Thanks to Rosabelle Crombwell for letting me use her plotline!

Thanks to RDoster2012 for beta reading this story!

God, has it really been two weeks since I last updated? I'm so sorry folks, but I hope you enjoy the chapter! Happy reading!


Word Count- 5244


Chapter 2-Choices

Bella POV:

September 6th, 1997

I've been stuck in this place, now known as the hellhole, for a week, doing the same routine over and over again, day after day. The repetitive motions were not calming at all.

On Sunday I was informed that it was the only free day any of the kids got. I spent my time reading "Wuthering Heights" and spending time getting to know Avalyn. I learned her last name was Masen and that she was 15-years-old. I hung out with Gracie too, but I did not relate to her very well.

It wasn't exactly her personality or her hobbies; I was acquaintances with plenty of girls who loved pink and all things shopping, but we just didn't share the same loves in life, which left us with not much in common to talk about. She and I just didn't really click. Gracie had never really known a life outside of the group home, and I wasn't used to this 'place' like she was.

At six-thirty in the morning on Monday , Ms. Jenna banged on a gong, an actual gong, to wake us up. It completely covered the sound of my alarm clock and jolted me out of bed. I got up, threw on a set of clothes without caring what it was, and was downstairs by six-forty; it had taken me awhile to brush through my tangled hair. By seven I was completely finished getting ready, with a small backpack in my hands. Avalyn lent it to me.

We all filed into one bus, which dropped us off at our different schools. Gracie stuck by my side to escort me to the office so I could find out where my classroom was. When we entered the office the receptionist looked up from her desk.

"Hello Gracie, and you must be Bella. Ms. Jenna called this morning and said that you came to her home over the weekend. She didn't give us much information, but told us your age and grade level. She will have to come down today to officially register you in school. But in the meantime, we have you in Mrs. Wickman's class.

Gracie, could you please show Bella where the class is? And please don't be late for your class. My name is Mrs. Hewitt by the way, and if you need anything, please come see me and I will help you."

I smiled at Mrs. Hewitt and politely thanked her, then Gracie led me down a long hallway before gesturing to a classroom.

I took a deep breath before entering. This was so strange, I have never been in a different school before, always having gone to Forks Elementary, and growing up with the same faces my whole life. To say I was nervous would be an understatement.

I hesitantly opened the door and walked inside. The entire class immediately went silent, and looked at me. I felt my face grow hot at their attention. I was so used to fading into the background.

A kind-looking woman with straight brown hair, green eyes, and freckles came over and told me she was Mrs. Wickman. She placed her left hand on my back and introduced me to the class. "Everyone, this is Bella Swan. She just moved here, so be nice."

'Thank you for kind people,' I thought. She didn't openly announce the fact that I was an orphan; she and I would get along just fine.

Mrs. Wickman then steered me towards the back of the class after getting me my books, placing me at an empty group of desks. Glory hallelujah, here was a teacher who actually knew I liked working alone.

I quietly thanked her and she smiled at me before going back to the front of the class.

That was when I started getting restless, having already learned the material she was teaching. I sighed and settled in for a boring day.

When I got home, there was a list of chores on the wall next to the stairs. I dumped my school bag in my bedroom then went back downstairs to complete the tasks set before me. I managed to get everything done in an hour, so I had thirty minutes before dinner to read. I did just that, and I reluctantly set down "Wuthering Heights" before making my way down to the dining room. I ate my dinner silently, not wanting to make an example of myself, then went back upstairs as soon as I could. I spent the next few hours reading and turned the lights out at nine, but not before setting my alarm for six-twenty so I could be up before the ghastly gong woke me.

This became my schedule for the rest of the week: Get ready for school, suffer through learning material I already knew, do chores, read, eat dinner, and read for the rest of the evening. I couldn't believe that it had been a week and I was already bored.

