It seemed that, while she was studying the class material, she had also been studying the class itself. As she spoke, Edward was once again overcome with the wish that her usual steady stream of intelligence was covered by the overlapping voices of stupidity while they were at school. Lettie was an unsuspecting wealth of knowledge on their classmates, deducing things about them that no one else knew, things that Edward only had the privilege to know all thanks to his mind-reading ability, and connecting them in the same way he had taken advantage of during his 100 years of life. It took a lot of effort not to confirm or deny the assessments she made, even though she was painfully accurate, and the way she said it, simple but never condescending, was impressive to listen to. The only thing she really seemed to struggle with were the newer, more modern aspects that she still hadn't gotten used to, like underestimating the speed of traveling gossip now that technology was more advanced than a hand-carried letter.

So, when she predicted it would take until Monday for the rumors to quell, he couldn't help to compare her assurance with the same level-headedness that Alice usually predicted with. And, when, later that night, Esme came home with news, Edward could barely stop his head from whipping around to look at Lettie with amazement.

"Apologized to me for ever believing the rumors!" Esme chittered lightly, chopping some celery. She was bringing some food to the local food drive, and her favorite thing to make as the weather cooled was an old slow-cooked soup recipe from her childhood. Packed with vegetables and, from what others have said, a delicious broth, it made plenty of servings, and gave her an excuse to use the inordinately large pot Emmett gifted her many years ago. It was also a broth that they drank on cold days to ensure their faces didn't get too pale, and since it was a simple hot broth, spitting it out later was the least taxing of the foods they had to eat to heat up. "I have seen many things in my life, but this was by far the most bizarre."

"Way to beat the criminal rumors!" Emmett cheered excitedly, large hands looking hilarious as they held the small paring knife, peeling the potatoes. He was originally given the task to tenderize the chicken, but it only took one massacred breast to have the task be re-delegated to Jasper, who used his exceptional self-control to beat and butterfly the pieces. Alice tittered beside him, dodging a flying potato skin as she moved her bowl of chopped carrots beside Esme. Rosalie had deigned to make her presence, chopping Emmett's potatoes, though she preened at the small compliments Esme and Carlisle gave to her knife skills, the ladder following Esme's instructions to a T as he slowly stirred the simmering broth. "Bet those old coots-"

"Have already expressed their regrets." Esme's gentle glare was enough to stop Emmett from saying anything else, but Edward sniggered lightly to himself as Emmett continued in his head, regret ever being gossiping bitc--

"It's fortunate you were able to rectify this as quickly as you did," Jasper added, earning a thankful look from Esme. She couldn't help herself as she reached out to her newest son, gently pushing a strand away from his face. Jasper gave her a small smile, allowing her that small moment. "Mallory's anger was directed only at Ward as she left, so I doubt she'll go after you again."

An unspoken look passed between the two. Even though it was easy for Jasper to simply think what he wanted to say, Edward and his brother were so in sync they usually didn't need either of their abilities to understand the other. Jasper, in his meaningful look, managed both a pleasant surprise and total confidence, and yet, a hint of suspicion. He knew Edward was more than capable of handling his own messes, but how this was wrapped up, the more social aspect of it rather than a blunt redirect, was not Edward's usual style. Edward used an exaggerated flurry of his mortar and pestle to hide his head shake, reassuring Jasper he didn't do anything to endanger the family. He was thankful Lettie was upstairs at the moment, working through the readings for tomorrow's classes, as she would no doubt notice the subtle exchange between siblings.

"We wouldn't have been in that mess in the first place if--"

"If we acted more human," Edward finished before Rosalie could go off on another rant. The room stilled at his sudden announcement, minds running through the possibility of not having done a sufficient job of acting what they once were.

" More human?" Rosalie questioned, incredulous. Alice simply smiled lightly, no doubt having seen this conversation already. He took her lack of interference as a good sign, and continued.

"Yes, more human."

