Written as a drabble challenge for duckorrabbit on Livejournal using the prompts Carlisle/Esme and architecture

The look on her face he first time that Carlisle took Esme to London, to visit where he had grown up as a boy was something that Carlisle would never forget, even if he was human. She was staggered by not only the look and sights of the city, but by the feel of the buildings around her. It enveloped her and instilled itself into her subconscious, the feeling of home. They were beautiful, solid, safe and immortal surrounding her, and she said that she could feel them watching down on her from high above singing their timelessness to her heartstrings. Her joy from something so unique was astounding and it made him fall even more in love with her.

Carlisle had always stood back and admired the way that she could transform their house into what it truly became - home. He liked how that she didn't stick to one style and era and that every room had a feel of its own, reflecting it's most common occupant flowing from Gothic to Renaissance to Romanticism through the core of the building. It was a mishmash that somehow came together into something beautiful, much like the family they had built together.

He had learned enough from Esme and her countless books to see the parallels of a structure and their connections with each other mirrored in the lives of their family, collected from across the ages.

Alice and Jasper and their ever present mix of Gothic and Romanticism were fascinating. They were a buttress and an arch. Each was supporting the other up as well as secretly holding the rest of them in place. One was more visible and showy while the other subtly working behind the scenes. They were different and yet the same and completely compatible. Emmett and Rosalie were matched straight out of the Classical movement. Emmett was the family column - Corinthian - the strongest one of them all and would always be the last one left standing, defending until the end. Rosalie was a pediment, structurally ornate, full of beauty and details to behold. Edward was the walls. He was enduring, ever present, keeping the family safe from outside intrusion and suspicion both by using his unique abilities and unwavering loyalty to his family.

Then there was his Esme. She was the roof to his foundation. It was only fitting that the most important sun in his life was perpetually above him, sheltering and caring. Nothing could compare to the gift that she gave him everyday, smiling at the little things he says, touching him they way she does. She has renovated and redesigned his life into something that he was unable to imagine 400 years ago and for that he wants to continue to give her the world. The universe if at all possible. She was to him what London was to her. Astounding and beautiful.

He would do anything to see that face light up and that was why he was taking her to see her new gift today. 50 acres of land all for her to build their new home for their brood from the ground up from scratch. They weren't planning on moving for another couple years, but giving it to her so early would give her a chance to design and plan appropriately. They could move their family as soon as it was complete and once again, start anew.

In Forks, Washington.