It was finally the weekend, and I had just finished my chores. I was sitting in my room waiting for lunch, bored half to death as Avalyn and Gracie were still working and I did not feel like reading. I couldn't very well practice on a piano or flute, so testing my music skills was out of the question, and since I also didn't have any access to the internet, my advanced education could not amuse me. I was at a loss as to what I could do with myself. Just as I was about to go downstairs…

Ms. Jenna suddenly walked in. I was shocked. She never came into any of the kids' rooms, especially not any of the kids she hated. I sat there with my mouth agape until she said, "Isabella-"

I cut her off firmly, saying, "My name is Bella!"

Ever since last Saturday's dinner, Ms. Jenna seemed to harbor a grudge against me. She gave me the worst chores possible, ignored my presence, which I didn't really mind, and when she did choose to acknowledge my existence, she refused to call me 'Bella' just to spite me!

"Whatever," she continued, "there's a family here to see you by the name of Volturi." She then turned on her heel and walked away with a weird swing to her hips.

I got up off my bed. 'At least this is something to do,' I thought as I made my way down the stairs. I stopped at last step when I looked up to see a group of people all with chalky white skin and black eyes. I thought back to when that woman attacked my family. While her eyes were a bright crimson, there was one moment they flashed to black when she inhaled through her nose. They were vampires!

'Powerful coven… Want your power… The leaders… The strongest… ' The voice from the attack was back! As my eyes flickered over each of the vampires, the voice named each of them. 'Aro… Caius… Marcus… Jane… Alec… Demetri… Felix…'

I took a deep breath and forced myself to continue walking forward to the Volturi. I stopped stiffly in front of the one named Aro, squaring my shoulders. I formally said, "Hello Aro."

A look of shock crossed his face before he could mask it. He then smiled widely, looking akin to the grinch, and responded, saying, "Hello Isabella. You obviously know our names; what else do you know?"

The blonde man… Caius, I think, then stepped forward, a hard look on his face. After seeing this, the soft pink bubble that protected me from the vampire attack projected around me. I decided to call it a shield since it defended me from the assault. Pink waves continuously flowed out of me, and they all stood there dumbfounded.

Caius reached out to touch the misty bubble cautiously and then pressed more firmly when his fingers did not go through it. When nothing happened again, he turned to Aro and nodded his head curtly.

"I know what you are. Vampires," I replied. "What are you doing here? What is it that you want?"

Aro answered, saying, "Dear Isabella, we wish for you to join the Volturi Guard. Because of your shield, we are not able to kill you for knowing our secret, so we will give you two options. You can come with us right now. We will raise you to fight, and change you when you turn twenty. The alternative is you can get adopted by another family, but we will come for you when you turn eighteen so you can be changed and then you shall train as a vampire."

I thought about those two options. They weren't exactly giving me much of a choice. I then thought of a quick comeback. "How will you get me? You said my shield would keep you from killing me, could it not be used to keep you from changing me?" I asked.

His countenance remained the same, but I could see his eyes harden. "My dear child," he said in a steely voice, "we are the most powerful coven of vampires. We have insurmountable ways to track you. No matter where you run or hide, we will find you. It could take weeks, months, years, but we will catch you when you least expect it. Now, what is your choice?"

I faltered a little but quickly decided to go with the second option. Any freedom was better than none. "If I'm not adopted within two weeks, you may come for me. I understand that your tracker will find me if I am adopted within the time frame."

I gingerly held out my hand to strike the deal, and Aro eagerly grabbed my hand with both of his. As we shook hands, a look of confusion passed over his face, and he frowned while muttering, "She has a powerful mental shield as well."

After Aro released my hand from his grip, I nodded and turned to walk back to my room. There was no point in lingering.

The Volturi filed past me, and when Aro passed me, he stuck a scroll that had my name on it in beautiful calligraphy in my left hand. In my right hand he put a medium sized package. It too had my name on it in calligraphy.

There was one change to my name that bothered me, although it was to be expected. The scroll read 'Isabella Marie Volturi'. Volturi, not Swan.

I stood in the doorway, mulling over the change in my last name. Were they really that confident that I would say yes? Granted, Aro did have to threaten me, but still.

