Author's note: This is something I wrote for my own fulfillment, because I know it won't satisfy my readers as the true ending to Without You. And, to be honest, if this had been the real ending, it would have been crummy. I wouldn't have liked it, my reviewers wouldn't have liked it, Carlisle (my editor) wouldn't have liked it, Stephenie Meyer wouldn't have liked it. Nobody would have liked it! ;) But I couldn't resist posting it anyway. It may be a little premature, since the real story isn't even finished, but it does jive with the rest of Without You.
You see, this ending picks up from Chapter 30, Rational Fear. So, if you want to read this, you must read to ch. 30 first. Imagine if the story had stopped at Ch. 30, and this was the epilogue. Now you can see why this wasn't the real ending. :) And even though this might give some things away, it is NOT a spoiler. It deviates so much from the story, but hopefully not from canon, that it hardly gives anything away. This just caught my fancy, that's why I posted it.
So, without further ado, ladies and gents, I give you the---
Alternate Ending to Without You
I drummed my fingers lazily on the stone wall, watching the sunlight streaming in through the high windows. From here I could see every particle of dust illuminated by the beams, dancing like fairies in the window. Across the hall from me my master, Carlisle, stood with his eyes fixed with a dead look on the great, wide doors at the front of the room. I wondered where Adelaide and Harker were. They were the other two belonging in Les Trois, or The Three, as they were called by most, the vampires that were the head of our army. Our leaders were hardly apart from each other, especially not when we were expecting visitors.
My master sighed in a bored manner, and I was instantly at his side. "Is there anything you need, sir?"
Waving me away, he said, "No. There is nothing, Gianna. Go back to your window-watching."
I frowned, always disappointed by his coldness. I knew Carlisle yet had his wife tucked somewhere in the castle, with whom he conversed frequently, but did he have to be so disinterested? Considering how hard I tried to please him, I would have liked something in return for my work. Oh, well. It beat slaving under Adelaide's hateful rule, or putting up with Harker's manipulations. By far, Carlisle was the easiest of the three masters to serve. He was certainly better than Aro, Marcus, and Caius had ever been. Once my master had changed me into a vampire, I had scorned my time with the old-fashioned Volturi. They were history, old news compared to my new master.
"Gianna," Carlisle said suddenly, bringing me to the present, "inform Adelaide of my son's visit. They are fast approaching the castle, I think."
"Yes, master," I stammered, perplexed. Why was Carlisle telling Adelaide of his pariah of a son's arrival?
"Now, Gianna," Carlisle added, after I stood for another second to drink in his rapt expression.
"Yes, sir."
I raced along the corridors of the castle, searching for our main leader's distinctively beautiful face. On my way I passed a wraith-like vampire, surrounded by five larger figures, leaning against an arched doorway. The wraith's skin was sparkling in the sunshine, her heart-shaped face serene for a moment. This was one vampire everyone knew of, talked of secretly, but rarely saw. Esme, Carlisle's lovely wife, still too young to be so worn. The rumor was that the doctor's wife did not take well to the secluded, dark way of life we were forced to live in Volterra, only appearing to the humans in the night and on select days. There was a second rumor, one that was hushed quickly by wiser soldiers: Esme missed her former family, a coven now led by Carlisle's first creation, Edward Cullen.
I flew by Esme and skidded to a stop in front of a cloister filled with admiring male vampires. Yes, this had to be where Adelaide was. "I need to speak with Miss Adelaide," I said in a business-like voice. "Let me through."
The crowd parted fairly easily-- I wasn't lacking in feminine charm, either --and I soon found myself before her. Adelaide raised her delicate eyebrows, the corners of her mouth turning up in a subtle, condescending sneer. She had never liked me. "Yes, Gianna?"
"Master wishes to inform you that his son will arrive shortly," I relayed primly, emphasizing 'master'. I was Carlisle's servant only, not Adelaide's.
"Very well," she answered, and followed me out of the cloister. The men trailed behind us, curious. I noticed Adelaide didn't send them away, that she was even happy they were coming with us. What was she planning? I thought of speeding ahead of the group and warning Carlisle of the entourage accompanying Adelaide, but rejected the idea.
