Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight. I do not own Twilight. I do not own Twilight. I do not own Twilight. I do not own Twilight. I do not own Twilight. I do not own...

BELLA SWAN

The scent of vampires was everywhere, I couldn't just ignore it. Tracking her was more difficult than planned, because I couldn't follow her scent. It was gone in the strange scent of the others.

I called her, telling her that I couldn't follow her scent to where she was, and she informed me that I was near where she was, and that she'd call me when the timing was right.

So here I sat, on a park bench in Nantes, France just waiting for Nadia to call me. I focused on the dim light of late evening filtering through the tree that sheltered me. The bubbling music of the fountain behind me filled my ears, along with the sound of insects buzzing, and the clomping of human footsteps.

A small boy had sat next to me earlier in the day, fidgeting with his cardboard baby book. His eyes were big and blue, and he had a curious character. Everything I told him he would answer with "Why?" His silky blond hair constantly shook as he vibrated in his seat. He sat there eating animal crackers as he watched for the first sign of the moon in the clear day.

He was probably only three. He'd told me in his baby-words that his mother came here to "takes the pretty pictures". She was a photographer, and they were tourists from "Mefis". His mother informed me that they'd flown in from Tennessee a few nights ago, and she was taking pictures of the smaller cities first. Because "I'm sure to be bored with the rest of the country once I hit Paris."

I'd sat there, while he asked me questions. "Pitty lady, why do the beeses haves to sting people? It not nice at all. It really, really hurt my bottom at home, when one stunged me. I accidittaly…" he rambled on in his soft, comforting voice. I was pretty sure that if he weren't there to entertain me those two hours, I would lose my mind dwelling on Nadia.

He was such a sweet little boy, and was very intelligent for a human child, but his mother soon told him they had to go, and his little blue eyes welled up with tears.

"But, mommy! Dla buttabye! Dla buttabye! He flying! I wlant to stay and see dla bluttabye! The beeses hurts him, big owies and no sorries mommy! I no go away yet! I stay here with bluttabye and beeses and my pitty lady! I no go away! I sleep on the bench next to pitty lady, mommy!"

But they went, she said she had to have at least two or three hours to take pictures somewhere else before in grew dark.

So I sat on the bench, staring at the phone, as if focusing on it would somehow force it to ring.

France was just as busy and beautiful as I had always dreamed it would be, but instead of feeling like a dream come true, it had the feel of a nightmare. The Volturi were here somewhere, and if they saw me, all was lost. Edward and I had been talking about taking a vacation to see the artwork here, but the magical feeling that captured me when I thought of France was gone. Now there was an uneasy feeling in its' place. It was a feeling of paranoia. I constantly felt like I was being watched.

My cell said it was four, and I saw the moon appear in the light blue sky. I shifted; sitting on the edge of the park bench so the light wouldn't touch any part of my skin. No one was around, but I wasn't going to take any chances.

I was in designer jeans and a white tee, with flip-flops on. They would be the easiest to work with, because I could slip the flip-flops off and put them in my bag when I needed to run quickly. I had a zip-lock bag folded up small, in my jeans pocket. I could also put my cell phone in it if I needed to swim.

Just as I was about to walk off, my phone vibrated in my hand. I snapped it open quickly and carefully, trying very hard to make my voice sound sane as I answered, "Hello?"

"Bella, it's Nadia. I have a good hiding place. I'm in Caen. It's fairly small, and I'm behind the only shoe store the town has, so you should be able to find me," she said in hushed whispers.

Her voice sounded scared, cautious. My heart immediately went out to her; she had just lost her father, found out he was a completely different person than she thought he was, and now she was running from psychotic royal vampires.

"I think I'm pretty close, I'll be there soon. Five minutes at most. It'll still be light out for half and hour, they won't be able to start searching for you openly until then."

"Yeah, right, I have to reserve the rest of the cell phone's battery for emergency calls, so I'll see you then," she said, it almost sounded like she was choking.

"Bye Nadia," I said before I snapped the phone shut and shoved it deep into my pocket.

I knew the place she was talking about from when I'd studied the maps of France earlier, and knew exactly where she was.