I was pulled out of my thoughts by the sound of a door slamming, and I hurried up the stairs.

Just as I was about to open my door, a hand on my shoulder forced me to turn around, and I found myself staring into Avalyn's stormy purple eyes.

"Hi Avalyn," I greeted tiredly.

She got straight to her point. "You shouldn't get involved with the Volturi. They are bad news."

I sighed and said, "I'm sorry Avalyn, but my fate is already sealed. How do you know of the Volturi anyway?"

"It doesn't matter," she replied.

"Yes it does," I stubbornly said.

"Bella," Avalyn said sharply, "just drop it, okay?"

She walked away before I could say anything in return, so I trudged into my room.

I drifted through the rest of the day, my body on autopilot as I thought of my bleak future and Avalyn's secrets.

I finished my nightly routine and immediately climbed into bed at eight-thirty, turning out all the lights. The only light coming into the room came from the small crack under the door, and that soon vanished.

I was both physically and mentally tired, but I could not fall asleep. I lay awake in total darkness, struggling to shut my mind down. When unconsciousness finally dragged me under its blanket, I still thought of all my unanswered questions. Was there anyone more confused than me?

{{{{{{{{{{}}}}}}}}}}

September 7th, 1997

My day was not going my way whatsoever.

Breakfast was uneventful, although Ava kept staring at me while Gracey chattered on. It seemed to me that it wouldn't matter to her if the world was ending she would continue to talk.

When breakfast ended, everyone jumped up to go outside. I hurried upstairs to grab a jacket since it was a little chilly, but just as I was about to open the door, Ms. Jenna called and said there was a woman here to see me.

I trudged into the living room. As soon as I saw the woman, I knew she was a vampire. There was no need for the voice in my head, yet it made its presence known to me anyways.

'Maria,' it whispered angrily, like it was talking through gritted teeth.

I could tell Maria was not a woman I could trust. She looked to be of Mexican descent, but her chalky skin and crazed red eyes showed something more sinister. She was terrifying.

We went through the same process as the Volturi. Maria gave me the same options with slight changes. The first option was she would adopt me today, and I would observe her army until I was old enough to be changed. Once I was changed, I would become her personal bodyguard. The second option was I could get adopted by another family, and she would come for me when I was sixteen.

I told her that if I wasn't adopted within three weeks, she could come for me. I figured the Volturi would be better than Maria.

Maria also gave me a gift. It was a small blue box with gold swirls decorating the edges that she set down on the coffee table. She told me to open it later, and we bid each other good day.

I ran to my room. I put Maria's gifts on my bed then opened my closet to dig through my messenger bag and found the package the Volturi gave me. I flung it on my bed and closed my bedroom door so no one would see anything they shouldn't.

I opened the Volturi's package first. There was a lighter with tiny calligraphy on it, spelling out my name. I also found a midnight black cloak that was a few sizes too big on me. It to had my name on it in a beautiful embroidery. On the scroll with my name on it was a list of the Volturi Guard and all of their abilities.

Next was Maria's gift. I reached out to open the box, only to feel a stinging pain on my right forearm. I hissed before rolling up the sleeve of my shirt to see a silver, crescent-shaped scar where I felt the stinging sensation. I traced the shape lightly when I heard the voice again. 'Look inside the box… '

I peered inside and found a note and picture at the bottom. I reached in and accidentally touched the box six more times. Each time my skin came into contact with the box, another bite mark appeared on my right arm. I closed the box with my left hand and got a mark on that arm. I finally read the note so I could understand what was going on.

Dearest Isabella

If you have bite marks, do not worry, the box did not bite you. This is a sign that you are meant to join our race. You were born to become a vampire. Join me, and be our Southern Belle.

Yours,

Maria, Queen of the South

I gingerly reached out with my left hand and touched the box once more, immediately feeling a stinging sensation.

