A/N: For any of you who saw the teaser on Fictionators a couple of weeks ago, that's for NEXT chapter. These kids changed the game on me. SIGH

When Edward visited Jasper's family the summer before the war began, he'd had occasion to see their stables and the carriage house. In its heyday, the Whitlock plantation boasted a stable filled with nearly a hundred horses and a carriage for every occasion.

Just as Bella had explained, there was a servants' quarters halfway between her property and the property that had once belonged to her father. Beside it was a barn where a few ratty wagons and a dilapidated carriage or two had been stashed and all but forgotten.

Edward furrowed his eyebrows, realizing belatedly that Bella had been on foot when he came across her. Had she really intended walking all the way to Houston for whatever groceries she was able to carry? It would have taken her half the day just to get there and been well into night when she returned.

Of course that was what she intended. Edward rolled his eyes. When the girl wanted something, there wasn't a lot that would stop her.

It was the early part of the morning, dawn still casting a gray pallor over the hills and trees. There was a slight chill in the air, for which Edward was grateful as he was working up quite a sweat as it was, testing the wagons and carriages to rest assured that they were safe.

He managed to untangle a stable flat bed wagon from the mess of parts and wheels. Winded, he leaned against the thing, his eyes closed while he breathed through the pain that radiated through his side.

Being reminded of his lingering weakness was frustrating. There was a world out there rebuilding itself, and it had taken him a good hour to accomplish what should have taken minutes.

Then again, were he closer to his normal strength, he would have no reason to linger.

He wondered what it was that made him feel so disquieted about leaving. It was true that it was the first time in his life that he had no idea, no goal, for the future. When he was a boy, he'd had everything figured out. For four years, he'd followed orders, the ultimate goal of preserving the Union foremost in his mind.

Throughout the last long weeks, he'd patched together a semblance of a life. Perhaps it wasn't ideal, but he liked the certainty that came with knowing he would see Bella every day, that they would share friendly conversations over meager meals.

Edward grimaced. He didn't like the idea that he was scared of what lay ahead. He'd always prided himself in being able to tackle whatever life thew at him head on.

Why, then, did the idea of leaving make his heart ache subtly?

Edward sighed slightly when a litany of images entered his thoughts, coloring his memories with a rush of pleasant warmth.

When he saw Bella, or even thought of her, his lips would automatically turn up in a smile. Somewhere along the line, her very presence - in front of him or in his mind - brought him a measure of happiness.

He couldn't deny that when he moved on from here, he would miss her.

"Oh, look at you."

The object of his thoughts rounded the corner of the barn, leading a fine, brown horse by the reins with one hand and Peter by the other. She grimaced, and Edward realized he must be a fine sight. He knew his coloring was bone pale with the exertion of getting the wagon loose.

"You're sure this is a good idea?" Bella asked skeptically.

"It'll be fine," he answered coolly, reminding himself that she was just concerned for his well being. Truthfully, he already suspected this trip was going to take days to recover from, but he wasn't about to tell her that.

He reached for the horse's reins.

"Let me -" Bella began to protest, but stopped when he looked up at her somewhat disparagingly. Biting her lip, she let go of the reins, letting him guide the horse. Wordlessly, she attached the beast to one side while he took care of the other.

Soon enough, they were on their way.

Edward glanced at Bella, smiling when he caught her yawning. "Long night?"

"I haven't been getting much sleep lately," she admitted.

Staring forward, Edward pursed his lips, considering his next words carefully. He knew he shouldn't pry, but he was both curious and concerned. "Is there something worrying you?"

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her expression sharpen. For a moment she said nothing, simply stroked Peter's hair idly. When she finally spoke her voice was carefully light. "The heat makes it hard to relax."

"That's very true," Edward agreed, though he didn't believe for a moment that the heat was the only thing keeping her awake at night. He shifted in his seat, urging the horse a little faster. "I honestly don't understand the appeal of Texas," he mused aloud.

"Most days, neither do I," Bella said with a light laugh. She tilted her head, looking out over the flat expanse. "Where I was born, we were surrounded by green... cliffs, mountains, ocean." Her sigh was wistful. "I don't know. Perhaps it's that the grass is always greener, and life was always a little lonelier here."

