Thank you all so much for reading and reviewing! I hate that I didn't get to reply because some of you were really, REALLY close with your guesses about Alice, as you'll see in this chapter. ;)

And of course, lots of thanks to anhanninen for prereading and to MelissaMargaret for making this pretty.

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight or these characters.

Esme POV

I'd like to say that patience was one of my gifts. After all, I dealt with three preschoolers and a toddler everyday without too much stress. But I discovered that when it came to waiting for the opportunity to see Alice, I was not a patient woman.

Carlisle and I had called Shelley Cope as soon as we woke this morning. Our decision did not surprise her, and she promised that she would call as soon as the doctor as finished examining Alice. Besides anything the doctor had to say, Shelley also had more information to give us – this time about Alice's parents.

I was afraid of what that conversation would reveal. It had taken less than a minute for us to fall in love with Alice, to love her like one of our own. And if I had my way, she would be ours as soon as possible. I knew it couldn't be too fast. We'd gone through this before, and I knew the procedure, but it didn't lessen my desire for Alice to be a Cullen today.

Until then, I had four little Cullens willing to distract me. Even without understanding the whole situation, they did understand that I was anxious. Their numerous hugs and kisses helped more than they could know as did their crazy antics. But when Garrett came to pick them up to go to lunch and spend some time at the park, my impatience once again took over.

"She'll call soon," Carlisle said, rubbing my arms as we sat on the couch together. "We don't know when the doctor planned to be there or what tests needed to be done."

"I know," I sighed. "But that just makes me want to be there even more. What if they're poking my poor baby? I don't want her to be alone."

"After today, she'll never have to be."

He was right, and the thought made me smile. "She might want to be alone after a while. It does get pretty loud."

Chuckling, he agreed. "It does, but she'll get used to it. You know, you could call Chelsea again. I'm sure she'd love to distract you."

"With her screaming?" I shook my head, remembering our phone conversation this morning. To say Chelsea was happy about gaining another niece was an understatement. "I think I got enough of that for a few hours. She's probably napping anyway. Thank you for not making us plan a move while I was pregnant."

Chelsea was about twenty-six weeks along and generally felt great, but with the stress of moving added, she tired easily. She and Alec were trying to get everything moved and set up before the baby arrived, giving them a very short window of time.

"You're very welcome," Carlisle said, hugging me close. "I'm hoping we won't be moving again, but I think we'll be moving furniture soon. Pick a room yet?"

I frowned and shook my head. The task of picking a room for Alice was proving more challenging than I'd anticipated. "She'll probably need to be in our room for a while, but we'll be required to have a room for her if we're fostering. There's always Jasper's room that he doesn't use, but what if he decides to use it? Or we could give her the nursery, but if we move Pumpkin in there, that won't work."

"You know, Rosalie wants Alice in her room," Carlisle informed me, smiling. "I don't think it's an option for now, but they could share in the future?"

The tension suddenly melted away. Sighing, I relaxed against Carlisle and threaded my fingers through his. "She loves Alice already. Her 'girl sister.' We're doing the right thing, aren't we? This is right."

He hummed softly and kissed the top of my head. "I certainly think we are. That's all that matters right now. Everything else will work out as it should. If we have to add another crib to our bedroom, I'll gladly assemble it. If we have to add a room to our house, I'm sure Garrett would love to help. Now, let me take my beautiful wife out for lunch, hmm?"

With a smile, I turned to kiss him, trying to show every bit of my love and appreciation. Carlisle always knew the right thing to say to ease my over-thinking mind.

Our lunch date was anxiety-free, filled instead with flirting and plenty of affection. In the back of our minds, we knew that our time together was probably about to be cut significantly, so we had to enjoy it while we could.

During the drive home, we finally received the call we'd been waiting for, along with the permission to come to the hospital as soon as we could. Shelley had told the doctor that it was basically guaranteed that Alice would be in our care, and he wanted to speak with us. I was both comforted and alarmed with the knowledge that, yes, Alice would be with us, but that something was so severe to warrant a meeting this fast.

As soon as I grabbed the bag of clothes and blankets for Alice, we headed to the hospital. Hands clasped tightly, Carlisle and I rode the elevator to the fourth floor and walked to the room where we'd met Shelley yesterday. She was waiting for us again, this time with an older gentleman.

