A/N: It's been a while since I posted a chapter. Sorry about that! I just got back from eight days in Tucson, and while the sun was nice, the rain, cold, and overcast skies of Portland are still home to me. Before that, I was doing some grant writing on the side, which quite honestly consumed all my creative energy (and energy in general) for a couple of weeks, but that's all done and now I can get back to Fred!

Chapter 28

The Fourth of July came and went without much commotion, unless you count the M80s, bottle rockets, and other high-flying illegal fireworks Jasper and Rosalie just had to set off. I'd thought Edward was joking with my dad about these things, and fortunately, so did Charlie, but it turns out Edward was actually confessing.

We were far enough from civilization that we would never be caught, so I wasn't worried about my hyper-vigilant father. I rode in on the back of a vampire. Anyone else would have to be dropped from a helicopter to get to this place. Esme, Carlisle, Alice, Edward and I sat on some blankets at a fair distance to watch the show.

Of course, Emmett and Fred couldn't wait to light off the explosives they'd been manufacturing in their free time. It was a good thing they were vampires because as humans, they would have given a new meaning to the term 'hands free' after the second or third homemade firecracker exploded rather than shooting into the sky as it was intended.

"Aren't they worried about catching on fire? I mean, don't vampires generally avoid fire as much as possible?" I asked while still gazing at the bursts of light filling the night sky.

Edward didn't miss a beat. "That's why I'm over here, love. I'm not stupid," he laughed.

"I thought you were here to be with me!" I griped in mock offense.

"That is also true. Like I said, I'm not stupid." He leaned in to kiss my temple as he pulled me closer.

After a world-class grand finale, all the fireworks were finally spent and frankly, so was I. A huge yawn I'd been trying to suppress could not be staved off any longer and Edward gave me 'the look'… the one that meant you're-supposed-to-tell-me-when-you-have-human-needs-so-I-can-take-care-of-them-and-not-feel-like-the-world's-worst-fiancé-ever.

I gave him an impish grin in return, the one that said yeah-I-know-but-if-I-tell-you-these-things-you'll-insist-we-leave-and-I'll-miss-out-on-everything. Or something to that effect.

The rest of the family was staying behind to hunt and get in a few 11th hour practice sessions with Fred. We bid everyone good night while Edward got me situated on his back for the trek home. I generally preferred this over bridal style because I always had visions of Edward misjudging the position of a boulder and slamming into it, thus sandwiching me between his granite form and that of the rock. Of course, Edward would never let that happen, but I just couldn't really relax and my muscles would all be tensed up by the end of the run.

I was extremely glad Edward couldn't read those particular thoughts because it would probably hurt his feelings; he'd think I didn't trust him. It wasn't that… it was just my own random brain being random.

Once home, all I could think about was taking a nice hot bath, and wishing Edward would join me. Just as I stepped into the water, I heard the lovely strains of a string quartet playing softly over the speakers.

I had just settled in when Edward knocked quietly and called through the door, "Bella, are you OK?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Why?"

"Well, you fell asleep. If you're that tired, you should come to bed."

It was only then I realized I had, indeed, fallen asleep in the bathtub. The water had gotten a little cold and I began to shiver. "Just a minute. I've got to warm up again!"

He chuckled through the door. "Take your time, but hurry! I miss you."

"You could come in and join me," I said as coyly as possible, taunting him just a bit.

"Bella," he growled, "don't tempt me like that. I'm not that strong, you know."

"That's exactly why I'm trying to tempt you."

"You are incorrigible, Miss Swan," he sighed.

"And you are inscrutable, Mr. Cullen."

"Yet you still try to scrute me."

"I plan to spend a lot of time scruting you in the future," I giggled.

"You are a naughty girl, Isabella Marie," he playfully chided. "Just come out when you're done and you'd better be wearing clothes."

I almost snorted. The thought of coming out sans clothing had never really crossed my mind, but it was rapidly crossing back and forth now. Fortunately for Edward, I was far too shy and lacking confidence in my body to ever try a stunt like that.

Once I was warm again, I pulled my seemingly boneless self out of the tub, dried off, put on my shorts, tank top, and fuzzy slippers, and threw my hair into a messy bun. I stepped out of the bathroom into a toasty warm bedroom.

