A/N: So here's the next chapter. I hope you like it. Edward, Alice, and Bella's homecoming. Don't forget to review and tell me what you liked and/or didn't like. I really appreciate constructive criticism.

Thanks!

-Wish

P.S. Kudos to Animal_lover19, my 300th reviewer! Yay 300! This IS NOT Sparta! It's TWLIGHT! (So much better)

Previously on Chapter 51:

I snatched it up before the first ring even ended and had it at my ear. "Hello?" I said, urgently.

"Carlisle? It's Alice. Have you spoken to Jasper?"

"Yes, Alice," I replied.

Chapter 52: Reunion

"So you know Bella and I are in Italy."

"Yes, Alice," I replied. I was beginning to get worried. Was she stalling? Was she trying to ready me for the worst? Had they failed? My mind grasped wildly for some answer to her hesitation.

"Alice, what happened?" I finally asked. Hearing something from her, anything, would be better than letting my mind imagine all the worst possible scenarios.

"We're okay," Alice said. "All of us."

All of them. At her words, relief and happiness flooded my typical calm. I heard Esme breathe a wonderful sigh of relief and saw her pull Rosalie and Emmett into a large hug.

"Thank you, Alice," I told her, hoping to convey the depth of my gratitude through the cell phone, but doubting that it was even possible.

"It's not me we should be thanking," Alice replied. "Bella did spectacularly. Only…" Her voice trailed off, seemingly uncertain as to whether she should continue.

"Alice?" I prompted.

"Now's not the time or place," she said. "When we get back." Alice then gave me their flight information. They'd be flying into Sea-Tac airport, closer to Forks than Denali. They are leaving right away, so they should be back later tonight.

"Charlie doesn't know about any of this past that Bella left," Alice warned. "He's going to be very upset when Bella gets back."

"We'll return to the house in Forks," I told her. "Then we'll meet you at the airport.

"Alright, Carlisle," Alice replied. "We'll see you then."

"Be safe," I urged.

"We are," Alice replied.

She hung up and I sighed, placing the phone in my pocket, and turning to my family. I could see that all of them had heard every word of the conversation, on Alice's side as well as mine. The elation and relief was splashed across each of their faces. Rosalie in particular looked relieved that her mistake had not resulted in the worse. She was hugging Emmett, alternating between burying her face in his chest and kissing him.

Esme moved from her seat on the couch to my side. I wrapped her up and held her to my chest, burying my nose in her soft hair. I loved her sweet, cinnamon sugar scent. It was soothing to me, but exhilarating at the same time. I couldn't explain the emotions it stirred in me.

"Carlisle," Esme whispered into my shirt. I pulled away only slightly to look down into her honey-golden eyes. They looked back up at me, the shock, sadness, and worry gone. Her face was a mirror of my own joy.

"We should get going," I told her. "They'll be getting back late, but it's going to take some time to drive down there. Where's Jasper?" Looking around, I noticed that my middle son had left the room. But it wasn't until a few seconds later that I understood where he'd gone, and why. I imagine he'd left the moment I'd told Alice we'd meet her at the Sea-Tac airport.

"Let's go," he said, tossing two bags to Emmett and another to me. I caught it easily, still with one arm holding my lovely angel. "We leave now; we'll have plenty of time."

I heard a slight shuffle on the stairs and looked up in time to see Carmen peak out cautiously from behind the wall. I could hear Tanya, Kate, and Eleazar behind her. But Carmen was the only one I saw and the only one who spoke.

"Was that Alice?" she asked tentatively.

"Yes," I replied.

"And Edward?" So the others had told the Denalis about Alice's vision of Bella, and of Edward's overreaction.

"He's fine. They're flying back to Forks."

I heard four sighs and the others stepped forward, obviously reassured now that they knew everything would be alright.

"So you are meeting them?" Eleazar clarified. "They are already on their way?"

"Alice called us as they were going to the airport."

Eleazar nodded. "Give Alice and Bella our thanks."

"We will be sure to. Thank you, Eleazar. Hopefully it will not be so long until the next time we meet."

"Yes," Eleazar agreed. "You are all more than welcome anytime. And there are always bigger bears up here."

Emmett grinned as Eleazar winked at him.

