Esme heard the whimper from rooms away, but she was always keeping an ear out in that room. Carlisle tightened his grip on his wife's bare hip underneath the sheet. "She's alright," he told his wife as she shifted. She was so protective of the newest member of their family, and for good reason as well. After all, a small human living with seven vampires twice her size...

"She's crying," Esme replied, her frown deepening. Carlisle listened closer. The small whimper had turned into a string of soft sobs. Now he knew she was right. He loosened his hold and she was in her pajamas and robe in an instant, stepping softly down the hall. Carlisle wasn't far behind her and the other five Cullen children were in other areas of the house listening.

The small child had become the focus of all their attention. It was... different having a human in the house, but it made Esme so happy. Rosalie was a little uncomfortable around the girl. She almost envied Esme for how the child became instantly attached to her. If it wasn't already dangerous having a human around, it was foolish to fall in love with such a delicate creature and a child no less.

Jasper was uncomfortable for other reasons. His thirst for human blood was still hard to control at times.

Edward found her oddly fun. Her train of thought was an interesting ride sometimes, but it could also be heartbreaking. She may have been four, but she had experienced a lot and terrified to experience it again.

Alice absolutely loved her. To Alice, the child was a doll to play dress up with and carry around the house. It wasn't awful, but sometimes the girl did get annoyed with it.

Then there was Emmett who took to her like a whole other play toy.

Esme didn't turn on the lights as she walked into the room. Lily was curled into herself with the teddy bear Carlisle gave her held tight against her chest.

Taking a seat on the edge of the bed, Esme ran her fingers through the little girl's curly hair. "Did you have a bad dream?" she asked gently, her voice music to the child's ears.

Lily's big blue eyes looked into Esme's. "You left," she whimpered before reaching out for her mother to hold her. "You not come back."

Esme frowned as Carlisle came and sat down next to her in the room. "I would never-"

"But you did. In my dweam," the little girl hiccupped as Carlisle moved closer to them on the small bed. His cold hands went across Lily's face as Esme gently rocked her back and forth. She felt a little feverish, but it could have been the tears.

"You don't have to worry about being left in this family," Carlisle told the girl who carefully looked up at him. "We're together forever."

***Esme/Carlisle***

Alice beamed as she sat in the kitchen watching Esme prepare Lily's breakfast. "Look who's up early!" she enthused as Lily took heavy steps, obviously not quite awake yet. It was early. Normally Lily would have to be roused by Carlisle or another member of the Cullen family, but that morning she seemed to be dead on her feet as she walked straight to Esme and rested against her body. Esme exchanged glances with Alice in an attempt to ask her if she would finish breakfast for Lily so she could have a chance to talk to Carlisle before he went to work.

Alice realized what Esme was trying to ask and jumped to the other side of the counter in an instant. Esme scooped Lily into her arms and kissed her head. "Good morning, my love."

"Morning, Mommy," the little girl yawned in reply resting her head in the crook of Esme's neck, gently running her hand over the scar there. In her mind, that scar was the reason her mommy and daddy were together. She thought of it as part of their love story, one that she didn't actually know, just enjoyed making up in her head.

Carlisle was down the steps in an instant, smiling at his wife and little girl. He leaned over to kiss his wife's lips when she whispered. "She's warm," nodding to the child in her arms. "Feverishly warm." She added feverishly before he got the chance to be cute and remind her that she would be warm, she was after all a living human.

He frowned and ran his cold hands down the side of the girl's cheeks. She was a little warm, and she was acting a little odd. "Do you feel bad?" he asked Lily as she stayed tucked into the coolness of her mother's neck.

There was barely a nod before she pointed to her head and stomach. Carlisle nodded and looked back to his wife. "It's probably just the stomach bug going around. I'll give her some medicine before I leave and if she starts getting worse, call me."

He smirked at the tiny flash of panic that flashed through his wife's eyes. "Esme, there's no need to worry-"

"It's not like I've had decades of experience with sick children," she reminded him holding Lily a little closer. "Even with the other five it's not like- I don't have to-" she sighed. "Stomach bugs and fevers aren't something I have to worry about."

Carlisle was trying not to show his amusement at his wife's nerves, but was failing miserably. She playfully swatted his arm. "Quit that."

He just laughed lightly and leaned into kiss her again. "You're such a mother."

Her smile was definitely felt through their kiss that lasted probably longer than it should have with Lily in her arms. Lily frowned at him in such a way that it made Carlisle laugh. Those big eyes were narrowed into a hard glare as her lips were somewhere between a purse and a pout. He tapped the lip that was jutted out.