Edward eyed me appreciatively, love radiating from his entire being. "You are simply breathtaking," he whispered, apparently awe-stricken.

Of course, I started to feel the blush rising in my cheeks. It certainly didn't take much, especially when he looked at me like I was some sort of goddess when I knew I looked frumpy and tired. I was the polar opposite of sexy, yet with one intense gaze, Edward could make me feel like the most beautiful and desirable woman on the planet. It made me uncomfortable and yet I never wanted it to stop.

Edward sauntered over to me, that lopsided grin on his face. I could feel my breathing and heart rate increase with each of his steps. In moments, he was in front of me, gently stroking my face with his cool fingertips. It felt heavenly against my heated skin.

"That blush is going to be the death of me," he whispered. "Well, it would be if I wasn't already dead, but you know what I mean."

"Oh, stop it. There's a mirror in the bathroom, you know. I look like something the cat wouldn't even bother to drag in."

"Bella, you couldn't be more beautiful than you are right now. And in another 40 days, when I have the honor of becoming your husband, I can finally show you more fully how beautiful I think you are," he said with a devilish grin.

I had no choice but to roll my eyes. "Edward, really… you've built me up in your mind so much, I don't think I can help but be a major disappointment."

"You could never disappoint me, love. You're already so much more than I ever thought possible."

Before I could continue my argument, and believe me I had planned to, he placed the tiniest kiss on my lips, followed immediately by another and another. Soon, we were kissing in earnest and I forgot about anything in the world but him and me.

We made our way over to the bed, still joined at the lips. I really wanted to spend more intimate time like this, but as soon as I was horizontal, my eyelids started feeling heavy, and before I knew it, I was out for the night.

**-…-**

The next morning, I woke to a much different mood than had prevailed in the Cullen household the night before. Gone were all signs of frivolity and playfulness; in their place was a sense of foreboding and dread. I didn't like it, but I understood it. The next day, we would be on a plane facing an unknown future.

Most people didn't have the option of knowing the road ahead, but we had Alice, and with her, raised expectations about what we should be able to know before the fact. With the Volturi obviously not making any decisions, most likely to thwart Alice, we were almost as in the dark as anyone else would be.

We had a general idea of what to expect. We knew Fred would be tested, probably quite thoroughly. Aro apparently had some hoops for me to jump through as well. I couldn't imagine what he might want from me this time. I'd already proven that my mind was closed to both him and Jane. Did he think I should fight with Felix or play hide-and-seek with Demitri?

For me, this trip could be a matter of life and death, or unlife and undeath as the case may be. An all-expenses paid European vacation with my fiancé should be more fun than that.

I ate my French toast in silence as I watched the Cullens get to the business at hand. Of course, Alice had everyone packed ages ago, so taking the luggage out to the cars was about a 12-second chore. Esme and Fred were finishing up some casseroles and things for Charlie. At least I knew he wouldn't starve.

It was Carlisle, however, that captured my attention. He stood stock still in the living room, looking out toward the forest, with one hand gripping the hair on the back of his head. He looked like a statue… a worried statue. It was so unlike him to appear rattled that it shook my confidence to the core.

As if he knew I was watching, he turned abruptly and met my eyes, forcing a smile onto his lips, but that expression wasn't reflected in any other way. I tried to smile back, and I'm sure mine wasn't any more convincing.

"Are you OK?" we both asked each other at the same time. That brought out a genuine smile in both of us as he made his way to the breakfast nook and sat down across from me.

"Ladies first," he offered.

I didn't quite know what to say, so I blurted out the first thing on my mind. "You seem nervous, and I've never seen you nervous. Be straight with me. Is this worse than anyone is letting me know?"

He looked at his hands as they rested on the table and huffed out a quick breath. "Nobody is hiding anything from you, if that's what you mean. I don't know if it's worse than it seems, and that's what makes it worse. We just don't know what we're going to face."

"I'm trying!" Alice wailed from upstairs.

"I know. I'm not criticizing you," Carlisle said in a normal speaking voice. "Just like the rest of us, you can only do what you can do."

"I feel like such a liability," I muttered. "I wish I was strong enough to do something."

"Bella…" Carlisle reached his hand across the table to rest on mine. "You are strong."

I gave him the don't-start-with-me glare.