I hurried through the streets of Nantes, my speed was somewhere in-between fast running for a human and slow running for a vampire. It drove me crazy to keep up a fairly human running pace when Nadia was waiting for me.

I was careful not to attract any attention to myself, trying to make my movements messy and slow, remembering how I'd moved as a human. I still could not make myself look sloppy, and didn't succeed at not drawing attention to myself.

A teen fell over the curb by one of the stores, into the grass, and her books scattered around her. She stood up awkwardly, having to catch and steady herself twice, and brushed the grass off the back of her jeans. When she looked at me, it was a wistful look. She let out a resigned sigh and reached down to pick up her books. I saw her shoot another envious look at me before I turned the corner and lost sight of her.

Yeah. I know the feeling, I thought.

I went back into an alleyway, where I could run at a faster pace, and sped down the road in the direction of Caen. I thought I knew the store Nadia was talking about, and if I was correct, the alleyways here connected. There should be a maze of alleyways that led from here to the shoe store in Caen.

I raced through the labyrinth of burgundy-bricked buildings, my feet hitting the rough concrete with a quick, even pattern, steadier than any skilled drummer could hope for. This new life had brought me a great sense of rhythm and balance. I never felt anything but graceful now.

I glanced up at the sign that was glowing neon green on the back of a big building. If I was right then I should be coming up to the shoe store very soon. I slowed my speed to a brisk walk. Two more stores and I'd be there.

Poor Nadia, I'd started to really care about her. She was so strong and controlled on the surface, but it was easy to tell that she was frightened inside. Her actions and her words were all perfectly thought out, and she was careful in all of our phone calls, making sure this wouldn't put me in too much danger. She didn't want to do anything to hurt me, and the way she spoke, revealing only as much as I needed to know, made that clear. All of the emotions she let show screamed "I'm unworthy."

She reminded me of Edward.

I was approaching the back of the shoe store, taking a breath so I could call for Nadia, when I caught a scent. A vampire scent.

No! No! This is not good! I thought.

Acting on instinct I crouched, all of my muscles tensing, venom pooling in my mouth. When I was changed the flight instinct went away. All that was left was fight, and that wasn't always the best idea.

My mind quickly caught up with my actions and I took a second to think. The safest place for me now was inside the store, where there would be at least one human witness. I doubt the Volturi would think it was worth it. I wasn't the one they were looking for.

I could only hope Nadia had gotten away. If they had her, it was too late, and I'd have a better result if I just went back home and told them I lost her. There was no hope in a vampire and a shape shifter against the Volturi. It was impossible.

I dashed around the building, and through the front door. The salesgirl glanced up from the register at the front of the small store, murmured something irritably in French, and then, with a heavy accent, said, "Hello ma'am, what can I do for you?" Before she looked back down at the phone she was busily tapping away at.

Her fake nails made an agonizing click sound as she continued to text on her phone, almost as bad as a clock's ticking. I decided I would act normal and look at shoes. I walked, exaggerating the slow, sluggish movement I made as I lazily turned into an aisle. I recognized most of the pairs as knockoffs of ones Alice had already bought for me. I found one pair of heels that were neon green, with a subtle hint of a stain on the bottom, made of fake leather. To calm my nerves, I imagined what Alice's reaction would be if I came home wearing those. She'd be absolutely horrified. I let out a giggle, and then became solemn as I heard the door to the store open softly.

This person was too quiet. It had to be one of them. A gust of wind burst into the store, carrying their scent, confirming my suspicions.

I sped to the front door, resisting the urge to snarl. That wouldn't really keep the salesgirl calm. I glared, crouched, ready to spring on whoever was in the doorway, and then the face I saw staring at me caught me off-guard.

I'd seen this face; Edward had sketched it from a picture in Seth's head. Only the picture had been different. That girl's features were more prominent here, her beauty more pronounced. The skin that was supposed to be a light tan color was now that unhealthy shade of white that I was accustomed to.

She was perfectly still, not moving at all. No heartbeat, no breathing, she didn't move anywhere. She looked like a statue.

