Crystal went straight to her room. Although not physically tired, her mind yearned for rest. The extended plane ride back to Italy was nerve-wracking enough, not to mention the events that transpired prior to their departure in the hotel room.

She put her face in her hands.

There was a knock at the door.

"Go away."

The door opened and shut and she didn't have to look up to know Alec sat besides her. He opened his mouth to speak but Crystal cut him off. "I know, I know, Caius sent you."

He nodded and she shook her head. "That bastard."

"Are you hungry?'

"No."

Alec raised an eyebrow suspiciously. "You haven't fed since the first time."

"I'm not hungry." Crystal said harshly, refusing to turn her gaze to him.

Alec stood. "Well that's rather unfortunate but you have to eat."

She shook her head. "No actually, I don't."

There was a pause before Alec turned his head, suspicion radiating in his posture, and took a step towards her. "Don't tell me you've decided to adopt the Cullens' diet."

She moved away from him. "I'm not going to find my sustenance in mountain lion and elk blood. That's a waste of energy."

"Then why won't you-" He paused, realizing. "Guilt." Crystal didn't respond, only further affirming his hypothesis. "You feel guilt for that nomad's death and therefore have chosen to deny yourself food as punishment." He shook his head. "This is unwise."

"Quite frankly, it's none of your business." she spat, turning away from him. Before she could move too far however, Alec caught her wrist and there was a moment of panic before she found herself trapped in an awkward icy embrace.

"You shouldn't fret over death She'd already died before. Besides that, you were only doing your duty in the end. You'll become accustomed to it with time."

She pushed him away. "Is that the comfort you offer me? 'You'll get used to it'?" she sneered. "I see why the Cullens hate you all so much, the Volturi is evil."

Alec laughed. "What a childish word. But what else is to be expected of a child?"

Crystal whirled around. "What did you say?" But in the moments in which she lunged for him, that familiar cold feeling swept over her body and she could no longer see.

Alec clicked his tongue disappointedly. "You should really learn to control that temper of yours."

She didn't give it too much thought when she moved, just considered where his voice was coming from so she was successful in tackling the other vampire to the ground. The fact that she was able to find him must have shocked him so that as they crashed to the floor, Crystal was staring into the vibrant red eyes of the boy beneath her. And she knew, had she still been human, her cheeks would have been flushed with color. It wasn't as if the two of them had never been in that same position but for some reason, this time it was different. For that moment, they just stared at each other.

Alec swallowed. "Crystal-"

She turned around, sensing the presence of another. Jane stood in the doorway, her gaze cold and disapproving of what she saw. She looked straight at Alec. "Aro would like to speak with you."

Alec moved from beneath her and was gone before the suggestion to accompany him could leave her mouth. And when Jane entered the room and took careful steps towards her, all she could think was that was the first time Alec had used her name.

The pain was so intense, Crystal could make no sound as she writhed on the floor. It felt like her skin was tearing away from her body, every nerve, every atom exploding in fire. Jane kneeled besides her and even through the torment, Crystal could see the smile on her face.

"What were you two doing?" she asked with sickening politeness.

For the moment in which she was to answer, Crystal was released from Jane's unnatural hold and all she could do was stare at the blonde girl with hatred, thinking of the promise she'd made Shirley. She couldn't stop the smirk when she said "Screwing around."

The pain returned, this time nearing agony. "Do not get smart with me, I have no problem with killing you."

Crystal took in air, just for the cool feeling when she was able and wheezed out "Go ahead. But think of how upset you'd make poor Alec."

Then she saw the anger. Jane's face was contorted by fury, fury that was happily unleashed upon Crystal's body. This time she couldn't see, black spots filling her vision with darkness as Jane's words were hissed into her ear.

"Leave Alec alone. Or else."

Then she was gone and Crystal was lying on the floor, trying to regain her senses. Jane would have to die, there was no doubt about it and with her gift, the task should have been easy. But a touch of death required just that, a touch. And how would she be able to touch Jane if she wasn't able to go within ten feet of her without being subjected to such torment? She closed her eyes for a minute and just thought.

Mom is so cool...

Renesmee's voice filled her head.

...do this thing that protects us...

What was it that Bella could do? Oh right, she had this shield.

...Kate taught her... Push her shield out...

Her gift could move?

...stead of just her hands, if you touched her whole body...

Yes, that was it.

Crystal sat up. She'd have to learn to push the talent to other parts of her body instead of just her hands. And then, she smiled, Jane would be hers.

…

An hour into what she would call training, Crystal was ready to fall over. She'd decided to start by visualizing her ability, deciding it was silver, molasses thick and when it moved it sparked, like a live wire. She felt it in her hands and willed it forward, up her forearms until it reached her elbows. Then it snapped away, retreated back into her hands along with the burning sensation it gave off.