"That was fast," Shelley said with a smile. "Though I expected nothing else. I'd like for you to meet Dr. Michael Gerandy. He'll be taking over Alice's care."

We introduced ourselves, shaking hands with the doctor. His quiet demeanor made me like him immediately, as did his kind smile. He reminded me of Eleazar, seeming very much like a sweet grandfather, and I knew without even asking that he had Alice's best interests at heart.

"Shall we find a quiet room to talk?" Dr. Gerandy suggested. As much as we wanted to see Alice right away, we agreed and followed him down the hall and into a small conference room. With its white walls and uncomfortable chairs, it definitely wasn't as inviting as the rest of the floor.

Once we were all seated, Shelley and Dr. Gerandy pulled out files and decided who would begin. It was quickly decided that Shelley needed to go first, so we readied ourselves for what she had to tell us.

"As I told you yesterday," she began, "I didn't have much background information other than name, age, and the fact that I would need to look for a permanent home for her." At our looks of surprise, she chuckled. "I know I didn't tell you that yesterday, but I needed you to be sure without my influence.

"Now, it turns out that Alice's parents, a Mr. and Mrs. James Brandon, are in police custody for a multitude of reasons. This is not the first time by any means, nor does anyone believe it will be the last. Basically, this is the third strike against them for Alice to stay in their custody."

"But there's no chance they could get her later?" Carlisle asked. "No rehabilitation or parenting classes?"

Shelley shook her head sadly. "I believe that option and several others were presented, but in the end, they chose to terminate rights before being faced with neglect charges as well."

"Neglect?" Tears filled my eyes and a lump formed in my throat, but I tried to swallow it back. "Is that what's wrong with her? Did they…how could they neglect that poor baby?"

I just couldn't imagine how anyone could neglect their child. Purposefully ignore a defenseless baby.

"I'm not too sure," Shelley said slowly. "I've been told that Victoria Brandon was very adamant about the fact that she did everything she was supposed to for her baby. Fed her, changed her, bathed her, put her in bed at night. But as we've all seen, Alice does not look like a baby who was given every meal."

"Wait," Carlisle interrupted, a puzzled look on his face. "I remember…it's possible for infants to be fed but still fail to thrive. There isn't any physical factor wrong, and the nutrition is there, but they just don't gain weight."

Dr. Gerandy nodded. "You are correct. That is known as inorganic failure to thrive, which is what I suspect is wrong."

"But how do you fix that? If she's been eating but hasn't gained weight, what can anyone do? Can she get better?" I trailed off, feeling the tears fall down my face. I didn't expect the prognosis to be so bleak.

"This is where I come in," Dr. Gerandy said, giving me a reassuring smile. "While I am a general pediatrician, I also specialize in pediatric psychology. And as you may have noticed, Alice doesn't display behaviors appropriate for age or situation. She's just over ten pounds, well below the fifth percentile for her age, but what caught my attention was her social development. When you were with her, did she make eye contact?"

I shook my head, and Carlisle answered for us. "No, and she wasn't interested in anything around her."

"I noticed the same. She's very disinterested in her surrounds, isn't meeting any of her developmental milestones, and can also be very irritable. All of those signs point me toward diagnosing her with failure to thrive. It's almost textbook, really."

"It is without the information I've provided," Shelley added. "The fact that Mrs. Brandon claims that she fed her baby is making this a bit more complicated. And I believe her. I believe she did everything a misguided young adult knows to do for a baby. But there are some things you can't teach."

"I think you've lost me," I said, sniffling once as I wiped my face. "You don't think they neglected Alice?"

She shook her head. "I didn't say that. I do believe they deprived Alice but not of food. Dr. Gerandy can probably explain better than I can."

"You know, this is almost like a tennis match with all the back and forth we're doing," Carlisle joked, lightening the mood. We all laughed and took a moment to relax a bit. This was turning into a heavy conversation, one I couldn't yet interpret as good or bad.

"I apologize for that," Dr. Gerandy said as he moved papers around in his file. "This puzzle has many pieces to put together and they all seem to be from difference sources, don't they? We'll get to the full pictures soon."

Clearing his throat, he continued. "As Mrs. Cope said, some behaviors can't be taught. A physician or a nurse cannot teach parents how to love their child or how to bond with their child. Most find it instinctual, easy even. But for some, for whatever reason, it isn't easy and doesn't happen."