"What's wrong?" he asked her taking her into his own arms.

"You gunna leave..." the girl complained, her eyes softening as her brow creased with worry.

Esme gave him a pointed look, a reminder that Lily had been increasingly worried about someone leaving her lately. She was clingy, but not to the point that either were concerned. It was quite understandable that her largest fear would be abandonment since that's what has been happening to her for quite some time. The only reason Lily even ended up with them was because the town sheriff, knew that they were foster parents (a line that just proved to come back and bite them). Someone had found the girl battered and beaten on the side of the road. She was small, malnourished, and very bruised.

Carlisle heard the story as he treated her, and the sheriff explained that he wasn't really sure what to do about it. He was about to pick up the phone to call social services when Carlisle found himself offering his home to the girl. It came out of his mouth before he could stop it.

That was months ago. The girl had definitely been a certain surprise, but a grand one. There were a few objections, but in the end Esme's love for the child was enough for the other children to fall in love with her as well. In the end, they still follow their mother's lead with acceptance of new members in the family. The last example was how quickly she fell in love with Alice and Jasper.

"I'm just going to work," Carlisle promised with a gentle smile. "You'll have Mommy with you all day."

"When you come back?" Lily asked in such a way that made Carlisle a little guilty.

"I'll be back before you go to bed," he promised. He kissed Lily's head and smiled when she returned with a kiss to his cheek. Gently placing her back on her feet, Lily moved back to cling to Esme. She was cuddly normally, but Esme could definitely tell this clinginess meant she was definitely not quite feeling well.

Esme picked the girl back up and started into the kitchen where Edward had made himself present with Emmet and Rosalie. Jasper was still hadn't made himself known.

Though they didn't actually eat, the still gathered in the kitchen each morning before they headed off to school. Lily normally acted as Esme's sidekick until her siblings arrived home and she would run off to play with them. But that morning, not even Emmett could get a smile out of her. She was not going to let go of Esme to go to anyone but Carlisle.

"She's not feeling well," Esme explained to Emmett when Lily clung tighter to Esme when he tried to snatch her away. He was really good with her. A little rough and most of the time Esme could feel herself preparing to catch the girl from Emmett diverting his attention for a second when he played a little too roughly. Sometimes he forgot she was a child, more than that, sometimes he forgot she was human.

"Mommy... I really don't feel good..." she said her face growing paler and skin getting clammy.

"Hey, bucko, what's wrong with you?" he asked poking her side and making her squirm. Obviously not a brilliant spot to poke the sick child.

Suddenly the girl was pushing away from her mother and was out of her arms just in time to puke all over the kitchen floor. Esme glared at her son. "Thank you," she said grimly just as the little girl started to cry.

Lily held out her arms, not sure what to do as she cried. The front of her night gown was already stained. Her breathing was erratic and Esme was moving behind her and trying to pull her hair out of her face and tying it back with the rubber band Rosalie offered her.

"I-I- Sorry..." she cried looking helplessly at her older siblings who were around her trying to sooth her as well.

Carlisle hadn't even been able to leave yet when he walked into the kitchen and frowned at the stench. Lily's eyes were glassy when she looked back up at her mother. Her lip puckered even more when she saw him. "Daddy... I-I-"

Immediately Alice picked the girl up. "It's alright. Let's go get you cleaned up and back to bed." Alice looked at Esme and she nodded.

Lily had no chance to argue as Esme was already going through the best ways to clean this up in her head. She had half a mind to make Emmett do it, but she was very grateful when Carlisle gave her a gentle tug. He directed her away from the pile of vomit on the floor and gave her a gentle smile. "You go get changed. I'll take care of this."

"Sorry, Mom," Emmett said with a guilty smile. She sighed and waved him off. It wasn't until Carlisle motioned to her clothing and it reveal that Lily's hadn't quite missed. Truthfully, she wasn't angry. The girl was already upset about it and Emmett seemed to be remorseful about his jab that sent her over the edge.

"You all better be off to school," Esme said half-heartedly, realizing that her day would be spent doing what she could to keep Lily comfortable instead of games and gardening. It was a little disappointing, but she was more worried about the fact she hadn't comforted a sick child since her human life.

Edward was the first to give his mother a quick kiss goodbye and an encouraging smile. He could hear her thoughts of worry and apprehension. Though his gift annoyed him sometimes, he was very good with it. Much like his father, he was compassionate to a level that was unearthly. Then again, most of her kids had the gift of compassion, and even Rosalie had it sometimes.

