A/N: Ok, here's the next update - the cleaning up of the carnival. There are only a couple more chapters left to this, so I'd just like to thank each and every one of you for taking the time to read this. Thank you! And have a really great holiday!

(Previously):

The game booths were popular and consistently crowded. Mike was showing kids how to shoot the ball if they didn't know, and it was a big hit. Jessica's ring toss booth was busy too, and she actually looked as though she were making an effort to be nice to the kids.

Rosalie and I were busy off and on, which suited me just fine. Rosalie looked less happy about it, probably wondering why there wasn't a constant line around her cart – it's not like kids can continuously eat non-stop. Besides, they would be going to dinner soon anyway.

Finally after a couple hours of entertainment, the carnival was coming to a close and the kids' energy levels were dropping. In order to help us clear up the carnival, Sue, Esme and Carlisle came to take the kids to dinner, allowing the rest of us to get started on clean-up.

Chapter 21:

While waiting for the popcorn machine to cool down enough to empty, I was watching Rosalie gracefully use one of the paper cones to begin gathering the rest of the cotton candy out of the tub of her cart when she paused, her brow creasing. She tilted her head to the side and sniffed the air as if something smelt distasteful. She looked around the base of the cart before returning her gaze back to the tub's contents. Her eyes narrowed into slits as she lowered the cone back into the fluff, swirling it around the sticky strands, working meticulously. After she pulled another few layers of cloud-like sugar from the sides, her eyes suddenly widened in disbelief and she hopped back, gasping. Curious, I leaned over to look into her cart's tub to see what had happened, and I was greeted with the oddest sight. Sammy and Fred's heads had popped to the surface, covered in blue and pink cotton candy, their tiny mouths nibbling away eagerly.

Rosalie slammed the cone in her hand down onto the table, and her furious gaze came to rest on Mike. Everyone was now watching the scene unfold, and Mike was all too aware that she was about to let him have it. He waved his arms in front of his face frantically.

"Its not me – don't blame me – if you want to know whose fault it is, look at your boyfriend. It's been him this whole time, just look in his cabin – those things belong to one of his campers, not mine!" Mike yelped defensively.

There was a sharp intake of breath from those of us who had known the truth the entire time, and each of our gazes shifted to Emmett, who was just coming back down the hill from returning some of the carnival equipment to the shed. He was whistling as he walked, looking completely carefree as he tossed a pebble from hand to hand. When he reached the bottom of the hill he finally noticed the still atmosphere around him, and looked from person to person curiously. When he saw Rosalie, he froze. She already had her hand on the door to his cabin, and was about to go inside – there was no stopping her this time.

"The jig is up!" Emmett declared as he turned and ran back up the hill into the forest. Rosalie yanked the door open and entered the cabin. The second she was inside she screamed out in surprise, followed by a series of thrashing sounds and cursing. A few minutes later she came running out of the cabin, her hair flying around her wildly.

"Get it off of me or I swear I'll kill the damn thing!" she screeched, arms flailing. Tufts of blonde flew in the air surrounding her as she spun in circles.

"Looks like Emmett found his kitten again," Jasper murmured quietly. The rest of us nodded warily; having witnessed the cat's behavioral issues enough before, none of us wanted to go near it. Angela, Jessica and Mike stared in disbelief, but finally Alice sighed and stepped forward to offer her help. After more curse words from Rosalie, and careful work from Alice , the cat released itself from Rosalie's hair and leapt to the ground, running off into the woods hissing madly.

Rosalie curtly thanked Alice for her help then stormed off into her cabin with the door slamming loudly behind her, most likely to try and calm down before the kids got back. I had to wonder whether her trying to suppress her anger would make it better or worse by the time she got hold of Emmett.

Edward sighed and collected Sammy and Fred, and we went to return them to Emmett's cabin – Edward mumbled something about just how attached Simon was to them, and how he couldn't stand hearing the boy's thoughts if he lost them.

When we stepped into the cabin I looked around speechlessly. Suddenly I felt like we'd stepped into the forest instead of a cabin. The walls and ceiling were all covered in various types of small tree limbs – I couldn't even imagine how they were affixed, but Edward noticed me staring and answered before I could ask by murmuring, "Nail gun."

There were rocks and twigs scattered randomly across the surface of the floor, and all the kids' bunks had a diverse assortment of tree branches attached to the head and foot rails. Even the chests which stored the kids' belongings and clothes were covered in bundles of twigs and leaves – it was bizarre. There was a long metal trough of water along the back wall – it was like some sort of mini, narrow pond or something, complete with lily pads and weeds. Then I noticed the shreds of lettuce, and scattered nuts and berries across the floor – of course I should have realized he'd have to be feeding all of these things.

Once I'd gotten past the décor of the cabin, my gaze slowly travelled over the room, and I began to see sets of eyes glowing curiously back at me from various hiding places among the debris. There were a couple of squirrels resting atop the branches on one of the walls, and there was a chipmunk scurrying along the baseboard of the other walls. I looked closer as one of the rocks appeared to be moving, but then noticed that it was covered with almost a dozen tiny little lizards, who were now seeking cover due to our presence.

