Stormy Night, a twilight fanfic

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A/N: The date of this story is correct for my alternate history; see my profile for more information. Barbie

August 2005

Nessie three months A/E two years

Bella

The clouds hung thick and heavy tonight. The smell of thunder was in the air; I would have expected a storm even without Alice's prediction.

Edward was ready to leave, but he stopped in the doorway. "I could stay home with you," he offered. "Then they'd have even teams."

I laughed. "Don't you want to play baseball?"

"Yes, but —"

"So go play baseball. No one cares about even teams, Edward, and I honestly don't mind staying home with Nessie."He might not trust me alone with humans yet, but he trusted me with Nessie; had heard my thoughts enough to know that I couldn't hurt her.

He grinned suddenly. "Well, all right, Bella love. If you're sure."

"Of course I'm sure! You think I can't survive one night without you?"

He leaned to kiss me goodbye. "Of course not. See you in a few hours."

"I'll be waiting."

He kissed me one last time, then flashed off the porch and was gone.

I shook my head, smiling at the absurdity of it. Sometime I would like to see one of their games with vampire eyes, but tonight staying home with Nessie really did seem preferable to sitting on a log in the pouring rain.

As the storm began to roll in, I curled up on the porch swing. I loved watching thunderstorms, and this was the first one I had seen as a vampire.

I was watching it with the old thrill of excitement when mingled with the crack of thunder I heard a smaller sound, a terrified cry. "Momma!"

I jumped to my feet and flashed into Nessie's room. "Momma's here, baby!" I called from the doorway, reaching her less than a second later.

She was standing up in the baby bed, holding onto the guardrail, her eyes wide with fear. She stretched up her arms as soon as she saw me, and I caught her up. "Shh, precious. It's all right, baby; Momma has you."

Her little arms came around my neck, clinging tightly. Where's Daddy? she thought almost frantically.

Oh, the poor little mite… At the images in her mind I bent to kiss her soft neck. She had mind-called for Edward first; when he didn't respond she had been terrified, sure the thunder got him. She had been afraid I wouldn't answer, either; that she was all alone with an unknown something that was too much even for full vampires. "Daddy's fine, babykins," I whispered. "He went out to play baseball."

Nessie lay her head on my shoulder, burying her face against my neck. What's baseball?

"It's…a game." The little I had once known about baseball was lost in the haze of human memories; it wasn't something I cared about enough to remember. "Ask Daddy about it when he comes home."

He's coming home? she asked anxiously.

"Of course he is," I whispered, kissing the edge of her ear. "It's just a storm outside, Nessie; it won't hurt anyone." Actually, considering how flammable vampires were, I wasn't sure a lightning strike couldn't kill us. But Alice would know in plenty of time if it was going to come that close.

I carried Nessie to the rocking chair and settled her against me. We didn't need the chair to soothe a crying baby, but Edward or I would sit here to read Nessie her bedtime story and sing her to sleep, as much for our enjoyment as hers. Even now, part of me was selfishly glad she had been scared, just so I could have the pleasure of the tiny form cuddled against me. She was growing fast; far, far too fast. And I was the only mother in the world who wished her baby didn't sleep through the night.

Nessie fell into a fitful sleep, jerking awake at every rumble of thunder or if I stopped singing. I knew she wasn't entirely convinced that Edward was all right; she believed me, but she had been scared so badly that she needed proof.

Then her "proof" walked in the door, absolutely dripping wet. A smear of mud on the side of his pants hadn't been completely washed out by the rain, and his hair was so dark with water that even my vampire eyes couldn't see the red in it. "Waiting up for me, Bella love?" he teased softly.

At the sound of his voice, Nessie sat up in my lap and stretched out her arms to him.

He came forward quickly, kneeling in front of me and catching her hands in his, trying to avoid getting her wet. But she whimpered softly, and with an apologetic look at me, he picked her up and cradled her close. "Shh, baby," he murmured. "Of course I'm all right."

She burrowed against him, and for a moment he simply held her.