I started hyperventilating. Why me? Why did vampires have to mess with my life? To try and calm myself down, I picked up the picture that was in the box. It depicted a man with chin-length curls and dark eyes. I guess that meant his eyes were red. He was covered in crescent-shaped scars and was standing next to Maria. The back read, 'Major Whitlock's 10th Victory'

After examining it more thoroughly, I decided to put my so called 'gifts' in the back of my closet. 'Out of sight, out of mind,' I thought.

I tucked the box under my left arm, receiving three more stinging bite marks. I had seven on my right arm and five on my left. I put the 'gifts' in the back of the closet, and when I turned around, Avalyn was standing there.

"You need to stay away from vampires," she said bluntly.

'What!' I thought. How does she know about vampires?

She seemed to realize her mistake. "I, uh," she stuttered, "um, nevermind."

"Why should I?" I spit out, my anger and confusion over vampires building up. "You're so cryptic Avalyn. When I mention my sister, you shut down. When I asked how you knew of the Volturi, you pushed me away. Now you are saying to stay away from vampires, but you won't tell me how you know about them. Why do you care so much anyways?"

She stood there for a few seconds before spinning on her heel and dashing out of the room.

My body started shaking, and I fell down in the back of the closet. I began to cry, all my frustration pouring out of me in the form of tears.

I curled up in a ball, crying until I could cry no more. I finally fell unconscious, exhausted as I was.

{{{{{{{{{{}}}}}}}}}}

September 11th, 1997

Life has been hell these past few days.

I once again was stuck doing the same routine that I'd been stuck doing since I was dropped off here. Instead of reading when I finished with my chores though, I sat on my bed holding my legs while I stared blankly out the window.

When the sun set and we were told it was lights out, I stayed curled in a ball on the bed. I couldn't get to sleep, too afraid of my nightmares. By the time I did fall asleep, I ended up only getting about six hours before I awakened screaming and crying into my pillow.

Ms. Jenna was as snooty as ever, always giving me the most disgusting and grueling chores, but at least she did not openly talk about my nightmares anymore.

Avalyn was no longer speaking to me, and whenever I entered a room she would find some excuse to leave. I wanted to apologize for lashing out at her, yet some small part of me felt like she should tell me what was going on, that I deserved some answers.

I had finished my chores earlier than usual, so it was around five. I had an hour until dinner time, but I was not doing anything with myself; I had resumed my position on the bed while staring out the window at the fall leaves. It was definitely getting cooler. Autumn was most certainly on its way.

I expected I would be left alone until dinner, when I was forced to be in the company of other human beings. I had become quite invisible around here, just the way I prefered it. No one wanted to associate with the girl who didn't speak or always had her nose stuck in a book.

Alas, spending time with me, myself, and I was apparently not going to be possible today; Ms. Jenna waltzed into to my bedroom. And I was so looking forward to staring out my window.

"There is some family called the Cullens here to meet you brats, so get downstairs," she said before flouncing away. She was so weird.

I slowly uncurled myself from my ball, stretching like a cat as I did so. That felt rather good.

I started walking downstairs, coming to a quick halt on the bottom step. I felt a slight sense of deja vu from Saturday. The Cullens were obviously not related, yet they all had the same chalky skin and golden eyes.

They were all incredibly gorgeous. There was a young, blonde man that looked like a movie star, a woman standing next to him who looked very motherly. A pretty blonde girl who appeared standoffish, but seemed to melt around the children. She too had a motherly air about her. Next to her there was an intimidating dark haired man who was smiling with crooked dimples. An excited pixie looking girl with black hair was bouncing on her toes, and the man from Maria's black and white picture was standing with his arm around her. I tensed slightly at seeing him, but I could now see that he had honey blonde hair and instead of his eyes being red, they were a soft gold color, like the rest of the family. He had a look of pain on his face. Why? Then there was a bronze haired boy who I was automatically drawn to; he seemed friendly, yet he had a protective stance about him. Something in me knew he would be a good friend to have.

They had the same unnatural beauty as the Volturi and Maria, but how could they be vampires when they had gold eyes?