"You appear to be concentrating very hard." Crystal didn't open her eyes. She didn't have to to know Alec stood in her doorway. "Thinking about me?"

She smiled and opened her eyes. "Jane actually. She decided to prolong her visit after you left." She paused, standing. "Both your gifts are pretty amazing."

His eyes widened and for a moment he only stared. Then he was gone. Crystal rushed after him, grinning. She could feel the confrontational air that'd formed around him and knew if he found Jane, there would surely be a fight, something she would enjoy, something that would only further allow for Jane's destruction.

Crystal stopped at a corner and leaned against it, Alec having encountered his sister in the hallway. He'd grabbed her by the arm and moved her off to the side of the corridor.

"Jane," he hissed. "You are not to toy with the girl."

Jane jerked away. "What I do or do not do is none of your concern."

"The responsibility of her well being has been placed on me!"

She took a step forward. "Do not raise your voice to me dear brother," Then slower, threateningly. "I shall do as I desire."

Alec countered her advancement with his own, completely closing the space between them. And he whispered. "And is my punishment your desire?"

Jane looked up sharply, and Crystal could swear by the look on her face an apology was forming in her throat. But pride pushed it back down. "She is not so important."

Alec looked past his sister. "Is that correct?" He was walking away when he said "Let us ask Aro, he can settle this dispute."

Crystal was quick to follow, interested. When they made their way into the throne room she hung by the door, careful to ensure she could not be seen by anyone beyond where she stood. She watched intently as Alec and Jane waited to be acknowledged by Aro.

She felt a gust of air as someone rushed past her, noticing Demetri as he entered the throne room and neared Aro. Although softly as he spoke, Crystal could catch the words. "Visitors have arrived. But there's a problem. One is a wolf."

She frowned at the words, stepping out of her hiding place and revealing herself. "What does that mean?" she asked and she moved further into the room.

"What does what mean, my dear?" Aro asked, lifting a glass of vampire's wine to his lips. The scent of blood seemed to soak into the room and prod at her hunger, causing her throat to burn. But she ignored it.

"'Wolf', what does it mean? He can't mean a real wolf can he?"

Everyone seemed to be staring at her, either incredulously or angrily. But Aro only smiled that placid smile of his before taking a sip from his glass and returning it to the table at his side. "Crystal dear, it is not polite to enter this room without being called."

She frowned. "You're deflecting."

Caius spoke then. "And you are as rude as ever. Begone child."

Crystal turned to him, her eyes burning holes in his direction. "I don't believe I was speaking to you."

The room went quiet and suddenly, all eyes seemed to be on her. The gazes of the vampires that surrounded her seemed astonished, questioning. Who was she? This girl who dared to challenge the Volturi's most viscous leader, dared to stand to the executioner? Surely she wished to die.

She didn't flinch when Caius narrowed his eyes and stood, his voice dangerously low. "Watch how you speak to me girl or I will kill you where you stand."

Crystal folded her arms. "I invite you to try."

She saw the movement, Caius lunging forward, but it was stopped as Aro raised his hand. "Now now brother, patience. Crystal is just hungry." His red eyes turned on her. "Aren't you?"

At its mention, the hunger returned with vengeance, creeping down her throat and into her stomach. She reached for her neck in an attempt to soothe the pain but did not respond.

Aro nodded. "Alec told me of your eating habits. You shall be taken back to your room and I will have something sent to you soon."

She narrowed her eyes and still didn't say anything, even as she turned on heel and headed for the door.

…

Alec closed the door and turned, regretting the decision as his face was met with the fury of a fist. The force of her punch pushed him back several feet. Anger filled his chest but when he looked up and saw the look on her face, it died down immediately. Though the agitation and frustration, he saw the hurt.

"Why would you tell him!"

Alec leaned on the shelf besides him, deciding he would entertain her questions. "Because he asked."

"That was none of his or your business!" she snapped.

"You made it my business the moment you confided in me."

She scoffed and folded her arms against her chest. "Confided? I don't confide in anyone."

It seemed like even once becoming an immortal, people never stopped telling lies. He stared at her hard. "Except Aro."

She took a step back, surprised. "What are you talking about?"

Alec moved from the wall, appearing before her. "Listen to me, it is not a good idea to provoke Caius as you do. He will listen to Aro for only so long."

"I'm not afraid of him. Let him try to touch me, I'll kill him." Crystal layed on the broken bed and turned her eyes to the ceiling.

Alec moved to her side, looking down at the newborn and frowned deeply. "So full of hatred." He touched the bare skin of her arm and she jerked away. "And fear."

"I'm not afraid of anything."

"But the dark right?"

She rolled over. "Vampires are so nosy. Why do you care?"