Her long, wavy mahogany hair went down to her waist, caressing the curves of her face. The color was a strange yet flattering against her porcelain skin, and her deep brown shorts and tank top covered a body that would be the envy of anyone but Rosalie. She looked very strong, not in a masculine way, but in a beautiful way. Her long muscles reminded me of a dancer's body. I looked down to see that she had no shoes, and her feet were dirty. I noticed every detail about her body; how her fingers were thin and long, how her full red lips looked beautiful in contrast to her pale skin, how her chin was shaped, all because I was dreading the thing I hadn't yet seen.

I cringed, finally allowing my eyes to meet hers. They surprised me. With what she was now, I would think she'd have the eyes. Her eyes were a hazel color, far from red.

That wasn't what stuck out to me the most. Her eyes were sad. With every time I glanced at her eyes, she looked stricken, as if the fact that she looked strange to me hurt her deeply, or maybe it was just because of what she was, because of what she'd been turned into.

But that still didn't change what she was.

She wasn't a shape shifter. She was a vampire.

"Nadia? How…" I started incredulously.

"Bella? I'll tell you on the way. We need to get going."

I was able to make my frozen limbs move enough to step out of the shoe store. For the first time since I changed, I think I felt remotely dizzy. Not physically, but my confusion was so intense that my mind felt like it was running in circles. My face must've looked crazed. It was beyond weird. How could this happen?

We stepped around the store, into the shadows on the left side of the building in front of the dumpster. The sun was still brightly shining, and our skin was very exposed. She darted quickly, in the unmistakable movements of a young vampire, and stood like a statue in front of the dumpster, staring at me. Her eyes were the only things that were moving.

"What…" I started. I couldn't describe how wrong this was; especially to me. I'd spent the past eight years terrified that Rosalie would get so mad at Jake, or another one of the wolves that she'd bite them; her venom poisoning their system, and kill them. Our venom killed them. It was poison. Yet here Nadia stood.

"Aro," she said, the word coming out as a hiss, her voice saturated with hate and resentment. "Explained it. He said that my mother was half vampire half human, and that the human and vampire half of me was more dominant than my shape shifter half. They thought they'd killed me, but I survived. And now I am what I am."

The last sentence was filled with such acid, such a passionate hate, that I almost flinched away from it.

"I don't have anything against you, you've done good things and your family is really nice from what I can tell, but it's barred me from a future I wanted badly, one that was right in my reach," she said, wistfully.

"You should talk with Rosalie once we get to Forks, she feels the same way."

"What about you? Why are you a vampire? Why did this happen to you?" she asked, desperately trying to get the subject off of herself.

"Let's run this way. I'm not shielding you, so we'll lead them to Paris. Demetri will tell them that's where we are, and so maybe they'll keep moving in that direction even when we turn around," I said, evading the question until I had time to talk without a halt for a while. That was a hard question to answer.

"What do we do then, where are we going?"

"We're going to turn around and go to Wimereux, and then we're going to find a way to get to England so we can get to the Heathrow Airport."

"So, how did you become a vampire?" she asked, true curiosity in her voice mixed with evasion. I had a feeling she wasn't ready to explain everything.

"That's a long, awesome, confusing, crazy story. Are you ready to listen for a while?"

"I'm game," she said.

"Well…" I wasn't sure how to do this. My own story had been confusing to me. It was hard to explain it adequately without detail, so I took a deep breath, and began to tell Nadia my convoluted story as we sped off into the bright light of the late afternoon.

"It all starts with Edward." Oh, Edward. The fuzzy hazy pictures of my human mind appeared, gazing at him in a grey sweater, looking at him from a hospital bed, his eyes as I walked down the stairs for him to take me to prom. It didn't just start with him, it was him.

"My first day at Forks High school was a remotely uneventful one for a new student. No pranks, no teasing. I was very shy, but for me, that was the most important day of my life.

"That day, I had biology with Edward. We were partners. He, though I didn't know it, had to deal with the most mouthwatering blood ever. You know the thirst you feel right now? Yours is nothing compared to what he had to deal with."

"Oh, I don't have thirst," Nadia informed me.

"What? How is that possible?" I said, my eyes huge, and my jaw hanging open.

"Aro," she said, growling the word, her hand clenched into fists, pulsing back and forth as we ran. "explained it to me, but it's only a theory. They tried to force-feed me." She shuddered. "It was terrible; all of those innocent, helpless people. They brought them all in and cut their throats… the pain and fear on their faces was awful. Then they…"

"I don't need to know any more than that," I said. My vision was taking on an orange tint. People like I had been, defenseless, with families and dreams, that had been murdered by the Volturi. It made me angry.