"Drugs?" Carlisle supplied. "Is that what went wrong?"

"I believe so," Shelley confirmed. "Most of the charges being brought against the Brandons are drug related. And as we all know, they can really change a person, making them who they wouldn't usually be."

"So they didn't love her?" I asked, feeling the tears again. Carlisle squeezed my hand tightly before pulling me closer and kissing my temple.

"No one can jump to those conclusions, but I do believe Alice has been missing affection and a healthy attachment," Dr. Gerandy explained. "While babies do need food, clothing, and shelter like any other person, there are theories and studies that show an attachment to a parent or caregiver is just as important for a baby. This is what I think Alice has been deprived of."

"Is it too late to establish?" Carlisle asked. "Isn't that bond formed as a newborn?"

Catching on, I sat up a little straighter. "But we bonded with Rosalie and Jasper when they were two years old. We're as close to them as Edward, and Carlisle, you bonded with Emmett."

Dr. Gerandy nodded, smiling the first real smile since we'd entered the room. "Very good points, Mrs. Cullen. Which is why my professional opinion is that it isn't too late. I could give you all sorts of psychology information about the attachment theory and inhibited reactive attachment disorder – which I do believe Alice has a touch of – but the fact is, she's seven months old. Nothing is set in stone, especially not before five years old.

"Which brings us to treatment. She has to gain weight, but to do that, she needs loving parents."

He looked to us expectantly, and I turned to face Carlisle. Smiling, he gave me a short kiss, nodding as his lips met mind. I let out a small laugh. Really, there was no decision to be made.

I turned back to Shelley and Dr. Gerandy with a relieved smile. "That's the easy part. We already love her. So go ahead and tell us what we can do."

Dr. Gerandy barked out a laugh as Shelley just smiled.

"She told me you'd say that, but I honestly wasn't expecting it so plainly. Okay, there are several ways to try to help her gain weight so we'll start there."

With our agreement, he went though several methods that could possibly help Alice gain weight. The main thing was finding ways to get as many calories in her as possible. Since she already had the feeding tube, she could be fed twenty-four hours a day if needed as we worked to get her to take more by mouth.

"The nutrition is the easy part, really," Dr. Gerandy said. "We're pretty sure she was getting that before. What we really need to focus on is forming an attachment. Now, I have no doubt that you can handle that on your own. You obvious have four very well attached and adjusted children, and after knowing your whole story, that really speaks a lot. But I might have a way to possibly speed things along. Have you ever heard of kangaroo care?"

When Carlisle and I shook our heads, he continued explaining.

"Well, it's used often in neonatal intensive care units. We put baby skin to skin with mom or dad, on the chest. Then baby hears the heartbeat, breathing, the vibration of the voice, and feels the temperature of the skin. It's used to help form the bond between them and actually helps them stay healthy. With mom, it facilitates breast feeding as well. That won't be a factor in this, but Alice could definitely use everything else."

"But Alice has the rooting reflex," Carlisle pointed out. "What if she wants to breast feed?"

Not having an answer, the doctor looked at us with a surprised expression, opening and closing his mouth several times. It would have been funny if we weren't honestly curious.

"Would that not be a good idea?" I asked, hoping to get an answer.

"No, no," he finally responded. "I just wasn't expecting that question." He shook his head once and chuckled. "I'm sorry for assuming that it wasn't an option, but I don't think it would be a problem. It definitely can't hurt anything, with the bonding especially. If that's something that both you and Alice are comfortable with, you won't hear any complaints from me."

With that hurdle out of the way, the rest of our conversation went smoothly. The plan was to bond with Alice and go from there, so the only thing we had to do was spend time with her. Carlisle and I were more than okay with that plan.

Mostly, I was just relieved that Alice didn't have any further problems. She wasn't healthy, but there were no illnesses to treat or untreatable issues. With a plan in place, we were all confident that she could and would recover, though the time frame of recovery was unknown.

After saying our goodbyes and thanks to Dr. Gerandy, he left to check on his other patients. He was going to be following Alice closely, though, and promised to check on us at least once a day if not more.

Shelley only had a few extra things to go over. With our foster parent certification already renewed for the year, there weren't many papers for us to sign, but we quickly filled out everything she needed. She volunteered to contact Mary Randall for us so they could get started on the adoption, and I just had to hug her.

