Normal is Overrated

Epilogue

Embry P.O.V.

The storm clouds were rolling in fast, and the roaring sounds of thunder were getting closer. We loaded up Emmett's jeep and Umbra's monstrous black truck (a Christmas present from the Cullens) and headed out. Gabriel was in the bed of the truck along with Jacob, Seth, Edward, and Bella. His long black hair was pulled into a low ponytail and his dark purple eyes lit up with glee as his mother picked up speed. I glanced over at Umbra, her dark eyes identical to our son's, and I smiled. The windows were down and her hair was whipping wildly around her face in a mass of knotted curls as she stepped harder on the gas. Terra, Ardor, and Renesmee bounced around in the back seat. The girls squealed with joy as the truck sped past Emmett's yellow jeep. Ardor stuck her head out the window, her middle finger waving at Emmett as we drove by. "Don't do that," Terra scolded, smacking her sister's arm. I could see Emmett's face, and he was not happy. The rest of the Cullens were in his vehicle; thank God they weren't easily broken. It stayed like this for a while, Emmett and Umbra racing dangerously down an old weather-beaten path and through the trees. Eventually Emmett got the lead and we followed him to a large clearing.

We all clambered out of the vehicles, Esme holding Danielle. "Momma!" the young girl squealed, jumping into Umbra's arms. We had just celebrated her first birthday, but she was already the size of a three year-old. Gabriel was only twelve, but he looked almost sixteen. He was tall and lanky, but he had a lot of muscle on him for a little kid. Danielle turned to me, her curly midnight hair up in pigtails. "Daddy, can I ride back with y'all?" she asked. I smiled and nodded at my baby girl. Both of our kids had just a touch of their mom's Cajun accent. Carlisle helped Nicole out of the car. The ten year-old mixed-breed bounded over to the truck to help Renesmee. Her swollen belly exited the car before she did, and Nicole was patting it gently. "My little sister giving you trouble, Mom?" Nicole teased as the baby kicked. Renesmee swatted her daughter's hand away and frowned. "It's going to be a boy," she grumbled. Nicole turned to Jacob, her bronze-brown eyes alight with amusement. "What do you think, Daddy?" she asked. Jacob hopped out of the bed of the truck. "She's going to have a boy. I know it," he replied gruffly, tossing his daughter over his shoulder. She giggled and flailed around in his arms. Emmett and Jasper hauled the gloves and bats to the center of the field and everyone followed. Renesmee and Danielle sat on the sidelines and watched, but the rest of us were ready to play.

Alice grinned as lightning crackled. "It's time," she said in a singsong voice. Everyone took their places on the field. Terra was first up to bat, her ocean blue eyes gleaming with joy. Her hair swung past her waist (Umbra wouldn't let the girls cut their hair), a white baseball cap holding it down around her head. Jasper was pitching. The bat smacked against the ball with a booming crack like thunder and she took off, giggling. Edward and Ardor took off for the ball at the same time. Small flames scorched the grass where Ardor's feet touched, but Edward caught the ball first, charging toward Terra. She reached third base a fraction of a second before he did, making faces at him as he scowled and threw the ball back to Jasper. I let out a surprised laugh. 'So this is a vampire's idea of fun,' I snorted to myself. Edward had a wide, crooked grin as his eyes met mine. He nodded vigorously, looking more like a child than a hundred-and-thirty year-old vampire and grandfather of two. It was actually a lot of fun. Different, but still fun.

Umbra P.O.V.

We split into teams. It was me, Jasper, Alice, Rose, Gabriel, Jacob, Nicole, and Terra against Emmett, Bella, Edward, Embry, Carlisle, Esme, Seth, and Dori. We lost; we lost big time. Eventually the storm stopped and we loaded up the truck. There was a houseful of people to feed, and Terra had a little beau coming over. They had reached the end of their growth, forever frozen as the beautiful young women they were now. Gabriel and Nicole grew slowly enough that people wouldn't notice as much, and their intelligence went far past that of ten and twelve year-olds. They wanted to go to school, so we let them go, and enrolled Ardor and Terra with them. The Cullens enrolled to "keep an eye on the little ones", as Emmett liked to say. When I was pregnant with Danielle, I used to sit and listen to my aunts and uncles tell me stories about how they would go to high school over and over again. I spent a lot of time staring at the several graduation caps that lined the walls at our home in Forks wondering what it would be like to go to school, to be normal...or at least pretend to be. But that's not what I wanted. Normal just wasn't my thing. It had never been. It was the fourth time we moved since I had first met the Cullens and we were quickly growing tired of Canada, already planning on moving back to Washington in the next year or so. Perhaps the next time we moved, I would go to school. I doubted it, but a girl could dream, couldn't she?