He shrugged. "Curiosity."

"I suppose it wouldn't make a difference if I told you I didn't want to talk about it." She half asked, turning to face him but the look he gave her must have made it obvious it wouldn't So she sighed and closed her eyes, putting her hands behind her head. "My life has been messed up since I was born. My parents didn't want me and I grew up in an orphanage until I was eight. Oh and not the good kind either, the one that started in the back of some abandoned apartment building where they treat children like machines and expect them to be perfectly behaved, mindless things. If we didn't do what we were told, if we made any sort of noise ever, we were beaten."

Alec didn't say anything as she paused. Although her words were harsh, her face was calm as if she were sleeping awake. But he knew that expression, it was the beginning of a sad story, the one people made that promised their tale would only grow worse. He nodded, despite her not being able to see him. She continued.

"So one day this couple came through and said they wanted to foster a little girl. For some reason my name was on that list, the foster list, the one that means my parents would take care of me when they could. Someone made a mistake. But they took me and got paid some amount to help with my upkeep. But that was all they ever care about."

Alec watched as her eyebrows came together and she paused to swallow. "Then what?" he asked.

"I was given a small room, told to stay in it at all times no matter what or else I'd be sent back to the orphanage. The room was small and white and had a window and an overused potty training seat but nothing else, not even a bed. I was given one meal in the middle of the day, usually fairly large to hold me over but I never had human contact. But the night, the night was when it was the worst. It was cold, and dark and I never had anyone to tell me there wasn't a monster lingering in my corner. And the bugs, they were terrible." She opened her eyes then and turned to him and the sight shocked him..

He could see tarnished hopes filling her eyes. And she spoke softer. "Oh but Alec, that window was so beautiful. I would stare out of it for hours on end, watch the tree not too far away as it swayed in the breeze and I would dream of finding a family that would take care of me. I would dream of a mom and dad and a sister to love me." She closed her eyes again. "In that regard, you're lucky. You have Jane."

Alec nodded, having already realized just how lucky he was to have his sibling. He'd been through a lot but with everything Jane had been there. He couldn't imagine having to go through it alone. "And you were there until now?"

"No." He heard her take a deep breath in order to start again. "When I turned twelve, those people took a vacation; left for five days. They threw me some food, said make it last, and left. But into that first night I realized what am I still doing here? But I had always been alone in the night, always alone in the dark. And the house made noises, the floors creaked and it was like hell trying to get through that place. And the city was even worse. The last thing I remember was finding a bench and crawling on it to seep. When I woke up, I was in a bed and Renesmee was staring at me."

And it was then he understood.. "The Cullens found you."

"They kept me until a family was kind enough to take me in."

"And the girl?"

Crystal sat up then, swinging her legs over the edge of the bed and looked up at him. He stared back expectantly, not caring how painful the topic had become, only wanting to know. "She was my everything. When I was younger, she was my teacher, coming over everyday when I was still too broken to interact with other children and showing me things she'd learn. She was my friend, she showed me life. And when I was old enough, she became my love." She wrapped her arms around herself like, he imagined, she had done many times in her in life. "I never had to spend another night alone."

"Do you miss her?" When he asked, his voice was thick with sorrow. He really did feel for her.

She frowned. "No, I don't." Crystal stood abruptly, causing him to stumble but even so they were nose to nose. "I'm not that kind of person. I don't get upset, I get even."

"What an understatement."

She shook her head. "Alec, have you ever been in love?"

The question caught him off guard and instantly his mind flashed back to a time before he'd even know what a vampire was and a girl he would've gladly died for. The memory was painful and he took a step back, trying to regain his composure. He could only nod.

But she didn't ask anything else, she didn't go any further than that and it was most likely due to whatever it was she'd caught scent of. Without another word, she was out of the door. Alec was quick to follow, having too caught the scent and he knew if Crystal reached the throne room, all hell would break loose.

…

Crystal stopped by the door, having followed the alluring smell of human blood to the throne room. She was curious to know what a mortal was doing in the Volturi's lair but when she got to the door, she froze. A girl was speaking, a girl she knew very well.

"I know this is sudden and I know I am asking a lot of you Aro but please, you owe me this much." Renesmee sounded like she was pleading.

Caius laughed. "The Volturi is indebted to no one."

"That's not when I mean and you know it." she turned back to Aro. "Please, I'm only asking to try. You told me once yourself, everyone has a right to a mate and I've found mine. It's not fair I can't at least try to keep him forever."

What?

It was then she stepped out of the shadows, not able to conceal herself any longer and yanking her arm from Alec's hold when he grabbed her. Everyone looked up when she entered and the room went absolutely silent. Surprisingly, it was Renesmee who spoke first.

"Crystal?"