Chapter Four

Aunts, Uncles, Grandma and Grandpa

Edward knew now. He knew why Hannah and Bella and even his daughter didn't smell right. Didn't smell human. They weren't human. They were Dien and from what Edward heard about the Dien, he was okay with it, for the most part. He thought it was strange and improbable, but then again he spent seventeen years of his life thinking that vampires weren't real. It just figured that Bella would run into another immortal species right after her vampire friends left town.

Edward liked the fact that his daughter was indestructible. And that Bella was equally durable. Someone as clumsy as her needed to be harder to hurt.

He refused to let this new bit of information cloud the happiness that had permeated his being. Allegra made everything better, made everything feel realer somehow. Her presence in his life threw everything else into sharp relief. He knew now that he could take on forever without Bella if only he could have Allegra.

After Hannah explained about Allegra species and the reason that she looked so much like Edward, she started talking about his daughter's likes and dislikes. Her quirks and her amazing ability to put her thoughts into other peoples' heads. Yet another thing she had gotten from Edward. He listened eagerly to everything that Hannah said and watched a few memories float through her mind.

He was so entranced that he didn't notice when Allegra started getting antsy. She pressed her hand to his neck and showed him the faces of Carlisle, Emmett and Jasper. There was question behind the images, like she was asking him who they were. Edward smiled down at her.

"That's my family, Allegra," he said. The house went quiet. The only noise from within came from the irregular breathing of Hannah. "They're very excited to meet you. Soon, they're going to be your family to."

Allegra's thoughts warmed to the sentiment. She flipped through their imagines again. She lingered on Emmett and Jasper and Carlisle her thoughts going fuzzy and happy. Edward wanted to cry he was so glad. When he returned to Forks he hadn't had high hopes for a happy ending, but now he was holding his happily ever after in his arms.

He stood up, only then realizing that he hadn't gotten up after crouching down to look at her at least an hour ago. Allegra squealed in his arms and threw her head back and forth. Edward was beginning to realize that she was a very rambunctious child and that it was probably a good thing she'd be living in a house full of vampires. Because maybe they'd be able to keep up with her.

Edward took her slowly to the door, trying to draw out the time they had together. Just the two of them. After this moment he would have to share her with the rest of his family and the only reason he was willing to do that was because Allegra seemed to want it. She wanted to meet his family and anything she wanted he would get for her. Well… maybe not anything. He was a father now, there had to be limits. He was sure that Bella had limits.

And he would need help. He would need Carlisle's patience and Esme maternal instinct. He would need Jasper to settle her down at night and Alice to look into her future and make sure she was always safe and happy. He would need Emmett to play with her and Rosalie to spoil her. He would need them around for when Bella came back and the two of them wanted some alone time. They were like built in babysitters he knew he could trust.

Allegra clapped her hands as Edward opened the door and made his way into the sitting room where everyone waited for them. Alice and Jasper were snuggled onto the love seat and Hannah in one of the plush leather chairs. Rosalie, Emmett, Carlisle and Esme sat on the other couch. Everyone, except Hannah was utterly still watching Edward and Allegra closely.

She put her hand on Edward's cheek and showed him an image of Bella. Bella was holding up a picture of Edward, saying, "Your daddy has a sister named Alice, she's your god mother." The image faded and Allegra looked up at him expectantly. Rosalie was screaming at him in her head. She wanted to hold his daughter first.

But what Rosalie wanted didn't matter at all compared to what his baby wanted. If she wanted to meet Alice first, then she would meet Alice first. Edward smiled and sat down in the last remaining chair. He leaned towards Alice and offered her his daughter.

"Alice," he said. "I'd like you to meet my daughter and your god child, Allegra Renee Cullen." Allegra reached out her arms to Alice and clenched and unclenched her fists like she wanted desperately to get a hold on her aunt. His tiny pixie like sister smiled at him and pulled Allegra into her arms. As soon as Allegra was situated on Alice's lap, she started talking as fast as she could.

"My Mommy said that you were her favorite, asides my Daddy a course. She said that you was my god mommy and that that meant that if anything happened to my Daddy or my Mommy you'd take care of me with your boyfriend, Jesssper." When she said Jasper's name her face scrunched up and she shook her head back and forth. Alice laughed and Jasper smiled. "Why you laughin'?"

"Because you're funny, Allegra," Alice said.

"Mommy said I was funny all the time. She also said that you are my Daddy's sister. So if you are my Daddy's sister, what does that mean you are to me?"

