The shadows shift and dance in the rain and encase all that may be seen by humans. Buildings tower over the humans that wander down the rainy streets, rushing towards their destination so they can escape the downpour of rain. The glow of neon signs and street lights reflect off of the glossy streets, wet from the continuous rainstorm. A hooded black figure wanders down the streets with an unnatural grace and fluidity. From beneath the hood, is a man, if one could be considered such, being what he is. He has an olive pallor to his pale skin with an exotic appearance that will catch the eye of any human, if the rain was not a distraction and a well meaning gift to the vampire.

The vampire can feel the yearning for his mate. It was becoming stronger, the closer he nears his Mate's location. As he makes his way through the deserted streets, he can sense the weather change. It's a sign, he knows, of an imminent change that is to occur. He wonders if this change was for him or for his mate? Perhaps it will be a change for them both? In the not too far off distance, Benjamin can hear the river saying his name, urging him to continue forward, that he is getting closer to his other half. The wind that rages through the streets, whispers in the air, into Benjamin's ears, that it won't be much longer now. That he shouldn't dally the time away.

The elements, the matter that he is able to manipulate and wield so effortlessly, is more than just what people believe it to be. The Earth, Air, Water, and Fire, they all have a mind of its own. A will of their own. It takes a person of great strength, to possess the will and integrity to gain a mastery over them. Benjamin is fortunate that he has this fortitude. The elements all assist him in their own way, with a shift of a breeze, a rumble of the earth or a rustle of plants, a gurgling from a river water, or a roar from a fire. Over his lifetime, Benjamin has learned to read the sounds and noises that the elements show him for what they are. As he reads them now, he turns towards the direction of Forks, Washington.

That's where he needs to be, he knows. Somewhere deep inside him, in a place that has been frozen cold for so long, has begun to thaw with a heat that depicts his mate. That warmth, he has never experienced anything like it before. From the stories his brother and Tia have told him, that warmth would turn into a fiery heat that doesn't burn. Benjamin can't say he regrets leaving them, but he does miss his twin brother and sister-in-law. The mere fact that he will finally get to experience his own happiness, after being alone and feeling empty for so long, has lessened the guilt he feels for leaving his own Coven.

Benjamin turns a corner, and finds the street abandoned. With a small smirk, he takes off into a run. To a human, it would have appeared as if he was there one second and then gone the next. Anticipation hangs heavy in his chest, as he speeds through the small town of Alta, Wyoming. He will be in Washington soon enough, just a little bit longer, and he'll be with his mate.

Forks, Washington

The Cullen House

Alice stands at the back window of the Cullen family home. Her golden eyes look out into the green forest that surrounds their home's property with concern. She searches for the familiar figure of her mate and nephew. Yet, they have not appeared, and she can't See them. She can only assume that Cassimere is somehow blocking her sight from both of them. She was hoping that Jasper and Cas would be back by now, before Bella and Edward make an appearance, and before Renesmee woke up from her sleep, but that hadn't happened, as she's been awake for the last couple of minutes.

Renesmee sits on the floor with Emmett and Rosalie hovering over her, playing with a little pile of twisted silverware. She has a mangled spoon in her right hand. It had taken them all a few hours, since Renesmee awoke earlier this morning, to calm her down when she noticed her brother wasn't in her immediate vicinity. It had taken giving her some of Esme's old silverware to destroy, that her upset was momentarily forgotten.

The little beauty glances at the window and smiles happily at the sight of her mother. She tosses the spoon on the floor and creates a divot in the wood from her strength, before she points in Bella's direction imperiously. She had been asking for her mother and twin brother since she woke up. If she wasn't getting her brother, then she wanted her mother.

Esme, Carlisle, Emmett, and Rosalie laugh at Renesmee's action. Esme and Carlisle sit on the couch, watching her as if she is the most engrossing film. Alice is smiling from where she remains standing at the back window, waiting for Jasper and Cassimere to reappear.

The sound of the front door opening causes all the Cullen's to turn their heads towards Bella and Edward stepping into the house. The newborn mother turns swiftly, before their laughter has even begun, bounding across the room and scooping her beautiful daughter up from the floor in the same second. Bella and Renesmee smile widely at each other.

