Hi!

Sorry it took me so long to update, but every time I looked at it I added stuff ... and now it's as long as two chapters and maybe a bit blah. *g*

Aaand this is the last chapter for a while ... don't worry, I still have enough ideas for it, just taking a little break to write and post other stuff!

For example: My new story! It's called 'A prank gone wrong'! First chapter is up, second one will follow soon. If you haven't read it yet - please do so!

patz13: Change of plans! :D

Jamie: I haven't forgotten about the wishes! I'll start writing soon, promise!

And then it was finally Christmas Eve.

When Maddie came down the stairs late in the morning, she was greeted with a heavily decorated living room. It looked so pretty that she needed a moment to remember how to close her mouth again.

"Wow...," she breathed.

Fir garlands, red and golden Christmas decoration everywhere - candles adorned the mantelpiece and every other surface while a big, beautiful centerpiece had been placed on the table.

"Do you like it, honey?" Esme asked with a smile on her face and approached Maddie.

"It looks amazing, Mom." Maddie couldn't stop gaping around. She hadn't known they would put up decorations ... well, okay, they had a pretty wreath hanging on the door, but she had figured that would be all. Well, and a tree, of course.

Esme patted her on the head and gave her a loving kiss on the cheek, then said, "We'll bring the tree in in a couple of hours. Will you help decorating it?"

"Sure. It's tradition, isn't it?"

Esme nodded and gave Maddie a smile. "Yes, it is."

Alice just came in from the garage, holding a box filled with even more decoration.

"Doesn't it look perfect, Maddie?" She beamed at her sister. Alice definitely was a perfectionist, and this year she had planned on making the holidays as memorable as possible for everyone. It was the first time they would be celebrating Christmas together, so it was very special.

"I love it," Maddie replied and her eyes gleamed.

Alice put the box down, grabbed Maddie by the hand and pulled her further into the living room, to show her some more.

"When did you do all this?" She had been downstairs about half an hour ago, but it certainly hadn't looked like this then.

"We started ten minutes ago." Alice shrugged and enjoyed seeing her sister so happy.

But then Maddie frowned.

"What's wrong, sweetie?" Esme asked, a little concern in her voice.

Maddie quickly smiled to ease the tension. She wasn't upset, sad or anything the like, but all the decoration had distracted her from the reason why she had come downstairs in the first place. "Uhm ... we bought some wrapping paper, didn't we? I have a bunch of stuff in my room that needs wrapping."

Esme sighed in relief. "Rosalie took it a moment ago. You either ask her to give you some now or you wait until she is finished."

"Oh, I'll wait," Maddie said casually and slumped down onto the couch.

Woah! Even the pillow slips were of a golden colour now.

"... can't even stay in my own room ...," Emmett grumbled while coming down the stairs.

"Whazzup?" Maddie asked and turned around to look at him.

He raised his head and stopped dead in his tracks.

Looking around the room, he then whistled.

"Somebody had been busy already," he said. "This room looks marvellous!"

"I know, right?" Alice grinned.

"Why were you grumbling just now?" Maddie asked.

"Rose kicked me out, said I was too nosy. But I'll see the presents tomorrow anyways, so where is the problem if I take a peek at them now?"

They laughed at Emmett's logic.

"Wanna watch a movie?" Maddie offered and pointed at the TV.

"Sure. Which one?" he said and sat down on the floor, leaning against the couch.

Maddie jumped up and walked over to the sideboard, scanning through the DVDs.

"Bad Santa?" she asked with a big grin.

Esme tzked. "Sweetie, not for Christmas, all right? I don't want to hear that vile language today."

"But it's a Christmas movie," Maddie told her her Mom.

"How about Die Hard?" Emmett suggested.

"Emmett," Esme mildly rebuked.

"What else should we be watching, Mom?" Maddie asked. They were both Christmas movies, how could she not be okay with either of them?

Esme walked towards Maddie and stopped right next to her, looking through the collection.

"This one is perfect," she smiled and handed her daughter a DVD.