"What's all this?" came the voice of the second leader, Harker, his compact body appearing a moment later in our path. The second head of Les Trois was always domineering, less so than Adelaide, but definitely more overbearing than Carlisle.
"The strange coven is coming soon," said Adelaide, with a dismissive toss of her hair. I smirked, thinking of how badly our mastermind wanted the 'strange coven' in her army. With their extraordinary powers, the Boston coven was a force to be reckoned with.
"Ah." Harker did nothing to stifle his disapproval. "And they shall be allowed inside the castle?"
"I suppose, Carlisle's waiting for them."
Making a noncomittal noise, the second leader fell in step with me, giving me a nod of acknowledgment. To be polite, I nodded back, although I cared for Harker about as much as I cared for Adelaide.
"I don't understand Carlisle's tolerance with this coven," muttered Harker. "They come visit once every five years. Why?"
Adelaide laughed. "They were his first coven, Harker. Of course he has a certain fondness for them."
"Not all of them are his. And they're outcasts," the second leader emphasized. "They're freaks!"
I frowned at this phrasing; Carlisle wouldn't approve of that sort of language being applied to the Boston coven.
We all entered the main hall in an orderly mess, with Harker and I heading the chaos. Carlisle didn't turn at the sound of our approach, but kept his eyes fixed on the outward doors, his hands curled into loose fists. Adelaide sniffed, piqued at this apparent disregard for her awesome presence, but the rest of us took it in stride. We were used to being ignored by the third leader of Les Trois. "Carlisle," said Adelaide, in an attempt to get his attention, "do you know if there have been any additions to the coven?"
Carlisle didn't answer-- he didn't even spare Adelaide a glance. It was if she'd never spoken a word.
Adelaide whispered something about 'selective hearing' to herself, scowling heavily at the third leader's back. I took my usual place, on Carlisle's left side and down two paces. From the horde of male vampires came Lucas, a former Volturi warrior, now Carlisle's right hand man. He moved with the lithe gracefulness of a natural fighter, even more coordinated than the average vampire, as he slunk to Carlisle's other side. Our master gave neither of us a sign that he knew we were beside him, but remained facing forward.
There was the sound of many feet on the stones outside the entrance to the main hall, and we all tensed, standing a little straighter. I was eager to see again the strange coven that everyone was aware of, but had tried to avoid on their visits to the castle. The first time I had seen them, one of their number had been a human, a plain girl with an insanely appealing scent. I'd actually encountered her as a human myself, years before, when the Volturi had still ruled the vampire world. I wondered if she was still human, almost a decade older than when I'd greeted her in human form. Surely she'd been changed by now, or killed.
Hollow on the massive wooden door, a knock rang out. Its echo bounced off the hall for several seconds, while we all held our breath. Carlisle broke the silence by turning around. "Open the doors," he ordered of two burly young vampires amidst Adelaide's swarm. They hurried to comply, unwilling to irritate the one who was reputedly the most lethal of Les Trois when provoked.
With loud groaning, the double doors swung inward, and with the influx of cloud-dampened sunshine--
They came.
They entered in a point formation, the bronze-haired leader, Edward, at the peak of the point. He was the same as when I'd first met him as a Volturi employee, with his startlingly unique hair and his brooding expression. He strode into the hall with confidence, the assurance of a secure leader.
Behind him was a dazzling brunette, one who I recognized immediately as Bella Swan, the girl that had once been human. Now she was as timeless as the others, her bone white face fresh and alert. She looked beyond her mate and flickered her fingers in a timid wave at Carlisle. I saw the corners of my master's lips turn up.
Next to Bella was the tall, blonde vampire, Jasper. He was clearly uncomfortable with his surroundings, his movements tight with edginess. Jasper was one of the coven members Adelaide longed for, with his ability to influence the feelings of those around him.
After Bella and Jasper was a group of three: on the left was a tiny, dark-haired woman, the spring in her step out of place in the frigid tension of the main hall; to her right was a huge vampire, his muscles prominent as he stalked across the stone floor; and to the far right was the huge vampire's, Emmett's, mate, the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen. We females in the army burned with envy whenever we had the misfortune of seeing Rosalie's perfection in close quarters, her figure and her face putting us to shame.
