Author's Note: Sadly, this story did not place in The Sandbox's Anything Goes Under the Mistletoe contest. I believe I understand why and shall take the learning experience with me. I have since removed the reference to mistletoe in this story. 1/13/2010

Disclaimer: The characters of Twilight belong to Stephenie Meyer, including Maggie, who was pulled from Breaking Dawn to join the Cullen family.

The setting December sun took with it what lingering warmth it provided in the day. As the air cooled, a slight chill set in. Homes turned up the heat through electricity, oil and stoves. Bright moonlight hit the pale gray smoke that billowed out from chimneys, and the nearby air became permeated with the sweet smell of burning wood.

The scent tickled Carlisle's nose and made him smile as he made his way home. This was not a scent he would find there, for the logical heating choice had not been a wood stove or fireplace. Normally his home would not have needed to be heated during the winter, but in the years since Bella had lived there it was a minor bill to ensure her physical comfort.

Bella would enjoy the smell, Carlisle thought.

An unlikely occurrence had resulted in Bella's presence with the family. Having treated her in the emergency room frequently, Carlisle hadn't failed to notice that he had caught her attention. He'd been mistaken when he assumed that it was a teenage girl's crush. As Carlisle discovered later, Bella was an unusually perceptive human being. Her suspicions had been raised by her frequent interactions with Carlisle, which were more tactile than those he had with his own co-workers. When she was 18, still in her senior year at high school, Bella had knocked on his office door at the hospital and nervously yet boldly admitted that she knew he was a vampire.

His surprise had been great, for a human had never concluded the truth before, especially so quickly. Traditional vampire lore did not accurately describe his characteristics. Before Carlisle could think to dissemble, he had asked Bella how she knew.

There was a local Native American tribe that had an oral tradition about vampires. Carlisle himself had crossed paths with them generations before. As a young girl, Bella had been friends with a young Quileute boy who had once tried to impress her by telling the tale. Even though Bella had moved to Phoenix with her mother not long after, she hadn't forgotten the story of the "cold ones." Bella had returned to her father and Forks at age 17, and almost immediately found herself in the emergency room due to her clumsy nature.

At first, Bella admitted that afternoon in Carlisle's office, she had thought the doctor pale and overtired from work. However, after seeing Jasper and Alice at the high school everything had started to click for her. She'd been certain for several months -and at least three ER visits- before she'd worked up the nerve to talk to him.

Bella's confession had somehow resulted in her being thrown more into the company of the Cullens. Bella had attested that she would never reveal their secret, and Maggie had seen the truth of this through her gift. Esme, who posed as Carlisle's sister to the community, had welcomed Bella with open arms. Bella seemed to organically fit in with Carlisle's family, to whom she'd become like a sister, though Alice frequently commandeered best friend rights. Carlisle had discovered in Bella a good heart, an intelligent mind and a self-sacrificing nature that had endeared her to him, and an easy companionship developed.

When the time came for Bella to go to college, the family had moved with her. She stayed with them in their secluded house while she took classes at university. Carlisle helped her in her studies and on evenings that he did not work they would have long conversations that lasted into the night. In the three years since she'd become more fixed in his life, Carlisle was able to watch Bella mature into a young woman as college expanded her mind. Time allowed them to grow very comfortable in each other's company.

Carlisle was thinking that he couldn't imagine Bella not being a part of his family when he pulled up at his home. The house was decorated with holly and ivy twined around every pole and accenting every corner. White lights offset the dark green and red. This was mainly Alice and Esme's doing. Alice's spirit for a celebration and Esme's caring heart had been too much for their mates to combat. Not that Jasper and Maggie had tried.

Carlisle smiled at them when he entered. They were all in the living room, playing a game on the coffee table. The three ladies were sitting on the floor, while Jasper was on the couch, his wife leaning against his knees. Esme was taking her turn, carefully slicing a bit out of a firmly packed bowl formation of flour, not disturbing the ring resting on top.

"Flour pudding?" Carlisle asked them. The sight of his family surrounding a table with human food on it had given Carlisle pause at first. When he noticed the ring he realized that they were playing an old-fashioned human Christmas game.

