Burning Star: A Twilight FanFic

Ch 20- Sighing Eternally

I was lucky I had a queen sized bed at the house. It would've been completely impossible to squeeze both Seth and I into the old twin bed from my childhood.

Grandpa's birthday was a greater success that I had imagined. He couldn't stop smiling, no matter what was going on. He had his big sister back, for the first time in decades, and the greatest mystery he knew of was solved. His questions to her were always delicately worded. Rosalie was clearly not the same human she'd been before and he'd seen enough at that house to be careful. Dodged questions, half answers, all ignored.

Rosalie herself was the most effected out of all of us. The revelation, the relief, that her human family could stay a part of her melted off one of the layers of her suffering. I'd rarely seen anyone smile that much. She was blindingly radiant. We were family, Chris and I made that clear. Neither of us were going anywhere anytime soon, and she wasn't getting left behind. Besides, Emmett and Ace had already created several schemes we'd have to stamp out.

My face was resting on Seth's chest, his arms wrapped tightly around me. His even breathing and light snores told me that he was sleeping comfortably. I could feel his heartbeat against my cheek, and I smiled slightly. I had avoided my fears of loneliness for so long. When you learn that you'll outlive even those who are supposed to live forever as a four year old, abandonment becomes a deep seated horror. But it seemed easier now. There wasn't away to avoid the reality of a life filled with death, but I had constants now. Chris and Ace were immortal too, but our relationship was too tense; it was painful to imagine it as my only connection to a "normal" life.

New faces filled that void. Rosalie, Emmett, The Cullens, Leah. And Seth.

It felt like two powerful magnets had smashed together. Seth's eyes snapped open as the sensation woke him up. I could feel his soul tying to mine, our lives becoming one string of fate. The only possible separation now was the end of the world. I would always be there for him. He would always be there for me. While the weight of the world, the weight of all of existence, pressed down on me, he had the strength to push it off so I could breathe. As if prompted by the though I gasped, tears gathering in my eyes.

The moment faded as dozens of new ones came into view. Twirling around a kitchen, a plastic birthday tiara on my head, and the smell of chocolate cake drifting from the oven. Jumping off of a cliff, hand in hand, feeling the rush of salty air. Closing my eyes in a blossoming field, my back against the sandy coat of a dozing wolf, the warm sun shining from a cloudless sky.

Standing beside a recently covered grave, dark clouds barring the moonlight, trying to hum something soothing as his arms held me like a vice. Letting my fingertips trace the bright door of the silent house, my breathing catching as I turn away, forcing myself to look at nothing but him as I seal it away.

The tears were flowing down when I came to, and I lifted my head to stare into Seth's eyes. Wet trails lined his faced and a soft smile played on his lips. I choked out a laugh. He'd shifted us into a sitting position, my legs draped across his lap, and his arms around me.

"See anything good?" he asked.

"Maybe a few things."

His eyes sparkled. "Tell me."

"No way," I replied, shaking my head. "I don't want to give away any spoilers."

"Is the story that good?"

"The best," I promised. I knew that it'd be true.

The happy mood was dampened by annoyance the next morning. While Mom wasn't strong enough to clearly recognize that Seth and I were now eternally linked together, Ace and Chris were. And that meant it was open season on innuendos.

Ace's language could get very creative when she wanted it to, and both my brother and I made the mistake of telling her to stop being rude. The moment she saw the blush on Seth's cheeks, more importantly the one I had to use magic to conceal on mine, it became a challenge. Mom ended up just excusing herself after congratulating us.

"For the love of god, Ace, if you don't stop, I'll let Brielle blast you into the sun right now," Chris yelled. She'd began making innuendos so obscure that you had to know exactly which dead language she thinking of to make any sense of her words at all.

"I kind of like that idea. When you come back fried, I'll just bring you back and do it again. Twice. Maybe three times. Probably more," I said through gritted teeth.

She snorted. "Fine, I'll stop for now. But considering Emmett overheard all this too, you know that the minute it starts again, it'll be twice as bad."

Seth coughed awkwardly. I groaned. Chris sighed. Honestly I was surprised he was able to get any air in with how much he sighed out.

Ace giggled and leaned over to peck my brother on the cheek. Her fingered slipped through his, and he pulled her hand up and gently kissed it. "Better get used to this, Seth. I made all our friends put up with this, but since you're family, I've really gotta give it my best effort."

"I appreciate it?" Seth said uncertainly. She laughed loudly.

"It'll die down eventually," Chris assured him. "Might take a few centuries, but it will."

I nodded in agreement. "She runs out eventually."

Grandpa and Rosalie were inside chatting still, catching up on all the years lost. Emmett was hauling boxes down from various shelves and the attic so they could look at the various letters, pictures, and memorabilia we collected over the years. The rest of us let them be.

Mom had drifted off to the sculpting room, intent on creating a marble figure of a hand with a ribbon tied to the wrist. The four of us ate hung out in the gazebo, trading snide commentary and telling whatever interesting (and frequently embarrassing) stories we could think of to get to know each other.

The meaning of this day was clear. Forever had begun, and we were ready to face it.

A/N:

Thank you all for reading! This isn't the last chapter, but the next will be the epilogue. I'm planning on following this up with a story about new characters introduced there, which will be mostly told from Rosalie's point of view. Some people introduced here will drift in and out, but for the most part it'll be SMeyer's characters. I hope you guys check that one out, too.

Sincerely,

cailin