AN: Sorry for the delay in updating, I have been very busy these days bad haven't had the chance to upload this chapter. I've also been working on a couple of new fanfictions I hope to have the first chapter uploaded by the end of the year. One of the new projects in the works is a fanfiction in honor of the new book Life And Death but with a twist. It's Twilight, but instead of being a gender swap, it's Twilight with Esme replacing Bella and Carlisle replacing Edward. It's a lot better than it sounds and I hope to have the first Chapter up by Thanksgiving her in American, and for my friends outside the US that is November 26. Anyways without any further waiting her is chapter eleven of A Better Forever.

New Orleans

Edward POV

We arrived in New Orleans and ran straight to the Mikaelsons' home. I heard Damon's thoughts from one of the rooms upstairs, and grabbed Bella's hand to lead her up there. Carlisle followed us so that he could examine Aurora and see how bad a state her health was in.

We found her curled up next to Damon with a tear stained face. "She just got back to sleep. She's been having nightmares."

"Thank you, Damon, for staying with her," Bella thanked him as she went to take his place next to Aurora. "It's okay baby girl. Momma's here now."

Damon didn't leave the room he just went over to a chair and sat down. He was there in case we needed anything, but he was very careful not to think about what happened that night.

Bella kissed Aurora's forehead and brushed the dark hair away from her throat as Carlisle sat down to examine her. There stretched a crescent scar down the front of Aurora's throat, and when Carlisle lifted her head up there was a matching one on the back of her throat. "Someone bit her," he said and continued examining her. "She should be fine. She'll be weak for a few days, and I can't tell you how much of a psychological effect this will have on her. She's been through a lot."

Carlisle moved away to go talk to Damon and I went over to my wife and daughter. "Did you text Nessie," Bella asked me as I sat down on the other side of Aurora.

"Yeah," I replied and kissed the top of Aurora's head.

"I'm so glad this is over. She's safe, and in our arms. I'm not going to let anything happen to her." Bella hugged Aurora closer to her.

"Bella stay with her. I'm going to find out what happened," I inform my wife before I kiss her and then the top of our daughter's head.

I left the room with Carlisle and thanked everyone downstairs. I looked down after I voiced my gratitude and when I looked up I asked, "What exactly happened?"

"Edward, I don't think it's best," my father said trying to discourage me from finding out the truth in hopes of preventing me of doing something hasty in a fit of rage.

"Carlisle, they kidnapped my daughter and hurt her. We both saw the scar. I want to know what happened to my daughter," I said determined.

"I can show you," Carlisle's friend Elijah offered, and I nodded to him. He began to play the night's events from the moment they found out the location of where Caius and his allies were hiding my daughter all the way to Caius' teeth tearing through my daughters flesh and the aftermath.

I bit my lip and closed my eyes in an attempt to control my anger as much as possible, and when I opened my eyes I looked straight at Elijah. "Where is he?"

"Follow me," he said and motioned for me to follow. "His condition has been worsening. It's as if Aurora's body forced his venom back into his mouth with a poisonous property. He can't talk, but I don't think that would cause a communication barrier between you. Also a fare warning his appearance is quite disturbing."

We'd ended up outside a small cramped room in the basement of the Mikaelson compound. I opened the door and inside, sitting in a corner was Caius. In the limited light I could see that his lower jaw had fallen off and his face appeared charred from his cheeks down his throat. "Hello Caius," I said and then asked of Elijah, "How weak is he?"

"Very, I believe. His strength has diminished so much, Bonnie hasn't had to be in here to keep him under control for a few hours," he answered.

I nodded and turned my attention back to Caius as Elijah exited then room. "Here's how things are going to work. I'm going to ask you some questions and you're going to think your answer. Why did you take Aurora?"

Caius had obviously trained his mind very well for him to be able to ignore my question and not even think of a single thought that'd give him away.

"Do I need to bring Bonnie back? I'm sure she can draw the thoughts out of your head."