Maddie's face fell.

"... The Care Bears Movie?" She asked in disbelief.

Esme smiled at her. "I thought you might like it."

Oh God, she was serious.

"Yeah, thanks. But ... oh, what a bummer! It's not a Christmas movie," Maddie uttered, faking her disappointment.

"Oh, you are right. Sorry, love," she replied and looked for a different one.

"Here you go," she said lovingly and held up a movie.

Emmett gave her a thumbs up, Maddie giggled and they settled for it. It was Disney, and it was Christmassy and it was cute. Well, they would have loved to watch something different, but somehow it made their Mom happy whenever they watched kid's movies. And what better time to make your Mom happy than Christmas?

Alice and Esme continued to adorn the room. It was a very classy decoration, everything in gold and red. It looked a little like the Christmas decoration in a very expensive hotel, but it matched their house's interior perfectly.

"You haven't used up all the gift wrap, have you?" Maddie asked when she sensed someone behind her and looked up to see that it was Rose.

"No. We still have a little. I just gave it to Edward," she replied and seated herself on the armrest of the couch.

"Oh. I need some, too."

"Call Dad and tell him to get some more on his way home from the hospital." Emmett suggested.

"But then it'll take even longer until he's home and we cannot start decorating the Christmas tree until he's here," Maddie tried to reason with her brother.

"All right," Emmett said and stretched out. "Grab your jacket and we'll drive to the store."

"Really?" Maddie asked, sounding happy.

"Sure, get ready."

"Wear a knit hat and gloves, it's cold outside!" Rosalie called after her.

Maddie could feel that this was going to be a great Christmas.

Everybody was relaxed and happy - they were apparently turning into a picture-perfect family.

Yes, Alice had had a little nervous breakdown two days ago, but she pledged she was fine now. Still, Maddie had offered to help her with that problem, but she had declined.

When Emmett and Maddie came home from the store, the house looked even more - for lack of a better word - perfect. Maybe Alice was still a little disturbed, because she was constantly trying to outdo herself today.

On the table in the dining room was a big nativity scene set up, and it was plain beautiful. Emmett told her that they had it for ages already and they set it up every year; they would never celebrate Christmas without it. Carlisle got it when he spent a few years in Italy, and it was tradition to set it out.

That was a nice tradition.

"Where did you get all this stuff?" Maddie asked Alice when they looked around the kitchen and saw that is was heavily decorated as well.

Why? She had no clue. It wasn't like they actually used the kitchen ... it was more like a corridor to them.

"I ordered via the Internet, of course," Alice answered, laughing a little at Maddie's silly question. "You don't get Christmas decoration of that quality just round the corner."

"It looks pretty."

Alice gaped at her. Just pretty? "This is a carved Christmas pyramid from the Ore Mountains and real beeswax candles. Humans are quite skillful. The tablecloth over there is made of finest Egyptian cotton."

"Okay. And where are the candy canes and ... little snowmen and Santa Claus?" Maddie wasn't sure what to ask for, because there was decoration everywhere and it looked so classy and expensive like she had never seen before. It was a little different from what she was used to.

Alice's face hardened. She had tried so hard to make everything look perfect ... and now her baby sister was asking for plastic decoration?

"Here you go, it's a nutcracker," she said without enthusiasm while shoving a carved nutcracker into her sister's hands.

"Alice...," Maddie whined, "don't be mad at me. I have no idea how you celebrate Christmas, you know."

Alice pondered over this before giving in. "It's okay, I'll be briefing you now. And don't expect any plastic, just don't."

Before showing Maddie around, she called over her shoulder: "Emmett? Jasper? Why don't you go get the Christmas tree? I already brought the fairy lights and Christmas balls to the living room."

"Let me guess ... they aren't from the shop around the corner either?" Maddie asked, a little more careful this time.

Alice smiled approvingly. "Very good. Finest Thuringian glass, mouth-blown and ... "

"Ouch!" Maddie exclaimed and rubbed the back of her hand.