He chuckled. "I know you're probably sick of hearing it, and I know when you say 'strong,' you mean physically, but you have a strength about you that has helped you persevere through a few dozen vampires hell-bent on taking your life. I've never seen a human like you, and that's saying a lot considering how many humans I've met in all my years."

"Well, it doesn't hurt that I have seven vampires protecting me at all times," I chided him.

"Hey, what am I? Chopped liver?" Fred piped up from somewhere in the house.

"Fine! I used to have seven and now I have eight. Happy?" I yelled in Fred's general direction. Since he didn't answer, I had to assume he was satisfied.

"Who would have guessed Fred would become one of your fiercest defenders?" Carlisle mused.

"I know, right? I have to admit, it kind of gives me hope, seeing a newborn being able to control his bloodlust like that. I can't imagine that I would ever want to taste human blood," I said, shaking my head and looking duly disgusted.

"Sorry to say this, but I'm sure you'll want to," Carlisle answered. "But at least you have the advantage of knowing you don't have to. And we'll always be there to help you. All eight of us."

"Thank you!" Fred sing-songed from another room.

I finished my breakfast and washed my dishes, watching the flurry of activity in and around the house. Suddenly I felt someone kissing the back of my neck.

"I certainly hope that's you, Edward," I laughed.

"Were you expecting someone else?"

"Of course not, silly boy. Just double-checking."

"Bella, sweetheart…," he paused awkwardly, instantly making me tense, "…everybody thinks I should hunt before the trip. I told them I'd be fine, but Emmett actually made a good point. If we do get… delayed, I may not have an opportunity again for a while."

"You mean 'detained,' don't you," I stated rather than asked. "You think they're going to hold us captive?"

"No, I don't think so, but it doesn't hurt to be prepared for as many things as we can. Fred and Emmett are going, too. Emmett's not thirsty. He just wants to steal a bear from Fred."

"Payback, baby!" Emmett yelled from outside. I just shook my head…

"Can you take me home first? I want to pack up a few things," I asked Edward.

"No!" Alice interrupted, bursting into the room before he could answer. "No way! You are NOT packing anything. I bought you everything you'll need. Even new sweatpants!" She scrunched up her face in the same look of disgust I had at the thought of drinking blood.

"Geez, Alice, take a pill!" I exclaimed. "I'm not talking about packing up the contents of my room. Just a few things that make me feel comfortable."

Alice started to speak, but Edward quickly cut her off. "Give it a rest, Alice. If Bella brings some of her own things, it's OK. She can bring everything she owns if she wants to. It's not the end of the world."

"Apparently we have different definitions of world-ending events," Alice pouted. "But," she chirped, "since Edward is going hunting, I get to go home with you, so I can help you pack!"

"Oh, joy of joys," I dead-panned. "Do I have to have a babysitter?"

**-…-**

Four hours later, Alice and I were still arguing over which clothes I could bring and which ones would likely cause a 'fashion riot' on the streets of Italy. She could be so melodramatic. I highly doubted my frayed gray sweats with holes starting to form at the knees would cause an international disturbance, and if it did, the Italians really needed to find another hobby.

"Charlie's coming home early," Alice announced. "Do you want me to stay for dinner or do you want some private time with your dad? OK, I'll stay."

"You could at least let me answer the question, you know. Common courtesy?"

"That's for people who aren't best friends and soon-to-be sisters," she confidently explained.

Suddenly her eyes widened. "Bella! You don't mean that!"

"What? I didn't say anything!"

"Yes, but you'd decided to before you decided not to. You think we might not be friends once we're sisters?" She looked ready to burst into tears.

"I didn't think any such thing! What I thought was, courtesy is for people who want to STAY best friends after they become sisters. But I didn't say it because I believe we'll always be best friends, Alice. I wouldn't want it any other way. It's just that sometimes this whole reacting to things that haven't happened yet sort of gets on my nerves. And I'll admit, I'm a little edgy at the moment, so you can't take what I'm thinking right now at face value, OK?"

I grabbed her into a tight hug and just held onto her, feeling the very real tears pooling in my eyes. "I'm scared, Alice. I can't seem to shake the feeling that we're not all going to come home together."

