A/N Yay! Reviews were great again! I love the enthusiasm. :) hehe. Okay, I started to write this right away, just because people were starting to complain of how little I update. I already was playing what was going to happen in my head like a movie…hope the wait was worth it!

Disclaimer: The lovely plot is still the only thing that's mine. Quite depressing, isn't it?

Bella's POV

Waiting was taking forever.

I paced anxiously in the hotel room, Edward was always there, making sure I didn't run into a dresser or something. At one point, Edward grabbed me around the waist, mid-pace, and dragged me over to the…bed? He put his lips to my ear.

"Relax," he breathed, and I lost all train of thought.

"But I can't," I whined, when I remembered my purpose. "This is taking forever."

He chuckled, though the sound was slightly off. "It only seems like forever to you. It's only been four hours."

I groaned, slumping. "Great. And how much longer till Marcus gets here?"

"Alice said that he should be here in about another hour or so," he responded, his lips now gliding up and down from my temple to my jaw.

I trembled. I nodded, and began thinking again.

I have absolutely no idea what Marcus is like. When I saw him the one time he was…reserved, and didn't say much. He was just there, another member of the Volturi family. And yet Aro felt what seemed to be pity because he hadn't helped with the decision to tear my life to pieces. Maybe his opinion matters more than we were lead to believe…or maybe Aro's just insane? At any rate, I could not see any way of us being able to leave unharmed, or have me live. He was a part of the Volturi, and as far as I was concerned, that meant he was just as cruel as his "family" members.

I started to tremble harder, and for far different reasons, then. I again started to remember the pain Edward had been in, just hours ago, from Jane's torturous methods. He had been screaming in agony…there was absolutely nothing I could do…I had had to leave him there, to try and pursue his attacker…

I turned, making his lips break contact with my skin, threw my arms around him, and began to sob. For all I knew, because of me, he could be put through that pain again. I could not allow that to happen. And I have to enjoy the time I have left with him as well as I can. He would not be miserable in our last hours together. Of course, the fact that I was in his lap crying myself silly probably didn't help that much. But I couldn't bring the tears to stop pouring, or to unlock my arms from their vice around his neck.

Edward automatically wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me closer. His voice held concern. "Bella, there's nothing to worry about, you're going to be alright," his soft voice insisted.

"It's not me I'm worried about," I said, impossibly scooting myself closer to him.

"Bella, don't you dare worry about me. I will be okay, as will you. We'll get through this. We'll live happily together for the rest of eternity, if that's what you want. I love you, and I would never let anything happen to jeopardize you…us. You're going to have to trust me on this, love. You are strong. You are brave. You are beautiful. Never forget that."

He pulled my face away from his, maybe a few inches, holding my head tightly in both his hands. He must have been searching for something in my expression…

His breath was suddenly coming faster…Then, so fast I wasn't sure what was going on for a moment, he crushed his mouth to mine with a familiar force.

This kiss was rough, urgent. Though I had felt it a few times before, it had a new edge this time. I wasn't sure what that was until he was going over the always-changing boundaries he set.

For a while, Edward and I had cooled down on the kissing scenario. Since the accident, it was mostly just a quick peck or him pressing his lips to mine. Trying not to overwhelm me, he had explained. Bull, I had explained internally…

But when his tongue traced my lower lip, I was more than shocked. I froze, but he wasn't done with me yet. His hands found the small of my back, and he started to rub up and down my back with a small pressure that made my breath quicken as well. I loosened up, and started to kiss him back. His sweet scent filled my mouth, and I gasped.

He still hadn't finished pulling out the surprises on me—his lips pulled on my lower lip softly, tugging. I thought I heard the slight sound of a moan from him. The thought made me giggle, and I pulled away ever-so-slightly, still laughing. He crushed his lips back to mine, twining his hands in my hair. In the few seconds his lips were free, he whispered my name.

My heart was singing in my chest, all my worries forgotten.

"Edward," I sighed, pulling away.

"Yes?" he asked, breathing ragged as well. He pressed his right ear against my chest, listening to my heart.

"I love you," I responded, and there was compassion in my tone. "Always and forever. Thank you."

"You're thanking me?" he asked in surprise. "You have no idea how much I need you. I love you, too." He moved his lips back to mine, letting them linger there.

"Edward…" I started, and he moved his lips along with mine.