"I told you to stay away from the curtains," Esme admonished with her arms akimbo.

Not even a second passed since Maddie had gotten a rap across the knuckles from her Mom because she wanted to take a peek. The curtains in the dining room were drawn, and she did not know why.

"We never draw the curtains, what's wrong?"

"Don't concern yourself with that, now go get changed," Esme said.

"I am fine just the way I am," Maddie replied conceitedly. She was wearing sweatpants and a sweatshirt with old blood stains on it that Esme hadn't managed to wash out. Yes, after going to the store Maddie had decided to change into something more comfy, since she wouldn't leave the house anymore for the rest of the day.

She sighed. "Maddie, it is Christmas and I want you to dress accordingly."

"We'll be staying home and I wanna be comfortable," Maddie whined in response.

"I'll help you!" Alice exclaimed and tugged at her sister's sleeve.

She had already chosen a nice dress for Maddie. It was dark green, and had a black silk ribbon around the waist. A bow was right over her left hip. The outfit would be perfect with black tights and black flats, of course. And - if Maddie let her - a black hairband with a bow. Just perfect.

"Mom!" she complained when Alice wouldn't let go.

Esme looked at her. "Please, Maddie."

So she got changed, because the dress was kind of pretty and that way she could show her face downstairs again. Esme seemed a little stressed, even though Maddie did not know why.

"Maddie ...," Esme said in a warning tone when Maddie neared herself to the drawn curtains once more.

She spun around on her heel and let her hands fall to her sides. "What's out there, Mom? Just tell me!"

"No. And now do as I say and leave the curtains alone."

"But I'm curious."

"Curious about what will happen if you don't step away from the curtains?" Esme asked in a no-nonsense kind of voice.

Maddie took a step backwards and sulked.

Esme sighed, not wanting for anyone to be sad today. "Go watch a movie with Emmett, wouldn't you like that?"

And just as simple as that, Maddie's attention had been diverted.

"Okay!" she exclaimed and all but bounced into the living room.

Emmett had obviously changed as well, because he was wearing a suit and a button down shirt, very classy.

So everyone would dress up today, all right.

"A movie, Em?" Maddie asked and raised her eyebrows.

"Pretty dress, Tiny," he remarked. "What do you wanna watch now? The movie Mom bought for you?" he asked and smirked.

Maddie snorted.

"I'll save that one for a sunny day," she replied.

Funny enough, for them everything was the other way round. People stayed home on rainy days, and went outside to enjoy the weather when the sun was out. Did not happen in this family.

Grabbing a different movie from the pile lying next to the TV, Maddie put it into the DVD player and turned around, holding the cover up for her brother to see.

"That one all right with you?" she asked, even though she maybe should have asked before putting it in.

"Sure, come," he replied, lifting his right arm and waiting for his little sister to sit down right next to him so he could let his arm rest on her shoulders.

It was cool that their siblings joined them as well and together they could enjoy a nice Christmas movie while waiting for their Dad to come home from work.

After watching the movie, Maddie spent some time in her room, wrapping up the presents she had gotten for her family. She wanted them to look pretty, so she tried extra hard.

A smile spread across her face when she saw the headlights of a car approaching - her Dad's car.

So he was finally coming home!

She quickly wrapped up the last of her presents, then opened her door and hurried down the stairs.

But she frowned when she noticed the door to her Dad's study being wide open, and him sitting on the leather chair behind his desk, writing.

She peeked in.

"Come here, honey." He looked up and smiled, then put the pen down and scooted backwards with his chair.

She walked in and sat down on his lap, looking at the paper lying on the desk.

When he picked up his pen and started writing again, she murmured, "You said you wouldn't be working."

He held up one finger to indicate that she should wait a moment, then he finished the sentence he had started and finally put the pen down.

"All done," he told her, "no more work."

She suddenly was all smiles, and her eyes shone with delight. "So we'll be decorating the tree now? Right now? Alice said she got special Christmas balls and stuff."

He laughed and lightly tapped her nose with his finger. "Yes, we'll be decorating the tree now."