When I heard his thoughts I knew that if he could be smiling he would be. Why would I tell you when I can wait it out a couple more days and take my secrets to the grave? And I know you won't call the little witch in here to torture me. You wouldn't disappoint your family like that.

"Normally I wouldn't Caius, but you've threatened my family. Harmed my child. A little three-years-old girl who couldn't defend herself. You deserve anything and everything that comes to you. I can tell that the poison that was the venom that entered my daughter's throat and forced its way back into yours when you bit her is causing you pain. Sure, you think in a couple of days you'll be a charred corpse so why not fight it out. Go out knowing you've left my wife and I with unanswered questions and a need to always be afraid for our daughter. You could do that, I know you could, but I'm sure that Bonnie or any witch for that matter could slow the affects of the poison and drag out your life for weeks, or months, or even years and increase the pain it causes. Eventually you'd give in begging for the pain to go away, and I'd be there to hear your answer. I know you can wait, but so can I, and I will have my answers before you die.

"Now having said that, I don't think my wife is as patient. You've obviously never witnessed the love a mother carries for her child and what they would do to protect that child. You'll suffer more at her hand than anyone else's. I think it's in your best interest to tell me what I want to know before she has the chance to find her way down here to you. So, I'm going to ask you one more time, why did you take Aurora?"

She is an abomination. She should have never been born. No vampire was ever supposed to be able to practice magic let alone use it to conceive a child with another vampire. She needed to be eliminated along with you and your wife. You created not one new breed, but two, he thought.

"You forget Caius that these 'new breeds' have existed before. Those like Nessie have been around for almost two centuries that we know of. By abomination you mean to say different from you. I'm sure you'd try to kill the Mikaelsons if you could. You'd kill any species that's not like you." I kneeled in front of him as I spoke, and I heard Elijah shift his weight in the hallway and for a moment was surprised he'd stayed. "You'd kill anyone you felt was a threat to you and your power. You've hunted werewolves for centuries and you and your 'brother', Aro have been waiting for the chance to kill our coven. You are a monster, and you are right I don't want to disappoint my family by giving in and torturing you to make you feel the pain and fear that you made my daughter feel. So to honor them I will grant you this one last kindness. I will allow you to be taken back to Volterra to die. You'll get to see your wife one last time as well as Aro, and you can tell him how you failed."

I stood and turned to walkout of the room. "Oh there's one more thing. Amelia said that the only way you were able to stay undiscovered for so long was having some sort of knowledge of the future. The only way can see you having that knowledge would be if your had access to a royal oracle. As it just so happens, Aurora's oracle has been missing since soon after her christening. You don't know anything about that do you?"

He turned away from me, and his mind went back to being useless. I knew he wasn't going to answer my question. I turned back and left the room. In the hallway, Elijah looked up at my exit. "You're really going to send him back to Volterra?"

"Yes," I answered Elijah's question as we made our way back up to the main floor of the house. "He's going to die no matter where he is, and I personally would like him on the other side of the world where he belongs."

"Would you mind if I accompanied the royal guard when they escort him back?"

I was surprised at his request, but once I looked inside his mind. His father had ways of thinking similar with Caius, and Elijah hated it. Like Mikael, Caius had let his fear and loathing cause him to harm an innocent. He had all this disgust for Caius because of Caius' actions and ways, but there was something else hiding underneath all of that truly made him want to ensure that Caius died. There was a loyalty to my daughter similar to that Seth experienced. It wasn't something he could explain or understand, but it assured me that we'd always have an ally in him when it came to protecting Aurora. And for that I was grateful and agreed to make the arrangements for his travel to Volterra with the royal guard.

We returned to courtyard of the compound and I went back up to the room where I'd left my daughter and wife. "Will you tell me what happened," Bella asked from the bed where she laid with our daughter curled into her side.

"Yes," I answered as I pulled my phone from her purse and began to make the arrangements for our return trip home and the gurard's trip to Volterra.

"When," she demanded annoyed.

"When we are home and Aurora isn't able to hear it."

"Is he dead," she asked in a whisper.

"Not yet." I looked over to her as I finished texting Esme to let her know what time we'd be home.

