Stephenie Meyer owns all TWILIGHT characters.

INTERLUDE

My dream is filled with the face of a man, a face of perfection, of fine details. His eyes are intense and his lips are sincere when they pull up into a smile. The touch of his fingers on my face is cold, a chilling burn but it doesn't hurt, doesn't cause pain. I feel the whisper of a kiss as his lips pass over mine. He mumbles words against my mouth and I agree to whatever he says. Stone-cold arms wrap around my shoulders, my entire body, and I am lost in a sea of comfort and love.

I breathe out his name, a soft and simple "Edward," and he disappears from my sight.

With a gasp, I find myself in the middle of a bed in the hotel room. Outside, the moon glows like a beacon, and I shiver as a breeze swipes into the room from the open window. There is no one in the room and, as I look around, everything is as I left it that morning.

Part of me wonders if I dreamt the entire thing.

"No, Dark Child, it was not a dream."

My head turns to the window where the familiar shape of Morpheus rests. I realize, a second too late, that I have spoken aloud in my musings. He is practically a statue but his eyes are vibrant, real.

"Morpheus," I say his name shakily and, in seconds, he sits next to me on the bed. His arms are a welcome warmth. "You left."

"I had no choice in the matter, Dark Child." He tilts his head so that his cheek rests on the top of my head. "There are rules we must all follow, you know this."

"My father," I gasp out. "Is he -"

"He is gone," Morpheus says simply. My eyes fall shut. I knew it would be futile to wish he stayed but I understand why he left, why he couldn't stay.. "He left this for you." A cream colored envelope is now in Morpheus' hand and I take it slowly. My name is written across the front and when I turn it over, I hear a scattering sound. Curious, I lift the flap and see a handful of seeds lining the bottom.

"Pomegranate," I murmur.

There is a pregnant pause and then Morpheus lifts his head. "He is excited for your return home."

Home. The word seems so foreign now, especially when it's supposed to be synonymous with the Underworld. It's where I belong, where I was always meant to live, but there's so many things that are different now.

"Read it," Morpheus says in a low voice, referring to the letter inside the envelope. "He meant well, means well."

"Why?" I ask him. Turning my face up to look at him, I suck in a deep breath when I realize how close we are. His lips turn up into a small smile but he looks away from me. "Morpheus, why did he take Edward?"

"I can't tell you that."

"Why not?"

"Melantha, please don't ask me." Something in his voice stops me from asking him more, from demanding information. His body shifts away slightly and, soon after, he nods towards the window. "Edward."

The name causes me to immediately jump out of bed and run towards him. His hands catch me easily, pull me into his arms, and I breathe in a scent that's heady and earthy. He breathes out my name before he kisses my forehead.

"Where did you go?" I ask as I lean against him. The fabric of his shirt is warm on my lips.

"Hunting." He sounds amused and I look up at him. "We had an entire conversation about it before I left but I believe you were still half-asleep." His gaze moves to Morpheus. "Thank you for staying."

"It was not for you."

About to reprimand him for his rudeness, I stop when Edward nods and says, "I know. Thank you, nonetheless."

Slowly, Morpheus stands from the bed and walks towards me and Edward, but brushes past us. "The Underworld will be ready for you, Dark Child," is the last thing he says before he climbs out of the window.

"You're on speaking terms with Morpheus?" I can't help but ask.

Edward leads me back towards the bed. He pulled the blanket away from its crumpled heap and let me slide against the still-warm sheets. With my back against the headboard, I watch as Edward settles next to me. His hand is cool on my cheek as he cups my face softly, his fingers caressing my skin.

"Morpheus and I have come to an understanding." The curve of his lips in a smile catches my attention for a moment. "I don't like him but that is beside the point." He looks down and his brows draw in. "What's this?"

The envelope is still in my hand. "It's from my father." With a gasp, I turn my face back to Edward. "My father. Your father! I mean, Carlisle! We just... Is he okay? What happened in that room? Did he escape? Edward!"

"Shh," he hushes me. His body leans forward until his forehead rests against mine. "He's okay, I promise."

"Edward, what happened?"

"Bella." My name leaves his lips in a reverential whisper. It snakes around me like soft ropes binding me to him. "I don't want to talk about that right now."

"But-"

Sweet puffs of air escape his mouth and splinter apart over my face. I shut my eyes at the intoxicating feeling that wraps around me. "Isabella... Melantha... I don't want to talk at all right now."

Again, the sound of my name in his low tone sends shockwaves through my body. "You don't play fair, Edward," I try and argue but then he kisses me, a slow caress of lips that deepens into a hard press that leaves me breathless. He shifts slightly, moving away, but I place my hands on his cheeks to hold him close.

I feel him smile. "I've been away from you for far too long, love; of course, I'm not going to play fair."

"Please," I request of him. "I need to know what happened after we left. I know you know."

With a reluctant sigh, he pulls away completely, causing my fingertips to brush against the smooth contours of his jaw. "There was a fight, Bella, I'm fairly certain you expected that. There were casualties but it had to happen."

"Casualties," I repeat.

Edward's hand drifts to my shoulder, slides down my arm. "A few of the newer Volturi guards," he explains. "It was meant to be a... warning."

"From... my father." I exhale loudly and shake my head slowly. The news doesn't surprise me. My father is the second most powerful god in existence and is well-known for his tight fist when it comes to dealing with those he believes have done wrong. "So... what? The Volturi backed down? They don't seem the type."