"Yes?" he asked, and I regretted opening my mouth.

"Ummm…never mind," I said quickly, pulling back.

"Bella," he whined. That reminded me how hard it was for him to not know what I was thinking.

I took a deep breath. "Do you…" I gulped, then tried again. "Do you still plan on…on changing me?" I asked, tripping over my words.

To my intense surprise, he chuckled. "Is that what you were getting at?"

I waited.

"Bella, as long as you want to be with me, and you want to…go through that, I am willing to change you. But the moment your thoughts waver, and you aren't sure about it, then of course I am keeping you human. I will not force you into this life, never. Only if you're a thousand percent sure that this is what you want," he said seriously.

I thought about that for a minute. "I'll always want you…forever," I warned. "If it means that I have to become immortal to achieve forever with you, then so be it. I wouldn't be able to go on if I knew that if you kept me human that you would go off killing yourself when I died. That is inexcusable. But if I were dead, how could I prevent you from…?" I trailed off, a cold sweat breaking across my forehead. I cringed.

"Bella…" he started, but suddenly his breath caught.

"What? What's wrong?" I asked.

"Alice is telling me that they're here," he whispered. "I can't hear them yet. They're not close enough."

"Oh," I said, surprised.

Then we weren't alone.

"Edward, they are ready for us," Alice said quietly.

He stood, helping me up as well. "Are you ready?" he asked me.

"Not even a little bit—let's go," I said nervously.

He paused, then brought his lips down to mine once again. It was short, but very sweet. I reached up on my toes, prolonging the moment the best I could. When he pulled away, I sighed lightly. His hand felt for mine, and even that bit of small contact had my heart racing in my chest. I smiled the tiniest bit.

Then my feet were moving forward, and Edward was leading me to where our destiny awaited us.

We walked for a long time. After about ten minutes, I started to sway slightly on my feet. I then realized that I hadn't slept in a very long time—roughly twenty four hours? I couldn't remember. I was too tired to think about that right now. I had my full attention on moving my feet forward correctly, trying not to trip over them. Or air. But after a while that became unbearably impossible, as Edward came to realize. He swept me off my feet in one swift movement, and I was cradled in his arms. Seeing as I was nowhere close to being able to sleep, or even doze off for a bit, I used that time to think.

Edward's slow but sure movements had barely any movement, but if I really concentrated, I could feel a slight rocking. I relished in the fact that Edward was once again holding me in his arms…something became so vitally clear to me.

I could not let what was cradling me in his arms be harmed. This man holding me was the only thing that kept me alive and functioning, and always would be. Nothing—absolutely nothing—could happen to him. If it ever did…I shuddered away from the thought, and he instantly hugged me closer to his chest. Nothing would ever happen to him, because I wouldn't let it. Even though I wasn't strong enough to protect him like he could me, I could still sacrifice myself. Yes, I would more than love to die for him. I would happily walk through flames just to see a smile on his lovely, adoring face once again. Of course, he would never let me—he's far too protective of me. But there's the beauty of it, the part that he can't see—he doesn't have to approve. I could simply give myself to the Volturi, and Edward would have to let me go, would have no say. That doesn't mean he would go down without a fight—of course he would fight; with all that he was—but that would not stop the evil family of torturers from taking me from him.

But I could not sacrifice myself. Not that I wasn't willing, but…what if I did? What would Edward do to himself? Would he go back to his original plans of corrupting the peace of Volterra, and walk out into the sunshine, or go on a hunting spree, or throw cars around like simple children's toys? Yes, he would, I decided. If I had learned anything about Edward Cullen, it was that he had the quality of overreaction. He is a very all-or-nothing type of person, and I knew, deep in my heart, that he would get himself killed if I died. No matter how much I pled with him…

Like a light bulb had been switched to "On" above my head, a beautiful plan began to form. The imaginary gears started to churn, and the logic was starting to leak into my brain. There was something that I could do! There was no guarantee that it would work…but I could try. Yes, I had to do something…anything at this point that could help…but it might hurt Edward…no, it would hurt Edward. I tried to think as objectionably as I could without cringing at the thought of bringing him more pain. He could not know of my plan. For if he did, then Aro would see that in his thoughts, and it would ruin everything. I needed Edward's thoughts to be far clear of this as possible, for I needed him to think of only me at the moment. Nothing else mattered, and I tried to block everything else out except for the fact that I was going to cause him pain. The mere thought of that made me wince, and that helped with the charade of pain in my voice…yet I knew that the pain wasn't a charade. It was real.