She shook her head, looking off in the distance. "But listen to me go on. I shouldn't be prattling so to you."

Edward turned toward her, offering a grin. "We're friends, remember? You can prattle to me all you want."

It looked as if she might have a witty retort to that, but instead, her nose crinkled as she yawned, putting a hand to her mouth.

"Here," Edward murmured, shrugging his shoulder. "I can make a rather comfortable pillow, or so I've heard."

An uncertain, almost shy expression crossed her face, and for a moment, Edward was sure she was about to say no. Then, she yawned again and laid her head on his shoulder. "Wake me when we get to civilization."

~0~

By the time Houston began springing up around them, both Bella and Peter were snoring softly. Bella's head still lulled on his shoulder, and Peter was laying with half his little body draped over Edward's lap.

Tracing the shell of the child's ear, Edward again considered his future.

He still wanted a family of his own, some day. Of that, at least, he could be sure.

Lifting his eyes from the baby, Edward's grin broadened as his lips brushed soft, brown hair.

He closed his eyes and inhaled, reminding himself that this wasn't his family. "Bella," he murmured, brushing the pads of his fingers briefly against her cheek. "Bella," he said louder, and withheld a sigh when the weight of her head disappeared from his shoulder.

"We're here?" she asked, her voice muddled with sleep.

"We are," he confirmed.

Bella yawned and stretched before she gathered the grumpy toddler up into her arms, shushing his whimpers.

With Bella's direction, Edward found the marketplace easily enough. On a Saturday morning, the streets were teeming with people.

Edward was already bristling. It'd taken him too long to get out of the wagon. By the time he was on the ground, Bella had climbed down on her own and was reaching for Peter. He was put further on edge by the odd feeling he was being glared at. He swore he heard low snickers and harshly muttered words edged with malice.

They'd only gotten as far as the first stall before rough words became physical. One of the men going in the opposite direction purposefully driving his shoulder hard against Edward's.

"I beg your pardon," Edward said gruffly, turning to face the man, leaning heavily on his cane.

The man turned, his grin wide and sarcastic. "Well, my apologies there, dirty Yank. I didn't mean to be walking in a way that didn't suit you."

Edward narrowed his eyes, stepping surreptitiously in front of Bella and Peter. "I've got no quarrel with you, friend," he said, his voice hard. He realized belatedly that though he was wearing a plain linen shirt, he was in his uniform pants.

Union blue.

"I ain't your friend, Yank," the man sneered, spitting at Edward's feet.

"Excuse me!" Bella exclaimed, sounding appalled. "Just what is the problem here?"

The man's eyes went wide. As Southern accents went, Bella's was softer and more subtle than many of the women who'd been born Texan, but it definitely marked her as a Southern lady.

The man narrowed his eyes at Edward, taking a step forward. Edward touched his hand to the pistol at his belt, hoping he wasn't going to have to use it this time.

"What are you playing at, bothering one of our ladies? What, it didn't satisfy you enough to take everything else, you gotta come here for your jollies, too?"

Edward balked. "Sir, I'll thank you to keep a civil tongue in the lady's presence. I don't appreciate your insinuation."

"I don't give a lick what you -"

"Look around you," Edward said loudly, standing up straight and proud. "I think we've all seen enough pointless fighting to last several lifetimes. Not that it's any business of yours, but I offered the lady my assistance as an escort, that's all."

The man looked skeptical. "Is that the way of it, ma'am?" he asked Bella.

"Of course," Bella said, her voice edgy.

He didn't look happy about it but the man tilted his hay and let them be.

"I am sorry," Edward murmured softly, stepping to her side again. "I did not stop to consider how it might be, for you to be seen with the enemy."

"You are not my enemy," Bella said firmly. "And I don't care what these ninnies think." She purposefully looped her arm through his, shifting Peter on her hip. "I'm pleased to be here beside you."

~0~

"Edward, I swear to you, I will stay right here," Bella said, sounding both amused and exasperated. "We can manage on our own in a general store without getting into too much trouble."

Grimacing, Edward considered his options. It would be easy to duck into the telegram office next door, but the idea made his nervous. All day long, they'd been dealing with jeers and men who seemed to have mistaken the ground in front of his feet for a spittoon. An older 'gentleman' with a cane of his own had swept Edward's cane out from under him, spilling him to the ground. The old timer had merely offered a wide grin, lifting his hat with a, "Didn't see ya there, sonny. Eyesight not so good, ya know?"