She pulled away enough to hold my shoulders and get my full attention. "Bella, to tell you the truth, I'm scared, too. Not being able to see what's going to happen is driving me out of my mind. I see little things, like Aro deciding to make a phone call or Heidi choosing a pair of shoes… she has great shoes, by the way. But I can't see what plans they have for us. I hate that so many have figured out how to get around my ability. It makes me feel useless."

"You think you feel useless? Try being the only human in a room full of bloodthirsty vampires!"

"I guess we both feel the same way, albeit for different reasons…" she deduced.

I had to think about that. "You know, I suppose you're right. It's all what you're used to, I guess. You're still not as useless in Volterra as I am, but I do understand what you're saying."

She chuckled. "OK, I'll give you that. But, even though you're an easier target, we're all equally vulnerable."

"You know, I wish Edward would have just changed me before the newborn battle. It would have made things so much easier."

"In some ways, yes, but would you really want to do it out of fear?" she asked.

"YES!" I all but yelled. "I was afraid anyway, but at least I could have been helpful. I'm afraid now! You guys might be vulnerable, but at least you could never be a midnight snack!"

"We'd never let you be a snack, Bella," she admonished me.

"You can't guarantee that, though, can you."

She started to answer, but her expression changed abruptly as she realized I was right. "Well, the only thing we can do is stick together and hope for the best. I can tell you one thing for sure; if you do end up being a snack, it will be over all our dead bodies."

I shuddered at the thought. "Don't even say something like that," I whispered. The mere idea tore my insides to shreds.

"That's worst case scenario," she murmured quietly. And then her expression changed to cheerful again. I could barely keep up. "The good news is that worst case scenario almost never happens."

"Why don't I find that incredibly comforting?"

"Bella, I wish I had some sort of assurances for you, but I'm fresh out. We're all going into this relatively blind. All we know is that Aro 'invited' us," she said with little quotation marks in the air. "And when Aro invites you, there is only one answer. And before you say it, Aro wants you there as a human. If you'd already been changed before this whole newborn army thing, he would still want to test your abilities, so it wouldn't make that much difference."

Before I could say anything, she added, "And by the way, I wasn't reading your future thoughts just then. A fichus tree could have predicted what you were going to say."

The eye roll I directed at her was well-earned, although I supposed she was right. It was just so frustrating to always be the weakest link, and no matter how many pep talks Carlisle gave me, I knew it was the truth.

**-…-**

Charlie was pleased to find Alice at the house when he arrived. I wondered if he was just pleased to see someone other than Edward, although he did seem to be doing a better job of tolerating the daughter-stealing fiend that was my fiancé. I wondered how much more he would hate Edward if he knew the whole story…

We had a pleasant dinner with about twenty-thousand-percent more conversation than normal thanks to the always talkative Alice. Charlie seemed amused by her exuberance, and while he enjoyed her company, I thought he could probably get an Alice overdose quite easily. He was just too quiet by nature to spend too much time in the presence of that vivacious little sprite.

She regaled us with stories of her past trips to Europe, being very careful not to say anything to indicate how long in the past those had been. Not only had she been in London for the wedding of Charles and Diana, but for the weddings of Charles' parents and grandparents. I wasn't any sort of royal-watcher, but Alice definitely was. I thought maybe she just liked the hats.

After dinner, Alice feigned leaving, but I knew she'd be back in mere moments. After all, I couldn't possibly be left to my own devices for more than 47 seconds. Who knew what might happen?

Charlie settled into his favorite chair in the living room. "That Alice… she's a caution, that one," he chuckled.

Knowing she could hear us, I added, "I love her to pieces, but I have to say, I think she could talk for the rest of eternity and never run out of material." I snickered at my own inside joke.

"Can't say as I'll mind having her in the family once this whole… wedding thing is done."

"Dad, I know it's awkward for you, but could you please not refer to my impending nuptials with the love of my life as 'this wedding thing'?"

"Sorry, Bells. You know I'm doing the best I can here. It's all pretty sudden, and well… I just didn't think it would be so soon," he answered wistfully. I could almost see my childhood memories playing through his head.

Just as I almost thought I saw his eyes getting glossy, he changed the subject. "So, tomorrow's the big day."

"Yep. Long flight, and then the real fun begins." I didn't mean that to sound quite so sarcastic.

"You're not expecting this to be fun?"

"It's not that. I'm just nervous… you know, for the flight. I've never been a huge fan of steel tubes hurtling themselves through the air at Mach 3." It was a half-truth. I was nervous, but the flight was the least of my worries.

