I do not own these characters, Stephenie Meyer does -I just make them fall in love, and get jealous.

Two young children lived alone with their mother in one of the many small villages of old Italy. They were seemingly happy children, attending school whenever able and helping their mother with the cleaning.

During these times, it was odd for a widow not to remarry, as it was difficult for a woman to come upon work other than cleaning and sewing. Still though, she refused any suitors who came to her doorstep.

At nighttime, after her twins were put to bed, she sat near the fire, mending holes in shirts for money. She had never had any proper training as a tailor, but she charged much less, and always had a bundle of clothing to stitch. It was during this time, that she would sit on her stool near the fireplace and think back to her own girlhood.

When she turned twelve years old, near the age of her own children, her father had begun to look through the village for available men with whom he could set up a match. By then time she had turned thirteen, the proper age for a young woman to marry, her father had found none that wanted to marry the daughter of a farmer. They did not have a lot of money, and at the time, farmers were not thought to be of any social importance, but she was beautiful. Wavy, ash, brown hair, and eyes as dark as coals. She looked much older than the tender age of thirteen, because her body had matured much quicker than the other girls in the village -this was said to be good for child bearing.

Finally, one day, when her father returned from town, he announced that he had found a match for his daughter. Her match arrived the next day for dinner, and her parents could not have been more pleased with him. He was a merchant, and owned his store in the village. This would have been pleasing, even exciting to her had he not been so old. From what he had told her mother, he was just turning thirty five. She had depended on her mother to tell the man no -to throw out the whole idea, but it was her mother who had changed her mind.

"You must do this. I know he may be older than you feel comfortable with, but he can take care of you and love you, and in time, you will grow to love him back."

In just two short weeks, she was married. Her life changed drastically. She had new dresses to wear, always had food on the table, and learned to deal with her new husbands needs. Although her husband was a "needy" man, they had been married for ten years before she became pregnant. Instead of one child, they had been two. A rarity at the time.

They were named Jane and Alec. Even as infants they were closer than any siblings she had ever heard of. They cried together, laughed together, even began growing their teeth at the same time. As toddlers, they barely spoke to her -barely spoke at all actually. It was if they had their own language, which needed no words, and through that, they would communicate. As Jane and Alec grew, they spoke up more, but still remained as close to each other as ever -finishing the others sentences.

When the children turned ten, her husband died, of what the doctor said was a heart attack. She realized at this time that her mother had been right. She had learned to love him. Although he was old enough to be her father, he had taken care of her, loved her, and given her two children who were quiet, but obviously loved her unconditionally. No other man would ever take his place.

Because of her decision, the family of three quickly began to run low on money. She had to sell the store, and buy a small house near the edge of the village. They lived off of that money for almost a year and a half, that was when she began sewing clothes.

Many other women in the village wondered why she decided to never remarry -because they doubted if they could support two children on their own. Loving a dead husband too much was not a good enough reason for them, especially since they had been so far apart in ages. With their questions, came answers, gossip passed from mouth to ear, and around again.

Stories of witches were popular in neighboring villages. Everyday, news of another death lingered through the streets. Burnings and hangings were the most popular form of execution of a witch, but drowning and pressings were used just as often. It was believed only a witch could survive such punishment, so when every person who had been accused died, those in charge of the slayings claimed that the witch must have been controlling them.

When the twin's mother decided not to marry, and still was able to feed her children, and clothe them, people in the village began to whisper. Many knew that she had taken up sewing, but they refused to believe that it was enough to live off of. Then, people began involving the twins in their stories, claiming that giving birth to two children at once, and having both of them live into childhood, was an abnormality -not something seen in normal households. As all rumors do, they spread to the children. Soon Alec and Jane were no longer accepted among their peers.

It didn't bother them at all though, as they rarely ventured out of their own little world to play with others, but as the rumors circulated, their usual behavior became the village's obvious sign of witchcraft.

Men stopped bringing their shirts for their mother to mend, and money became scarce. Dinner soon became nothing more than water thickened with animal fat and a crust of bread, if they were lucky.

One chilly morning, the towns people had all they could take. With torches lit, and pitch forks in hand, they made their way to the home of the so-called witches. Pounding upon the door awoke the mother, who scrambled to the door, praying it be a customer who had yet to hear of the villages lies. Instead, she was met by every villager. Men grabbed her wrists and held her tightly, as more entered her home in search of the twins. Jane and Alec were pulled from their bed, without even having time to put on their shoes, because everyone knows a witch doesn't feel the cold. The mother wept as she and her children were placed onto the back of a wagon, the twins remained silent as ever.