Edward didn't necessarily blame them. The South had been brought to its knees. Rather than let them retreat so they could lick their wounds and gather some semblance of their pride, the victorious North was too angry to loosen its choke hold, holding much of the lawless South under military law. It was all too easy to see why the embittered ex-soldiers would take out their frustration on a lone, lame Yankee who dared to walk among them with one of their ladies no less.

Though while Edward was obviously viewed with derision and suspect, reactions to Bella were limited to incredulous glares and the occasional lecture about how a respectable Southern woman should not be out and about with Union soldier.

Perhaps it was a better idea to let her alone while she settled her bill. Edward had noticed that the shopkeepers quoted him prices a significant percentage higher than other patrons.

Glancing around, he saw that the store was relatively empty. There was an elderly couple, a woman with a teenage child, and a middle aged man with a young woman, perhaps Bella's age, on his arm. The young woman held a baby.

This war had left no shortage of penniless widows, many of them with small children, looking for husbands wherever they could find them.

"Fine. I'll be only a few minutes," he said gently, casting one more wary look around before he turned.

"Un!" Peter grunted his protest, pulling at Bella's hand, obviously wanting to go with Edward.

For such a simple task, Edward gladly would have taken the little boy. However, the day going as it had, he didn't know that he could care for the child if another Confederate decided to wage a private war.

Smiling sadly, Edward ruffled the boy's hair. "I'll just be a moment, Peter. Stay with Bella, and we'll be on our way shortly."

Peter pouted but stopped struggling, watching Edward as he retreated out the door.

The message Edward sent was simple enough.

I'M DOING WELL STOP
EXPECT ME BY THE END OF THE MONTH STOP

He imagined his mother's teary smile. Perhaps Alice would jump excitedly. Though he had to remind himself that Alice was a young lady now, not the child he'd left behind when he went off to West Point.

Honestly, Alice wasn't that much younger than he was. It was just that he'd kept an image of her thirteen year old face in his mind throughout much of the war. It was heartening, when his youth and innocence had been ripped away, to think it still existed out there. But when he'd returned home for his father's funeral, he'd been stoned to find her baby fat had melted away, revealing a stunning young woman with pale white skin and long, jet black hair.

Edward frowned, suddenly feeling guilty for wanting to linger in the heat of Texas. The last he knew, his brother, Emmett, had gone to his fiance in New York. There was no one to look after their mother and little sister.

Like there was no one to look after Bella.

Eager to get back, Edward paid and left quickly.

Back at the general store, Edward paused, concerned by the look he saw on Bella's face. She seemed flustered and frustrated, near tears, though she was holding them at bay. He was about to hurry to her side when he saw her hand go to her neck. She frowned, looking sorrowful as she pulled a long chain from inside her dress.

Curious, Edward tilted his head, trying to figure out what she was doing. At the end of the chain, was a heavy looking gold ring, a man's ring.

Edward wondered suddenly if it was her father's.

She bit her lip as she proffered the ring to the shopkeeper to examine. The man looked at the thing, pulling it away from her neck, and nodded.

For a moment, Bella's lower lip trembled. Then she squared her shoulders, reaching back to undo the clasp of her necklace. She put the ring in the man's hand with a resolute expression on her face.

Taking in the rest of the scene, Edward couldn't help but notice that her stack of supplies had been cut down even further. As it was, she'd hemmed and hawed over every purchase, shoving away a number of things he would have considered staple.

He had already snuck a few purchases onto the back of the wagon when she was otherwise occupied. He had the suspicion that she could not afford even what little she'd purchased.

And of course, she would refuse his help.

Edward strode forward, into her field of vision. It was only because he'd been watching her that he could tell her smile was tighter than it should be. Peter, though, greeted him enthusiastically, throwing his arms around his legs with gusto.

"Hey, buddy. I've only been gone a few minutes," he chuckled, mussing the boy's hair.

"I think he's ready to be home," Bella said softly. "It's been very exciting for you today, hasn't it, Petey?"

Peter craned his neck, looking up at both of them and smiling widely.