His words come out slowly as though Edward wants to gauge my reaction. "The Volturi swore they would not touch you in any way." I wait because I know there is more. There is always more. "In return, your father has promised to stay out of any matters concerning vampires." He pauses but seems to falter. It's unusual, this hesitancy.

"There's more," I whisper. "What else, Edward?"

"He has promised your disappearance on your birthday. He swore you would no longer be a resident of this Earth."

It feels like my heart has stopped beating. The air thickens around me until it chokes me, makes me gasp for breath.

No.

This isn't news to me, isn't a surprise announcement.

No.

I've known about this for years.

"No!"

My knowledge doesn't stop the clawing in my chest, the bursting fire in my stomach. It can't happen. I don't want it to happen. This isn't what I want anymore. I don't know what to do.

"Bella, stop, please, Bella... Bella."

Porcelain skin, sharp angles, worried eyes of a butterscotch shade – they are all things that come back into focus as Edward's hands press gently against my stomach in an attempt to release the breath I am holding. I exhale and then a sob escapes my mouth, a sound I don't expect at all. I try to find comfort in Edward's arms, in the cool, marble embrace, but it's impossible.

"Bella," he murmurs into my hair. "You knew this was happening. We both did."

The whimper that leaves me is uncharacteristic but I can't help it. "Six months, Edward," I gasp out. "You were gone for six months and in that same time, I have to leave, and... this is too much. You said you wouldn't go anywhere without me," I repeat his words from the night before.

"And I won't," he promises. "But Bella, I have no choice but to let you leave me."

"No," I say again. "No, I won't. Edward."

I suspect he can hear the acceleration in my heartbeat, the pounding of my pulse beneath my skin, because he hushes me lightly and holds me close again. My eyes close when my cheek leans against his chest and I breathe him in, inhale his scent, memorize his touch.

"If I could," I hear him say in a whisper, "I'd keep you with me always."

"I'd like that," I can't help but respond.

Again, I feel the soft press of his lips in my hair. "I'd make you mine, hold you and kiss you every day for eternity."

"Would you marry me if you could?" The question leaves me before I realize it and I tense, unsure of what he will say in response.

Ghostly trails from his fingertips graze the sides of my forehead before they sweep down to my cheeks, my chin. Edward tilts my face upwards. "Yes," he says simply. His lips curve into a smile. "If I could, if there was a way, I would marry you. I'd make you mine entirely and I'd give myself to you completely."

"Edward," I say his name again in a low tone, in a near-whisper.

"I would steal you away from your father if I could, keep you in my arms, claim your heart."

"It's already yours," I insist. One hand slides down my neck to rest between my breasts. I know he can feel the deep thump of my heart. I reach up and cover his hand with mine. "This," I say, indicating the heavy beat. "This is already yours." I breathe in. "If I could give you life, so to speak, I would."

He leans in and the sweetness of his breath fans over my face as he says, "You already have." His lips are on me again, finding places to kiss me on my cheek, by my ear, at the corner of my mouth.

"Tell me that we can find a way around this," I say though I know it's practically impossible. "Tell me that we'll find a way to still see each other."

There is a darkness in his eyes when he looks at me, really looks, and it frightens me a bit. "Bella, you have to know that I will do everything in my power to keep you in my life." He swipes a finger across my bottom lip. "We have six more months to worry about this, love. Let's forget it for just a few days, just until we get back to Forks."

I don't want to do that. The longer we wait to start searching for a way to keep in touch, to somehow be together after the Underworld calls me home, the less time we have to find our answers. Seeming to sense my hesitation, Edward picks up the envelope, now crinkled from its tumble in the blanket. He hands it to me.

"Are you going to read it?" When I don't answer, he sets it on my lap. "You should read it."

"Do you know what it says?"

"Some," he says. "It's important."

With shaking fingers, I pick up the envelope, but don't open it. Something tells me I don't want to read my father's words, not yet, not now.

"How about a compromise?" he asks after minutes pass in silence.

I look up. "A compromise?"

He nods and takes the envelope from me. "I won't ask you to open this again, not until we're in Forks, and you'll give me these two days with you." He taps the envelope against his left palm. "I want two days of just me and you and the agriturismo I just rented for the rest of this weekend." His voice lowers and he leans in again. "It's been so long," he says softly. "I just want to reconnect."

My throat feels tighter and I begin to lose focus as the deep timbre of his voice swirls around me and his scent envelops me fully. I find myself nodding, agreeing, and then Edward smiles so widely that I'm glad I have given into him.

"We have much to talk about," he tells me with a smile. "And Carlisle would like to speak to both of us." Reaching out, he places the letter from my father on the side table, where I will see it before we have to leave. "However, he's given us until this afternoon when I take you to Agriturismo Mannaioni, the official name, of course."

His hands push me back gently until the pillow cradles my head. With a familiar ease, Edward covers me with the blanket, before he stretches out next to me. Instantly, I turn onto my side and rest my head on his chest. It may not be as soft as the pillow but it reminds me that he is here again, next to me, alive and blinking and able to touch me, kiss me, love me.

"Sleep, Bella." A cool hand trails over the skin of my arm that hugs his stomach. "I'll be here when you wake up."

I fall asleep to Edward's voice as he hums my lullaby.

Thank you to Sara for the beta work and Jill for pre-reading.