Jasper lingered behind until Alice came skipping down the steps. "She's in bed asking for you," she told Esme.

She sighed and looked at her husband. Though she didn't sleep or technically get tired, her mind sometimes ran itself into the ground with worry. She sometimes claimed it as her own special skill, her mothering ability. She worried about all of them so much sometimes-

Suddenly a calming effect came over her and she looked up to see Jasper staring at her. She offered him a weak smile. "Thanks."

He nodded and followed Alice out to the car.

It was going to be a long day, but a day that was definitely worth it. She would do anything for her children.

*TWO YEARS LATER*

Lily had just turned six and was finding the first grade extra exciting. Every day one of her brothers or sisters would pick her up from the elementary school and she would start telling them about her day so fast they wondered if being around vampires for so long made her no longer need to breathe as well.

Of course she knew the truth about her family, but she didn't care. As far as she was concerned, it was nothing. It was just a secret that they had to keep, like when she and Edward broken Esme's favorite vase or when Rosalie let Lily eat a little too much chocolate. She learned to keep secrets. She had plenty of her own, way too many for such a little girl.

She ran toward the house, nearly sliding on a piece of ice, but was easily caught by Alice.

"Careful there," she said with a smile, knowing just how clumsy their favorite human could be. Sometimes Carlisle joked that he didn't even have to go to work with all the bumps and bruises she supplied him. She'd always reply with a good natured growl that she learned from Emmett.

As soon as she came through the door she lunged herself at Esme's arms and she was glad to accept the hug. "Can we get a dog?" Lily asked bluntly. "Aimee Lucas had a dog, a really big dog and I want one too!"

Esme frowned as she set Lily back down on the floor. "You know we can't keep pets."

"Except you," Emmett teased. Esme threw a dishtowel at him while Rosalie punched his arm and Edward slapped him in the back of the head. "Hey! She knows I'm kidding!"

"We were making sure you knew you were kidding," Edward told him as he ruffled Lucy's unruly curls. She frowned at him and tried to flatten the mess he made.

Esme loved watching her when she got frustrated. Her nose would scrunch up and her little brow would furrow. It was even funnier when she would try and fix her hair because it was like she was willing her eyes to be able to see the top of her head. Finally, Rosalie decided to help her.

"Your hair is a train wreck," Rosalie muttered, making the girl cross her arms.

"Can't we just cut it off, Mommy? I don't like it."

The idea of cutting Lily's hair off was physically painful. She knew that her hair would grow back, but she was so fond of those crazy curls. The nearly black curls with her dark blue eyes made her special.

But it was after all Lily's hair...

"I'll think about it," Esme said, hoping the girl would just forget, though she had a fair feeling she would not.

Suddenly the little girl looked around and took off running into the house, despite Esme calling after her not to run. She found her father at his desk, reading something or other. He smirked a little. She was getting good at moving silently, but too bad her scent was not as easy to hide as her footsteps.

She snuck around the back of his chair, careful to keep in the shadows. Carlisle did his absolute best not to smirk as his attention was no longer on the book he was holding at all. As soon as she pounced forward he jumped in feign surprise and place a hand on his chest.

"You're getting good at that!" he told her as she grinned with pride.

"I got you!" she declared wrapping her arms around her father's torso.

Carlisle had already decided that Lily was probably going to be fairly small when she was full grown. She was already tiny, even smaller than most of the kids in her class. Maybe he was a little biased, but he thought she was pretty advanced for her age too, but Esme was an excellent teacher in the year and half before Lily went to school.

At times he found himself wondering what would happen when she got older. At the moment she was their little secret. The Volturi found out about her...

He shuttered at the thought, making Lily look at him confused. Before she could ask questions, Carlisle took her hand and started moving back into the living room where the rest of the family had also migrated. Edward was sitting at the piano playing peacefully while Esme seemed to be trying to relax. It was something that she needed to do sometimes. Especially now with Lily.

Lily was their bundle of joy whom they loved truly and dearly, but she had a tendency of running Esme ragged at times. Carlisle found it a little funny. Five vampire teenagers, Esme could handle, add a six year old human and she was a little more overworked than she would like to admit. The nightly routine of homework, check homework, bath, pajamas, goodnights to the family, bedtime story, and actually going to bed was a lot for any of them, and only Esme could do it in under two hours with actually getting her to sleep.