'Vegetarian vampires…' The voice whispered to me.

"What's a vegetarian vampire?" I muttered under my breath. They all looked shocked. Did they hear me?

The voice spoke to me again, this time in a 'duh' sort of tone. 'All vampires… have super speed… strength… sight… smell… and hearing… '

That did make sense. As I made my way to stand at the back of the group, they seemed to be more wary of me. Really? Lil' ol' human me made seven vampires wary?

The Cullens also seemed to be eyeing Avalyn. I wondered what that was about, but brushed it off so I wouldn't get too sidetracked.

"Hello, my name is Carlisle, and this is my wife, Esme," the blonde movie star said, holding the motherly woman closer to him. "This is my family," he continued, now gesturing towards each person as he rattled their names off, "Rosalie and Emmett," he said. They turned out to be the standoffish blonde and 'The Hulk', as I decided to call the intimidating man in my head. "Jasper and Alice," he continued, who ended up being the overexcited pixie and tall honey-blonde man. "And Edward," Carlisle finished, now waving his hand over to the bronze-haired teen.

"Why don't you tell us about yourselves?" He asked.

Gracie was more than happy to oblige. In her perky voice she said, "Hi, I'm Gracie Walker and I'm seven! I love shopping, pink, talking, makeovers, more shopping, and more pink!"

"I want her, her, her!" Alice squealed.

The rest of them chuckled at her antics while Carlisle told her, "Calm down, Alice. You may want her, but the others would like to meet everyone else."

Avalyn went next. "I'm Avalyn, and I hate talking," she said with a glare. They looked at her like she was an alien after that.

'I wonder why,' I thought.

'Gifts… Edward… reads minds… Alice… sees the future… Jasper… is an empath… ' the voice told me.

I wasn't sure how I felt about Alice and Jasper, but a least Edward can't read my mind because of the mental shield Aro said I had.

I still was curious about why they looked like they were having an intense conversation with Avalyn, but I figured I'd get answers soon enough.

I had tuned all the other introductions out while I was lost in thought. When I came back to the land of the living, they were on the last boy, Gabriel Truman. He gave a typical little boys' response.

"Uh, I'm Gabe, and I like video games. I'm eight, and I don't think girls have cooties. I like sports and watching TV. I also have three goals in life: get a girlfriend, get her to kiss me, and take over the world!"

Emmett and Jasper gave small smiles and nodded at him.

"Excuse me," interrupted Ms. Jenna. "Our youngest boy, Carter, is a nine month old who is currently sleeping. Let me know if you'd like to see him." She batted her lashes in what appeared to be a flirtatious manner.

The Cullens shook their heads then turned to me. I tugged on the sleeves of my shirt; it was a nervous habit, and they were all staring intently at me.

I was still undecided on whether or not I should tell them about my passions and dreams. Did I want to get out of this hellhole? Absolutely. Did I want to go with these 'vegetarian vampires', whatever that meant? I wasn't sure.

'Go… with them,' the voice faintly said.

'I'm not sure… ' I thought.

'Go with them!" The voice said again, this time with more power.

'Okay,' I thought to the voice, 'but only because you have helped me in the past, whoever you are.'

I tugged on my shirt sleeve again and took a deep breath. I put a small smile on my face and began. "Hi, my name is Isabella Swan, but I prefer Bella! I love music and have created a few compositions for the piano and flute. I like architecture, gardening, and would like to be a decent cook when I grow up. I enjoy studying cars and even signed myself up for Car and Driver. I recently became interested in Civil War history, and no offense to any Yanks, but I'm on the Confederates side. While they had some bad views on certain topics, like slavery, they also had some really great ideas for the government. Although it isn't really my thing, having grown up on a small town Chief of Police's and kindergarten teacher's salary, I will let you give me makeovers and go on shopping trips with you. I love literature, and one of my dreams is to do something in that field, but I do like studying medical journals and texts. I will also joke around with you if I feel like it!"