Alice grinned at him. "It's all the more fun if you're a vampire." Carlisle shook his head fondly at his family. Since the person who made the ring fall with their slice would have the penalty of fetching it out with their teeth, the phrase "eat dirt" could be used literally.

"Bella sound asleep?" he asked the room. Jasper nodded at him. Carlisle started to make his way up the stairs, eager to actualize the idea that had occurred to him on the way home.

"Your timing is going to work out perfectly, by the way," Alice called out to him.

Carlisle's smile encompassed the entire room before he went up. The moment he was out of sight Esme raised her eyebrows hopefully at Alice, who winked back. Maggie grinned.

Upstairs, Bella turned over and smiled sleepily at Carlisle when she felt his weight press down beside her. When his working schedule kept them from a late night talk, Carlisle would sometimes come in to greet her when he arrived home from the hospital. It was always something she looked forward to, even though it didn't happen every time. Bella's late nights with Carlisle were always when she was the most at ease and comfortable. "Hey."

"Hello." Carlisle answered just as gently. He sat on the edge of the bed, his hand resting on the covers over Bella's hip.

"Late night?" Bella lifted herself up onto her elbow, blinking sleep out of her eyes.

"Yes. Thankfully a quiet one." Carlisle smiled at her, still keeping his voice at a murmur. "Did you sleep well?"

"Thus far," Bella answered, her mouth curving up in a tease. After all, her bedroom clock revealed it to be around two in the morning.

Carlisle's hand shifted from her hip to grasp her free hand. "If you don't mind, I'd like it if you got up for a little while. I have something to share with you I think you'll enjoy."

"Really?" With the teasing grin back on her face, she flopped backwards, allowing herself to fall abruptly back onto her pillow. "But I'm comfortable here. It's so warm and cozy under the covers." Holding the blankets and comforter to her, Bella made as though she was settling in, wriggling her hips into the warmth and earning a chuckle from Carlisle.

Leaning forward, Carlisle kissed the tip of her nose. "It's Christmas, Bella. Indulge me."

He was gone from the room before she could respond, knowing she would shortly join him downstairs. Missing the warmth of the bed, Bella dressed in layers before going downstairs. She was glad she had, because she found Carlisle waiting with her winter coat in his hand.

"We're going outside?" She asked, and her whine was very pitiable. Alice and Jasper laughed as Bella begrudgingly slipped on the coat. With no need to confirm the obvious, Carlisle settled her wool cap over her head, lowering it to cover her eyes. "Hey!"

"Keep your eyes covered, Bella. It'll be worth it," Alice told her.

"It's true." Maggie said pertly and Bella could almost see her curly red hair bouncing about as she nodded her head.

"Fine," Bella said grudgingly, though a wave of anticipation moved through her. Once Bella was fully bundled she and Carlisle headed out the door.

"Have fun!" Alice called after them, smirking. She turned back to the game to discover the ring falling above her knife. "Son of a-"

The peals of laughter in the living room were the last sounds Bella heard before Carlisle swept her onto his back and they were off running through the woods that encloistered the house. She held on tight, not wanting her grip to slip and cause her to fall off his back. The cold hit her cheeks and she pressed her face against him. Her scarf protected the back of her neck, even as its fringes danced behind her from the speed of their passage.

After several minutes, Carlisle came to a stop and slowly lowered her to the ground. Once she regained some feeling in her legs, Bella pushed her hat back on her head, uncovering her eyes. They stood on the edge of a clearing, a smooth canvas of untrodden snow that glistened in the bright moonlight. The trees and evergreens surrounding were laced with a delicate layer of white. Even as Bella looked, a soft snow began to fall.

"Oh!" Bella cried out, moved.

"Alice was right, I seemed to have timed the weather perfectly." Carlisle said from beside her. The night's light cast a muted silver glow over his golden hair and porcelain features. "I thought to take you here when I noticed how bright the moon was on my way home tonight."

"It's beautiful. And peaceful." Bella nodded.

"Yes, it is, isn't it? Consider this my first Christmas gift to you."

"First?" Bella laughed. "But you are right, this is a gift." She leaned into him, relaxing as she gazed out over the bright snow. Carlisle wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Knowing how well Carlisle understood her, Bella allowed herself the contentment she drew from the surrounding scene.