The last couple to come through the doorway caused a small growl to issue from Adelaide's throat. The black-haired male, his eyes as amber as the rest of the unnatural coven's, didn't break step as he glanced over at our primary leader. The small redhead next to him laid one hand on his forearm, her own yellow eyes piercing our ranks with a spark of fiery temper. The male was Blaise, Adelaide's ex-mate, who had abandoned her for the restricting life of the Boston coven. His new mate was called Maggie, an Irish vampire, the sole survivor of her original coven.
As the conglomeration came to a halt Edward stepped forward. Carlisle slid away from us, and Lucas twitched in agitation. He considered himself our master's bodyguard, so it was physically painful for him to watch Carlisle put himself in a potentially dangerous situation. I didn't much applaud my master's trust in the odd coven, regardless of the fact that they were his creations. They were strangers to our ways, and that meant they were unpredictable.
"Carlisle." Edward stretched out his hand, almost touching the sleeve of Carlisle's right arm.
Nodding coolly back, our master addressed his son. "Edward. How are things in America?"
"Nothing spectacular," Edward shrugged. "Boston is rainy as ever. How are you?"
"We're doing quite nicely here," returned Carlisle evenly, his voice betraying no emotion. But I saw the twitch on the left side of his face, a sign of a repressed feeling.
"I can see that," said the younger vampire leader, his eyes ranging over the mob gathered behind us. "Has your army grown more?"
"We have four or five new members, but nothing susbstantial." With a wave of his hand, Carlisle brushed aside those new additions to our numbers without a second thought. I knew this army really meant little to him, and that Adelaide was the one hungry for power. Secretly, I hoped that I meant something to him, even if none of my colleagues did.
Edward's eyes narrowed, and his glance darted to my face. "Where's Esme, Carlisle?"
"Esme never comes to the main hall, Edward." Seemingly of its own volition, Carlsile's tone grew softer when he spoke about his wife. "She finds the amount of sun too damaging."
That wasn't the truth, and Carlisle knew it. The truth was his reclusive wife couldn't bear to be so close to the outside world, and yet be too far away to touch it or see it. She would rather stay huddled in the recesses of the castle than be that near to her old life. Sadly, I wondered if Carlisle would ever see how pathetic his wife was, how she was half the woman a man like him deserved. I wasn't egotistic enough to think that I could fill the void such an unworthy wife left, but my master needed a stronger partner, someone who wasn't afraid of our life as the rulers of the vampire world. Perhaps, if he would only allow me into his confidence, I could substitute for the better mate waiting somewhere out there for him.
"Can we talk privately?" asked Edward through clenched teeth. I started at the acrimony in his voice. Lucas tensed.
"I'm afraid not," answered Carlisle. "There is nowhere private in Volterra." Was that a hint of sarcasm, black humor?
"Are your assistants necessary, then?" Edward was mortally offended by our mere presence, apparently.
"Gianna, Lucas, retreat." Lucas opened his mouth, and shut it smartly back when he caught Carlisle's gaze.
"Yes master," we murmured at once, fading smoothly into the crowd. The other vampires looked curiously at us, some with jealousy and some with caution.
"How is the rest of your family?" Carlisle didn't inquire directly of the other coven members; he still commincated only with his son.
"We're fine, Carlisle," piped up Bella, from behind Edward. Her voice was low and musical, much more pleasant than her human voice. "We--" she cut off, staring anxiously at her mate.
"We've had over four years in Boston, now." Edward commanded the conversation again, reaching back and entwining the fingers of his right hand with his mate's. "It's been excellent, so far. I still work at the hospital, as usual."
"Good," said Carlsile. "How is the Alaska coven?"
I shifted uneasily. Thinking of more than one abnormal coven was uncomfortable, to say the least. The two large covens in North America--the Boston coven and the Alaska coven--shared the same unnatural diet of animal blood, which put Adelaide and Harker on edge. What if these strange groups decided to band together, like they had ten years before, and tried to overthrow Les Trois?
