AN: I know i'm suppose to be writing one of my Twilight fanfictions...and i've been MIA forever...but it was time to let life go tto the background and work on something and i got a new idea. I hope you like it :)

Disclaimers: The Italian, i'm sure is butchered...i don't speak it and so i used a translator...therefore i'm sure it's not perfect. sorry :/

The Thin Line

by, FaithfullyTeamEdward1

Prologue: Italian Renaissance

Sergio Vitale. He was the richest man in Palermo, Italy. Tall, dark, handsome and mysterious as he was, he was the man every woman dreamed of having as a suitor. Every mother wished for their daughters to catch his eye. The people of Palermo worshipped the ground he walked on, but not Arianna Oliviero. While all of her friends giggled and whispered behind their hands, Adrianna turned and ignored the gossip and giggles. She felt that he was arrogant and couldn't stand that. Not to mention he was a living scandal. Everyone knew he lived with the beautiful Katarina Petrova, but they were not married. That was frowned upon, but nobody thought anything of it because it was Sergio Vitale and Katarina Petrova.

Arianna's indifference to Sergio was exactly what caught his attention. She was thirteen when he began to court her. But after three years, he'd still gotten nowhere…


"Arianna Veronica Sofia Ines Oliviero venire qui (come here)!" Arianna's father yelled irritably from the kitchen where he was seated at the table. Her mother was standing at the wood stove, placing wood into the fire, singing quietly to herself.

"Sì padre (yes father)?" Arianna asked, not reacting to the way he called her in. She was used to her father being irritable about everything, and she already had a feeing she knew exactly what he was going to say.

"Sedersi (sit down)," he ordered. Arianna did as he said and sat in silence, awaiting the conversation she knew was coming.

"Lei desidera non onorare la famiglia? (Do you wish to dishonor the family)"

Arianna looked down at her lap where her hands were folded, "No signore. (no sir)"

"Guardarmi! (look at me)" he yelled. Arianan's deep brown eyes shot up instantly to look her father in the eyes. He was drunk again, that was obvious. Her father's eyes were bloodshot and his pudgy face was red, almost purple. "Lei sposerà Sergio Vitale! (You will marry Sergio Vitale)" His eyes were dialated as he glared at his daughter.

"No," Arianna replied quietly. That was the last straw for her father. He stood, and though he was a short man, he rose with all the fury he could muster. Arianna's shoulders tensed as her father stepped towardss her. His strike came too fast for her to do much else but yelp. Her face snapped sideways and tears welled in her eyes from the sting of her father's blow to her face.

"Lei mi obbedirà! (You will obey me)" he demanded angrily. When Arianna said nothing, he snapped. Lunging forward, he grabbed his daughter around the neck, knocking her of the chair and throwing them both to the ground. Signora Oliviero turned at the racket and started screaming for her husband to stop, but he continued to choke Arianna.

Tears streamed from Arianna'seyes and she struggled to get out from under him, with no success. That just angered her father further and as a result, he began bashing her in the side of the head. She yelpedand tried harder to get away. Arianna was scared. Her father had hit her before, but he'd never attacked her in such a way as that.

"L'aiuto, Mamma! (Help, mama!)" Arianna whimpered.

But her mother just stood there, shocked into silence, wringing her hands. After, Arianna could no longer speak because her father had covered her mouth with his fat hand. Seeing a chance to escape, Arianna bit down hard on his hand and scuttled out from under him as he recoiled from the bite. Gasping, she gathered her skirts and ran for the ditchen door. Unfortuantely, for a fat man, her father was quick and grabbed herbefore she could make it out the door. The small man threw her against the wall with as much force as he could and began hitting her again, screaming, "Come osarla è corso! (How dare you run)"

"Papà, la fermata! (Papa, stop)" she plead.

He grabbed her shoulders and started shaking her roughly. That's when Arianna realized she was bleeding. Blood dripped from her nose and the side of her head. It dripped, staining her dress and onto her father's shirt.

"Papà, per favore! (Papa, please)" Her voice was fading into nothing.

But he didn't stop. He just continued to punch and shake her. As she struggled, strength fading and becoming aware of the bruises rising on her face and body that he was inflicting, she forgot about the opening that led into the cellar. Just as she thought he was going to give up and she was starting to black out, her father shoved her backwards. Screaming and grabbing for something to hold onto, her fingers found nothing. Falling down the stars into the cellar, Arianna's world went black...