You're dripping on the floor, Edward, I thought wryly, just as he chuckled softly. "How about I tell you about baseball tomorrow, angel? Right now it's way past your bedtime, and I have to get out of these wet clothes."

Nessie twisted both fists into his collar, and he gently kissed her forehead. "I know, baby, but Momma thinks I'm getting the carpet too wet." He carefully detached her clinging hands and passed her into my arms. "Of course I'm coming back, sweetheart! In fact, I'm not going anywhere. I'll just be down the hall; I can still hear your thoughts perfectly."

Leave those clothes in the bathtub, Edward, I thought to him as I went to Nessie's dresser to find her a dry nightgown.

By the time I finished changing her, Nessie was drooping with sleep but fighting to keep her eyes open.

"Wan' Daddy tuck me in," she whimpered, grabbing at my wrists as I tried to lay her in the bed.

"He'll come say good night, Nessie," I promised her softly. I gently pulled the blanket up over her; she didn't need it for warmth, but it had never seemed right to let her sleep without it. And as a human, I had liked the weight of my blankets as much as the warmth, missing it on nights that were too hot for covers.

Nessie lay blinking, rubbing her eyes with her fists to keep them open.

Then Edward appeared in the doorway, his robe open over a pair of cotton pajama bottoms and bare feet. Only his hair was still damp. He crossed to Nessie's bed and rested a hand on her curls, smiling when she grabbed his finger. "I'm staying home for the rest of the night, Nessie," he said softly. "Promise. Now go to sleep." He began humming softly, and I slipped out of the room to change into my baby doll nightgown before he joined me.

I was sitting on the bed with my arms wrapped around my legs when Edward came in and hung his robe on the bedpost before sitting beside me and pulling me to lean against him. "'You're dripping on the floor, Edward'? Is that all the welcome I get?" he teased.

I laughed, leaning my head back against his shoulder. There's a time for everything…welcome home.

He leaned to kiss the tip of my nose. "Thanks." He flopped back, pulling me with him.

"So…who won?"

"We did," he replied, smirking.

"What teams?"

"Boys against girls…except Bree insisted on playing with Carlisle."

I snorted. And what did Emmett say to that?

"Not as much as he wanted to; Carlisle put a stop to it." Edward suddenly chuckled at some memory. "I wish my mind-reading worked both ways, Bella love; I'd love you to see what happened. There was a big mud puddle in the outfield, and Bree was running backward, watching the ball. She slipped on the mud and landed right in the middle of it. She was covered head to toe when Carlisle pulled her out. The rain took care of a lot of it, but Esme was still going to insist on a bath when they got home."

I smiled in spite of myself at the story; it proved what I had always suspected, that even vampires could slip if they weren't careful. But my thought toward Edward carried a note of sympathy for Bree. Alice couldn't have warned her?

"Opposite teams, Bella love…we Cullens play dirty."

Literally… Well, you, then!

He merely laughed and tweaked my nose. "She came out laughing…Alice 'saw' that, too, so why spoil the fun? Emmett's never going to let her live it down, though."

Edward was silent for several moments; when he spoke again, his mood had changed. "Bella love… were you ever scared of thunderstorms?"

I smiled. "Only when I purposely tried to scare myself." You know it wasn't just the storm, Edward.

"I know," he said with a groan. "I suppose it must have bothered her a little, or she wouldn't have called me in the first place… I can still feel her arms around my neck, Bella love. I should have been there for her. If I had stayed home…"

Bosh. You can't take the blame for everything, Edward.

"Still, if only Alice could 'see' her! I could have at least told her I was going; if she hadn't thought the thunder got me…"

Edward. Stop it. We'll know next time, that's all.

He sighed and wrapped his arms around me, burying his face in my hair. "What would I do without you, Bella love?"

Oh…you'd manage.

"Not very well. I love you, sweetheart. Always."

The End

I proofread all my stories at least once before posting, but if you see any mistakes I might have missed, please let me know!

Please note that I have internet access only once a week, and may not have time to respond to all reviews/messages. If you have questions regarding my Twilight alternate history, check my profile first to see if they're answered there. Thanks for your understanding! Barbie