She beamed up at him, then jumped off his lap, grabbed his hand and pulled him out of the room.

"What's outside, Daddy? Mom wouldn't let me look."

"Then maybe you should be patient and wait until you find out, hm?" he replied while he was being dragged down the stairs by his daughter.

"It's a surprise?" Maddie looked over her shoulder at him.

"Yes, it is."

"Is it something fun?" she asked, barely able to contain her curiosity.

"Well, I do hope so."

"Something special?"

He laughed. "Maddie, you'll find out. Be patient."

So Maddie nodded her head, indicating she understood that he didn't want her to ask any more questions about what was outside.

She suddenly stopped. "Your clothes smell like snow."

"I think it's about to snow, yes."

Christmas was getting better and better.

It was so festive in the living room. The tree stood near the fireplace, and Jasper and Emmett had already put the lights into the tree, so they only had to decorate it now.

On the stroke of midnight Alice exclaimed, "I think it's time for presents!"

Everything was perfect, just like she had planned. And she had managed all that without the help of her gift, quite impressing.

The family had spent the last hours listening to Edward play the piano, watching another Christmas movie and putting tons of presents underneath the tree.

Well, they had actually wanted to open their presents earlier, but Esme had eyed the clock strangely and said it wasn't the right time.

And while they had been busy listening to Edward play, Alice typed several messages on her phone. Since that was strange, Maddie asked whom she was sending them to, and Alice answered it was Jasper. Now that really didn't make any sense, because Jasper was just upstairs collecting gifts to put next to the tree.

Alice replied she was too lazy to walk up the stairs and talk to him, so she used her phone instead.

Okay ... weird.

"Yes, it is the right time," Esme confirmed and they all sat down on either the couches or the armchairs in the living room.

"What's outside, Mom?" Maddie whispered immediately, her eyes wide and curious.

She was sitting on the floor, cross-legged, and had her elbows on the coffee table while her parents were seated on the couch. They looked relaxed, happy.

"You'll find out now." Esme chuckled, then stood up and walked over to the curtains. "All right, look over here, everybody. Your father and I decided that this might be something nice for all of you."

She opened the curtains and their eyes went wide.

Maddie squealed while Emmett cheered and both ran over to the glass doors that opened up to the porch. "You got us a trampoline? Oh my God!"

Rose, Jasper and Alice were surprised, too, and they liked the gift; but they were by no means as excited as these two.

"Awesome!" Emmett exclaimed and he and Maddie high-fived.

"Can we try it out now?" Maddie asked - she was fascinated by the thing that looked like so much fun. She couldn't wait to try it out!

Esme patted Maddie on the head, then said, "You can go outside later. We'll be celebrating first, all right?"

Maddie looked whiny.

"Open a present, sweetie," she said, turned her daughter around by the shoulders and nudged her in the direction of the tree.

Rose offered a little box for Maddie to take. "Here."

So she skipped over to her sister and thanked her while taking the box from her.

"Oh Rose! That's really pretty!" Maddie exclaimed and took the silver bracelet out of the little red case.

"Do you like it?"

"Of course I do! Thank you!" Maddie flung her arms around Rose's neck.

Maddie wasn't into jewellery, but this was a simple bracelet - exactly her taste.

"We can add charms, see?" Rosalie told her while clasping it round her wrist.

Maddie was busy smiling to herself, but then hurried over to the tree and got a present for Emmett when Alice gave Rose something little wrapped up in fancy golden-coloured paper.

"Here," Maddie said and held it in front of her brother's face. When he grabbed it she put her hands behind her back, swaying a little in anticipation, a big grin on her face.

He immediately started laughing when he saw what his little sister had gotten for him. "Where's Waldo?"

She doubled up with laughter.

"I don't think I'll be able to find him!" He slapped a hand to his forehead.

"I know! It always seems to take forever until you find that little f-"

"Maddie!"

"What?" Maddie put her hands on her hips while looking at Rose. "Fella, I wanted to say fella!"