I heard her breathing stutter, and so I looked at her.

Her face was crumpled and her hands now were limp. Her shoulders hunched over like someone had punched her in the chest. A desperate gasp for air escaped her lips, and then she continued to speak.

"Are… are the wolves okay? Sam, Jacob, Embry, Leah…" she gulped, taking in a ragged breath. "Seth? Is Seth okay?"

Her voice held such a passion, my heart went out to her completely. She said Seth's name like I said Edwards. He was all that mattered. I'd bet he was the future she had to give up.

The feeling was mutual, I realized with a gasp. She loved Seth, too.

"What?"

"They're all fine." I reassured her.

"Are you sure? They aren't coming here are they? I wouldn't want them in danger."

I had a feeling we weren't talking about the pack anymore. This was a Seth thing.

"They're fine. They'll be waiting for us at the reservation."

"Good. Why don't you continue with your story? Your scent was really powerful to Edward, you guys had to be biology partners, and?"

"Throughout the entire lesson he glared at me furiously, and I was shocked and offended. I was frustrated. How could he hate me if we'd only just met? Why was he acting that way?

"Edward went to the clan of vampires, good ones like us, in Denali for a while. He was running away from my scent, and his family was hurt. He convinced himself to come back. He thought he was strong enough.

"So he came back, and spoke with me, asked me questions. I remember being annoyed. I was irritated at how much he wanted to know, how right he was about me. It really frustrated me. I grew really mad at him, but I found myself looking forward to seeing him.

"Of course, then my bad luck kicked in and a van almost crushed me against my truck. Edward stopped the van in front of my very eyes with his bare hands, and then I was sure. Edward Cullen was not human. He was something more.

"Then he started ignoring me. He just avoided me, because I asked him demandingly for answers. I know now that he was probably doing that for my benefit. At the time I was very upset and angry. He'd saved me, and then acted like I didn't exist. It was maddening. He would occasionally talk to me, but then I'd snub him, and ask for answers again, so he didn't talk to me after that.

"Then, one day he just walked up and started talking. His words were "I'm not strong enough to stay away from you anymore."

"I went to La Push, and met Jacob when I went to First Beach with my friends, and there he told me about the cold ones. He used the Cullen's name, and I knew I'd found what Edward was, even though I wouldn't let myself think about it, even though I wanted to deny it.

"But I knew that it was true as I thought about it. It all fit perfectly. Then came the important question. What would I do if I were right?

"As I thought of staying away from him, I was almost crippled with the stabbing despair that gripped me. I couldn't live without him; so I would stick around, even if I got killed in the process.

"Edward found out I knew, and I told him I also knew he could read minds, and we grew closer. Everyday I felt more and more happiness when I saw his face, more and more longing when I wasn't with him. It became obvious to me that I loved him, and eventually, to my disbelief, he said that he loved me too."

I told her everything. I told Nadia about James, Victoria, the wolves. I told her about those dark days when I was haunted with loss, eager to confide in her. She didn't even think it was strange when I told her I jumped off a cliff to hear Edward's voice. She sighed in envy as I told her in detail about my wedding, about how wonderful it was to hold my daughter for the first time, about how I felt every time Edward touched me. The only time I felt awkward telling this to her was when I explained breaking Seth's collarbone. Her teeth wrenched together, and all of her muscles tensed. She shivered violently, and then apologized.

When she started talking about Seth it all started spilling out. She wanted so badly to talk to someone about it. She ran fast for a vampire, maybe because of the wolf half, and as she ran, her voice went double time. It was very natural, and raw, the way she spoke of him. Her voice rang with the sincerity of every word.

"Seth is just so… innocent. He's so forgiving and so vulnerable. I just… I can't hear about him getting hurt without having some kind of a reaction. I've only met him once, but I can just tell, you know? It's so easy to tell who they are, and with him it was even easier. It's like I've known him my whole life. Just, the way he regards everyone. You know that he'd give his own life up for any of his pack brothers, and then the way he looks at me, just the sense of being wanted, and loved, like nothing I could ever have. I know that he didn't feel that most likely, but his eyes made me feel that way, even when I was depressed and confused, his eyes… looking at him … go on. Sorry, I'm babbling."