The newborn vampire holds her daughter in her arms in a comforting and loving embrace. Her red colored eyes look her daughter over and she can instantly tell the Renesmee was different, but not by much. She is a little longer again, her proportions drifting from babyish to childlike. Her hair is longer by a quarter inch, the curls bouncing like springs with every movement. Bella's imagination had been worse than the actual visual. Thanks to her overdone fears, these incremental changes are almost a relief to what it could have been. She was sure that even without Carlisle's measurements, the changes were slower than yesterday.

Bella looks away from her daughter and scans the room swiftly with her eyes. She immediately notices that her son is nowhere in sight. It seems Edward notices as well, since he speaks. "Where's Cassimere?" Edward asks, his golden eyes begin to scan around the room, searching for his son. When he finds no sight of him, his eyes turn to his silent family.

"Cassimere had a nightmare last night." Carlisle says after a moment of silence. He remains sitting on the couch beside Esme with his hand holding her.

"Nightmare?" Bella and Edward chorus in unison with concern and worry blatantly clear in their tone of voice and expressions.

"It's more like he had visions that could be contributed as nightmares." Jasper remarks as he steps into the room. Cassimere is resting comfortably against his uncle's chest and shoulder, his eyelids blink heavily, with his thick dark eyelashes, ones that many human girls would be envious of, flutter against his cheekbones as he attempts to stay awake.

Bella's eyes drink in the changes of her son. His proportions, like his sisters, have drifted from babyish to childlike. His hair is also longer by a quarter inch, the dark brown (nearly black) locks seem to be an even more unruly mess with a mind of its own, much like Edward's. His green eyes, usually such a bright and stunning color, are darker now with a weariness from whatever he Saw. Worry gnaws in the pit of Bella's stomach at the clear sign of distress her son displays.

Cassimere yawns tiredly and rubs his face against his Uncles shoulder. He had fallen asleep on their trip back from the forest clearing, but awoke only a couple of minutes away from their home. The limited amount of sleep he has received that night is beginning to take a toll on the hybrid. "These visions are something that we need to talk about," the older vampire says with a serious expression gracing his beautifully scarred features. "But, I feel that we should discuss it later tonight. Once Cassimere has taken a nap." Jasper adds with a worried glance down at his exhausted nephew.

"Tonight then, we will discuss these turns of events." Carlisle agrees with some hesitancy. The Coven and family leader wants to know what his adoptive grandson has seen that caused such a change in him, but is willing to agree with Jasper on this. Cassimere needs more sleep before they could further discuss what he has Seen.

Edward steps forward towards his brother and reaches for his son. While he doesn't like the idea, he's willing to wait to talk about it, especially if it has caused such a reaction with Cassimere. There is great concern for his oldest child, regarding the clear signs of disquiet is blatantly clear to the family. Cassimere is a generally happy, cheerful and mischievous little boy, but it's clear that what he Saw has affected him. They are willing to wait to speak about what their nephew and grandson has seen, until the child was ready to talk about it.

Cassimere snuggles into his father's arms following the exchange between his uncle and father. The little boy is exhausted from his visions, but he is afraid to fall asleep. The visions are always worse when he sleeps. His mind is more open, more vulnerable, during his rest. His consciousness is what allows him to decide whether or not he Sees anything.

Renesmee frowns and looks in concern at her brother. She gently pats her mother's cheek. Bella winces as her daughter displays that she's hungry again. Followed immediately by the concern for her twin, which causes Bella to smile reassuringly at her daughter.

"Are you hungry Cassimere?" Edward asks his son worriedly. With Renesmee hungry, he can only assume his son is too. It haunts him that he can't see what his son is thinking, whether he's hungry, and especially at a time like this. His son is visibly upset, they can all see it, and yet he won't speak up about it yet. Cassimere merely nods at his father's question and buries his face into the collarbone, in the area that connects his father's neck and shoulder.

Edward presses a loving kiss to the top of his son's head before he gently hands Cassimere to his mother. Bella immediately adjusts her hold so she can balance the twins in her left and right arm. "How long have they been up?" Bella asks as she watches as Edward disappears into the kitchen doorway. She can only assume that he is preparing the children's breakfast, having seen what Renesmee has thought as clearly as Bella has. As well as Cassimere's confirmation that he is hungry. Bella can't help but wonder if Edward will even have noticed Renesmee's little quirk, if he was the only one to know her. To Edward, it's probably like hearing everyone else.