Carlisle was sometimes amazed at his wife. She did a lot. She cooked for the one child that did eat, she did all their laundry, she kept the house spotless (despite Emmett and Lily) with keeping up with her hobbies and parent-teacher conferences.

He didn't think about stopping Lily from attacking her mother again, but as soon as she landed on Esme's gut, Carlisle flinched. Esme didn't seem to feel the pain though. She simply put her arms around the girl and stayed in her peaceful state.

Alice came bouncing down the steps and landed in front of Carlisle with a big smile. "You don't work this weekend, would you like to come to the city with us?"

Carlisle smirked at Alice's bubbly aura. "You already know I'm going."

Alice continued to smile. "Still have to ask. Rosalie and I want to do some shopping and Esme had an antique store she wants to go to. Edward is planning on a book store and Emmett and Jasper are going to get some more bats for baseball."

Carlisle smiled. "And Lily?"

Alice glanced at her little sister, her bubbly attitude faltering. "I-I don't know..."

That made him nervous. "What does that mean?"

Though their voices were low, Esme was no longer relaxing on the couch with Lily, but her eyes were open and watching her husband and daughter. She was listening intently, her arms still around Lily. Lily was oblivious, worn out from school and perfectly content with sleeping on her mother.

A calm fell over Esme and she shot a glance at Jasper as the calm was quickly replaced with annoyance. He fell back in his seat, realizing that he shouldn't have stepped in. If Esme wanted to be concerned, she was going to be concerned. It was her right as a mother.

"She's been coming and going in my visions. I-I don't know why..." Alice frowned and watched as Esme clutched Lily.

"Is it a good idea that we go?" she asked her husband softly.

Carlisle hesitated. "As long as she's with one of us, I don't see how anything could happen to her."

Yet he too didn't like taking chances when it came to their youngest child.

It was early when they left, ready to get the day started and they had enough practice to get Lily into her car seat without waking her. The five older children took a separate car, forever annoyed at their parents for driving the speed limit with Lily in the vehicle. It was hard for them to remember at times that she was not invincible.

Besides, it was this time, these longer drives, that made Esme and Carlisle happy. They could talk about anything without having to be overheard by Edward or anyone else.

"You really think she's okay?" Esme asked glancing in the back seat where her daughter was curled up with the same teddy bear she had for years. It was raggedy and old, but the girl refused to get rid of it.

"We're here, nothing can happen," Carlisle reasoned.

He wanted to believe that was true, but something sat uncomfortably in his gut.

"Lily, stay close please," Esme called to her daughter as she too looked around the antique store. Normally Lily could roam throughout the store as she pleased. Esme would be able her hear her if it wasn't overly crowded, but today she wanted Lily to stay as close as possible.

"Mommy, what's this?" Lily asked pointing (knowing very well not to touch anything in an antique shop unless her mother handed it to her, and even then she must be very careful) at a something Esme couldn't see due to the angle.

She moved around and crouched next to her daughter. "That, my love, is a brooch." Esme picked up the jeweled pin and smiled at it. "Do you know what kind of flower this is?"

Lily leaned in closer and her eyes lit up. "It's a lily, Mommy! Like me!"

Esme laughed lightly and kissed her daughter's warm cheek. "Yes, my flower." She looked back down on the assortment of brooches and picked up one more before headed to the counter to pay. She had several pieces of furniture she was going to have delivered to the house and Lily was enjoying just looking around the shop.

As soon as she was done, she carried the two brooches back over to her little girl and squatted down in front of her. She took out the brooch Lily had originally picked up and pinned it through her blouse. "A lily, for my Lily," Esme told her making sure it was secure before holding out another brooch. It was slightly different, but it was still a lily. "And so my Lily is always with me."

The little girl smiled as she tried to help her mother with the pin, but her fingers were not as graceful. Esme took getting stuck a couple times like a champ before the embarrassed blush on Lily's face took over and she gave up.

Esme quickly fastened it and offered her daughter her hand as they started to walk down the street to-

Her head jerked around at the scent. It was the scent of something that demanded her attention almost as much as the scent of blood. Her grip around her child's hand tightened as her eyes met the eyes of another beast.

Wolves...

Esme was panicking. With a swift motion, she scooped her daughter into one arm and started moving in the direction of her family's scent. The scent of another wolf hit her hard as several more appeared in front of her. She could smell the others closing in on her as well. If she could find a place to duck into so she could run, she would.

Edward! She mentally screamed.

There was four-no five- of them, one of her, and she had to keep Lily safe.