"Right," Rosalie answered, not believing her little sister a single word but still sounding amused. She gave her a light pat on the bum while passing her.

"Come here, I have something for you," Edward suddenly said, motioned for Maddie to come closer and picked a gift up from the floor. It was wrapped in a dark blue paper, with little golden stars all over it and a big red bow on top.

Yay!

Maddie smiled and skipped over to him, taking it from her brother, then sat on the floor and ripped it open.

"Headphones?" She asked confusedly, but then giggled. "My music isn't that bad, you know."

"Oh, they aren't for that, even though you should indeed rethink your taste in music," he replied. "It is for that."

Maddie looked at the huge wrapped box standing next to the Christmas tree to which Edward was pointing.

"That's for me?" she asked with a frown.

"Sure, open up," he pulled it over to her and then put it in her lap.

Maddie bit her lip to keep herself from smirking, then opened the present.

Now that was definitely a surprise.

Gasping, she then looked questioningly up at her brother.

She started stammering. "I-I don't ..."

He interrupted her. "Yes, you do. I know you can play."

"But I ..."

"That's what the headphones are for," he said and pointed at them. "No-one will hear if you wish so, you can keep it private."

Maybe she should be mad at him for snooping around in her head. But the fact that Maddie had played the piano when she was human probably excited him, because he was clearly obsessed with music and it was always nice to share that passion with someone.

She eyed the keyboard lying in her lap once more, contemplating on what to do.

Absentmindedly she breathed "Thank you.", in an attempt to end this awkward situation.

"It's from Mom and Dad. This here," he told her while picking up a flat present, "is from me."

He handed it to her and waited for her to unwrap it.

She took her time, because she didn't feel too euphoric anymore but weirdly numb instead.

And then she saw it.

It was sheet music, of course.

That wasn't too disturbing, but the moment she read the name of the composer, a tidal wave of memories washed over her. These old memories hadn't been forgotten, but she just hadn't reminisced about then in a while.

She traced the letters with her fingertips, completely mesmerised. It was the exact same piano sheet music her father had always played. He had loved Chopin dearly, and Maddie could still hear the beautiful melodies and the heavy melancholy when she remembered him playing.

Right now she didn't even breathe, just stared at the present she had gotten from her brother.

"Maddie? Maddie sweetheart?"

When a hand stroked her hair, she looked up in surprise, like she had completely forgotten where she was at that moment.

"Are you all right, dear?" Esme asked with concern in her voice. It had been a little unsettling to see her daughter suddenly change from lively to impassive.

"Yeah," Maddie muttered, more to herself than to anyone else. "Yeah," she said again, but louder this time, "I am." The tiny smile that played on her lips made Esme sigh with relief.

Esme stroked Maddie's cheek lovingly, before sitting back down on the couch next to Carlisle, who put an arm around her shoulders.

Taking a deep breath, Maddie then looked up at Edward, mouthing a 'Thank you'.

"Come here," he said and lifted one arm, inviting his little sister to come over to him because he wanted to hug her, knowing what his present had evoked.

She stood up then and made her way over to him, hugging him around the waist.

"Do they know?" she whispered to him.

"No," he replied.

Edward knew what she was talking about without having to read her thoughts, because his ability was still blocked and it would be a matter of days until he would be able to read minds again.

Since the keyboard was a present from her parents and he had certainly advised them to get it for her, she wanted to know if he had told them about her memories.

Maddie's father had taught her how to play when she was very young. They had had an old piano, which her father had gotten from his father, who had gotten it from his father. It was supposed to be hers one day, that's what he had always told her.

But when he died, she had never played again, because she just couldn't.

Music is supposed to help you deal with a grievous loss, but Maddie was sure that the sound of just a single key would have done nothing to ease the sorrow and pain that tore her apart internally, but make it more excruciating instead.

But just because she hadn't played anymore, didn't mean she had stopped liking piano music - it still sounded beautiful to her.