"Just a few minutes ago Nessie woke up." Rosales replies. "We would have called you sooner. She's been asking for you - demanding might be a better description. She's also been asking - demanding really - for Cassimere too. Esme had to sacrifice her second-best silverware to keep the little monster entertained." Rosalie smiles at Renesmee with gloating affection that shows clearly her criticism is entirely non-existent.

"Cassie only slept for about thirty minutes." Jasper supplies with worry clear in his eyes as he looks at Cassimere. Frowns grace everyone's lips at the uncharacteristic behavior of Cassimere. Whatever Cassimere has Seen, has affected him to the point that he is not sleeping either. It was going to be difficult to wait until nightfall to discuss what was going on.

"We didn't want to...bother you." Rosalie adds as Bella looks between Jasper and Rosalie. Rosalie bites her lip and looks away, trying not to laugh at the reason why Bella and Edward couldn't be bothered last night or this morning.

Emmett's silent laughter behind Bella, sends vibrations through the foundation of the house. Jasper smirks silently in amusement at that, but his eyes remain focused on his nephew. What he has to say to the family, doesn't leave him with a cheerful spirit. Alice is withholding her own laughs as she smiles brightly at her sister-in-law. Carlisle and Esme merely look fondly at Bella, when she holds her chin high.

"We'll get your rooms set up as soon as possible," she tells her children, ignoring the good natured teasing by her in-laws. "You both will like the cottage. It's magical." Renesmee smiles with interest clear in her eyes. She's clearly eager and curious to see the cottage her mother is talking about. Cassimere dozes quietly on her shoulder, he acknowledges his mother's words with a gentle pat of his hand against her collarbone. But nothing else shows his interest in what she is saying.

Bella glances away from her children and over to Esme. "Thank you so much, Esme. The cottage is absolutely beautiful and perfect for my family," she thanks with a smile of gratitude.

Before Esme can respond, and remark on how they added an additional room during her Turning, Emmett is laughing again, but this time it's not silent. "So it's still standing?" He manages to ask between his loud snickers. "I would've thought you two had knocked it to rubble by now. What were the two of you doing last night? Discussing the national debt?" He howls with laughter. His golden eyes are filled with gleeful amusement.

The others snicker and giggle with amusement as Bella merely grits her teeth and reminds herself of the negative consequences that could happen if she loses her temper. She would have really hurt Jacob had Cassimere not calmed her down, but Emmett wasn't as breakable as Jacob. Thinking of Jacob makes Bella wonder where they are. She's honestly surprised that they're not inside now. "Where are the wolves today?" She asks as she glances out the window wall, but sees no sign of them outside.

"Jacob took off this morning pretty early," Rosalie tells Bella with a little frown creasing her forehead. "Seth followed him out."

"What was he so upset about?" Edward questions as he comes back into the room with Renesmee and Cassimere's cups. Bella can only assume that there was more in Rosalie's memories than what she was able to see in her expression.

Bella stops breathing as she hands Renesmee off to Rosalie and Cassimere to Emmett. She may have great self control, if that is what she can do, but there wasn't any feasible way for her to feed Renesmee or Cassimere. Not yet anyways.

"I don't know, nor do I care." Rosalie grumbles in response. She cares little for the mongrels, something she feels Cassimere has in common with her. She does, however, still answer Edward's question fully. "He was watching Nessie sleeping, his mouth was hanging open like the moron he is, and then he just jumped to his feet without any kind of trigger - that I noticed, anyways - and stormed out. I was glad to be rid of him. The more time he spends here, the less chance there is that we'll ever get the smell out."

"Rose," Esme chided gently. She was too kind to agree with Rosalie about the smell, but even she knew that their scent, so to say, lingers.

Rosalie flips her hair over her shoulder and rolls her eyes. "It doesn't matter anyways. We won't be here that much longer."