She turned into an ally, ready to make a run for it when she felt Lily yanked out of her arms. The girl let out a terrified scream as the dark skinned woman held her.

Nothing turned Esme into a full blown vampire faster than somebody hurting her child.

"Mommy!" Lucy cried.

Esme knew that if the family wasn't on their way before, they were certainly now. Lily kicked and screamed and fought but it only annoyed the woman.

"Let her go!" Esme demanded, her stance widening as she prepared herself for a fight. Her teeth were baring and she would rip these sorry dogs limb from limb if she had to.

"Hold still, will you," she snapped at the child, trying to readjust her grip but somehow managing to drop Lily in the process. She landed hard on the concrete but the girl did not waste any time scrambling over to her mother and holding tight to Esme's leg.

Esme, placed one hand on the child while she snarled at the dogs around her.

Suddenly her husband and five older children were in front of them, baring their teeth at the creatures terrifying the youngest member of their family.

Carlisle was the first to shift into a more neutral stance, but the rest of the family, Esme especially, stayed glaring at the wolves. "I think we have some sort of misunderstanding," he tried, raising his hands in a peaceful manner.

"You plan to take that child as your prey, cold one," the older male in the group growled as his eyes stayed locked to the oldest lady vampire standing protectively in front of the child. Wanting to protect her meal no less. "We have rules here."

"We are breaking no rules," Carlisle said gently. "We do not drink human blood, and the child-" he glanced back at Lily looking truly petrified at the creatures that had grabbed her. Esme looked even more fearful, knowing that for an instant something was out of her control and she could have lost their darling. "The child is our daughter."

The wolves fell silent for a moment until the woman who had originally grabbed Lily scoffed. "That's impossible. I've heard of cold one's not drinking human blood, they survive off of animal blood, but to have a human child? She had to be a tool to them, she must be victim to a mind game."

"She's not," Alice was the one that spoke this time. "She is our sister. Let her prove it."

Esme shot a disbelieving look at Alice as Carlisle nodded. Edward was focusing on their thoughts as the feeling of calm washed over everyone. Rosalie shifted uncomfortable as Esme looked down at their fragile Lily.

As the space opened for her to move forward, Esme pulled Lily into her arms and slowly moved toward her husband and the creatures.

Carlisle looked at his daughter who wouldn't take her eyes off of the dark skinned men and woman in front of them. Her big blue eyes shot to Carlisle for just a second. "Who are they, Daddy?"

Edward smirked at someone's thoughts and Esme was only holding on tighter to her daughter. No one would rip her out of her grip this time, or ever again for that matter.

"These men are just checking on you. You know how we're different?" Lily knew what different meant and she definitely knew what different meant when her father said it, so she nodded. "These people are different too, just another kind of different."

Those blue eyes were glassy again as little arms wrapped around Esme's neck. "They tried to take me from Mommy."

More surprised expressions and Esme gently soothed the child, glaring at the woman that had actually done the deed. The woman seemed to have softened her expression and even looked a bit guilty now.

"This could just be a trick!" one of the men argued. "They have... abilities. They could be using it on her!"

Alice stepped up and looked at Lily. "Why don't you show them what Mommy got you?"

Lily suddenly felt for the pin on her shirt and grabbed a hold of it, stretching it as far as it would go while attached to the material. "Mommy got me a lily, 'cause I'm Lily." Then she pointed to the pin on her mother's shirt and traced it. "And Mommy got a lily too so I could always be with her."

Esme pulled the girl back into her and stepped away from the wolves.

"We are not here to cause trouble. Our daughter is a gift, like any child. Please understand that we mean you no harm," Carlisle reasoned, stepping in front of his wife and daughter as they moved to the back of the clan where they were safest. "We don't mean humans harm. We just want to live as peacefully as possible."

The woman leaned toward the supposed clan leader. "They seem rather...eh... polite for cold ones."

"Not all of them are this way," he told the woman before looking back at Carlisle. "We have no issues with your family, but if we find that you have harmed this child or any other human, we will be forced to take action."

Carlisle gave a quick nod and relax as he watched the small wolf pack walk away. Esme was in his arms in an instant with Lily between them.

"Carlisle... I was terrified," she cried tearlessly. "I couldn't-"

He gently shushed her as she clung to his shirt. "It's going to be alright."

Lily was safe, but for the first time they realized what kind of world they had brought her into.

So... I'm not really sure if I will continue this, but this popped into my head and wouldn't shut up until I wrote it. Soooo... Here you go!