And she had cherished their old piano so, so much. She had dusted it off everyday and even bought new sheet music in hopes it would motivate her to play again, but it had never happened because she was inwardly disintegrated. Not an easy feeling for an eight-year-old to deal with.

The worst memory concerning that piano however, was when she came home from school one day and it was gone. Her Mom's new husband had sold it, saying she didn't play so it was useless and needed to go. It was her piano, a family heirloom, and he had sold it like it was of no value.

Maybe Edward was right, Maddie thought.

Maybe it was time for her to try and play again, even though she had probably unlearnt everything.

But she could learn to play again ... and play without anyone overhearing. Besides, it was a keyboard and not an old piano, so it was like a completely different music instrument, right?

Nodding to Edward that she appreciated he had kept it a secret, Maddie then loosened the embrace.

"Ey, Tiny!" Emmett shouted, and even before she could turn around, he added, "Catch!"

She caught the wrapped gift that he had flung her way with one hand.

"Ooopen," he said as if in slow-motion when she just stared at him like a deer in headlights.

Why did he chose that moment?

Easy, because he didn't want to see her sad or unusually quiet on this day. And his present would definitely cheer her up, because he was fabulous at picking out presents.

Sitting down on the armrest next to Emmett, she then unwrapped it and her eyes widened in surprise for a second.

"Em," she smirked, "is that why you took mine?"

It was her favourite zombie movie, which she just lost to her eldest brother for the simple reason that he had eaten the damn gingerbread they had made. She had actually counted on him to not eat it since it was human food and the cookie looked like the gingerbread man from Shrek. You do not eat the gingerbread man from Shrek! But Emmett obviously did not have a heart because he had heartlessly bitten the head off and munched away.

"This is the double-disc edition with bonus material. It's better than yours."

Turning it around to read what was included, her head shot up again and she asked excitedly, "Can we watch it now? Please?"

"Later," Emmett told her. He would love to watch it now, but he was dead certain that the rest of the family wouldn't deem a movie like this one appropriate for Christmas.

She looked longingly between the TV and the DVD, but then nodded her head with a sigh.

Making her way to the coffee table to put her new movie there, she then sat on the floor again, thinking about who should get the next gift from her.

"I have something for you, Edward," Maddie then remarked with a smirk that could be interpreted as playful ... or wicked.

She crawled over to the tree, snatched a little present up and handed it over her shoulder to her brother.

"I have to admit that your smirk disturbs me," he commented, but then smiled and unwrapped it.

Maddie couldn't help but laugh when she saw his face.

He raised an eyebrow and shook his head, chuckling.

"Emmett said it wouldn't be mean," Maddie said with puppy dog eyes.

It was a CD she bought ... the same one they had fought about a while ago. But what made this gift so special was the fact that she had taped a severed plastic finger onto the cover.

"You know I am sorry about what happened back then."

"Sure, and my finger is fine." She grinned and wiggled her index finger in the air for him to see. There was a very thin scar at the base of her finger, all around it, but Maddie didn't mind because it didn't hurt. And Carlisle said that humans wouldn't be able to see vampire scars like they did, so it was okay.

And then Maddie decided it was time to give her parents a present. She still wasn't sure if it was a good idea, because it wasn't special. She hadn't bought it, it wasn't of any value. But it was dear to her heart and she had the urge to share it with them.

It made her a little nervous thinking about how they would react, but as long as they wouldn't laugh at her or tell her it was stupid, it would be fine.

"Mom? Dad?" Maddie asked while approaching her parents. She was hugging a present to her chest and bit her lip, not able to fully hide the anxiety she was feeling right then.

They looked at her, her father still had his arm around her mother's shoulders, who had a hand on her Dad's knee. They really looked cute together.

"This is for you, but it's okay if you don't like it," she said shyly, holding the present out for them to take.

"Nonsense, sweetie, I am sure we'll love it." Carlisle replied.

Maddie looked like she found his answer weird. "Why?"

"Because it is a gift from you." Esme said lovingly. Who could ever dislike a gift coming from one's own children?

She nodded, then gave it to her Mom.