"I still say that we should go straight to New Hampshire and get things set up," Emmett remarks. His hold on Cassimere is protective as his nephew feeds. It is obvious that he's continuing an earlier conversation. "Bella's already registered at Dartmouth. Doesn't look like it will take her all the long to be able to handle school." He looks at Bella with a teasing smile and glint in his eyes. "I'm sure you'll ace your classes…since there's apparently nothing of interest for you to do at night besides study."

Rosalie giggles. Carlisle and Esme fondly shake their heads at their adoptive son. Jasper rolls his eyes at his brother and ignores him. It was typical of Emmett to tease those he loves and cares greatly about.

Don't lose your temper. Don't give him any ammunition to use . Bella chants to herself. She's rather proud of herself for succeeding in retaining a level-head. "We do have to leave here, don't we?" Bella questions instead of snapping at Emmett. She has been thinking about this matter. The danger she will be putting her father in, as well as those she knew as a human, if she remains here. It's cause enough for her to leave. The danger her children will be in, should they be discovered, makes any reservations Bella might have, practically non-existent. She will do anything for her children, if it means they remain alive and safe.

Edward smiles sadly at his wife. He knows the heartbreak she is feeling over this. While he can't read her mind, he knows Bella well enough now to know what she is thinking and feeling. The close relationship she has with her father, after not having a close one at all for years, it's breaking her heart having to leave him. But it's for Charlie's safety and for their children.

Edward suddenly growls - an abrupt, shocking gasp of a sound - and the blackest fury rolls across his expression like storm clouds.

Before anyone can respond, Alice is on her feet in a rush of emotions. "What is he doing ? What is that dog doing that has erased my schedule for the entire day? I can't see anything ! No!" Alice glances at Bella with a tortured expression. "Look at you! You need me to show you how to use your closet."

Papa , Aunt Alice , Cassimere projects, having stirred in his Uncle's arms, from his dozing after eating his breakfast. The mess of emotions and thoughts, is enough to awaken the child. Edward and Alice look to him and freeze like statues as Cassimere projects the vision he saw of Jacob, and what he has done.

Jasper is concerned with the fury he feels coming for Edward. He has rarely ever felt this way from his brother. Whatever has caused this reaction, it was nothing good.

For a small moment, Bella is grateful for whatever Jacob was up to, until Edward snarls the words out with hands curled into fists.

"He talked to Charlie. He thinks Charlie is following after him. Coming here. Today."

" Fuck ," Alice says in her trilling, ladylike voice, and then blues into motion, streaking out the back door.

For a moment, all Bella can think of is how very odd such a word escaping Alice's trilling voice sounds, before Edward's words catch on. "He told Charlie?" She gasps with shock. "But - doesn't he understand? How could he do that?" Charlie couldn't know about vampires! He couldn't know about her! That would put him on a hit list that the Cullen's couldn't save him from. "No!" She cries out, the pain she feels at the moment, at the very thought of Charlie being put in danger, sits heavy on her shoulders.

Edward's jaw is clenched and when he speaks, it's through gritted teeth. "Jacob's in his way in now." He never liked Jacob, and with him pulling this, it infuriates him.

When Jacob Black comes through the door, he shakes his wet hair like a dog, and flips droplets on the carpet and the couch where they make little round gray spots on the white sofa. His teeth glint white against his dark lips, his eyes are bright and excited. He walks with jerky movements, as if he's thrilled over the fact that he's just destroyed Charlie Swan's life.

"Hey, guys," he greets with a grin.

The room is silent as every vampire in the room stares at Jacob, glares of anger, disgust, and irritation blatantly clear in how they feel about him at the moment.

Leah and Seth slip in behind Jacob, in their human forms - for now. Both of their hands are trembling due to the tension in the room, that's thick like molasses.

"Rose," Bella says as she holds out her arms. Wordlessly, Rosalie hands Renesmee to her. "Emmett," she utters while holding her right arm out, as Renesmee is held in her left. Quietly, Emmett hands Cassimere to her. She presses her children close to her motionless heart. She holds them like a talisman against any rash behavior. Bella knows her son and daughter will keep her rational. She'll keep them both in her arms until she is positive that her decision to rip Jacob apart is based entirely on rational judgment rather than fury.

