A/n:

Thanks to ebhg for beta'ing in the midst of yet another move. You're a trooper, babe!

Summary because it's been a bit between updates: Bella is now in Volterra, attempting to infiltrate the Volturi guard in order to free her father and Sue Clearwater, and to ensure the safety of the Cullen family. All of the Cullens are currently enroute to Volterra on a rescue mission.

The upper guard was more my speed. Without the use of my physical shield, I found myself getting knocked around the courtyard more often than not. They put up a serious fight. Aro stood on a balcony above us and watched. I wasn't sure if his presence had anything to do with mine or not, but it was disconcerting nonetheless.

Felix immediately paired me with Jane, followed by Alec after she got tired of a fair fight. Jane had apparently never had to fight without her gift, and her ability to dole out crippling pain gave her an advantage. It was difficult to let her get in a few good punches. I really wanted to wipe the floor with her and be done, but that would have to wait. After sizing her up, I was pretty sure that I could take her by myself when the fight came. Truthfully, I'd have to do that and better.

There were at least ten upper guard members. If I shielded myself and Jasper, possibly Emmett if Jazz brought him along, that would mean that I'd have to take on several members of the guard – alone. Practicing with them was proving to be the best way to learn their weaknesses. Most of them relied too much on their gifts.

It didn't take much observation to figure out what each vampire could do and why he or she was valuable. Some of them were obviously used for offense in battle, like Jane, Alec, and Felix. Alec was Jane's opposite, instead of causing a sensation, like pain, he removed all sensation, and it seemed to work on multiple opponents at once. Renata was definitely a shield, like me, though only physical. She couldn't fend off a mental attack.

Chelsea was harder to figure out. It was subtle, but I realized that everyone seemed to like her. She wasn't that charismatic; as a matter of fact, she was rather quiet. Other than her duties to Aro and Caius, who were observing us, she really only seemed to interact with a male named Afton.

"What does Chelsea do?" I asked Jane as I grappled with her.

"Why?" she grunted.

"Just making conversation…" I kicked her in the ribs.

"Not much that's useful." She dodged my fist and grabbed my arm.

"Then why's she here," I snarled, flipping Jane over my back and onto the ground.

"She just keeps everyone from fighting like a bunch of newborns," Jane spat as she turned the tables on me and pinned me to the ground with her knee at my throat. I tapped the ground to signal my defeat. Truthfully, I could have continued but I wanted Jane to feel secure around me.

I continued to assess each member of the upper guard for strengths and weaknesses. Every last one of them knew how to use their gifts perfectly to their advantage. This didn't seem to be much of a problem for me in the case of Jane, Alec, and Chelsea. Renata was only a difficult opponent given that I couldn't use my shield; however, Felix and Demetri were another story. Felix's gift seemed to be his strength, and although I was fast, I doubted that I was fast enough to avoid being ripped apart should he make it through my defenses. I watched him fight with Demetri out of the corner of my eye. The two practically danced together. Neither could tag the other. It was like an intricately choreographed ballet of death.

I was watching them a little too intently when Alec managed to get his arms around me. His teeth were quickly at my neck. I barely managed to evade getting nipped.

"Alec!" Aro shouted.

"Master?" Alec released me and presented himself to Aro.

"You are not to injure her," he ordered.

"Yes, Master. I was merely trying to teach her," Alec explained with a saccharine smile.

"See that you only teach," Aro admonished him before redirecting his attention.

"Looks like Jane is right, you're the new favorite," Alec hissed.

"Not by choice," I muttered.

"You'll change your mind."

"Doubtful."

"Let's resume." Alec immediately dove at me. I had to force myself to keep my shield down by sheer will. I didn't want him to get close enough to touch my neck again, but I had to allow it. By the end of the evening my skin was stinging from venom seeping into superficial scratches, and my body ached in the places where I was still healing from injuries.

"Good job," Felix patted me on the back and guided me back into the building.

"Thank you," I mumbled.

"If you would accept your place here, I thing that you could enjoy yourself," he commented.

"No offense, Felix, but I have no interest in enjoying myself here."

"You should consider it. Some of us have a really good time together in our off-time," Felix winked suggestively.

"I'm married," I snapped.

"We're vampires, marriage isn't something we do."

"Edward is my mate and my husband. I have no interest in 'having a good time' with anyone else," I explained.

"You still have a very human view of relationships." He opened the door to the stairwell and led me up to our floor. It was amazing how fast one could move when not pretending to be human. We ran up several flights of stairs in a matter of seconds. "You should bathe, and redress in your robes."

"Why?" I asked at my door.

"Caius will be calling for you this evening," he explained.

"Caius?"

"Yes, it may seem like Aro has all of the power, but he would be unable to exercise that power or retain it on his own without Caius."

"Why?"