Sometimes, having so many people on our side was overwhelming – overwhelming in the best possible way. We were so blessed to have the friends and family that we did.

Once everything official was settled, Shelley smiled and gestured to the door. "She's all yours. As soon as I get these filed, you will be her legal guardians on a temporary-to-permanent basis. You'll have the authority over medical decisions, and when she's released from the hospital, she'll go home with you. I'll have to do one more home visit before she's discharged from the hospital, but we'll talk more about that later."

"So we can go to her?" I asked, standing and pulling on Carlisle's hand.

"You can go to her," she confirmed. "Oh, but I talked with the nurses, and they'll be moving Alice into a bigger room later today. She'll still be in special care, but you'll be able to stay the night now."

I had to hug her again as she unknowingly granted our unspoken request. Carlisle did the same, and after one more set of goodbyes and thanks, we headed to see our newest baby.

The nurses waved as we passed, but we didn't stop to chat. We were too ready to see Alice, and lucky for us, she was awake.

Her blue gray eyes still wouldn't meet mine, but I couldn't help but smile.

"There's my little love bug," I said softly, leaning down to kiss her head. "I'm so happy to see you today."

Carlisle walked over to the other side of the crib, and held her little hand in his. "Hi, sweet girl. Did you have a good day today?" Alice gripped his finger, shifting slightly. "Yeah, I bet those doctors and nurses wouldn't leave you alone, huh?"

She had no further response but remained awake, so I thought it was as good of a time as any to put our plan into action.

Looking over at Carlisle, I smiled. "I think it's time to be like a kangaroo."

He chuckled. "All right, sweetheart. Let's figure out the best way to do this." He looked around the room, and I did the same. A rocking chair would have been ideal, but for now, all we had was the uncomfortable chair. Plus, the room didn't have a door. "Hmm…this isn't the best set up."

"Not at all, but I'm sure it'll be better when we get the new room. Maybe we can…move the chair around?"

He went over and turned the chair, making it face the window instead of the door.

"Much better," I said with a nod. "I'll get a blanket out, and can you bring her over to me?"

He agreed, and I carried the bag over to the chair. Sitting down, I grabbed one of the new soft blankets and began the task of undressing. As soon as I was ready, Carlisle brought Alice over and helped me get settled.

"There we go," I murmured as I shifted her to lay on my chest, her head over my heart. "There we go, sweet girl."

Carlisle made sure the tubes weren't tangled and then covered us with the blanket. I closed my eyes, just enjoying the moment. Having Alice in my arms, this close to me was an incredible feeling. I felt every breath she took, and I knew she could feel mine.

"How's that?" Carlisle whispered. "Need anything?"

"It's perfect," I responded, opening my eyes. "What is she doing?"

He knelt down, placing his hand on Alice's back. "She's just hanging out."

"Eyes open?"

"Mmhmm. Looking at her hand. I think the eyes are drooping though. Are you tired, baby? You can sleep now." He kissed her hand and her cheek before standing back up. "I'll go ask the nurses about another chair, okay?"

"Okay. I love you."

"I love you too, sweetheart," he said leaning down once again to kiss me. "Be right back."

As he left the room, I tried to get comfortable in the chair.

"This isn't the best chair for Mommy, but we can make do. I bet you're comfortable, huh?"

Alice moved, gurgling softly as she brought her other hand up to rest next to her head.

"Yeah? Can you tell me more about it?"

My smile widened as she made a few other noises. It probably wasn't much to celebrate, but I didn't care. A few precious baby noises were better than none at all, like yesterday. I knew better than to think five minutes would be enough to form a complete bond, but we were getting somewhere.

"Enjoy the quiet now," I whispered, running my lips over the top of her head. "Your brothers and sister are a loud bunch, and they're so excited to meet you."

I felt her breathing slow as she drifted to sleep, and once I was sure she was sleeping soundly, I shifted her down so I could see her face. Just watching her sleep warmed my heart. It didn't matter that the chair was uncomfortable and my arms were a little cold. The only thing that mattered was this precious girl and helping her get better.

I wasn't sure how much time passed as I watched her, but I was interrupted by Carlisle coming into the room with matching chair. He managed to fit it beside mine and sat down, leaning forward to join me in watching Alice.

"The nurse said she'll make sure we get a rocking chair," Carlisle whispered. "And the room should be ready in a couple of hours."