"They're getting along well. Did you know they have another couple in the family?"
Adelaide and Harker shared a shocked glance, and I heard a snicker from one of the Boston vampries. While Edward was focused on his former leader, somebody was keeping an eye on us.
Carlisle didn't appear phased by this new development. "Is that so? Two more members?"
"Yes," Edward continued on, oblivious to our two masters' reactions. "Jamie and Anna. They're both Tanya's creations, actually."
This piece of information did interest our master. Carlisle sounded truly intrigued as he said, "So they are both newborns?"
"No, they've been around for eighteen months. They're past the newborn madness, now."
"Tanya created them?" Carlisle was incredulous. "Her first try?"
"She said she just couldn't live without them. She met them on a visit to us in Boston, when she stopped by the hospital for a couple minutes. First she made Anna, and then Jamie, her husband, tried to kill himself when she went missing. So Tanya had to change him as well." Sighing, Edward shook his head. "I told her it was a horrible thing to do, but it turned out all right in the end. They were both my patients, you see, so I wanted them to die naturally."
Carlisle rocked back on his heels, taking a step away from his son. "That's understandable, of course," he replied neutrally.
"I hate to interrupt," Adelaide put in brusquely, putting herself forward, "but we can only admit visitors for so long. The sun is a factor we have to consider, you know."
"Naturally." Edward dipped his head in our female mastermind's direction. "It was nice seeing you again, Carlisle."
Once more, his hand stretched out, closing the distance between them. This time Carlisle took it, shaking it formally. He pulled back suddenly, however, and I could see, when he turned fractionally, the surprised expression on his features. There was something glittering in the palm of his hand, which I could glimpse when he turned. His eyes locked onto Edward's, inscrutable.
"Just something to remember us by," Edward said softly, dropping his hand. Bella looped his other arm around her waist, and he wheeled around with the rest of his coven. The two burly guards swung the doors wide open, and the Boston coven started to parade out. "We'll be back in another five years or so," called Edward over his shoulder. "You can expect us like clockwork. I'm sure you can tell us about any news, then."
With a bang the doors closed, and they were gone.
Carlisle was facing us now, the small, glinting object still in his hand. "You are dismissed," he announced to us all, the signal for us to clear out. Almost everyone obeyed, except for Lucas, Adelaide, Harker, and I. Lucas reattached himself to Carlisle's right side, and I glided silently to my place on his left.
Adelaide confronted our master, hands on hips. "What is that they gave you?"
"A trinket, that's all." Carlisle pocketed the object, but not before I got to find out what it was.
It was a ring, chunky but elegant, made of silver with an elaborate crest carved into the front. Its fine workmanship caught my attraction, and I began to ask him what family the coat of arms belonged to. But Carlisle's light tap on my arm warned me not to pry. "Would you like to retire for the day, sir?" I queried instead.
"I think so," he answered, sweeping past a fuming Adelaide and leading the way out. "You may leave me, Gianna. You too, Lucas."
Grimacing, Lucas and I stopped walking, watching Carlisle ghost through the side door of the hall. He had a quick pace, one to spirit him out too fast for Adelaide or Harker to prod him with any more questions.
But it wasn't fast enough for me to fail to see the broken look on my master's face as he left, the specter of painful memories haunting his coal-black eyes.
After Thought:
Shocking, isn't it? ;) Ah yes, but soooo deliciously novel! Who would have thought about Carlisle as the leader of an army like the Volturi? I hope I made it clear from the text, though, that Carlisle resembled Marcus the most of the three ancients: the life had been sucked out of him, to a certain extent. He had a little more bite left than Marcus, but not much. It was all repressed.
Don't give up on him! Carlisle will be Carlisle, pure and idealistic. Eventually he would break free, and bring down Les Trois with him. If this was the actual ending, which it's NOT.
I had no end of fun writing this. I'm sure you're all yelling, "So spend some time on the real story!". I am, but it's taking a lot of work. :( I'll try to update post-haste, my readers.
Please, please, PLASE review this story!!!! Give me some questions, I love rationalizing my weirdness. ;)