When they were brought to the center of the village, the mother was placed in stalks. Arms and neck, between heavy wooden boards to keep her from moving around. Alec and Jane were tied to either side of the stalks, by their wrists and ankles. This is where they were meant to stay, until the following morning, where they would be tried as witches before the village.

Jane and Alec sat dutifully by their mother's side, unmoving, and quiet. Even when mother's brought their children by to throw rotten vegetables at the family, they never moved. A tomato hit Alec across the face, he merely closed his eyes as the horrid smelling pulp oozed down his face. Jane's hand found Alec's, and squeezed. He squeezed back.

Through the day, they listened as their mother coughed, gasping for air. It pained them to see such a caring woman go through the pain she was. They realized, that although they had always been content and happy with each other, life as they knew it, was unfair. At the end of the day, Alec and Jane were in the same spot that had been placed in that very morning. Stinking, rotten, food surrounded them and befouled their clothing. A young girl had even come close enough to Jane to spit in her hair, yet they never moved an inch. At twilight, when the weather began getting cold again, and every other child was tucked safely into bed, Jane and Alec's heads turned, in unison, to their mother, who was quickly becoming tired. She had been catching a cold, and thanks to the days labor on her body, she was losing the strength to keep standing. Her knees began to shake, then, gave out.

Jane and Alec watched in horror as their mother began choking. She tried to pull herself back up onto her legs, but there was no strength left in her body. The twins suddenly became frantic, pulling at the ropes which bound them to the stalks. Then, their mother stopped moving, her body became limp, and was slumped awkwardly against the stalks. The twins had just watched their own mother die, without anything they could do to help.

Once again, they became like stone. Backs against the wooden wall that now held their mother's lifeless body up, hand in hand. The night became cold, and the two were still in their evening clothes. It was a wonder they did not freeze, but when they awoke in the morning, a blanket was rested over them. Neither had heard anyone walk across the rocks around them.

"Thieves!" "Witches!" "Children of Satan!" Those were just a few of the names called at them when the village people arrived the next morning and saw the blanket. Alec and Jane remained quiet. Neither admitting or denying guilt. When the townspeople found their mother dead, they claimed it was Alec and Jane who had killed her. With their magic.

After finding the blanket and their dead mother, the townspeople found no reason for a trial. The twins were obviously behind all of the sickness and bad fortune in the city. They were dragged by the ropes that had tied them to the stalks, to another platform. This platform too, had been built quickly and haphazardly. The town blacksmith stood upon it, his weight causing the stage to sway , and tied Alec and Jane to the pole in the middle.

As the villagers gathered wood and placed it all around the base, their children stood to watch. Some stood with smiles, plastered on their faces, while others stood and watched with curiosity. They were all expecting the twins to begin crying, screaming for mercy, but not a single tear or moan escaped their lips. Instead they stood tall, eyes wandering out and meeting the other children's eyes.

"Ah! Pain! I beg you witch -Leave me be!" A small girl began screaming, pointing at Jane. Parents began running back to their children, watching the spectacle before them.

"Mercy of God be with them!" The pastor shouted, holding his cross out to the screaming girl.

"I can see the dead woman! He is sending the dead woman after me!" Another child screamed out, one arm pointing at Alec, and his other arm pointing into thin air. Other children, also began screaming -either about feeling intense pain or seeing things that were not there.

"Burn them now! Put our children at ease!" A woman pleaded, wrapping her screaming daughter in her arms. Many parents began shouting, screaming at the pastor, the men, and the twins. Jane and Alec watched, with interested looks in their eyes. Then, the screaming mother took a torch from her husband's hand and stomped towards the platform. She stuck the fire deep into the wood, others followed her example. It took a minute for the fire to become anything more than a few burning embers, but quickly, Jane and Alec could feel the heat of the flames upon their feet.

Then out of nowhere, they saw flashes of white come from different angles. The fire grew higher. It had reached their height, but still was a few feet away due to the platform. Screams were heard, but they did not come from the twins. They were blood curdling screams of pure and intense pain. Children and adults alike. The fire grew closer, the twins closed their eyes.

Then, Jane smelled the most wonderful scent, and suddenly she felt a cool touch on her neck. Then she felt as if she were on fire, though it was different than being burned by real fire. This burning sensation was in her veins, coursing through her body. She reached for Alec's hand, and his reached for her. Alec held her hand tightly, and opened his eyes just in time to see a burgundy pair staring back into his own. A cool touch, then the burning began. It was the first time in the twins lives that something happened to one before the other. Something that was going to change their lives forever.

"Jane!"

"Alec!"

For the first time in the past two days, the twins spoke. They screamed each other's names, and squeezed each other's hands. Their yells echoed through the village, which was now silent -all screams had stopped. All the people were no more.