The arm draped across her waist drew her back, pulling her in closer as a face nuzzled into the crook of her neck. Honey-suckle and sweet lavender surrounded her, clouding all of her senses as she sunk back into Bella.

The night was the perfect time to just be with her, to feel like she was complete and solid and real. There was so much that was going on, so much that was rushing around them as time suddenly became a matter that she feared, that she despised, that she needed the grounding -- needed the reminder from her wife and husband that they were in the same boat, on the same team.

It was one of the few nights that it was just the two of them. Edward had stayed back to research with Carlisle and the children were staying at the main house. After having read them to sleep, Esme and Rose were more than willing to watch them for the time being, and Edward was there in case they asked for their parents.

It was one of the few nights that she had let herself be completely torn from them, that she had let herself be pulled away for so long, but it had been weeks since she and Bella had gone hunting just the two of them, and, well, they had always been insatiable just the two of them.

The sun would be rising soon, the light beginning to glow just outside their still open window. Roman didn't feel the urge to move just yet. She was a clingy mother, that much she knew. She wanted to be near them all the time, always watching, always looking, scared to miss a moment.

When she had imagined having children, back when everything was still within the realm of normal, the world of humans, it had always been with flushed, rosy cheeks and a glow that couldn't be missed. She always thought that she would be the ordinary sort of mother, the one that stayed around and had more free time than Edward or Bella.

She had imagined them as these highly successful, proudly educated people that had just a little less availability than she did. In her fantasies, she was still and had always been, a forest ranger, a park ranger, that was never going to grow tired of the great outdoors.

Roman was never going to grow tired of the great outdoors, but things weren't always what she expected them to be.

Nothing was as she had naively expected it to be and there was nothing she would ever change about any of it. Her family meant everything to her. Her wife and husband and children and imprinter and in-laws. They were all she had, all she was ever going to want.

Bella hums against her, fingers dancing across her bare stomach to tap a rhythm against her ribs, fluttering over her skin.

"You're thinking about it again. You promised that you would take a break from it all tonight," she whispers, breath washing over her as the words brush against the shell of her ear.

"I'm not thinking about it, Bell, I'm not."

"You are. You have to have faith that we'll find something."

She swallows thickly. "You don't even have faith yourself. You're more worried than I am."

"I know, but you need to take a break before it drives you crazy. You can't spend all your time worrying."

"You see how fast they're growing, Bella, you see how quickly their minds advance. I am in a constant state of worry that I'll leave for an hour and return to find them writing sheet music or doing pirouettes around the living room."

"Carlisle will figure something out, he'll find an answer."

"I know that he will, I have no doubt that we'll have forever with them. I'm scared that I won't get to see them have a childhood."

Bella kisses her shoulder, pulling her back with strong arms that constrict tightly around her, squeezing but never tight enough. "They never had a chance at a normal childhood, Ro. All we can do is make sure that they're happy and that they know that they're loved."

"It that's what you think, then why do you watch them like they'll fade away?"

"Because I don't have your optimism. I- I have trouble seeing past that human part of them take has a beating heart and an--" she chokes on her words-- "a possible ending. I don't want to see them fully grown by 15. An old man and woman."

"They won't be. They won't. I'll turn them myself if I have to."

"And if that doesn't? Venom can't fix everything."

"It'll fix this. I promise that I'll find the answers that you need to make you happy, Bella. I won't let you spend weeks and months wondering. I'll find the answers that you need, babe."

"How do you plan to do that?" she asks quietly, barely speaking the words to her.

Roman smiles, pulling one of her hands to her lips and kissing each of her fingers and palm. "I always find what I'm looking for, babe."

Things move in a blur after that, the pair inseparable until the sun has long since risen and only when they're clean and freshly dressed do they return to the house.

Her hand is locked with Bella's as they go, and she stops suddenly, the scent in the air locking her in place as she listens to the slow beat of a human heart that didn't exactly belong.

It had been two months since she had first changed, the newborn in her nicely tamed thanks to the others, but it wasn't entirely repressed. She had a theory that it was easier for her than it was Jasper simply because she had never tasted human blood before. She had never had that temptation of knowing what it was, of knowing that it was better beyond that the smell was just purely more appetizing.

And she had done well, incredibly well, for someone so new. Sure, she needed to hunt more often than Bella, but she didn't have her mates control. She had that thirst that beat at the back of her mind, that burned with searing pain up her throat. Roman just knew how to focus, how to prioritize with deadly intent.