Renesmee and Cassimere are very still and quiet in her arms, watching and listening. Beautiful brown and green eyes take in the tension that settles over the room like a foh. How much did her children understand? Bella wonders. With what Cassimere can do, it wouldn't truly surprise her if he understood far more than any of them realize. She wouldn't be surprised either, if Cassimere helps Renesmee in understanding everything that is going on too. Her son and daughter, from what she has been told, share practically everything.

"Charlie will be here soon." Jacob says to Bella casually. "When I was leaving, the phone was ringing, so after he talks to whoever, he'll be heading here, just as a heads up. I'm assuming Alice is going to get you sunglasses or somethin'?"

Bella's jaw clenches as she glares daggers at Jacob. "You assume way too much," she spits out between her teeth. "What. Have. You. Done ?"

Jacob scoffed. It was typical of them to assume he did anything truly horrible. "I didn't put him in danger. Except from you maybe. But since you've got this super control going on, which while it's not as cool as mind reading, if you ask me, it's much less exciting, you'll be fine," he says in a casual shrug.

Edward suddenly moves, darting across the room to get in a blink of an eye, to get in Jacob's face. Although Edward is about half a head shorter than Jacob, the teenager leans away from his staggering anger, as if Edward was towering over him. "That's just a theory , mongrel," he snarls angrily. "You think we should test it out on Charlie ? Did you consider the physical pain you're putting Bella through, even if she can resist? Or the emotional pain if she doesn't? I suppose what happens to Bella no longer concerns you !"

Renesmee anxiously presses her fingers to her brother's cheek, anxiety coloring the replay in his head. Cassimere knows his sister wants to know what is going on. She doesn't like that their family is upset and that Jacob seems to be the cause of it. She keeps her hand on his cheek, asking him to tell her why everyone is angry that Charlie has been told.

It'll cause Mama pain , Cassimere explains to his sister mentally. She has good control, but it'll hurt smelling human blood. We haven't had to, but who knows how we'll react too, he adds with a tiny shrug of his shoulders. He knows who they are talking about. His Mama and everyone else's memories show someone with the name Charlie in them. He knows Charlie is his Mama's father and that he's human, just like she had been human four days ago, before having him and Renesmee.

Cassimere and Renesmee's attention is caught once again, as they had been still listening in on the conversation going on, when their mother speaks, "What did you tell him about Cassimere and Renesmee?" Bella's voice still held a razor edge to it. While she did, if slightly, appreciate Charlie knowing, it was too premature to show any gratitude, if she truly felt any, towards Jacob. There is so much still wrong with this situation. Even if Jacob's intervention had brought out a better reaction in Charlie than she could have ever hoped for, it didn't take away the danger he was in.

"Oh yeah, so I told him that you and Edward had inherited two little mouths to feed." Jacob glances over at Edward. "They're your orphaned wards - like Bruce Wayne, Dick Grayson, and Jason Todd," he snorts in amusement. "I figured you wouldn't mind me lying, since it's all part of the game." Edward doesn't react to Jacob in any way, so Jacob continues. "Charlie was past being shocked at this point, but he did ask if you were adopting them. 'Like a son and daughter? Like I'm sort of a grandfather?' were his exact words. I told him yes. 'Congrats, Gramps', and all that. He even smiled a little."

Bella felt like her eyes were stinging again, but not out of fear or anguish this time. Charlie was smiling at the idea of being a grandpa? Charlie was going to meet Cassimere and Renesmee? The thought thrilled and terrified her at the same time. "But they're changing so fast," she whispers into the room.

"I told him that Cassimere and Renesmee are more special than all of us put together," Jacob says in a soft voice. He stands and walks right up to Bella, waving a hand back at Leah and Seth when they went to follow. Renesmee reaches out for Jacob, but it only causes Bella to hug her more tightly. Cassimere twitched in Bella's arm. He doesn't like being so close to Jacob, it makes his nose twitch at the smell of wet dog. He reaches away from his mother and towards his father, who quickly moves over to them. He lifts Cassimere into his arms and holds him against his chest. Edward knows he needs to speak to Cassimere about his reaction towards the shapeshifters, as he's noticed this happen frequently, but he knows now isn't the time.