The sound of scratching made me turn around quickly, but I didn't see what was causing it. Edward motioned to the top bunk nearby, and then gestured to the underneath part of it. I hesitantly leaned over and looked up – a possum was hanging from the wooden slats, but it had pulled itself up so it was concealed from view. A possum – what kid on earth could sleep in this place, surrounded by all of these crawling, climbing, hanging things? These boys didn't make any sense.

A big splash sounded from the trough of water, and I looked over at Edward in alarm, who explained it was just a frog. Upon closer inspection I also saw the large turtle that had previously been hanging from Emmett's backside – it was resting under one of the bunks near the back, close to the water. It was watching us warily, as if warning us not to come too close. Raising my gaze to the bunk itself, I saw the cage that must be home to Sammy and Fred, and as if to confirm my suspicions, Edward moved forward and placed the two guinea pigs inside of it, making sure the door was latched securely.

"Edward – do the kids actually like it in here – I mean, they're not scared?" I asked quietly. "Aren't any of these animals a danger to them – I mean a snapping turtle isn't the friendliest sort of thing…and I may not know much about animals, but I'm guessing that possum would be fairly aggravated when there are a bunch of hyper kids hanging around in here…" I added as I took another look around the cabin.

He shook his head. "Emmett may act like an idiot a great deal of the time, but after the first couple of incidents in here he's learned to take…precautions at night or when otherwise necessary. He's built assorted types of cages from scraps he dug out of Jasper's shed and keeps the more…risky animals in them underneath the back of the cabin where there's a bit of a crawlspace when he needs to. It's where the possum and the turtle usually are…it's typically only when the cabin is mostly empty that he has those inside – like now, for instance. And as far as the children, well they actually love it in here – young boys are all about these things – the dirt, the creatures – all of it. They think it's one of the coolest things they've ever seen," he explained.

I simply stared at Edward at this latest revelation. I had to blink for a few minutes before I could regain my thoughts and continue. "I guess if nothing else, all of this nonsense has distracted him from that Forest Fairy thing…he has at least let that go, hasn't he?"

"Yes, he's let that go; after his encounter with Rosalie in the woods during the scavenger hunt when she discovered all the things that had been stuffed into that tree he decided it wasn't worth it…he'd been happy to get away without her finding the turtle that day, and ever since he's been…well, preoccupied," Edward replied as he gestured around the cabin.

"Right…" I trailed off, still taking everything in. My gaze came to rest on a cage that was lined with pine needles, lying in the middle of the floor as if something had thrown it carelessly aside. "What was in that?" I asked, motioning to the deserted makeshift shelter.

Edward rolled his eyes. "The cat was in that…to keep the peace during the carnival, Emmett thought it best to keep it…separate from the other things in here. Rosalie was going to get all of the animals out of here when she first saw them, but things didn't go quite as planned when she chose to free it first – as you saw," he murmured.

"Uh huh…and all the noises we've heard coming from here – I'm guessing they usually involve that kitten?" I questioned, glancing around warily to ensure it hadn't somehow snuck back inside after freeing itself from Rosalie's hair.

"Yes…that and the guinea pigs – as you know Simon has quite the habit of letting them enjoy their periodical freedom. Oh – and the squirrels are to blame as well," he said motioning to the animals on the branches. "They're a flying variety, and when Emmett brings that cat inside, unless he immediately secludes it away from the other inhabitants, everything goes kind of crazy since it's usually intent on catching and eating most of the things in here," he added.

"Wait – the squirrels can fly?" I'd heard of flying squirrels, but I'd never seen one… I began backing slowly towards the door, eager to escape this weird environment before I had the chance to witness it firsthand. Edward merely nodded in response to my question and followed close behind me, just as ready to leave the strange environment as I was.

Just before stepping out of the cabin, I turned to look into Edward's eyes. "When we get home, I think maybe it's time Emmett find a hobby…I don't think the video games are really cutting it anymore," I mumbled.

"Clearly," Edward murmured back, pulling the cabin's door securely shut behind him.

Back outside, the rest of us finished removing the remains of the carnival and just as we were finishing, Sue, Carlisle and Esme returned with the campers. They also brought more sandwiches for those of us that hadn't gone up to dinner. Conveniently enough, Emmett followed close behind them, almost as if he'd been watching from a distance to see when he could safely return and not have Rosalie be able to yell at him. She glared at him as she welcomed back her girls, and looked over her shoulder once more before closing her cabin door behind her.

After I had eaten and the kids were all in bed, the usual group found ourselves settled in at Jasper's. Emmett had been the first to leave the campsite – he'd gotten his kids quickly settled and taken off before Rosalie had finished reading her nightly story to her campers.

With the long day we'd had, I couldn't wait until I could curl up on one of the plush couches. Granted I'd be more likely to get a solid night's sleep if I stayed in my own cabin, but there was no resisting the pull of that luxurious shower, not to mention being able to sleep in Edward's arms again…no, there was really no choice in the matter anymore, regardless of the quality of sleep.

A/N: I know it was a bit short, but I've been crazy busy with the holidays coming up, please forgive me! And please remember to leave a review. :)