"Are we ready to go?" Edward asked, keeping his voice carefully neutral.

Bella nodded. "As soon as we get everything in the wagon, we can head toward home.

~0~

The trip home was uneventful. Peter again fell asleep with his head cradled on Edward's lap.

After the long day he'd had, it was nice to indulge in pleasant, friendly conversation.

Not for the first time, Edward appreciated the fact that Bella seemed so willing to forget that just a few short months ago, they'd been enemies.

"I suppose I have no allegiance to the South," Bella mused when he brought up the subject. "As I said, my father never owned slaves. We didn't believe in it. And though I've spent more of my years here than in the West, I suppose I've never gained that innate Texan pride that most of my neighbors have."

"Perhaps you have to be born here," Edward suggested.

"Possible," she allowed. She chuffed. "Pride is a dangerous thing. When this all began we were going to whip the Yankees in a week, a month at the most." She looked up at him, her hand going to her chest to touch a ring that was no longer there. "There are not many things I would deem worth giving so many lives for."

At that, Edward was silent. As a young man, the fight had seemed imperative. He still believed in the cause he'd fought for. He wanted to believe that all the men who'd died - his friends, his neighbors...his father - had not given their lives in vain.

That day in the market, he'd seen so many signs of destruction. All over were the vultures come to pick off the dying carcass of the old South. Soldiers came home to decimated bank accounts. Slaves had gained their freedom only to be thrust out into the world with nothing but a hope they could succeed. The vast majority of them were illiterate - entirely too easy to take advantage of.

And of course, there was Bella, trading what he strongly suspected was the last tie she had to her father.

Bella, one of the thousands of women left alone in the world. No one's daughter, no one's wife.

"Bella," he began softly. "Do you... Why did your father move you here from the west?"

"I think he was out of his depth," she answered with a laugh. "He didn't know what to do with a little girl on his own. We had no family left back there. He had a friend here who offered to teach him how to run this place."

"It was a family of sorts when you had none," Edward concluded.

She nodded.

"This friend was the same who watched over your property when you were too young yet?"

Another nod.

"I see," Edward murmured, putting pieces together. The friend who'd helped her had his own business to attend to, and had left her in Jasper's mother's care. He imagined that whomever this friend was, he would be no help to Bella now.

~0~

The afternoon was threatening to bleed into evening when Edward finally saw Bella's little house on the horizon. He prodded the horse faster.

When they arrived at the door, though, Edward thought it might have been wiser to stay away longer. Maybe forever.

Jasper charged out of the house, his eyes narrowed and furious.

Heading him off, Bella handed Peter down to Jasper, occupying his hands before he knew what had happened. He looked to the boy, who wrapped his arms joyously around his neck, and his expression automatically softened. He scowled at Bella briefly, understanding what she had done, before turning his glare on Edward.

"What were you thinking?" Jasper growled. "Taking my boy, and my -"

"Your what?" Edward demanded when Jasper abruptly cut off. "Enlighten me as to what I stole from you for the day for the nefarious purpose of replenishing barren cupboards."

Jasper grimaced. "She's like a sister to me," he said finally. "Did you think about what it would do to her reputation, being seen with a Union officer?"

Edward rolled his eyes. "Because enough people don't already know I'm here?"

"Exactly!"

Edward sighed, holding his hand out to stop Bella from butting in, which she was about to do. "Jasper, I just had a very tiring, very difficult day. Suffice to say, your cause was quite enthusiastically championed. I do understand your point, but I simply don't have the energy for this particular fight. It's done. Your son and Bella were very safe, and supplies were purchased. Now, if you truly insist on having words, can we at least put this off until the morning? I'd like to get our wares inside and go to bed."

He turned without waiting for Jasper to answer and went to the back of the wagon to untie their parcels.

A moment later, Jasper came up beside him, helping him.

Working together, they got the supplies inside, moving faster than either could have done alone.

A/N: Good news everyone! Jadedandboring is back on the case!

Incidentally, she also has a new Roseward fic out. I know. Roseward. But it's actually very cute, and Edward is utterly adorable. It's called Three Months to a Lifetime. If you are so inclined, give it a look!

Thank you to jadedandboring, barburealla, and jfka06