Family Ties

Epilogue: Passing the Torch

Rosalie

Tears streaked down my cheeks as I rubbed my swollen belly. Carlisle just confirmed the both Lillie and I are having twins. When he had first started going over Joham's notes, he didn't think he would ever be able to make the process viable. Then Leah Clearwater came into the picture which changed everything. She maintained the ability to change into a wolf after becoming a vampire. Since a female's body needed to change during pregnancy, my father theorized that if he could examine the crossbreed's DNA, then he might just succeed. Three days after the fight with Maria, well over two years ago, Carlisle had a working formula but needed to test it out.

Esme volunteered to be the test subject. She was injected with a compound that was supposed to thaw out her internal organs and allow the necessary changes to occur for pregnancy. One month of trying and nine months after that, Charles Jackson Cullen was born. They named him after Bella's human father and the baby that my mother lost when she was still human. Much like Willow, he had brought great joy to our family. In fact, he became the bridge for the future merging of the Cullen and Luna families.

The first time my niece touched him, instant Soul Mate connection. Both sets of parents were thrilled that they wouldn't need to worry about who their children would end up with. I had to admit that Willow was very cute with him. At the moment, she is like a playmate/sister. As the two get older, the bond will change. From what Leah told us, it is similar to the imprinting done by shapeshifters.

Lillie and I made the choice to do the treatments this year, while Sasha, Caitlin and Jane opted to wait another couple of years. Alice went through it right after Carlisle confirmed Esme's pregnancy. She and Jasper had a baby girl, Lillian Marie Hale. The precious Angel had the perfect balance of her parents' features. Too bad she inherited her mother's love of fashion. Put her in anything not trendy and she threw a fit.

Emmett and Bella had gone out of their way to be overly supportive. They never missed a check-up or birthing class. If we craved anything at anytime, they went and got it without any complaints. Lillie believed this was Bella's payback for how the red head acted during her pregnancy, which made Lillie feel even guiltier.

Today was the day of a very special Conclave. Instead of being there in person, the two of us sat like a couple of beached whales and watched it on a video feed. Lillie sucked on a 64 ounce cup of Great White Shark's blood she made Bella fly all the way to Australia to get. I, on the other hand, had been slurping down an equally large cup of Lynx blood my doting husband had retrieved for me.

Julian

The past two years had brought great changes to our world. First the destruction of Maria had ultimately led to the destruction of all the Southern Covens. Then there had been Carlisle's breakthrough with vampire pregnancy. Sonny had moved to Italy to work for the Volturi to replace Jane, who had moved here to be with my broodbrother. Frank and Leah were on loan to the Khan Coven and lived in Shanghai. Jasper had become Chief of Detectives and current head of the Enforcers, which my daughter had expanded to thirty members; ten on the West Coast, ten in the Central States and ten on the East Coast. Archon now permanently resided in our vineyard upstate; we all spent weekends with him there. Too many things to be dwelt on now.

I had called a special Conclave for today which was sent via streaming video feed to the mansion, Volterra and Shanghai. With the exception of the Cullen's, all the other covens were nervous. Just as a reminder of who was in charge, I prolonged their discomfort by not delivering the news they had been brought her to hear. Cameron Fiori and his coven fidgeted the most out of everyone. Finally, I broke the silence.

"Friends, this is a most prestigious day. Like my Sire before me, I have decided to step down from my seat of power in favor of someone more capable. And like Archon, I will remain in strictly an advisory position. The question I was faced with after that choice was who best would serve in my vacant seat. For me, there was only one candidate qualified for the job. It is with great pleasure that I present to you the new head of the Luna Coven and Magistrate of the Americas, my daughter, Isabella Marie Luna," I pronounced with enthusiasm.

Bella strode into the room then sat at the head of the Conclave table. I watched as with Solomon like wisdom, she presided over the Conclave. She addressed every concern and assured all the covens present that she would keep the city, and the Americas, safe for out people. When the time came to dole out justice, she had done it with an even hand. My daughter was what I had always suspected, a natural leader. This was her time to shine.

THE END.