"I'm your Aunt Alice, sweetie."

"Aunt Alice?" she asked.

"Yes, Allegra?" Allegra put her hand on Alice's cheek, Edward saw that she was asking Alice who Jasper was and that she was a little embarrassed to be asking. "This is Jasper and he's more than my boyfriend, lovely. He's my husband."

"Aunt Hannah has a shirt that says that husbands are boyfriends that don't go away when you're sick of them," Allegra said, a matter-of-factly.

"Yeah, I do, you crazy midget," Hannah said smiling.

"Are you sick of Jesssper, Aunt Alice?"

"Not yet," Alice laughed.

"My Mommy said that you liked to play dress up, a whole super lots. She said that if I ever got to meet you that you'd play dress up with me. Will you play dress up with me, Aunt Alice?"

"Of course I will!"

"Okay," Allegra wiggled herself out of Alice's arms and flopped back onto her lap.

"She got her balance from Bella," Hannah commented.

Emmett snickered while remembering fondly the many times Bella fell or tripped over her own feet. He liked the idea of having another uncoordinated individual in the house. Edward gave him a stern look. Allegra might be hard to hurt, but he wasn't about to push it by not catching her every time she fell and he wanted to be sure that the rest of his family felt the same way.

"I'm gonna meet Jesssper now, Aunt Alice," Allegra said, "but we're gonna play Barbies after I'm done, okay?" Alice nodded down at her, she grinned at Edward as Allegra climbed clumsily off of her lap and onto Jasper's.

Jasper took her up into his arms very gently. Edward could see that he was almost afraid to touch her and that he was very surprised at how much she seemed to trust him. Edward appreciated his caution. They both knew from Hannah that none of them were at any risk for thirsting after her blood. Apparently their species of vampire only actively desired human blood and since Allegra wasn't human there was nothing to worry about. Edward liked that Jasper would be careful with her because he knew that Emmett would always be a little too reckless.

"Jesssper?"

"It's Jasper, sweetie," Alice corrected.

"J-J-azz?"

"Jazz-per," Alice sounded out.

"Jazz-per?"

"Perfect!" Allegra smiled at Alice then turned back to Jasper.

"Jazz-per?"

"Yes, Allegra," he said.

"If you're husband to my Aunt Alice, what does that make you to me?" she asked.

"That makes me your uncle."

"You was outside with my Daddy. Do you know my Daddy? He's the best Daddy ever because he's my Daddy!" Allegra said. Jasper smiled and laughed quietly.

"I've known your Daddy for a long time. He's a very good man."

"My Mommy said that you and Aunt Alice and my Daddy are super duper special a cause you can do stuff that other people can't do. Like she said that my Daddy can read other peoples' brains," Allegra added dramatically. "What can you do? Can you read other peoples brains, too?"

"No I can't, only your Daddy can do that."

"That's cause he's the best there ever was."

"I think that's enough pumping up Edward's ego, Allegra," Alice said, smiling.

"I can manipulate emotions-"

"Man-ip-u-late," Allegra repeated. "What does, man-ip-u-late, mean?" Jasper looked over at Alice, then at Edward.

"Allegra," Edward said.

"Yes, Daddy."

"What Jasper means is that he can make sad people happy and happy people sad. He can influence what other people feel and he can tell how they feel. It's a very useful and unique gift," Edward explained.

"So, at night he could make her calm down when it's bed time?" Hannah asked.

"Yes, I could do that," Jasper said.

"You're going to need to. That little ragamuffin hates bedtime."

"Bedtime smells like butt with poopy on top!" Allegra exclaimed. Everyone laughed. Allegra pressed her hands to Jasper's cheek and begged him not make her go to bed. Jasper smiled, pulled her little hand to his lips and kissed her fingers.

"I'm sorry, Allegra, but bedtime is up to your Daddy."

Allegra gasped and lunged out of Jasper's arms towards Edward who caught her effortlessly. She wrapped her arms around his neck and his mind flooded with the image of the two of them staying up all night.

"When does she usually go to bed?" Edward asked Hannah.

"Bella tries to get her to bed by seven and usually she isn't asleep until eight or so. She's typically out for eight hours."

"Your Mommy wants you to go to bed at seven, so that's when you'll go to bed," Edward said, firmly.

Allegra's lower lip jutted out and her chin started shaking. Edward would have fallen for it if he couldn't read her mind. This was a very calculated move on her part. She wanted something so she was trying to use her wiles on him to get it. But there had to be limits and thankfully Bella had made this limit very clear.