The stillness was beautiful. The brightness of the moon, even through the clouds now dropping a gentle snow, gave a luster of twilight to everything below. As Bella's eyes adjusted, she could pick out individual branches on an evergreen clear across the cottony field.

"Christmas came upon us so quickly this year." Bella spoke after a moment.

"Yes. Edward and Rosalie will be arriving tomorrow."

"It'll be good to see them again."

They were quiet again, enjoying the serenity when the loud crack of a falling tree branch made Bella jump.

"Probably a branch that couldn't take much more weight from the snow." Carlisle explained with amusement coloring his voice.

"Mmm-hmm." Though she'd jumped in surprise, she had reached the same conclusion herself. Bella turned her face to look at Carlisle and laughed. "Look who's talking!"

Unlike Bella, there was no warmth coming off of Carlisle to make the snowflakes melt. His head and shoulders were collecting snow. Laughingly, Bella brushed him off. "Judging by you, I can measure that we've already received about a quarter of an inch."

"Cute," Carlisle retorted, brushing his other shoulder off himself.

Bella merely grinned and looked back around her surroundings. She closed her eyes, breathing in deep before letting out a contented sigh. In her mind, a delicate Christmas tune was playing and she could almost visualize decorations. Bella realized that the grin on her face wouldn't go unnoticed by Carlisle, so she wasn't surprised when he asked for her thoughts.

"I'm remembering a Christmas I spent in Forks visiting my father. He'd put a big red bow on this pine tree beside the driveway. It looked awkward, until we got a light dusting of snow. Then it was beautiful." Bella opened her eyes and smiled at Carlisle. "Being here right now makes me feel . . . I don't know, young again. Well, younger," she modified. "It's like something inside me remembers a sort of happiness and purity. And my mind associates it with Christmas, though that's not it entirely."

Bella gave a self-conscious laugh. "Listen to me. You're probably the only person in the world I'd feel comfortable talking like this in front of."

Carlisle smiled at her somewhat ruefully. "You know, I envy you a little."

"What? Why?" Her eyes rounded questioningly at him.

"You were able to grow up at a time when, culturally, Christmas had taken on the best possible meaning."

"A big commercial racket?" Bella paraphrased the cartoon classic.

Carlisle tweaked a lock of her brown hair. "I just listened to you wax sentimental, Bella. Can't I respond without you teasing?"

"Sorry," Bella answered fairly, and brushed more snow off of Carlisle. The tips of her fingers were beginning to chill under the Thinsulate gloves.

"I was seven years old when Christmas became banned in England. Prior to that it was a time of drunken revelry, sporting, hedonistic eating and even masque balls. I was changed only a couple of years after the ban was lifted, maybe three."

Bella listened with rapt attention. As an educated woman, she knew that traditions changed over centuries, but it had never occurred to her that Carlisle was witness to the evolution.

"I wasn't exactly focused on cultural holidays those first years, but celebrations did seem to fall to the wayside. I had been a vampire for over 160 years when perceptions and meanings around Christmas began to change. It became more centered on not only Christ's birth, but Christ's teaching as well. It became about good will and compassion. And family."

Carlisle paused briefly. "I already held strong to the values of good will and compassion. It was another hundred years before I had a family."

"Christmas must mean a lot to you." Bella's eyes looked him all over, from his blond hair to his ocher eyes and perfect face. She was seeing yet another layer of him that she never suspected was there. It was almost as though Carlisle had evolved with the world. Carlisle was the most compassionate person she knew. Everyone in the family appreciated that Carlisle's compassion practically propelled him into being gifted. He cared about every one, and it showed even to humans. Bella would never have approached him years before if she hadn't felt that. Maybe it was the world that had caught up with Carlisle.

"It does mean very much to me. It also makes me thankful that I have so many people I care about in my life. That missing element that you couldn't describe a minute ago, Bella, is caring. Family, goodwill, compassion: Christmas is love."