"Yeah, I understand. I don't like to fly, either," Charlie answered, buying my story. "I'm sure you'll be fine. There's thousands of flights every day and almost none of them crash."

"I suppose that should be reassuring," I half grimaced.

He laughed. "I'm sure you'll be fine. You'll have a great time and you'll come back with all kinds of stories and pictures and maybe you can bring me an Eiffel Tower keychain or something."

Now it was my turn to laugh. "Do you really want an Eiffel Tower keychain?"

"Well, maybe some chocolates would be better…"

"OK, dad, I'll see if I can find chocolates in the shape of the Eiffel Tower."

"OK, I'm sure I'll like whatever you bring me." Spoken like a true dad. And I knew he would. Even if I brought him a snow globe with another snow globe inside, he would proudly display it in the living room.

"Well, you need to get to bed, young lady," he said as he stood from his chair. "Now give your old man a hug and get yourself upstairs. You've got a big day ahead of you."

He had no idea how right he was. He pulled me into an unusually tight embrace and kissed the top of my head.

"I love you, Bells. Don't worry about the trip. Everything will be fine."

It was only then I realized he sounded like he was trying to convince himself as much as he was trying to convince me.

**-…-**

I fell asleep without Edward there, and as much as I realized he needed to hunt, I missed his presence terribly. Who knew sleeping next to a block of ice could be so comforting?

I woke, however, in the arms of my angel.

"Good morning, my sweet," he cooed.

"Mmmmmm…" was all I could reply as I snuggled in closer.

He peppered small kisses along my forehead and down the side of my face. When he reached my cheek, I turned my head slightly and found his lips with mine.

"I thought you didn't like kissing with morning breath," he mumbled, his lips never leaving my flesh.

"At this moment, I couldn't care less," I murmured in return before adding, "but don't get used to it."

He smiled through the kiss, which he deepened immediately as he pushed his body halfway over mine. I was lost for a blissful few moments before reality hit.

"Charlie's awake. He wants to see you before we leave," Edward told me as he gave me a chance to catch my breath.

"I guess it would be better if he didn't find you here, huh…" I snickered.

"Yeah, I don't think he would take too kindly to finding me lying on top of you in your bed."

"You're only half lying on top of me," I joked.

"Yeah, I'm sure that would make him feel MUCH better. He probably wouldn't think a thing about it!"

I gave him a little smack on the arm before kissing him again. I knew he needed to leave, but I was loathe to let him go without some sort of attempt to keep him with me. "Can't you just hide in the closet, like the good old days?"

He laughed and stroked my cheek. "I won't go far." He paused, then added, "I'll never go far."

And I knew he was no longer just talking about this morning. The comfort those words provided me in that moment was immeasurable. "Thank you," I whispered. "I love you, too."

He smiled and gave me one more kiss before pulling me out of bed with him. "Go get ready and in about an hour, whole Cullen clan will be here to pick you up. It's going to look a little like a circus caravan, I fear, but at least it'll be entertaining."

"Never a dull moment," I added.

"Sometimes a dull moment would be nice, actually."

We walked hand-in-hand to the window and kissed one more time before he jumped to the ground and disappeared into the woods.

After I finished my morning routine, I emerged from the bathroom to the smell of smoke and Charlie's rather loud cursing. I hurried to the kitchen in time to witness his attempt at pancakes being sucked into the disposal.

"I sort of knew better than to try this," he said sheepishly. "I just thought it would be a nice surprise…"

"It was very sweet of you to try," I answered while patting his shoulder condescendingly.

"OK, OK, I know. It's pathetic that I can't make pancakes. OK, I get it." We both laughed.

I checked out the very thin batter. He'd used a mix, but not enough of it, so I repaired it and started over. Charlie sat down, looking both defeated and pleased to have been rescued from his own version of Kitchen Nightmares.

"So, Bells, you do have some of your own money, right? I mean, you never know..."

"Yes," I sighed, somewhat exasperated. We'd been over this a few times already. "The Cullens have made it clear that they are paying for everything, but I do have my own emergency money… not that I'll need it."

"I'm sure you won't, but it never hurts to be prepared."

I wished having a couple hundred dollars could prepare me for what actually awaited me on this 'vacation.'