Avoiding seeing humans as much as possible, avoiding Charlie as much as possible, had left her feeling incredibly good about herself, incredibly pleased, confident.

This wasn't the same as passing one another in greeting, it wasn't her holding her breath and smiling tight with words thick that tumbled out in a rasp.

This was Sue Clearwater and she knew that the woman wasn't going to leave until they got to have a proper visit. This was a mother on a mission and nothing would deter her from her goal.

She swallows thickly, taking in a final breath of air before she tugged Bella forward. The grip she had on her hand would have been painful for anyone else.

Seth's voice rang clear as he spoke to his mother, talking along to the beat of Romulus' rapid heart. He filled the air with all kinds of noise, all kinds of rambling thoughts as he tried to make up for the way his mother would feel unnerved from being surrounded by so many of her tribe's enemies.

Edward was first to meet them, an arm sliding around her waist as if ready to hold her back, and she snatches her thoughts away, locking them from his prying mind.

She wasn't going to hurt Sue. She wasn't going to hurt her mother. She just needed to focus.

And she wasn't really burning at the moment.

They were waiting in the living room, the family going about their regular activities while Seth and Sue sat in the corner with her son. He had a plate of food balanced on his lap, shoving mouthfuls down his throat while her son occasionally reached for a small piece to nibble on.

Bacon and tatter tots from the look of it. He took to human food a lot better than he was the animal diet.

Sue was the same as she had last seen her, if not more radiant. She was glowing, a serene look softening the features that were hardened from years of experience. Her eyes shine behind the slight discomfort that came with her surroundings.

"Roman."

"Hi, Sue, what an unexpected visit," she says, stepping away from her mates with purpose, breath held tight in her throat.

There was no pretending, no false rise and fall of her shoulders or attempts to appear more human than she was. There was no need for that, not when she knew, when she was too busy diverting that brainpower elsewhere.

She did blink, however, mostly for the familiarity of the action, for practice.

"Jacob has taken to speaking with Sam when he proved unlikely to listen to my children," the woman tells her, patting the spot next to her on the couch. "Come let me look at you."

Her eyes were still the same crimson colour -- an inevitable detail that changed only with time, and though Roman could notice the incredibly slow shift in tone, the orange hue that was hidden, they were still a terrible red.

Sue didn't comment on the fact as Roman sat at her side, the soft fabric of the cushion dipping under her. Each second was tortuously slow, drawing out as she was observed, looking for all the changes that couldn't be reversed, all the human that was erased.

"You have freckles."

Roman giggles. "I draw them on most days."

"You're still just as beautiful, my daughter. I am not surprised," she says, hand hovering over her own.

Her breath is trapped in her throat as she offers a hand, letting her make the move. The woman flinches, if only a little, at the chilling touch, hand recoiling before returning her grip strong. It was such a human thing, a gentle thing.

Fragile and delicate, she could break her in an instant, flip her wrist and snap -- and Sue knew that. The trust in the simple gesture, the confidence in her control, had the air recklessly leaving her lungs and returning to her in a deep inhale, steady as she smiled truly.

"I was worried you wouldn't like seeing me like this," she comments quietly, eyes darting around the room. "It must be unsettling for you."

"The expression of your eyes will never change, Roman. I will always be able to recognize the same girl that you've always been."

She releases a shaky breath, thumb brushing over the smooth, warm skin. Human. Was this how all humans felt, that significant feeling of warmth and heat that couldn't be mimicked? Romulus and Renesmee weren't quite human, only half, so they didn't feel like this, didn't radiate at the same temperature.

"You've met my son," she says instead, grinning as her boy nods plainly. Sweet thing didn't take to strangers, it seems. "Romulus, baby, this is your grandmother."

"Like grandmother Esme?" he asks curiously.

"Yes like grandmother Esme."

Romulus eyes the woman curiously, reaching out across the space with tiny hands. "Hello, grandmother."

Her mouth curves at the corners at the new title. "It makes me sound so old."

"You kinda are old, ma," Seth teases, showing off his mouthful of food. Both women smack his knees as a reprimand.

"I am not old. My youngest is but fifteen."

"That doesn't make much of a difference, you know," Roman adds, biting her lip.

Sue laughs brightly, shaking her head. "You're both terrible children."

Giggling has her a tender expression stilling the elder woman, an enchanted expression stealing her attention. The children had a way of doing that, of drawing everyone in so quickly, so efficiently.

