your enthusiasm down to a dull roar. We don't want to frighten Bella." Esme smiled warmly, letting us all know she was kidding with her last sentence.

With that we all got up and made our way to the back of the house.

I took Bella's hand, rubbing circles on the back of it. "I love you, Bella. This should be…interesting for you," I said to her with my thoughts.

"I am actually excited to see you all in action!" she replied in her thoughts, kissing my cheek.

"I think they are more concerned with seeing you in action, love."

Her eyes grew worrisome as we headed out the back door.

"Don't be nervous, Bella. You will do fine. Besides, no one is judging you. They are only curious about how you will handle it all." I kissed her lips and she smiled, looking a bit more confident.

This would surely be a very revealing experience.