"Perfect. Hopefully she'll sleep that long."

"What are we going to do about the kids? And tonight?"

I thought for a minute before answering. "Well…I want to bring them up here sometime today. If we stay until Alice eats again, then we can go get the kids."

"And tonight?" he asked again. "I know you'll probably want to stay."

"I do want to stay," I admitted, "and if Alice does want to nurse, I'll need to be here most of the time. I wonder what their policy on children is. If Pumpkin can stay up here with me, that would be perfect."

"Cullen family camp out at the children's hospital?" Carlisle chuckled. "We'll ask Lauren what we can do about it. I wouldn't be opposed to that plan at all. It's probably the best option for all of us."

Content for the time being, we didn't speak any more, instead focusing on Alice. She remained peaceful as she slept, not seeming to mind being on my chest. I couldn't resist kissing her cheek and the top of her head over and over, but I was sure the affection wouldn't hurt. Alice needed every ounce of love we could give her.

Our quiet time was interrupted as Lauren entered the room, waving a bottle with an apologetic smile.

"Hey, guys. I hate to wake her, but Dr. Gerandy wants her on a set schedule. If we can get her used to eating regularly, hopefully she'll start liking it again."

"Can I try something first?" I requested.

"Sure," Lauren agreed easily. "I can just leave the bottle with you unless you need me for something else."

"We do have a few questions," Carlisle said.

As he began going through our list of questions, I blocked everything out except me and Alice.

"Time to wake up, baby girl," I said softly, rubbing her back. "Can you open your eyes for me?" I kissed her head and continued rubbing her back until she finally began stirring. "There we go. It's time for you to eat, love bug."

Alice yawned, rubbing her head against me as her eyes slowly fluttered open. She looked up at me, meeting my eyes for just a second before moving her focus, but that second was more than enough to make me smile.

"Hi, baby." I kissed her forehead and the tip of her nose, giggling as she wrinkled it instinctively. "We're trying something different, okay? But it's okay if you don't like it. I'll make sure your belly gets filled up either way."

Gently, I pulled the blanket up to cover us better and shifted Alice down to cradle her, bringing her as close to my breast as I could. She automatically turned her head toward me, just missing the intended target, which I took as good sign.

I paused for a minute, not wanting to rush this. Alice wasn't a fan of drinking from a bottle, but that didn't lead me to believe that she'd like this any better. My worst fear was rushing her and failing before we even began, but slow and steady seemed to be working so far.

Once I was sure she was still comfortable, I shifted so we could be even closer. All of the steps went through my mind, the same ones I learned almost six years ago with Emmett. Pumpkin never needed any help, but Alice was basically a newborn, so I did things by the book.

As I brushed my nipple across her lower lip, she opened her mouth, turning further toward me. After repeating a couple of times to wait for her to open wide enough, I held still and gently lifted her head for her latch on.

Her first suck took me by surprised, and I gasped softly. While it was nowhere near as strong as Pumpkin, it was much stronger than I expected. Alice was so tiny, making it easy to assume that everything about her would be small. Her sucking power, however, was not.

"Good girl," I praised as I settled back in the chair. "You're Mommy's good little girl today, aren't you? Look at you eating like a champ."

With my free hand, I lifted the top of the blanket so I could watch her. Her eyes were closed again, but she definitely wasn't asleep. She continued drinking, little grunts and sighs that I loved to hear included.

The grimace from yesterday was absent, and while relieved that she was enjoying this meal, I knew this wasn't the only answer. The fact was made even clearer when she stopped eating only minutes later.

Unlatching, she smacked her lips and placed her hand on the top of my breast.

"Finished already?" I stroked her cheek softly, but she didn't seem interested. "All right then. I'm so proud of you, Alice." She moved her hand to rest under her chin, pressing her head against me. "Yes, I am. And you just keep surprising me, don't you?"

"What have I missed?"

Carlisle's voice surprised me, and I jumped slightly, startling Alice. She grunted, squirming in displeasure.

"Uh oh," he whispered, reaching over to rub Alice's back. "I'm so sorry, sweetheart. Did I disturb you?"

"We just finished up," I said, looking up to smile at him. "Alice was such a good little eater."

"Was she?" He smiled back. "That's excellent. Lauren said to let her know when you were finished." Looking around the room, I realized that we were once again alone. "She wanted to give us some privacy," he explained.