Bella pulled Aurora closer and I could tell it was her way of ensuring she didn't go finish the job herself. I crossed the room and laid on the other side of Aurora. I stretched my arm protectively over my daughter and wife and listened to Aurora's thoughts.

She must have been slightly awakened when Bella pulled her closer because sleepily, her little nose sniffed the air and recognized Bella's scent that had been with her for a while, but she also recognized my scent was new to our little gathering. My face filled her thoughts as she turned over and scooted the small distance away from Bella to snuggle up to me. She didn't like not having some sort of contact with Bella, too, though so she held out her little hand behind her.

"She wants you to hold her hand," I tell Bella as I listened as sleep overtook Aurora again. Bella smiled slightly and wrapped her hand around our daughter's. In that moment as I listened to Aurora's dreams, I realized that this night could have been very different. My sweet little girl could've not been in our life anymore, and that thought made the moment with her so much sweeter. As I heard her heartbeat, each breath she took, and watched as dreams of princesses filled her head, I once again thanked God for her and knew that I didn't deserve her or her love, but I also knew that I'd spend the rest of eternity trying to.

Two Days Later

Edward POV

Everyone had been invited over to the main house, and Aurora was passed from one person to the next as they poured affection over her. She was happy to spend most of her time with Charlie who didn't want to let her go. He was almost driven mad while we were gone.

I'd found myself talking with Amelia. "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course," she answered with a confused look on her face.

"Ever since the day they met, Seth has had this loyalty and protectiveness over Aurora that mirrored that of a wolf towards an imprint, but he never imprinted on her. Does that mean he'll be her mate," I asked looking in the other room at Aurora.

"No, but there's more isn't there."

I looked back at her and smiled. "Elijah Mikaelson has the same loyalty and protectiveness of her." I didn't know how bothered by the thought of my daughter's mate already being in her life I was until I'd started the conversation. I blame it on being a typical dad. I knew time was getting closer to Nessie starting a life with Jacob and I was scared as hell at losing Aurora anytime soon.

"I see. There are stories of men having that loyalty and protectiveness for a queen if they've met her before her maturity, and some have ended up being the mates of the queens. I won't tell you too much, but I will ease your mind of the future. Aurora will grow up with Seth being her best friend. She will be as normal as any other girl. She will find love, and heartache, but from that she will find her mate, and you will be happy in the choice." Not being able to read Amelia's mind was a pain at times like that. I would've loved to have seen who would win my daughter's heart so that make sure it didn't happen.

"If I may say something else," Amelia started again, "don't worry about what is to come. We've all seen how quickly life can change and go wrong. Don't miss what's happening now with Aurora worried about what will happen. Be here for her, watch her grow into a person you'll be proud of. When she finally comes to the point where she falls in love you may not be ready, but you'll be happy. You don't have to ever worry about losing her. She's a daddy's girl of epic proportions. She'll always keep you around."

I won't lie and say that I lost all of my worries, but I was comforted in the fact my daughter would always need me. As if it were summoned by God to prove that point, Aurora thought toward me, Daddy, I'm thirsty. She was thinking about blood, and she even threw in a sweet little reminder. No human please.

I went and fixed her sippy cup and returned to the living room. When she saw me enter the room, Aurora hugged Charlie tightly and then turned to reach for me. I picked her up and took her over to an armchair and set with her as she ate. She leaned her head on my chest and thought, Daddy I love you.

"I love you, too, sweetheart," I told her, and this she thought about a party and gifts with the question, Can I open my presents now? I laughed and kissed her hair. It's amazing how she differs from her mother. At last someone likes gifts.

AN: And that was chapter eleven. I realize it wasn't as long as some of the other chapters and maybe not as good, but we're moving on now and hoping to get better from here. Be sure to review and favorite and follow the story. Follow me for any new updates including the Carlisle and Esme Twilight fanfiction. Also I want to here what you think in the comments: Do you think Aurora's mate is already in her life? If so, then who do you think it is? Until next time guys... SuperBat5795