"I don't understand. Is someone suspicious?" Carlisle stopped his stirring to turn and placed a comforting hand on his wife's shoulder at her nervous question, hunched in a defensive position. Not against Edward, no, but the possible danger of someone finding out their secret.

"Not entirely." Emmett's confused face was a nice juxtaposition to Jasper's dark look. "After my conversation with Whitney today, it made me realize," thanks to a certain spectral voyeur , "that even though what we're doing is keeping us safe, it's not really protecting us."

"What's the difference?" Rosalie demanded, knife pointed threateningly at him, as if it was his fault they weren't acting well enough. And, begrudgingly, he had to admit she was partially correct. Lettie, of course, made everything painfully clear to him, but it was more like she was clearing the mist and handing him a magnifying glass, rather than letting him continue using a piece of glass to look at ants.

He felt a thrum of guilt as he took credit for her accomplishments, but, as she rightfully pointed out, they had to continue to keep her secret. There was a small, and only growing larger, part of himself that wanted to say screw the consequences and just push her necklace into the hands of every one of his family members, but Samuel was a clear wake-up call that all her warnings were not just precaution. There was much to fear in her world, even to a group of vampires. And, selfishly, there was a part of him that relished being able to have her all to himself.

"That sounds like the same thing," Emmett whined, snapping Edward out of his musings. Jasper eyed him warily for the strange influx of emotions, but said nothing.

"What we're doing, keeping distance from the humans and only interacting where we must, is only distancing us further from the community."

"It wouldn't be a problem if people just minded their own business," Rosalie snipped.

"You know humans, that's not how they're conditioned." She huffed but didn't deny his claim. "My recent unfortunate conversation with Lauren Mallory has only made it more evident that keeping that distance does more harm than good."

"So what do you expect us to do? Mix with the… humans ?!"

"To an extent." Rosalie opened her mouth to counter, but Carlisle placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"I, too, am having a hard time with this, but I do see the merit in your ideas." Edward gave a thankful nod to his adopted father, the only one of them who could get Rosalie to sit and listen without directly scolding her. It was usually the only effective way to stop another lash-out.

"If one of us, any of us, was close enough to the other humans, Lauren's story would be nothing but a baseless rumor. There was no one to take our side, and, if we only started after the rumors began, it would place more suspicion on ourselves rather than help." His family nodded along, unaware Edward was merely reciting the conversation he had with Lettie earlier, modern language being its only update. "These are just ideas, but why don't we try…"

There was never going to be an easy answer, a simple action that would free his family of all suspicion and let them lead whatever life they wanted without the fear of being outed, of being reprimanded by the Volturi, of losing everything they built. But, Lettie's plan was a good place to start.

With Christmas fast approaching, there was only so much time before break to start implementing their plans. Edward spoke as swiftly and concisely as he could, patiently as he explained the merits of following the plan at least until the Winter Holiday, where they could reconvene to see if the progress was worth the effort. Rosalie wore a sour look on her face at the thought of possibly humiliating herself, but the rest of the family seemed on board, almost eager to see if this plan would actually allow them to breathe (metaphorically) a little easier instead of walking on eggshells around the humans.

"Remember," Edward began the following morning, Lettie rocking back and forth on her heels in excitement beside him, "if you mess up that's fine. The less perfect we are, the more human we'll seem."

Though their usual schedule would have them stay huddled in a group, walking like pack animals to each other's lockers and being only near each other until the bell rang, the Cullens separated as soon as they entered the front door. Alice snatched a poster off the wall, a call for volunteers to help with the tech side of the Winter Musical, and briskly headed towards Mrs.Gallermino's office, Jasper hot on her heels to head towards his History class.

Edward quietly walked towards his locker, but didn't bother hiding his stare as he watched Rosalie and Emmett walk away, despite Lettie's gentle nudge to be more subtle. Edward knew his sister far too well to know that leaving her to her own devices was a surefire way to get her to do as she pleases, which includes not going through with a plan that aims to embarrass her. And today, Rosalie was openly fuming, clutching Emmet's hand as they stalked to her locker, only faltering for a moment when she noticed her locker mate grabbing her books. This was the perfect moment to begin their plan, using Rosalie's locker mate, a Sophomore named Avery, to their advantage. She sent a glare towards Edward, biting her lip, before stalking forward, her free hand moving towards her stomach.