I moved Alice to the center of my chest, once again over my heart, as I made sure she didn't have any air bubbles. "So what's the verdict on the kids?"

"Well…their policy is much more relaxed than any hospital I've been to." He shook his head, chuckling softly. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised since this is a children's hospital. But Lauren said once we get moved into a room, we'll be getting special arm bands that match Alice's – for security reasons. The kids will also get special sibling bracelets, and they'll be allowed in the room whenever we want to bring them."

"Does Lauren know how many kids we're talking?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes," he said with a nod. "I told her, and she said it still wouldn't be a problem. Now we can plan what we'll be doing tonight."

"We'll have to leave soon," I said regretfully. "I need Pumpkin to be ready to nurse." Alice might have taken to breastfeeding quickly, but she wasn't eating enough to keep me comfortable. "But I say after dinner, we bring the kids for a while and then go from there."

"Sounds good to me. Now, can I have my daughter?"

"Of course you can." I grinned as I patted Alice's back one last time and kissed the top of her head. "Daddy wants you now, love bug. Be a good girl and give him good snuggles, okay?"

Carlisle helped me maneuver Alice, the tubing, and the blanket without exposing me or pulling out any lines. With her safely in his arms, I quickly redressed and stood. It felt good to stretch after being in the chair for so long, but I didn't mind the discomfort. If it helped Alice, I'd endure anything.

As Carlisle walked back and forth across the back of the tiny room, rocking and talking to Alice, I hit the call button for Lauren. She came right away and went through the process of setting up the feeding pump. This time, I watched closely, not knowing if this was something Alice would have to come home with. The initial weight gain goal Dr. Gerandy set was four pounds, and there was no way to know how long it would take to get there.

Once Lauren finished setting everything up, she left us in peace again. I already appreciated how the nurses here treated us. They did their jobs efficiently and compassionately while still allowing us to do as much of the work as we wanted. And Carlisle and I definitely wanted to do everything.

"I think she's out for the count again," Carlisle whispered, bringing Alice over to her bed.

"Let me just change her, and then we can head home."

"I'll help," he offered. "I'll handle the diaper if you want to get a sleeper out of the bag."

Kissing him in thanks, I went over to search through the bag. I'd packed several sleepers to choose from, all made of soft cotton and hopefully comfortable for her. I decided on the light blue one that was covered in little pink flowers, and after grabbing it and another blanket, I joined Carlisle at the side of the crib.

He'd done an excellent job changing out Alice's dirty diaper for a clean one, and together, we dressed Alice in the sleeper. My guess about the size wasn't exactly right, but in the end, we were lucky that it was a size too big. With the IV in her foot, the extra room was useful for running the tubing between the snaps without worrying about it getting kinked.

When she was dressed, we placed two blankets over her, not wanting her to get cold while we were gone. Alice didn't wake as we moved her around but did grab my finger when I placed it against her hand.

I hated to leave her, but I definitely felt better than when we had left yesterday.

We had a plan in place – a plan that would hopefully help Alice fully recover. There was a long way to go, but I was pretty sure we'd already seen some great progress in just a few hours.

Dr. Gerandy had our full support with the kangaroo care, and I was sure Carlisle would be just as excited as me after his first time having her against his chest. My bond with Alice was strong before, but now, it felt unbreakable. She was my daughter, and I was her mother. That was all there was to it.

And though Alice still wasn't making eye contact or being as cuddly as she should be, she'd stayed calm the whole time we were with her. Just the fact that she had nursed without issue seemed like a miracle in my eyes.

Leaving her would be hard for as long as we had to do it, but at least now, the future was much brighter.

A/N: Hopefully that eased at least some of your concerns about Miss Alice. And just as a gentle reminder: this is fiction. I do my best to make everything as accurate as possible, but it doesn't always happen. Please excuse any inaccuracies.

Next update will hopefully be in 3 weeks. Maybe a little less. November is CRAZY for me, so I'm counting on your sweet thoughts to keep me sane. ;)

And while you're waiting on me, go check out Roses in Winter by WhisperingWolf. Cullen family goodness with lots of hurt/comfort. Seriously, go read because it's amazing!

Or go read anything by anhanninen or MelissaMargaret. Because they're amazing too. =)

Thanks again for reading!