"Edward…" I whispered, tears choking back my voice, taking my breath away. That was good, I reminded myself.

"What is it, Bella?" Edward asked anxiously.

I didn't try to make the tears stop. I let them run freely down my face, knowing that this would help so much for my plan, yet break Edward's heart. "I'm so scared," I responded, voice breaking.

I could almost see his brows pulling together. "Bella…we're going to be okay. We're going to get out of this alive." He paused. "Or alive as I'll ever be," he added, trying to lighten up the mood at least a little with some humor. Unfortunately, it didn't work.

"But Edward, we probably won't. It's the Volturi we're dealing with," I reminded him. "Not some other vampires who you could easily destroy to protect us…they've wanted you…us, as a part of their family for a while now. Do you really think that Aro would let us go, when he has what he wants so close within his reach?" I asked quietly. Unconsciously, I started to tremble. I couldn't help it—the very thought of having to stay in Volterra with Jane, Alec, Aro, Caius, Felix…I shook so hard I felt like a jackhammer.

His voice held nothing but pain and worry. "I know that this may look bad, but…Bella, we have to make it through this. You have absolutely no idea how much I need you, how fundamental you are to my…survival. The pain of losing you is far worse than the change from turning from mortal to immortal. A thousand times more fierce. I thought I was going to burst into flames the moment I thought you were dead the first time I left you. It was so horrible, and I could not stand it. It was…I can't even explain it. The bond you and I share is inexplicable, unexplainable. It's impossible. I'm so wrong for you, and I shouldn't exist. But since I decided that I was going to go through hell thoroughly, I have not had one thought that was not about you. You are constantly on my mind, and I swear every other thought is about how much I love you and how I could never let you go again. Neither Heaven nor Hell could tear me away from you, my love. If I thought that losing you then was so terrible…" I felt him shudder beneath me. "I would not be able to endure it. I simply cannot lose you again. I know it's wrong, but I would risk thousands of lives to keep you alive and happy. You are my whole and entire life, and I am nothing without you. I need you." His episode had me speechless, breathless…but not tearless. They ran so fast down my sodden face that I had to gasp for air as I tried to breathe. It was perfect. My plan had worked. Better than I had ever could have hoped or imagined. His kind and fierce words had me knowing how much I didn't deserve him, how much I loved him and I shouldn't. But I did. And I always would, and he would always love me, too. Am I so charismatic that I'm just beginning to realize that he truly loves me, and would never, ever leave me? Am I stupid? Obviously.

I did my best to focus on the simple rest of the plan. All I had to be sure of was that Marcus got the…feel of our relationship, and that Aro touched either Edward or Marcus. That was all.

"Edward, I…" I couldn't go on. I sobbed for a minute.

When he saw I regained a little bit of composure, he asked, "What is it?" very softly. The sound of such kindness for me was a physical pain. It tore at my heart in odd ways…

"I love you," I cried. "So much…" He had no idea how much. He probably never would.

"Bella," he said fiercely. "Don't say it like you're saying goodbye."

But I had to. Now that the hard part was over, I could say my goodbyes. Just in case.

You never know how much time you'll have.

"I love you," I repeated. "With my heart and soul…they're yours. I'm yours. I've been yours, since the very first moment I'd realized I love you. Forever and always, I will belong to you, and no one else. Please, please remember that. I love you." I was so close to losing it. And combined with the fact that I hadn't slept in so long, it was overwhelming. I started to feel dizzy…

He shook me gently, but with enough force that it kept me awake. "Stop it! Stop it right now!" he said urgently, but still gently. "I am not losing you! Do you understand me, Bella? Damn the Volturi! No matter what I have to do, I am getting us out of this. Then you and I can run away, and I can change you if you wish. Then we can get a small house in the middle of the country, and I can spend all of eternity in the sun with you. I will be able to love you forever. Damn it, Bella, we have to keep fighting. The fact that we are fighters is the only reason we're alive, is it not?" He paused, and I realized that he seemed to want an answer. I nodded feebly. "Right. So no more goodbyes—we don't need them. All we need is each other—nothing else on earth matters."