"Baaaaabe," Emmett whined, using that same voice he had perfected over the years. Emmett was usually a horrible liar, but the words he promised to say had been said so regularly he didn't need any skill to say them convincingly. "I said I'm sorry. You'll forgive me, won't you?"

"You don't know what it's like." Edward and Lettie winced at Rosalie's monotone voice, but it did seem to grab the attention of her locker mate who perked up at their nearing voices. "I don't want to have to go to the Nurse for tampons, they're the cheapest thing I've ever…felt."

"Can't you just hold it until I can grab you some after school?" At this, both Rosalie and the locker mate sent Emmett an incredulous look.

"What?" She blinked. "No, I can't. You know women can't hold it," her voice slowed in disbelief, "...right?"

As stupid as Emmet's usual remarks were, this seemed to take the cake. Edward winced as Emmett started to stammer in genuine embarrassment. Avery, predictably with her constant stream of positivity and wanting to make people's lives happier, seemed to take pity on both Emmett and Rosalie, rising from her crouched position and fumbling in her bag for a moment, before passing off two brightly colored packages. She even whispered quietly to Rosalie, rubbing a finger across her own teeth to mimic whipping off lipstick. Despite her very obvious reluctance, Rosalie took the tampons with a pinched smile, thanking her quietly, and rubbing away the lipstick from her teeth. Avery nodded with a happy smile, bounding away with a new positive interaction with the Cullens playing in her head.

With a satisfied smirk towards his companion, Lettie let out a small cheer at their success.

The small success in the morning was just what they needed. Edward and Lettie paid as close attention as they could to their lessons, but it was hard when they were anxiously waiting on the aftermath of Edward's rumors. As Lettie predicted, word spread like wildfire over the weekend at Lauren's apparent anger toward Whitney. Coupled with Esme and Carlisle's tactically placed phone call, both the nosy nurses and grocery gossipers getting taken care of in one action, Edward was completely cleared of all suspicion.

Though it threatened to sour his mood to admit it, Lauren was tactical first and foremost, playing any board to her advantage. In the face of possible criticism, to save face, Lauren twisted her own rumor to imply that Whitney was the one to see Edward head into the woods, trying to ruin his reputation so Lauren wouldn't be interested in him anymore. Convoluted as it may have been, the story reached the ears of every Forks High student before the Cullens even entered the school. And, now that Edward set his family on a mission to appear more human, the student's apologetic smiles and whispered words were met with small smiles and nods of understanding instead of cold indifference.

By the time the weekend rolled around again, the Cullens had returned to their neutral, if not positive, reputation among the populace.

A week's break, and then the second phase of their plan started. Alice had her first official meeting with the cast and crew, bringing a handful of garments they could use and alter for the play while also showing off her skills. By the second meeting, she was hustling along with the rest of the crew, trailing behind them with a sparkly notebook and a pom-pom-top pen. Though the actors seemed off-put to see Alice among them now, the tech crew took to her like a fish in water once they saw how efficient she could be, and how willing she was to work with the lighting and set team to make some costumes that looked best.

Jasper, on the other hand, went for the slow approach. He was slowly spending more and more time with his History teacher, a sour elderly man named Mr.Kenworth who would rather spend his days smoking a cigar and reading than teach a bunch of annoying high schoolers, using a little bit of his ability and a little bit of his charm to worm his way into Mr.Kenworth's good graces. So far, he seems to call on Jasper more, especially when he wants a student to give the correct answer. He was discussing with Edward on a gesture that would put him fully in his good graces.

Rosalie, well, was doing her best. After the initial interaction with Avery, she's shown up as immaculate as ever, despite Edward's glare. Thankfully, begrudgingly, she finally came to school with a bit of her hair messed up, walking around until she snuck away during class to fix it in the bathroom.