All of the Cullens looked shocked, even Edward, who had been staring sullenly at the ground most of the time.

I started to feel self-conscious under their gaze, but they suddenly surrounded me in a big group hug. They all said, "Welcome to your new home!" Emmett being the loudest.

Once they let go, I smiled and invited them upstairs to my room so they could help me pack my stuff.

Upon opening my door, I cringed to see how cluttered my room was. My sheet music was scattered over the desk, and I had random stacks of books here and there, some on the top of the stack lying open. The bookshelf was only being used for a few of my medical journals. 'There was so much more that I had to leave behind,' I thought sadly, running my fingers over one of the books that was lying open, 'Sense and Sensibility'.

I shook off my sadness and strode over to the bookshelf, gathering up my journals and cradling them in my arms. I looked each of the Cullens in the eyes and told them very seriously, "These are my journals, do NOT touch them without my permission or else you will meet the real side of Isabella Marie Swan Vol- uh, just Swan for now."

I winced mentally as I thought of how I was already losing myself to the Volturi, just by using their name.

They either didn't notice my mistake or they shrugged it off, probably laughing at the thought of a tiny human being able to hurt them. I snapped at them for underestimating me. "I'm serious. I own my dad's old lighter. You will not live to see the sun rise again."

That shut them up real quick, and I gave a small smile so I would seem less menacing while I apologized. "I'm sorry; you know I was just joking, right? My journals are just very special to me."

They smiled back at me and Carlisle walked purposefully over to me. He got down on one knee and asked in a kind voice, "May I please have a look at your journals?"

I grinned, biting my tongue so it wouldn't be too obvious, and said, "Yes."

He took them and walked over to my desk and sat down reading. Everyone else went to do their thing.

Edward sat down on my bed with a frustrated look on his face. It was probably because he couldn't read my mind. I grinned at the thought.

Rosalie and Alice dove for the closet and began packing my bags as fast as humanly possible. Or was it as fast as vampires could pack bags? I could not tell from my viewpoint.

Esme stood in the doorway with her hands clasped together and a warm smile on her face. I could tell she was adoring the scene in front of her.

Emmett, who I could tell was definitely the jokester of the family, plopped himself down on my beanbag and grinned impishly.

Jasper leaned into the corner of the room, his sharp eyes darting over everything that was going on in front of him. He then breathed in deeply and his eyes flashed over to me. My arms, more specifically. Did he know about my scars?

Thinking of my scars reminded me of the 'gifts' I had received. I rushed to the closet and quickly stuffed them in an extra bag. I didn't want the Cullens to find out about the Volturi and Maria and then not want me; they were too good of a family to lose.

When I came out of the closet with the bag thrown over my shoulders, I got some strange looks. Jasper looked just about ready to interrogate me, so before he could, I said, "These are gifts from other families who wanted to adopt me. They're supposed to be for my eyes only."

That seemed to appease most of them, but Edward, Carlisle, and Jasper still looked inquisitive.

Just then Rosalie and Alice came out of the closet with one small suitcase. Alice instantly ran over to me. "As soon as possible," she said excitedly, "we are taking you shopping. You don't have the proper amount of clothes."

"Proper?" I questioned in a light tone.

Alice just grinned and bounced on her toes. I guess that was the most energy she could expel in the foster home.

Her excitement was infectious, apparently, because I found myself tapping my fingers against my leg lightly in anticipation for getting on the road to my new home.

Carlisle and Esme got everything sorted out with the adoption papers while I said goodbye to Gracey. I tried to search for Avalyn but eventually had to accept defeat.

We packed my bags in the trunk and we all loaded up into the SUV. It only had seven seats. 'If you're planning on adding an eighth member to your family, wouldn't it be reasonable to get a car with eight seats, or just drive two cars?' I thought.

As the smallest person, I was the one who was forced to sit on one of their laps while we drove to the hotel. None of them minded, of course. I was probably lighter than a backpack to them.

I climbed onto Edward's lap, and off we went!


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