Roman wondered if that would become a problem in the future, the way that they got attention as if they demand it the instant they do even the slightest thing.

"He's wonderful," Sue whispers, eyes glossing over with tears. She shakes her head dazedly and turns to her again. "Where's your daughter?"

"You haven't seen Ressie yet?" she asks, eyes easily finding Edward as he stood with shoulder leaned against the wall. "Why not?"

Edward grins. "She wanted to dress up to meet her nana," he tells her, glancing briefly to the kitchen. "Before that Jacob was giving her ice cream for breakfast."

Seth snickers. She ignores him.

"They made a mess?"

"Immensely."

Shaking her head, she only rolls her eyes at the grumbling that came from the kitchen and now that she focused on it, the sound of Jacob's complaints as he cleaned was something she could get used to.

Bella swooped in then, plucking the boy from Seth's lap and he cling to her neck with happy laughter at the speed.

"Time for you to ear properly instead of just picking," she announces, cradling the back of his head when he drops it to her shoulder. "Then you get to have a bath, sweet boy."

"Can I have a bath not?" He asks.

"And risk getting whatever outfit Rose and Alice puts you in dirt?" Roman shorts. "I don't think so."

His pot is the last she sees of him as he's whisked away to the kitchen.

"He doesn't want you to leave before he comes back," Edward relays, an amused gleam in his eyes.

They were so alike, the pair of them. Their son may act a lot like she did at times, but he was his father's son. He tried to be brooding and mysterious just as Edward did and she just couldn't pin how he had managed to pick it up.

"He didn't get it from me," her husband tells her. "You brood often for someone that does not brood."

"I do not brood! I speak quite openly about my feelings."

"When you aren't trying to hide them, sure," Seth partially agrees, returning to his brunch with renewed vigour.

Bickering was easy, familiar, in the presence of Sue. It was like reconnecting the pieces, picking at parts of her that were set aside, saved for another time, a better time.

Like this, it felt like they were still kids instead of the team that she and Seth has become, both vying for their mother's attention.

When Marnie was still around, that sort of attention came easy, unrivalled when she visited the Clearwater's, Sue and Harry doting on her as if she was truly family.

The bickering had always been there, always been playful and true to help her feel the effects of wholesome family life that she missed out on.

Bickering in the Cullen home felt like a natural transition.

Roman shift as the seat at her side is taken, pressing against Edward as he comes to rest again her.

"Here they come," he announces.

Alice comes first, petite girl practically floating as she stands to the side with hands clasped before her.

"Please with yourself?"

"Very," Alice Chile, pushing up on her toes.

The forest thing she notices are the adorable pigtails held in place by blue ribbons tied in precise little bows.

Her chest grows tight, the place where her heart rests squeezing. She wishes for a camera, for the chance to capture this moment forever so that she could show everyone in the world how perfect their daughter is.

She was placed in a pretty frilly, blue dress with sleeves that stopped just below her elbow. They had put her in leggings and sparkly flats. Renesmee looked like a mini Alice they way they dressed her, but all the prettier.

"Oh, you look beautiful, my sweet girl," Roman explains, eagerly showering her daughter in continued praise until she giggles and hides her face.

A small hand eventually touches Rose's cheek and the blonde puts her down, letting her g gracefully walk her way to them.

Renesmee held out her hand again, offering it to Sue with a shy smile that brought out little dimples in her cheeks.

The elder woman gasps at the contact, snatching her hand back with wide-eyed blinks. "What was that?"

Scooping her into her lap, she leaves a lingering kiss on the tip of her head. The touch on her arm asking her questions.

"Yes, she's your nana," Roman answers. "Her name is Sue and she is my mother like Esme is daddy's—" she pauses for a brief second as she listens— "Seth's and Leah's mom, yes. From La Push just like them and Jacob."

Edward chuckles. "You can ask her yourself, Renesmee."

"You can," Roman confirms. "She won't bite, baby."

Her little nose scrunches as she nods in determination, holding out her hand once more.

This time Sue doesn't pull away.

At one point, Renesmee crawls into her lap, refusing to be moved until her brother returns and even then it's only slightly to make room for him.

No one had the great to separate them, and Roman wouldn't let them if they tried. No, the warmth that burst through her, rushing through her veins as she cuddled up to a Edward and Bella, imprinting the happiness of her children to memory wouldn't let them be interpreted.

Sue meets her gaze, her joy clear.

Roman's worries fade away.

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Wrote half of this from my phone so please don't come at me for typos

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2020-04-16