Esme smiled when she, together with her husband, unwrapped it.

At first they frowned, because neither of them knew what it was.

It looked like a diary in petrol and purple, a dark satin ribbon around it. The back of it had been bend many times, it was clearly visible.

"It's my memory book," Maddie said when their expressions did not change.

Tanya gave it to her when she had moved in with them years ago. She had told Maddie that human memories would fade, and that maybe she could write down her happy memories so they would never leave her. It had been a little hard at first to really remember, to push the bad memories aside to make room for the long forgotten happy ones.

But she had managed.

Memories of her childhood, her parents and relatives, birthdays, whatever she could remember - she wrote it all down. But she had mainly drawn pictures of everything and everybody. The only thing that pained her was that she wasn't sure if the pictures of her father were accurate, even though she had tried so hard to remember every detail. Maybe she would ask Edward one day.

They lifted their heads and looked at her with wide eyes.

"You have a memory book?" Carlisle asked carefully.

"Uh-huh," she replied and sounded a little embarrassed. An uncomfortable feeling made itself known in the pit of her stomach and she squirmed a little.

Esme shook her head lightly. "Sweetie, why are you giving it to us?"

And Maddie looked down ... so it had been a stupid idea. Why had she ever blocked Edward's gift? He could have warned her. She just wanted to share her memories with them so they could get to know her better if they wanted to, but they clearly didn't want that.

The more she thought about what she had just done, the more a feeling of humiliation bloomed inside of her.

"Maddie, come here," Carlisle said softly when she didn't answer.

She took a step closer to them, and he grasped her by the hand, squeezing it in encouragement.

"I want you to read it," she told them hesitantly.

Esme tapped the top of the book. "But this is personal, dear, we couldn't-"

"Yes, you can. I want you to." Maddie's voice was louder now.

Carlisle put his other hand on top of Maddie's. "Why do you want us to read your private memories?"

"Because I trust you," she replied with a tiny shrug of her shoulders. There was no other explanation - she wanted them to read it, so they would know a little bit more about her. And she knew that they wouldn't tell anyone about her memories. They were her parents, after all.

The short, awkward silence was broken by Esme. "Aw, baby, come here," she cooed, handed Carlisle the book and hugged Maddie the moment she was close enough to her.

She pulled her to sit on her lap, hugging her even more.

Maddie was a little confused, but she didn't have the feeling anymore that they thought it was ridiculous.

When she pulled away, she saw that her Mom had tears in her eyes.

"I made you cry?" Maddie asked bashfully.

"Sweetheart, this is a beautiful Christmas present," Esme managed to say and cupped her cheek.

That relieved Maddie and she smiled. The nervousness she had felt before vanished into thin air and she gave her mother a peck on the cheek before skipping over to Alice who just called her name.

Carlisle wasn't sure if Maddie really understood why Esme reacted the way she had. He wasn't even sure if she understood what she had just done.

It was very sweet of his daughter to be willing to share her memories with them, but her words were the reason why Esme was moved to tears. Maddie said she trusted them and they could feel that she really meant it, and that was the best present ever.

The family exchanged more presents and when Esme and Alice suddenly walked towards the entrance door, Maddie looked up.

"What are you doing?" she asked, frowning.

It confused her that they would leave the room just like that, and it confused her even more that nobody else seemed to notice.

"They are just getting another present," Jasper told her, then threw are present towards her. "Here unwrap this."

Hm.

So Maddie just shrugged and ripped the paper off the present.

But when she felt a hand rub her shoulder and noticed an all too familiar smell, she whipped her head around and gasped.

"What? Are you just going to gape at me or do I get a hug?" Tanya asked with a smirk.

Maddie jumped up and threw her arms around her.

This was Tanya, she was really here. But why?

"You lied! You said -," she started to say in a rush, but got immediately interrupted by an index finger on her lips.

"Little one, I said we wouldn't be home for Christmas. And we are not, or does this look like Alaska to you?"