"And you are always welcome with us." I was hesitant to name a place. I realized, speaking with Eleazar, that everything was uncertain now. Bella and Edward were obviously together now. And obviously Edward's idea of trying to let Bella move on wasn't going to work. So where did that leave us? With two houses, one in Ithaca, one in Forks, and a family decision to make. Would we stay, or leave again? I liked to think that Edward had realized that Bella couldn't leave him any more than he could leave her. They couldn't be apart. I could see that much.

We'll have to stay, I thought. There's no doubt about it. We have to move back to Forks.

The five of us climbed into Emmett's Jeep; I took the wheel. We took the straightest, fastest route we could, short of taking the Jeep through woods and across bodies of water. We only slowed if we came across a cop, which we did a couple of times. But it was easy to hear their radios and the engines of their cruisers before we came close to them. We didn't get caught speeding. Not once. We made it back to the house in Forks with a few hours until we had to meet Bella, Alice, and Edward at the airport. They'd be on the last leg of their journey, from Atlanta to Seattle.

We busied ourselves at home. It was fairly empty, only holding a few pieces of furniture that we'd left behind. Not that we needed much. We didn't sleep or eat, so no food or beds were necessary. We had a few couches and a TV and that was enough for Emmett. Rosalie curled up on the couch with him, seemingly focused on the program, but I knew my daughter better than that. Rosalie's mind was buzzing behind the forced attention. Jasper was fidgety, constantly glancing at the clock while pretending to watch TV with Emmett and Rosalie. If he could fly, he would've probably left to meet Alice's plane before it'd even landed.

Esme and I busied ourselves with cleaning. The house had been out of use for about six months now. While we'd occupied it, there hadn't been a single microbe of dust on any of the surfaces. Esme had kept the house well cleaned in and presentable. But now a good layer of dust covered almost every surface. She went to work almost immediately and I valorously offered my assistance. She'd smiled and handed me a dust rag to start on the kitchen.

I worked diligently, letting my mind revel in Alice's and Bella's success. It'd taken a misguided suicide attempt and a frantic race to Italy to finally bring my youngest and, at the same time oldest, son home. The thought sent a bolt of excitement through my chest each time it came up. Edward was coming home! Finally, after all this time, he was coming home. I would get to talk to him and even hug him again. And Esme would finally feel complete again. Because I'd made up my mind on the drive down from Denali. We weren't leaving Bella again. Even if, by some miracle or delusion, Edward wanted to leave again, I would refuse. This was where my family belonged right now. More than likely, that would change sometime. But not any time soon, and certainly not right now. I'd be selling the house in Ithaca. It should fetch a good price with all the renovations Esme did to it. It was a completely restored historical house. Someone would want it, whether it was a rich man or an avid historian or the State of New York.

When the time came, nobody needed to be reminded. As soon as the clock ticked off the proper time, everyone stopped what they were doing and were out the door in seconds, Esme and myself included. We drove to Sea-Tac airport, again making record time. We went as far into the airport as we were able to without buying tickets for a flight. That meant we ended up situating ourselves in a quiet corner near the security checkpoint, beside a large pillar that partially obscured us from the rest of the crowd. Esme was scanning the masses of passengers passing through the outbound side of the metal detectors, anxiously searching for the three faces we all longed for.

I couldn't help a small chuckle, though I knew what she was feeling exactly. I leaned down, placing my mouth near her ear. "We still have a little time," I whispered to her.

She smiled up at me, but continued to look through the crowds. I saw Jasper doing the same, though I could also see the effort he was putting out to ignore the hundreds of humans. Human blood was still difficult for him to resist. But I knew he would do anything for Alice, the least of which was stand in the corner, enduring the hundreds of walking temptations.

Rosalie and Emmett had volunteered to find my car. Alice said she'd left it here. I assumed Rosalie was reluctant to meet Edward face to face, especially after what happened. I could understand. There was bound to be some sort of argument when that subject came up, and perhaps the airport full of extremely fragile, vulnerable witnesses wasn't a good place for it. No doubt the "conversation" was going to be rough.