"Do you want to meet your other aunt and uncle and your grandma and grandpa or do you want to go to bed now?" Edward asked, humorlessly.

Allegra crossed her arms and continued to pout. She wasn't the only one pouting. Rosalie was positively fuming from the couch. The fact that Edward even thought of sending his daughter to bed before she got a chance to meet her was an insult. But want Rosalie wanted didn't matter when compared to what Edward felt was best for his daughter. "So you want to go to bed then?"

"No, Daddy!" she exclaimed.

"Then what do you want?"

"Aunt and uncle and grandma and grandpa," she muttered, unhappily. He didn't like to see her upset, but he knew that as a father sometimes he'd have to make a choice for her that she didn't like.

"All right." Edward walked over to the couch and held Allegra out to Rosalie, who snatched her gently from his hands. He figured that she was already pissed at him for not letting her hold his daughter first, he didn't have to push it by having her hold his daughter last. "Allegra, this is your Aunt Rosalie and her husband Emmett," Edward said, introducing the two of them at once. He realized that had he done that with Alice and Jasper he might have saved his daughter a bit of embarrassment.

"Hello, Allegra," Rosalie cooed down at her. Emmett wrapped his arm around Rosalie's shoulders and leaned over to get a good look at Allegra.

"Hello, Wos-a-lee," she said.

"It's Rosalie, Allegra," Edward said. Rosalie glared at him. She wanted to teach Allegra how to say her name correctly. Edward nodded at her to go a head.

"Rose-a-lie," she sounded out, for his daughter.

"Rose-ah-lee," Allegra repeated.

"Very good, sweet baby." Rosalie tickled her belly lightly and Allegra squealed with laughter.

"Oh ho!" Emmett exclaimed. "Is somebody ticklish?"

"No, no, Uncle Emem!"

"It's Emmett, sweetheart," Rosalie corrected.

"She can call me Emem, babe. She's my one and only niece. She gets away with anything," he said.

"Not anything," Edward muttered.

"Don't be a spoil sport, Edward," Emmett said. "She's my niece, if I don't spoil her who will?"

"She'll be spoiled plenty, don't give her ideas."

While Emmett and Edward squabbled Rosalie had been whispering to his daughter. She was making all sorts of promises that Edward wasn't sure he'd let Rosalie keep. He really felt like fatherhood was something he'd have to take one day at a time. For all her vanity Edward did trust Rosalie to be good for his daughter, perhaps just via example. She honestly seemed to care about Allegra and in the end that was all Edward could really ask for from Rosalie.

After sharing a few 'secret' laughs with Rosalie Allegra wiggled her way onto Emmett's lap. She gave him a few hugs and kisses on the cheek saying, "You are big and strong and maybe you can put up my swing set?"

Emmett laughed, completely unfazed by Allegra trying to love him into doing something for her. In fact he seemed to really like it. "I am big and strong and if you give me one more kiss I'll not only put up your swing set…" he paused and visualized what he had planned. Edward realized that Emmett was doing it for his benefit. He didn't want to push his luck. Edward nodded. "I'll buy a great big slide and put that up for you too."

Allegra squealed happily and clapped her hands. "Thank you, Uncle Emem!" She gave him another few kisses and scrubbed her hands through his hair, messing it up. After she was done sugaring Emmett up, Allegra crawled off of his lap and onto Esme's. Edward noticed that his mother had been oddly quiet throughout his daughter's introduction to the family. She seemed content to merely enjoy Edward's joy and the happiness Allegra was inspiring in the whole family.

"You're my Grandma, right?" Allegra asked.

"Yes, I am."

"So, that means that you're my Daddy's Mommy."

"That's right and I happen to agree that your Daddy is the best ever."

Edward knew that she entirely believed that sentiment and longed for him to believe it too. He felt like he was doing a good job so far, but only time would tell. He was glad that Esme and Carlisle seemed love Allegra so much. They were the best parents he knew.

Allegra and Esme bonded over promises to cook together. Apparently his daughter knew how to make cinnamon rolls and was very excited to teach her grandma how to do it. Too soon for Esme liking, Allegra moved off of her lap and onto Carlisle's. She kissed both of his cheeks and placated his curiosity by showing him a few memories via her unique gift.

Edward looked on as his family 'ohh-ed' and 'ahh-ed' over his daughter and smiled. In fact that day Edward had spent more time smiling than he had in five years. Bella hadn't just given him a daughter, she had given him in joy in life again.