Cullen family

The Cullens had accepted Emmett as one of their own. Happiness had flooded Esme’s face when they first met, she had hugged him so tightly and with so much love that Rose had some trouble suppressing the jealousy she was feeling – but the way that Emmett sank into her embrace made it all worth it.

Even Carlisle, who initially had been a healthy mix of hesitant and apprehensive, had accepted him without reservations. The two had bonded over hunting, and Carlisle had been impressed by the strength that Emmett was showing; being apparently way stronger than any regular newborn - not that Rose had a big frame of reference regarding that particular skill whatsoever..

The other Cullen had also not posed any problems. Despite the fact that Eddie had not been talking to Rose for the past year, he did not mind Emmett that much. They had started up a brotherly bond. Rose had felt relief wash over her once the realization hit. At least he did not fault him for her actions. A sentiment that Rose had respected. And thus they stayed with the Cullens. Moving every few years to not raise attention. Restarting, performing, and perfecting their human formula.

Carlisle worked as a doctor. Because, of course he did. How he got that much self-control, Rose had never found out, but she respected the man immensely for it. Esme was his stay-at-home wife. Both were turned in their mid-twenties, but due to the hard lives they had led, they could easily pass for being a bit older in the current social climate. Edward posed as Esme’s younger brother, who they had taken in after his parents died.

Due to his age, Eddie either worked or was doomed to repeat high school. Emmett and Rose were both in their early twenties and thus pretended to be the married neighboring couple that they actually were, while taking up odd jobs here and there.

They lived in houses next to each other, and over the next years, they led a good but relatively nomadic life.

Every few years they moved. Sometimes the intervals were closer together. But they never outstayed their five years.

Once it had been Emmett who slipped up, prompting a sudden move, but more often than not it had been Edward. His teenage mood swings influenced him greatly, and the aftermath of his actions only increased his martyr position and did nothing to improve the atmosphere in the household.

Hence, with every move, Emmett and Rosalie took a good while to travel. To get away. See the world, to experience it. But they always came back. Emmett missed his family, but most of all Esme, the mother that he did not have in his human life. Rose, on the other hand, followed her trusted gut feeling. Something pulled her back to the Cullens, time and time again.

Rose pulled back into the present, as she smiled and looked at the Cullen house in Forks. She could smell that her family was inside, except for the newest addition. She could almost taste the tension that was building, but decided to keep her leisure pace. She needed to get her emotions under control.

Walking the last few hundred meters before she came into hearing range, she let the tranquility of mother nature wash over her, as she fell into her thoughts once again.

They had been living this way for so long, that they all had become familiar with their routine.

A routine which they had to start over more often than Rose would have liked, due to the times when Edward alternated starkly between ruby and topaz colored eyes. She remembered all the conversations they had vividly. Eddie clearly did not stumble during these periods, like he sporadically did. No this was different. There were no 'incidents' at his school or any of the other places he frequented or interacted with.

He went hunting on the normal intervals. But he didn’t hunt their normal prey. Rose had not really cared. In all honesty, she had found it quite hilarious. Mister better-than-every-fucking-one was not so superior at all. Which was a feeling she secretly relished in.

It was during one of his ruby periods that Edward encountered two nomads, and had decided to bring them home. To the Cullens.

Yeah, because why the fuck not.

Not that Rosalie had a lot of time to question his thought process, as she was swiftly introduced to a small dark-haired woman with a pixie cut spotting deep orange eyes, and a tall muscular man with scars draped over his body with clear red eyes. Alice and Jasper. The pixie bitch and Rose’s future fake twin.

Fantastic.

The Cullens learned quickly, and without any prompting, that she was a seer, and had picked Jasper up through one of her visions. Another vision had subsequently led them to the Cullens. The first few hours of their encounter were strained. The pixie had been too upbeat. Too open, but simultaneously too closed off. And Edward's eyes had been too bright.

The way Alice had added inconsequential details, but circumvented more difficult topics, irked Rose. They quickly learned that she could see decision-based visions of the future, and that he was an empath - and received a quick one-liner on how Jasper got his copious amount of scars, being a major of some sort. Super. Fucking. Helpful.

It was halfway through a very long monologue of their wedding, that Rose had mentally logged off. They were married and mated. Noted. Although surprising. Somehow she didn’t think they were that much of a happy pair, but who was she to judge?

The hairs on her back stood up while observed Jasper. His scars were deeply intimidating. It was evident that he was accustomed to pain. And the fact that he was still standing, showed that he knew how to deal it out as well. The scars were a clear testament to that. He was to be feared.

Yet, it was the look on the face of the small vampire that made Rose think the most. The interaction had tickled her brain. The vibe of the intimidating blond did not match that of the pixie.

The rest of the family had reservations as well. Mostly about their diet. About Jasper. About their safety. But as the days turned into weeks, and the weeks into years, they settled into a comfortable routine. Her family's reservations towards the newcomers had fallen away, and were slowly and surely replaced by acceptance. Yet, a myriad of questions always were in the back of Rose's mind. But the Cullen coven did not care about the answers. Carlisle had put a quick stop to any probing, and as the patriarch of the family, Rose had complied with the order.

Jasper’s blond hair, good looks, and age had been great for their cover story. Rose and Jasper were now passing as twins, although Jasper was physically a bit older than Rose. And over the next few years whenever they moved, Carlisle and Esme would have their normal routine, with Alice joining Eddie in high school.

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