Alice busied herself with doing Terra's hair and getting her ready while Renesmee and Rose helped me cook. Jacob and Embry were planted in front of the TV along with Emmett; they were playing video games. Carlisle and Esme were gone; Jasper had told me he was taking her dancing. Apparently, even after almost a century together, they still celebrated their anniversary. Edward and Bella were curled up together on the couch, pretending to pay attention to the television-- they were all trying to look normal, but I don't think there was such a thing for this family. They would leave soon, though...right after they met the boy Terra was brave enough to invite over. The door bell rang and though I heard her excited footsteps racing to the door, I turned the stove off and stormed into the living room. Gabriel and Danielle had just barged in the back door with Nicole, Seth, Dori, and Leah trailing behind. Seth had immediately taken his place beside Dori, holding her close against him. I glanced down at my shredded black jeans, white muscle shirt, and combat boots and smirked. This boy wouldn't know what to expect. I twirled my gold wedding band around my finger impatiently as Terra opened the door. Embry was by my side in an instant, his arm wrapped around my waist.

The young boy stepped into the house and kissed Terra gently on the cheek, then froze when he saw us. It was so hard not to laugh; he looked absolutely terrified! She grabbed his arm and pulled him further into the house. She was beaming proudly at us. "John, I want you to officially meet my family. These are my cousins Alice and Jasper," she said, pointing them out. Alice smiled warmly and he did a little nervous wave. Jasper's lips tilted up in a half-smile that looked more menacing than friendly. "My adoptive brother Emmett and my sister Rose." Rose rolled her eyes at the boy, giving a dismissive wave. Emmett met the boy's gaze and cracked his knuckles, grinning wickedly. "My cousins Bella and Edward." Bella smiled, but Edward just scowled at the boy. "My...um, cousins. Renesmee, Jacob, Nicole, Seth, and Leah." Everyone stared expectantly at him. "My brother Gabriel and my niece Danielle." Danielle stuck her tongue at him, then burrowed her head into her brother's shoulder, hiding behind her hair. Gabriel nodded slightly, bouncing Danielle around in his arms. "You already know my sister, Ardor." I saw Dori's eyes spark and I thought I'd have to warn her about starting fires in the house again, but she finally forced a smile on her face as she reached forward to shake his hand. This was it; all eyes were on me as Dori stepped aside and Terra drug her boyfriend toward me. They stopped in the center of the living room, less than two feet from me. I could smell the cologne and nervous sweat on this boy, and that made me smirk. "This is my oldest sister and adopted mother, Umbra...and my brother-in-law, Embry," she said, nudging him toward us. "John," he gulped. "M-my name's John Leeth." I could feel the intense stare Embry was giving John, trying to intimidate him. My smile grew. "Enchanté," I replied softly, staring him down. "Hehe, big family," he chuckled nervously, glancing back at my sister.

I felt a genuine smile spread to my face and I bellowed in my thickest, heaviest Cajun drawl, "Well yeah! Da mo' da merrier, cher!" Embry laughed and everyone agreed. "I-I'm an only child, so I wouldn't know," he replied with a slight shrug. It got real quiet for a moment, then Emmett stood. "Well, I guess we'll just leave you to handle this, Umbra," Emmett smirked, gesturing to the boy. I glared at Emmett as he and the rest of my aunts and uncles made their way toward the door. They would probably go hunting, or whatever bored vamps did in the evening. I faked a smile and responded, "Of course, Em. I've got everything under control." They left, and I ushered everyone into the kitchen. I started serving plates, everyone crowding around the table and talking loudly. John wasn't as nervous as before. In fact, he seemed to fit right in with us. Terra sure liked him, but we still had a secret to keep, a very important secret. Humans just wouldn't understand. If they knew what we were, they'd react in fear, and violence, and anger. We didn't want that-- no one did.

John stuck around for a couple hours after dinner, and left with promises of seeing Terra again and making plans for when they would go out "without an audience". I shut the door, turning to smile at Terra. "So? What do you think about John?" she asked anxiously. I ruffled her light blonde hair and chuckled lightly. Everyone was making fun of him, but I silenced them with a glare. I turned back to her and smiled. "Sweetie, he's a nice boy...but if you want him to stick around, I suggest you don't bring him back around here. We just might scare him away," I said. She looked around the room at all the people she called family. Everyone else would be here within a few moments; I could hear them nearing the house. Her eyes found mine again and softened. "Well, if you guys are able to scare him away so easily, then I don't need him," she replied with a light smile. Her eyes sparked, and she looked just like Momma. I blinked, surprised for a moment. I quickly snapped out of it and pulled her into a hug. "That's right babygirl," I mumbled. Everyone enveloped us in a group hug and, for the millionth time since I first stepped foot into the Cullen house, I thanked God that I wasn't alone.