"I told him, "Trust me, you don't want to know about this. But if you can ignore all the strange parts, you're going to be amazed. They're the most wonderful people in the world.' And then I told him that if he can deal with that, you all would stick around for a while and he would have a chance to get to know them. But if it was too much for him, you would leave. He said as long as no one forced too much information on him, he'd deal." Jacob stares at Bella with a half smile, waiting for her response.

"I'm not going to thank you," she tells him dryly. "You're still putting Charlie at a huge risk."

The Cullen family remains quiet. They haven't told Bella the complete truth, about the dangers of humans knowing the truth about the Supernatural. There's a reason why everyone believes they're folklore and fairytales, myths that don't exist anymore, or where just fun tales to scare oneself with.

Bella tries to force herself to remain calm as she listens to the helpful suggestions from Esme, Emmett, and Jasper, on how to attempt to act human. Forgiving Jacob doesn't mean she forgot what he did. The dangers her father is in, it nags at the back of her mind. But Jacob is still her best friend, and that means she will forgive, but never forget. With Renesmee in her arms, and Edward beside her on the couch, with Cassimere in his arms, she honestly feels like she can do this.

"Cassimere," Alice begins as she crouches down in front of her nephew. Beautiful green eyes look at his Aunt. It was clear to see that he was curious. "I'm going to need your help, okay?" She gently says. Cassimere silently nods as he waits for her to continue. "You can See, in ways that I can't. So I'm going to need your help to See during this visit." Alice knows that she's fortunate that her nephew can See as well, and that he'll be able to share the visions with her or Edward. "I need you to share the visions, if any of them show your Mama having a hard time being around Charlie, along with any danger happening. You can tell me, or your Papa, or Uncle Jasper. Tell any of us in this room," she says with a reassuring smile. By using the word tell, they all know she means mentally sharing the vision with them.

Okay, Aunt Alice , Cassimere promises with a gentle hand touching her cheek. Alice smiles, gently touching the hand on her cheek, before she quickly stands and walks over to Jasper.

Edward turns on the couch, so he is looking at Bella and Renesmee, and also moves Cassimere so he is now sitting in Bella's lap, so he can face both of his children. "Renesmee, Cassimere, someone very special is coming to see you and your mother," he says in a solemn voice. Bella wonders if he expects them to actually understand every word. Do they? Bella can see that the twins are looking back with clear grave eyes. "But he's not like us, or even like Jacob. We have to be very careful with him. You shouldn't tell him things the way you tell us."

Renesmee touches Edward's face. Cassimere remains quiet. But he is still recovering from his nightmares, that they haven't been able to discuss yet, not until later that night. They know he has various ways he can communicate, and he knows he can't use any of those means, unless absolutely necessary.

"Exactly," he says. "Cassimere," he looks at his son. "You're going to be able to See, but you can't use your other abilities, or any various ways of communication." He waits for his son to nod at his father's words. A small gentle hand reaches out to touch Edward, telling him that he won't do anything. "He's also going to make you thirsty. But you cannot, you must not ," he stressed this importance, "bite him. He won't heal like Jacob Renesmee." They haven't had any troubles with Cassimere when it came to biting, besides that one time with Jasper. Once he saw and felt the pain he caused his Uncle, he stopped biting to show when he was hungry. Especially once they explained the dangers of him biting could do. Instead, he has shown or told someone when he is hungry.

"Can they understand you?" Bella whispers to Edward. She is constantly in awe and amazed at her children. She is aware of just how unique and special they are. But they continuously surprise her, with how quickly they're developing.

"They understand," he assures Bella. Their children are very aware of what is being said and done around them. "You'll be careful, won't you Cassimere and Renesmee? You'll help us?" Edwards questions rhetorically. He knows the twins understand the importance of this, even if he can't read his son's mind. He knows they know that this has to go well.

Renesmee reaches out to touch Edward again.

"No, I don't care if you bite Jacob. That's fine." Edward replies.

Jacob chuckles in amusement. He is well used to being Renesmee's chew toy often enough. He glances over at Cassimere thoughtfully from where he stands in the corner of the room. He knows, or he feels more like, that Renesmee's older twin brother doesn't like him or the other shapeshifter's. Whenever he goes near the other hybrid, Cassimere immediately wants to move away and he can't figure out why. What has he done to cause the dislike? He knows Cassimere's opinion matters to Renesmee. She adores her older twin, it's clear in how often he shows up when she's communicating. But he hasn't said anything to her about it, so why does he act like that?