Now came the difficult siblings, Emmett and Edward. They had a rare problem that the others didn't; they were too sociable. Emmett, with his well-built stature, was hounded by a stream of different coaches and team manners to join whatever group they were a part of, even if Emmett hadn't shown any interest in joining. There were only so many times he could say no before people stopped caring, continuing to pester him despite his insistence. And, if Edward was being honest with himself, he wasn't all too surprised that Emmett was having trouble saying no. He was too much of an extrovert, and a horrible liar, to really keep people away.

So, he needed something that would be a good excuse to avoid it all. Esme spent the day scouring the internet for an obscure but friendly weightlifting gym, bringing Edward along to scout the best, let's say, persuaded coach to accept Emmett as a ghost (haha) protege. Coupled with a handful of stickers, sweaters, and other branded merchandise, Emmett was fully ready with a new excuse and proof to back it up.

Though, Emmett was more excited by the prospect of actually getting to talk to other people than being a part of a team. By the end of the third week, Emmett had unofficially become part of the 'Jocks'.

Edward, on the other hand, was more the unwanted sociable. As much as he tried to exude the same don't-come-near-me-or-i'll-kill-you unspoken attitude that Rosalie perfected over the years, though Edward would rather die than ever admit Rosalie was better at something, there was something about his appearance that drew people to him. Carlisle told him more than enough times that his human appearance was well above average, and Esme never passed on an opportunity to tell him how handsome he looked now, but it wasn't until the humans became involved in their day-to-day lives that he really started to notice how his looks affected those around him. Handsome, sure, he would agree to that. But handsome enough to have people still want to talk to him despite his blatantly horrible personality? He still had a hard time believing it.

Lettie, as much as she could help the others, seemed to struggle with how to help Edward. She suggested walking around with his head in a book, staring disinterestedly at the floor, or always walking with one of his siblings, but none of these were a good, permanent solution to keeping people away. Edward tried to be as rude as possible to his classmates, but the wince on Lettie's face whenever he did so made him hesitant to continue with that plan.

"If only there were a way for your focus to be clearly elsewhere," Lettie mused, her legs swinging back and forth as she perched on a rock, gaze focused on the starry sky above their heads. It was rare this time of year to have a clear sky at night, so she and Edward tried to take advantage of it, staying up on the mountain well past dark. It was a nice escape from his family, though their usual carefree conversations have recently been overtaken by Edward's dilemma. Christmas break was only two weeks away. "Only a fool would try to engage a distracted fellow."

"Having my focus somewhere else has never stopped people from distracting me before," Edward scoffed, voice annoyed despite his relaxed posture. In an instant, however, he was sitting up, a smile on his face. "Lettie, you're a genius."

A phone was already a struggle for Lettie to understand, mind jumbled with the idea that a once corded phone could now be transferred anywhere and make a call to anyone. When Edward pulled out a box of discarded electronics, anything from old phones to cameras, she was equally puzzled. But, her face lit up as Edward produced his old Walkman, inserted one of her favorite CDs, and gestured for her to lie down. It was convoluted, sure, but he was just a little bit addicted to the way her face lit up in curiosity.

Her hair fanned around her face as she lay on his black leather sofa, eyes wide as she watched him detangle an old pair of headphones, and plug them in. He pulled them apart as far as possible before kneeling, laying them on either side of her head. With no resistance, the band relaxed as soon as he let go, pushing through her head, though she showed no sign of discomfort. It was the closest she was going to get to wearing them, he mused to himself, pushing her hair around slightly to cover any unnaturalness. When he looked at her again, her eyes were completely on him, expression unreadable, though her thoughts conveyed her embarrassment well enough. Like a jolt, he realized their position, pulling back and fumbling with the Walkman in his hands, pressing Play before Lettie could ask any of the questions swirling in her mind.