The pain returned to her eyes as she thought of Seth, the future she couldn't have, and the love she'd been barred from. I took a deep breath, and continued on with telling about the crazy months after Ness was born.

I told her about the Volturi coming, about how fast Nessie developed, how concerned we were about her only lasting a few years. I told her about Charlie, about our visitors. When I spoke of the battle, she growled a little, but other than that she was silent the entire way to Paris, nodding, and smiling. She seemed very engrossed in the story I was telling.

When we got into town, I decided that we would sit down for a little while to plan our next move. I walked up to a little café and saw that it was nearly full of customers, only one empty table. Nadia guessed what I was thinking, and we walked in quickly to claim our spot. They wouldn't be able to approach us around this many humans.

We sat down, telling the waiters that we were waiting for someone, and that we'd eat when they got there, to buy us some free time.

As we sat down I stretched my now easy to mold shield around Nadia and she looked strangely at me.

"Are you shielding me now?"

"Yes, how do you know?" How could she know? Did something on my face give it away?

"I… I think I felt it."

"Nadia, do you have a gift?"

"I magnify the gifts of others when I touch them. I guess that would make me sensitive to it. I don't know. Aro did a few tests. You do not want to know what happens when I magnify Jane," she said with wide eyes and gritted teeth.

I was pretty sure she was right.

We sat there for a while, faking impatient looks, and glancing at the clock on the wall whenever our waiter looked at us. She explained the tests that Aro did on her powers, the pain she went through when she touched Jane. She explained her fear of touching Aro's hand in a fast, quiet voice.

"He hears all the thoughts you've ever had, right? So what if when I touched him he heard all the thoughts I'd ever had, and all the thoughts I ever would have? That's almost as bad as him having that physic of yours, Alice, right?"

"Yes. Alice."

Both of our heads flashed to the door, as it opened with a jingle.

There, in the doorway, stood Aro.

I froze, and choked back the snarl that threatened to erupt from my throat. It was still a muted growl in my chest, and both Nadia and I cringed, waiting for him to turn to us.

But, he scanned the entire place, carefully looking at every table, including ours, and still had a defeated look on his face.

I looked at Nadia, and grinned from ear to ear. He can't see us! Or hear us! This is so cool! I can't wait to see how she affects Edward, or Jasper… Oh. My. Gosh. Alice is so going to freak out. I wonder what she'll do to her…

"This is so cool!" I said.

Nadia stared open-mouthed at Aro, fear and anger evident in her expression. Jane, Felix, Demetri, and Marcus walked into the café, all in common clothing, scanning the place like Aro did. Jane let a quiet growl escape through her teeth.

"Their scent led right here! Demetri, are you sure you didn't mislead us…"

Demetri cut her off saying, "No. They have to be here! Where could they be?"

I giggled to myself as Felix moved to face Demetri. Since none of them were looking, I picked up a napkin, balled it up, and threw it at the back of Felix's head.

He glanced around, and then rolled his eyes, muttering something about humans.

"They have to be here! WHERE could they be hiding!" Jane exclaimed, furious.

The crease in between Aro's eyebrows smoothed and understanding crossed his face.

"They are here," Aro said. "Nadia magnifies powers. Bella's a shield. They're here somewhere."

I cringed as he guessed right.

"We should leave soon…" Nadia said to me.

"What do we do now?" Felix asked.

"Start looking for an empty table," Aro answered, his eyes fixing on the table we were sitting at.

"Time to leave!" I exclaimed, as Nadia and I walked to the door, brushing right by them. We were so close that as Jane exhaled the breath she had been holding in irritation, I actually felt it. I couldn't help myself. I laughed as we exited the door.

The bell on the door jingled as we stepped happily out the door.

Aro's eyes fixed on the door full of panic.

"Get them!"

Sorry for the cliffy. If you guys want me to be nice to you, then review! Anonymous reviews are welcome you DO NOT have to have a Fanfiction account to review my story. Just type in a name for me to see like "I'm reviewing now" or "no more cliffies" okay??? Okay. Happiness all around. Love you guys!