"Listen my little newborn, you don't have to understand everything about your new masters, only that when they call, you should arrive promptly and dressed appropriately." He paused for a moment, "you should also reconsider your attitude. Aro's fascination with your gift will only get you so far. Do not anger Caius. Those who do, tend to find themselves dismembered and smoldering."

"Thanks for the advice." I opened my door and locked myself inside my room. I could almost hear Felix shaking his head.

Instead of heading immediately to get cleaned up, I flopped down on the sofa. I was unaware that it was possible to be in pain from physical exertion as a vampire, but apparently healing hurt. I traced my fingers over a slight fissure in my right arm. It had been a relatively deep gash, but was mending itself rapidly. I wondered if I licked it, like a cat, if it would heal faster. Venom should do that, right? I considered it, but ultimately decided not to lick my arm because it felt too animalistic. I had to hold onto my humanity as much as possible. There were too many who would try to strip it from me while in Volterra.

Additionally, I had no desire to die. I absolutely had to get out. There was no way that I'd survive on my own here. I had to play my cards carefully. If what Felix said was true, then I couldn't afford to offend Caius. Aro had been willing to put up with my attitude because he saw me as a prize. I doubted that Caius felt the same way.

I eventually got up, grabbed a robe and a dress from the closet, and made my way into the shower. It didn't take long to scrub off the thin layer of dirt and dust that I'd acquired; grime didn't stick as well without sweat to make it adhere to my skin. Instead, the dirt sluiced off down the drain. I'd never really noticed that at home, probably because Edward was usually in the shower with me.

Thinking of him made me simultaneously buoyant and sad. I missed him terribly. It was like missing a part of my body; I was running around without an arm or a leg. My stone heart had turned into a painfully cold lump in my chest. Thinking of him made the edges melt, only to refreeze and cause more damage, like frostbitten skin thawed and then reexposed to the elements. My arms ached from not wrapping around his shoulders.

I had to refocus. There was no room for error or inattentiveness in the game that I was playing, so I shook Edward from my mind and cut off the water to the shower. Without a hairdryer, I pulled my hair back into a high, tight bun. Jane seemed to favor the style, and I wanted to appear to try and fit in just a bit to give Aro some hope.

I slid on the light grey dress provided and pulled the coordinating cloak around me. It was a calf-length circle of fine grey fabric, lined in white satin, with a deep hood that would easily hide my entire face from sunlight if necessary. I pulled the hood up, not wanting to see myself dressed as one of them.

A rapping sounded from the door before it opened. Demetri stood in the doorway, arms crossed, looking rather casual in his black uniform. He smirked at me.

"The brethren have called for you."

"The brethren?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Caius in particular, but all three of our masters wish to see you," he said.

"Lead the way." I gestured toward the hallway and followed him out.

We walked more slowly than I had with Felix. Demetri seemed to be drawing the trip out, like he was trying to make me nervous. It wasn't working; instead, he was giving me time to compose myself and prepare. I pulled together the reserve of strength I had left as he led me through the corridors of the castle. My mission was to play nice with Caius, make him believe that I trusted him, and in turn earn his trust.

We reached the tall, ornate doors that led to the formal audience chamber, where I'd been led earlier. Caius was alone in the room, pacing back and forth on the diaus. He didn't look up as we entered. His steps tapped out an ominous rhythm on the marble floor. Demetri left me alone in the room with him. It was in that moment that I knew for certain that he was no one to triffle with; Aro wouldn't have met me without another member of the guard to watch his back. Either Caius was clueless, or dangerous. I was leaning more towards dangerous.

"You've presented us with quite a challenge, Isabella." He kept walking. "You see, we already have one shield in the guard and she predominantly protects Aro. However, he seems to want to use you as his personal shield as well. I simply cannot allow my brother to have two shields; it's a waste of resources." He stopped to glare at me. "So, what am I to do? Renata is loyal to Aro. I fear that in a fight she would automatically go to him even if assigned to myself or Marcus. Therefore, you cannot be Aro's shield."

"Um, okay…." I nearly kicked myself for not having the presence of mind to come up with another answer but he was babbling on about Renata and Aro. Did he expect me to have an opinion? If I had one, did he want me to state it? No, surely not. Caius seemed the type to enjoy hearing himself talk.

"Okay? Okay?" he spat. "I want you for myself." He stepped off the daius and approached me. "I want you to be my shield, my bodyguard!" he shouted and grabbed my chin.

"As I don't seem to have a choice in the matter –"

"You have a choice; Aro is going to try to woo you. He knows that he can't keep you without your loyalty. Know this, you are nothing but a prize to him." Caius' finger was pressing into my chin so hard that I could feel my flesh give in to his. "Never doubt that you don't mean anything to him beyond a status symbol."