I smelled them before I saw them. The sweet sunshine, lilac, and honey scent was unmistakable. It was Edward's distinctive scent, and one I hadn't smelled anew in much too long. My head snapped up as the others did. Half a second later I smelled Alice, and then right after her, was Bella's unmistakable floral scent. They were here, close. I began looking through the crowds too, until I spotted them walking down the way towards security. I sent Jasper a wave of calm and cautiousness. I didn't want to have him run to her and be tackled by airport security. That was the last thing we needed at this time.

He loosened a little, but his eyes never left the short figure that was walking on one side of Bella. Bella looked exhausted. There were circles under her eyes, almost as dark as our own when we haven't fed in too long. She was being helped along, obviously not very steady on her legs. I didn't doubt the reason. My gaze moved up to the tallest member of the trio. My son's eyes met mine as I looked his way. They were onyx and the circles under his eyes stood out in stark contrast with his pale skin. He looked like he was as tired as Bella, though I knew that couldn't be true. But he certainly hasn't been feeding as often as he should.

Welcome back, Edward, I thought to him. I almost missed having my thoughts entirely to myself. I'd become so accustomed to sharing them with Edward all the time.

He nodded slightly and I saw a smile break his previously stoic expression. I smiled back and waited as patiently as I could for them to finally get through security.

The moment they were past the metal detectors, Alice was at Jasper's side. They stared into each other's eyes in their own way that makes everyone around them turn to give them privacy. Edward was holding Bella as they walked to us. Esme let go of my hand and stepped forward, scooping Bella up in a tight hug. Edward didn't let go of Bella even then.

"Thank you so much," Esme whispered in Bella's ear. She then moved on to Edward, pulling him down slightly to her level.

"You will never put me through that again," she told him, almost growling.

Edward grinned the grin I hadn't seen since Bella's eighteenth birthday party. "Sorry, Mom."

I turned to Bella who looked like she was just managing to balance on her feet with Edward's help. "Thank you, Bella," I said. "We owe you."

"Hardly," Bella mumbled, her words slightly slurred by her weariness.

"She's dead on her feet," Esme admonished Edward. "Let's get her home."

We started making our way back out of the airport. Edward and Esme were practically carrying Edward. I led the way out and Alice and Jasper brought up the rear, never once looking away from each other.

Emmett and Rosalie had found my Mercedes and had moved it closer to the Jeep. They waited by it, leaning up against the hood. I have to admit, I was glad to see it wasn't damaged at all.

As Rosalie and Emmett came into view, Edward tensed and I could see the anger in his face. Esme could spot it too.

"Don't," she told him. "She feels awful."

"She should," Edward replied coldly.

"It's not her fault," Bella mumbled.

"Let her make amends," Esme asked him. "We'll ride with Alice and Jasper."

Edward glared at Rosalie, but Bella's soft, garbled plea persuaded him. He half carried her to the car, helping her into the backseat before climbing in himself. I have to admit, that was one car I was glad not to be in. No doubt the ride back to Forks would be the tensest hour or so in the history of the family, possibly even beating out the time Rosalie and Jasper had voted to kill Bella.

Esme and I climbed into Emmett's Jeep as Alice and Jasper got in the back. Our ride home was fairly peaceful. With the exception of a few brief hugs from Alice, neither Alice nor Jasper said a word the entire trip home, or even looked away from each other's eyes. When we finally pulled into the driveway of our home in Forks, I could see that the others weren't back yet. The house was dark as we pulled in and my Mercedes wasn't in the driveway or the garage. I couldn't decide if this was a good thing or not. Had something happened along the way? Had Edward been able to forgive Rosalie? Had they turned my car into a pile of scrap metal on the side of some back road between here and the airport?

I breathed a sigh of relief when the lights turned off the highway and my car pulled down the twisting driveway. They were home, and my car didn't look any worse for wear. But what about the people inside it? I heard the angry voice as soon as one of the doors opened. It was Edward's. I sighed and looked to Esme. Now it would begin.

A/N2: Thanks for reading! Now's the time to review. Also, I'm going to close the Rising Sun poll on my site after this chapter and give the results when I update again. So if you haven't voted, VOTE!

Thanks a bunch. I hope you liked this. There are probably two chapters or so left of New Moon before we get into Eclipse! Yay! I'm already over halfway there!

-Wish