She practically leaped out of the seat when the music started playing, whipping her head back and forth. It was only with Edward's gentle hand on her shoulder, pushing her lightly to have her lay back down, that she realized.

"What a curious device!" she exclaimed, raising her hands to gently prod at the headphones. Her smile brightened. "I can feel the vibrations!"

"It's a type of CD player," his collection of CDs had fascinated her beyond belief, and she often asked if he could play something from his large speakers, "but portable."

"It would allow you to walk unimpeded?"

"Yeah," his voice came out breathier than he liked, "but it would mean I wouldn't be able to hear you as easily." He dreaded the idea. Lettie's voice, already so soft, was usually swallowed by the rowdy hallways, and her thoughts disappeared, even if he used all his concentration to listen. It would almost be like erecting a wall between them. At least Pyramus and Thisbe had a hole to still hear each other's voices--

"You would be free of the burden of prying conversation, would you not?" Lettie's face was nothing but understanding. Edward scoffed.

"Would it kill you to be a little more selfish?" Lettie furrowed her brow, only soothed when Edward ran his thumb over the creases. "You'll be alone again-"

"Your kindness and your generosity have shown in abundance that I am no longer alone." Her words were innocent, unaware of the knife she just plunged into his heart, but her lips ticked in amusement. "You cannot escape me so easily."

"Not that I would want to." She laughed, and all was right. Edward learned over, adjusting the headphones again so they were as close to her ears as possible, the gentle piano filling the space between them. This song was one of her favorites.

"Humanity has advanced beyond my comprehension," she whispered, awed. Her eyes closed, the gentle melody of Johannes Brahms lulling her into a state of peace. Slowly, her head began to rock back and forth, taken by the music. It was an ease he hadn't seen in her for a while, too occupied with thoughts of the past, thoughts of school, thoughts of Samuel. She gave him easy reassurances, but when it was just the two of them on their mountain, her thoughts had nowhere to hide, too dominating of her psyche to even try. He'd been worried about her, but there was little he could do without letting her know his secret. And now, weeks after the incident, and the success of the Cullens' new human plan, it seemed she finally let her shoulders unclench, elegant fingers gently tapping on the leather to the tune of the song.

Edward chuckled lightly to himself as she finished with a flourish, fingers fluttering, but it was enough to pull her out of her trance. Lettie's eyes opened wide, a playful glare on her face.

"Do you mock me, Edward?"

"Me?" Edward asked, jokingly scandalized. He reached out, running a finger softly over a lock of her hair, from tip to root, keeping his face teasing despite the smile that pulled at his lips. "I would never."

"Then why have you--"

"Woah!" In an instant, the world came rushing back. Both Edward and Lettie jumped. The last unexpected encounter rushed to mind, bringing his body into a hunched defensive position before he could really stop himself, lips curled in a snarl. Lettie's hand found his shirt, gripping tightly. "I knew you liked music, Eddy boy, but didn't think you needed privacy ."

Emmett's light-hearted remark was usually enough to get him to unclench, but not this time. Edward immediately started scouring Emmett's mind for any hint that he knew what he was up to, as impossible as that was, but there was that irrational part of his mind that was all panic. Neither he nor Lettie have thought of a good excuse should his family start to become suspicious, and if it was Emmett of all people to question him, he didn't know how he would react. Instead of the image of Edward leaning over Lettie, Emmett's mind was filled only with the image of Edward gently caressing his headphones, a soft look on his face at seemingly nothing. His shoulders relaxed.

"Emmett, you scared me."

"Lost in the moment? Yeah, I get like that with Rose," Emmett side-eyed him. But I've never been that horny before . Edward glared and Emmett smiled, seemingly the reaction he wanted to receive. "You comin' down? Hunt's on!"

"Yeah, sorry, sorry. Give me a second."

"A second with your Walkman . Got something to tell me, Eddie?" Edward glared, grasping the cushion beside him and whipping it with perfect accuracy. Emmett's indignant yelp was more than satisfying, as was Lettie's gentle squeeze, just as relieved that Emmett was still none the wiser.