Yeah ... okay, Maddie should learn to listen closely. But this was obviously meant as a surprise, so either way, Tanya wouldn't have told her that she was going to be visiting them.

"Merry Christmas, baby."

She was all smiles and leaned into Tanya, but suddenly pulled away when she realised something.

"We?" she asked, repeating the term Tanya had used.

Tanya smirked, so Maddie looked over to the front door that was still open.

She squealed when she saw who stood there leaning against the doorframe, smiling at her.

Darting from the room, she then jumped right into Eleazar's arms, her arms flung around his neck and her legs around his waist - she looked like a little baby monkey.

"Por fin te veo, niña." He laughed in response to her enthusiasm and hugged her tightly, patting the back of her head.

"Dónde está Carmen?" Maddie asked while being set down on her feet again a few moments later.

"Te manda saludos," he replied and Maddie's face fell.

"Anda ya." Carmen entered, slapped him lightly on the arm and hugged a surprised looking Maddie.

"Cuánto has crecido!" Carmen said when she pulled away again and looked Maddie over.

Ha, so both were in a happy joking mood.

"Ya lo creo!" Maddie replied and grinned. She knew they were speaking Spanish with her to check if she could still understand it. They had taught her, after all, to keep her busy while she couldn't leave the house. And because they wanted her to speak Spanish, of course.

Kate and Irina came in next after having parked the car, and everybody greeted each other.

"... and this, Maddie, is for you," Tanya said and handed Maddie a present. "It's from all of us."

Maddie was last, but they did that on purpose. And because Maddie wanted to give them her presents first.

She had already made up a parcel with gifts for the Denalis a week ago and gave it to Alice so she could send it to Alaska. But all Alice did was hide it, because she knew they would be here for Christmas.

So now Maddie sat on the couch Indian style and felt the present. It seemed to be a book and when she had finally unwrapped it she saw that it was indeed a book.

"A picture book of Iceland?" Maddie asked and looked puzzled. She had never been to Iceland and she knew nothing about that country, so she had no clue why they would give her a book about it.

"Maybe you should open it," Kate, who was sitting on the armchair across from Maddie, suggested and raised an eyebrow.

That was a good idea actually, so Maddie opened the book and gasped.

"Flight tickets? We're going to Iceland?" she suddenly squealed, her face lit up instantly at the prospect.

"We haven't seen you for a while and so we thought it would be nice to take you on a little trip," Tanya smiled.

That was crazy ... Maddie hadn't expected to see them for Christmas. Heck, she hadn't expected to see them until Easter! But now her family was here, every single one of them. And she would even fly to a different country! She would see something completely new and she was so excited that she had no words to describe what she felt right then.

This definitely was the best Christmas ever. Everybody was here, chatting away, enjoying the beautiful atmosphere and, of course, having the whole family together.

And nobody fought! It was like Christmas made them high or something, because each and every one of them was relaxed and happy.

Oh dear ... Maddie started whining when she saw Emmett getting his camcorder. Nope, he didn't want to use it but instead connect it to the TV to show their relatives Maddie's school event from the day before.

She pleaded with him to put her new DVD into the player instead, but the Denalis were excited about Emmett's suggestion and insisted on watching the play which they had unfortunately missed.

Funny enough, her mood changed the moment she saw the first scene where a girl was wearing her costume the wrong way ... then another girl nearly falling off the stage. So when the part came where she was singing, she didn't mind anymore, because she was busy laughing at everything ... and Valerie. Revenge is so sweet, especially when nobody knows who's behind it.

They tried the trampoline next, and it was so much fun.

Tanya absolutely loved the trampoline, maybe even more that Emmett or Maddie. Sometimes she could be quite childish for a thousand year old vampire.

And then, suddenly, the first snowflakes started falling.

Phew!

I hope you are not mad that I focussed on the presents. I know Christmas is not about presents, but I only described a few hours, kay?

And I hope the Spanish part was more or less correct. My Spanish is quite shitty because I got kicked out so please bear with me.

But ... did you like this chapter?

REVIEW!