Cassimere smiles sweetly, the amusement clear in his eyes, lighting them up and showing the diverse green colors that make up his eyes. To a human, they would appear to be an emerald green color. He is truly breathtaking, with how beautiful he is. The reply was silent, he didn't reach out to touch Edward, but from the way he gently touches Cassimere with a smile of his own, it was clear Cassimere had agreed.

Edward doesn't acknowledge Jacob's ruminating. But if the shapeshifters are starting to notice, then the situation definitely needs to be dealt with. He is tempted to tell Jacob to leave, but he knows that he would make some excuse as to why he has to stay. Instead, he concentrates on his family. Cassimere and Renesmee remain held in Bella's arms, keeping her calm.

The sound of tires turning off the highway and onto the quiet, damp ground of the Cullen's driveway, catch the vampire's attention. Bella's breathing spiked and she felt her heart should have been hammering away in her chest. The fact that it wasn't , made her even more anxious, as her body wasn't having the right responses. Bella forces herself to concentrate on her children's steady thrumming heartbeat to calm herself. The sounds of the hummingbird beating helped to immediately calm her.

"Well done, Bella." Jasper whispers from where he stands with Alice in the dining room.

Edward tightens his arm around her shoulders.

"You're sure?" Bella questions. The other unfinished question, of whether she can withstand the scent of her father's blood, echoes in the silence of the front room.

"I'm positive. You can do anything ," he smiles as he leans down and kisses her. It wasn't a sweet peck on her lips, and it caused Bella's wild vampiric reactions to catch the newborn off guard. The feel of Edward's lips against hers was like an addictive shot of chemicals straight into her nervous system. It took all her concentration to remind herself of the babies in her arm.

Jasper and Cassimere both felt her mood change. "Er, Edward, you might not want to distract her like that right now. She needs to focus," he remarks. "And keep in mind, that your son ," he stresses out, "can feel the same things I can."

Those words quickly doused the two of them into logical minds. The last thing they wanted was their innocent son to feel those sorts of emotions. "Oops," he says as he pulls away.

Bella laughs in amusement. That had been her line in the beginning, from their very first kiss. "Later," she replies, and anticipation curls in her stomach.

"Focus Bella," Jasper urges.

"Right." Bella says as she pushes her nervous feelings away. Charlie, that was the main focus right now. Keep Charlie safe today. We would have all night…

"Bella." Jasper sighs in a very human manner. He really doesn't want to feel these feelings, and he especially doesn't want his nephew to either.

"Sorry, Jasper." Bella winces with a small smile.

Jasper pauses for a moment before speaking again, "I'll be sure to keep Cassimere here tonight," he adds with a little twist of his mouth.

Emmett laughs. He was definitely enjoying the changes in dynamic within their family. Who knew Bella was so amusing? She certainly had been serious as a human. But she had to be, as a delicate little human.

The sound of Charlie's cruiser is getting closer and closer, making the small little levity pass and everyone to go still. Bella crosses her legs and practices blinking, feeling awkward and not human at all. The car pulls into the front of the house and idles for a few seconds. It makes Bella wonder and curious if Charlie is as nervous as she was feeling. Then, finally the engine is shut off and the driver side door slams closed. The sound of three steps across the grass is followed by eight steps up the wooden stairs. Four more echoing footsteps across the porch. Then there is silence before the sound of Charlie taking deep breaths in echo.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

It was time.

So, it's been awhile since I posted. This pandemic, among other things, has certainly put a damper on my mood, but I hope everyone is keeping safe and wearing masks? This year is a scary time, but lets all hope it gets better.

Here is the new chapter, which I struggled with writing and I'm still not completely happy with, but I figured I might as well post it. I hope you all enjoy it! XD

As you can tell, Cassimere is not himself, but he'll recover. Most likely in the next chapter he'll be his adorable, cheerful, mischievous, and lovely self. But his mood honestly fits how I've been feeling and why updating any of my stories is a struggle and takes so long.

Anyways, reviews and kudos are appreciated as always.