His World

Homecoming (22)

Carlisle and Lily were gone for five weeks. The first two went just fine, but then Elsie began to miss her mother. Most nights she only slept if Embry was there and held her throughout the night. With his elevated temperature, Elsie was aware almost instantly if he tried to leave for any reason and began to cry once more. The only other person that seemed to help Elsie stay calm was Rosalie. Jasper helped to keep things calm when he could, but the distress would sometimes become too much for him. Alice tried to keep an eye on the future to see when they would return, but with Jacob and Embry still around it was hard to look around the blind spots.

"Rosie!"

Rosalie stood straight, wiping her hands on a grease rag. It was close to three in the morning and she had been working on Lily's Equinox. She was only hoping the human hadn't died or was too sick to travel. It would break Elsie's heart if she never saw her mother again. The vampire brushed a blonde curl from her face and adjusted the bandana tied around her head. She was upstairs in less than five seconds and comforting the girl.

"It's okay, Elsie," Rosalie hushed. She wrapped her arms around the small child and pulled her close, stroking her hair. "Vera will be back soon."

"I h-had a bad d-dream," Elsie stuttered. She wiped her tears with the back of her hand. "Mommy, sh-she died."

"Oh, honey," Rosalie whispered. She shifted on the bed, leaning back against the headboard and holding the small child in her arms. She rubbed her back. "Carlisle won't let anything happen to her. You know that. He's the best doctor in the world, and he loves her very much."

"I-I-" Elsie stuttered. She pulled in a deep breath the way her mother had taught her. Elsie's voice was a whisper. "It wasn't because she was sick."

Rosalie furrowed her brow. "Do you want to tell me what happened?"

Elsie curled deeper into Rosalie, her small blanket close to her face. "I want Emmy."

Rosalie held the girl tight in her arms. Embry was out running an errand for Jacob, but the wolf had an odd affinity of knowing when the girl needed him most. "He'll be home soon."

Rosalie sang softly to the girl, stroking her hair continually. Five minutes passed before she heard the back door open and close. Embry came up quickly and stopped in the doorway. He let out a soft sigh and spoke in a whisper. "Nightmare?"

Rosalie nodded. "She's been asking for you."

Embry walked over to the bed, sitting on the opposite side that Rosalie was on. Rosalie smoothly moved the girl into Embry's arms. Going back and forth this way for weeks had caused her to almost like Embry's presence, though the vampire would never admit it. At the very least, it made Elsie happy that the wolf was there. Embry met Rosalie's eyes before she left the room. "Thank you."

"I'm not doing it for you," Rosalie nearly spat. Her eyes lingered on the sleeping form of the girl. "Don't let her overheat."

"I won't," Embry assured.

Rosalie went downstairs to see Bella sitting on the couch, phone in hand and clearly on edge. Something was off about her sister-in-law, and it concerned the blonde vampire. "Bella? What's wrong?"

Bella looked up at Rosalie with a grave expression. "It's Lily."

"What happened?" Rosalie was instantly on edge. "Is she worse? You better not be telling me that the little girl upstairs won't be having her mother come home."

"No," Bella said. She stood. "No, that's not it. Carlisle knew what could happen- no matter how unlikely it seemed- and he told her everything, but..."

A look of realization crossed Rosalie's face. "Don't say it."

"She's pregnant," Bella stated. "They're taking the first flight from London."

"We have a lot of work to do before they get back," Rosalie said shortly. "You and Edward take the truck back to Forks. Everything Carlisle needed with you should be packed away in the attic. Emmett will get everything else from the hospital here."

Bella nodded. She hadn't been around when they were preparing for Edward to bring her home from Brazil, but she knew the importance of being ready for anything. She left for the cottage she shared with Edward and informed him of what they needed to do to prepare for the newlyweds' homecoming. They were on the road less than ten minutes from Bella first explaining what had happened to Rosalie. While Bella explained things to Edward, Rosalie found Emmett playing video games and instructed him on what needed to happen.

"Is Lily going to be okay?" Renesmee asked. She was standing in the doorway while Rosalie moved furniture around to make room for the hospital bed and other equipment.

Rosalie looked at the girl. She dusted off her hands. "Nessie, she'll be fine."

"I heard Momma telling Dad," Renesmee said quietly. "It's the same thing that happened when she had me... But Momma was healthy before me, and she still died. Lily's already sick."

Rosalie crossed the room to her niece and placed a hand on her shoulder. "I promise. Carlisle knows what he's doing. Every human pregnancy is different, so I'm guessing every vampire pregnancy will be different as well."

"I don't want to see her die," Renesmee whispered sadly. "She's always been nice to me."

"Do you want to help me?" Rosalie asked. "I think Carlisle had a stash of O- in the garage fridge. He wanted to have some on hand in case Vera chose to be like us."

Renesmee nodded. She placed a hand over Rosalie's, showing her an image of her mother right after she was born without even realizing it. Rosalie stayed quiet as the girl went to the garage. Jacob walked in then. "She's worried. All she can see is what happened with Bella."

"That won't happen," Rosalie spat venomously. "We're going to be ready this time. Edward shouldn't have waited as long as he did after Renesmee was born."

Jacob said nothing. He knew better than to fight with Rosalie at this point.

It was hours later when Carlisle carried a sleeping Lily in the house, cradled in his arms and close to his chest. He didn't bother carrying her upstairs, and instead rested her on the hospital bed that had been brought into the main room. Rosalie was the first to come in. "How is she?"

"Things are progressing just as quickly as they had with Bella," Carlisle answered gravely. Though he'd fed, the purple circles under his eyes hadn't changed. "I've been trying to think of ways to help things go better for her. She isn't as strong as Bella was"

"We could start giving her blood earlier," Bella suggested quietly, standing near the stairs. "Or try a transfusion. It was the only thing I could keep down, and from what I remember it helped give a little more strength back."

"I had the same thought," Carlisle agreed. "The question is when to start, and whether the transfusion will work."

"Preferably before she starts losing weight," Rosalie muttered. She sighed. "Try the transfusion when she wakes. If that doesn't work quickly enough, give her the blood like you did Bella. We'll know whether she needs it by her reaction when she tastes it."

"I hate to put her through that," Carlisle said. He brushed Lily's hair from her face and watched as she curled tighter on the bed. He looked up at the other vampires in the room. "She's freezing. Is Leah back from the reservation?"

"I stopped to tell her you'd be back soon," Bella answered. "Rosalie had me get your things from Forks."

"I'm here," Leah said as she barged in, clearly upset. "I knew something like this would happen. None of you are ever careful enough with humans."

Carlisle said nothing. He stepped back from his wife's side and watched as Leah sat carefully next to her. He thanked her with a nod before leaving the room. Lily had made it abundantly clear on the flight home that she was less than willing to give up their child, no matter how quickly it could kill her. She'd made her husband promise to do what he could to make sure their child lived, even if she were to die in the process. She trusted he could do for her what Edward did for Bella, but also didn't delude herself into thinking her death wasn't a possibility.