Bella smiled as a new memory came to her. "I think that's what Charlie believes. He doesn't talk about things like that, but I know. Once he sent my mom and me a fairly ugly Christmas card. It had a poorly drawn Santa flying solo above a bunch of homes. The colors were garish, and even Mom didn't like it. Being the thoughtless kid I was I asked him why he chose such an ugly card.

" 'Because it says Christmas is love, Bella,' he answered me. I looked at the card again and noticed that the Santa was dropping little hearts across the town."

Carlisle smiled at her. "That's a nice story about Chief Swan. Though it's hard to imagine you as being thoughtless and unobservant, Bella."

Bella shrugged slightly. "I was about nine at the time. Cut me some slack for youth, Carlisle."

Carlisle chuckled softly, and then his hand grasped hers. "Look."

Bella almost expected to see reindeer in the sky where Carlisle pointed. At first she didn't notice a thing, but after a second she saw it. A large bird flew over the trees to their left. As it soared back and forth Bella thought she caught a flash of white.

"Is that a bald eagle?"

Carlisle nodded.

"Wow." Her eyes remained on it until it was out of sight. It had stopped snowing, and the moon had reemerged. The clearing took on a blue-white hue, and the snow no longer sparkled but gave a soft quilt appearance. Bella felt that expansion in her chest, that feeling of joy and purity. Giddy with it, she laughed. "I have this urge to run out into the middle of the field and make a big snow angel, but I hate to ruin the snow with my footprints."

Carlisle laughed, pleased to see the happy excitement beaming off her face. "Are you asking me to run you out there?"

"Actually, I hadn't thought of that, but would you? Please?" Alice wasn't the only one who could strike that tone.

Carlisle shook his head. "Technically, Bella, I shouldn't. Leaving a mysterious imprint in the middle of the field would hardly help staying under the radar."

"Then don't. Just drop me, and I'll make the imprint." Mischievous, she grabbed the front of Carlisle's coat and hoisted her legs up sideways. Carlisle had no choice but to catch her. "It's Christmas, Carlisle. Indulge me."

Shaking his head, causing the last of the light flakes to fall off of it, Carlisle held Bella closer to him as he lightly sprung out into the field. "Have I ever said no to you?"

And he dropped her.

Bella landed with a soft crunch of impressed snow. Grinning madly, she spread-eagled her arms and legs, back and forth. "I haven't done this in years!"

"Then I'd say it was about time." Carlisle returned to the spot that he'd dropped her and swept her up again, leaving no print behind in his speed. "Can you see it behind us?"

"No," Bella sighed. "Thanks, though. I wasn't quite done, however."

"In that case…" Carlisle engaged in his own mischief. Bella suddenly found herself on her back, not only on the snow, but also within it. It rose around her on all sides and she sputtered.

"Use a little less strength next time, huh?" She tossed a handful of snow at him as she tried to push herself up. When Carlisle offered his hand to help her up, she gave it a little tug instead, knowing she couldn't possibly cause him to lose his balance into the snow. Yet Carlisle allowed it, and Bella found him in the snow beside her, laughing.

Then the unexpected happened. A moment neither one of them had planned or even thought of before. Their lips met.

A southeasterly wind picked up, blowing loose snow in a swirl. It flew up from the ground, curving around the evergreens, then down again towards the almost immaculate blanket of snow. The moonlight brightened the joyfully dancing flakes, even as it shone down to give light to the couple lying wrapped around each other. Their mouths separated and they looked at each other, amazed. Bella lay underneath Carlisle, her face just a breadth away from his.

"Carlisle?"

"Yes?"

"I'm cold."

Carlisle blinked in surprise, and Bella laughed. He was quickly off of her and pulling her out of the snow. He helped to brush her off and then they were on their way, leaving the clearing behind them with new things to ponder. Both of them felt the expanding spirit of the emotions from the snowy field. Up in the sky a tinkling of bells went unheard.

Author's Note: I started this story with Bella and Carlisle having the same easy camaraderie that they have at the end of my story "One Weekend." Since this is a different universe, I felt I had to justify it. The exposition grew so much that it dragged this little vignette and I chopped it down. Since there is so much I think I will turn it into a multi-chapter story one day.

I hope you enjoyed "Moonlit December" and that the exposition didn't slow the story down for you. :) Feel welcome to leave a review.