"Understood," I answered through clenched teeth.

"Good." He released me and turned his back. This seemed like either a bold move or an arrogant one. He was completely exposed. I momentarily debated attacking him. "You will be very important to me."

I couldn't figure out how I was supposed to respond, so I settled for, "Thank you."

"On to other matters," he turned back to me, "You and Felix seem to get along well."

"As well as can be expected, sir."

"It's good that you enjoy his company. He is as of yet, unmated. You should consider him," he said cryptically.

"Consider him?" I squinted a bit trying to figure out the deeper meaning behind his words.

"As a potential mate. You can't possibly think that we'll allow you to remain bonded to your former coven," he explained.

I gasped. "Sir, I require clarification."

"You will, of course, not be allowed any further contact with Edward Cullen." He waved dismissively

"Sir, he's my mate," I explained, "and he's a very jealous mate."

"We'll handle him," he laughed darkly.

"I can't just…" I couldn't find the words to express myself. Taking a mate other than Edward wasn't going to be possible. Edward was my entire world. I couldn't even pretend otherwise. "He's the center of my universe. I can't replace him."

"You have no idea what you're talking about, little one," he smiled saccharinely.

"I believe that in this case, I do," I argued.

"You are a newborn; it's utterly impossible for you to have found your true mate so young."

"Improbable, perhaps, but I have found him. There's no one but Edward for me," I tried to explain. "He is my mate. Even now, I feel a pull to go to him."

"Well, that is certainly problematic," he huffed. "I knew that Marcus sensed a bond, but I thought that perhaps he was exaggerating its strength."

"I assure you, sir, that it is by sure force of will that I am still standing here, and not running to him."

He scrunched up his face and studied me. "How, exactly had you planned on serving in the guard? Surely, Carlisle isn't going to allow a member of his strange coven to leave, especially not Edward?"

This was where my newfound poker face came in handy. I needed to lie convincingly to Caius. I knew what the Volturi probably wanted when Mark came for me.

"I didn't know exactly what was wanted of me," I lied smoothly. "I thought that you merely meant to meet me." I silently pled with Caius to think that I could be that stupid.

"I fear that you were wrong, child," his tone changed to a softer one. "We would not have gone to such trouble merely for an audience."

"I need him," I dry-sobbed. I didn't even have to fake it. I allowed the emotion to wash over me. My breath was soon coming in little gasps. I wondered why I bothered to breathe but in an emotional reaction, air continued to pass in and out of my lungs. I dropped to the floor, and allowed myself to be weak. This wasn't part of the plan, but there was no way I could go to Caius' chambers.

I felt, rather than heard, the set of doors behind Caius open. I continued to grieve, dropping down to the floor in a ball. On the outskirts of my awareness I sensed Aro and Marcus. Aro quickly engaged Caius in conversation, wanting to know what his "dear brother" had done to "his" pet.

Marcus avoided the other two. I felt him step down into the main portion of the audience chamber and approach me. He knelt down in front of me like I was a scared, wild animal.

"Shhhh," he whispered. "Shhhh. I sense your bond. It hurts, does it not?"

I raised my eyes to meet his and nodded.

"It only hurts until you kill of the part of yourself that cares," he said ominously. "By then, you won't care about much of anything anymore."

I shivered at his words. Marcus was someone who understood pain.

"Close it off, put it away, feelings are useless," he continued. "The bond cannot be broken, but you don't have to be a slave to it. There is no need to be shackled to someone else. Therein lies only this pain. Eventually, we are all separated. Death can happen even for our kind."

Part of me felt a kinship with Marcus. I could only guess that he'd lost his mate. I imagined that it must have been like when Edward left me. The pain I was feeling was a bit more intense than the sheer emotional torment that I'd endured in the years I spent without Edward. I felt something for Marcus; not quite pity, but I could understand him.

The atmosphere in the room changed. My eyes were drawn to Aro as his head snapped up and he frantically whispered something to Caius. Marcus smiled tenderly at me, and excused himself to touch Aro's hand. He looked almost smug. Aro whispered to Caius again.

"Then it's settled, she's his," Caius huffed indignantly.

"No," Aro protested.

Marcus shook his head and returned to me. He was studying me, completely focused on something that I could not see.

Caius and Aro were still engaged in a heated discussion.

"Well, she has no bond to either of us. A faint bond of any sort, even if it is to Marcus could keep her under control…"

"No, no, no," Aro stomped his foot, causing a small fissure in the marble under his feet.

"I agree that this is potentially problematic –"

"Problematic! Problematic?" Aro gripped Caius by the sleeve.

"It seems that my brothers are unhappy," Marcus deadpanned. "Come, you shall wear black." He pulled me to my feet and led me from the room.

End Note:

Thanks to all of you who are still reading! Mwah!