His strong words brought a confidence in me that I thought had been long lost. With this addition, it was like the icing on the cake—my plan might actually be able to work. All I could do now was pray that Alice would not see it…or if she did, to keep it to herself. She did not have to touch Aro, only Edward did.

"Welcome back," a voice said, almost making me cry out in panic—I bit my lip hard, but not hard enough to break the skin. I didn't need ravenous vampires after me to add to the list of horrors today.

"How was the wait? Not too long, I hope?" the voice continued. I realized it was Aro.

"It was fine," Edward replied sharply.

Aro chuckled. "Very well. I am not going to beat around the bush—I have brought Marcus with me here," he said, and with a jolt, I realized that he said this only for me. I wiped my tear-streaked face with the back of my hand. I sniffed.

Edward set me down unwillingly, though slithered his arms around my waist, supporting most of my weight. He hugged me so close to him that it hurt a little—but I was not about to complain.

"Give me a few moments," a soft voice murmured. I didn't recognize it.

"Take your time, Marcus," Aro responded. So that was what Marcus sounded like…

We stood there—where was "there," exactly? I had no idea—for what seemed like hours. It unnerved me to no end that I couldn't see with my own eyes the scene before me, to see if my plan was going well or not.

A soft rhythm of footsteps sounded quickly, and met with each other, then faltered. In my head, I saw Aro and Marcus moving toward each other, Aro reaching out to touch Marcus's hand to receive the information he desired…

After a minute or two, a strangled sound came from Aro's throat. Aro was…choking? What? That didn't make sense. Maybe if I listened harder…

"He can't handle very well how potent our love for each other is," Edward whispered, so quietly that no one else could have dreamed of hearing. I nodded slightly in understanding—Aro surely had never experienced real love, and after getting a taste of ours, it must have been unbearable for him. I almost laughed at the thought, but held my tongue—laughing at Aro's pain was not the smartest thing to do at the moment.

"Master?" Jane called out in panic.

"I am fine," Aro gasped. "Just…give me one moment please."

"Yes," she replied, worry in her dead monotone.

"Hmm…" someone murmured. "I see. Very well, then…this decision is not a very hard one to make, not at all," Marcus said, in a tone that implied he hadn't had to think too deeply into this.

Before he spoke again, Edward's stiff position next to me relaxed. I cocked my head slightly to the side. Did this mean…?

"Bella," Marcus said to me. His directness shocked me. "Bella, how much do you love Edward?" he asked.

I wasn't able to respond at first. "With all my heart and soul."

"Yes," he replied. "But I think that explanation is no where near close enough to how much you care for him."

I was speechless at this point.

"I am not sure if you are aware of this, but…a very long time ago, I was deeply in love. Rosemary and I were both immortal, and we planned to spend the rest of eternity side by side. But, one day, Rosemary and I were ambushed in our small home by another coven of vampires that had discovered us. We were living similarly to you, in peace with the humans. My love felt much peace there. She felt so horrid taking human lives to keep herself strong—she only fed when she felt absolutely obligated to, and she never once killed cruelly. This made her very, very weak. You see, when we were invaded, she hadn't fed for at least a month. Which is why she was…killed," he gasped the word, "in the first place. When they burned her, I had no choice but to run. There was no way I could save her, then." His voice was controlled, yet held such strong emotion. "Rosemary's death broke my heart. My life was a dark planet without her to brighten up the dark crevices for me. She was my savior, and I never truly thought I would be able to exist without her. Yet, here I am."

I felt the tears begin to well up in my tear ducts, and soon spilled over. My hands were shaking.

"How did you go on?" I whispered, voice trembling, yet I knew Marcus would hear me with clarity.

"It was very hard. But I began to think how my dear Rosemary would put me through hell if she ever knew I gave up on myself when—or if, at the time—she died. She would want me to move on, no matter how hard it could be. To this day, I feel like a zombie when I move. I feel like a monster when I feed. I feel that I take from this world, yet I haven't the power to give anything back. But when I first saw you and your Edward…" his voice trailed. "I was very surprised by the intensity of your relationship. I hadn't any idea that a love could be so strong—between a mortal and immortal, nonetheless! Never had I thought that one could love another more than I loved Rosemary. You two would more than obviously die for each other, right here and now, if we asked, am I correct? I shouldn't even have to ask—I can see it in Edward's eyes, in your expression." He paused. "But now I believe that I can finally give something back to this world. I can give you and Edward the chance to continue your relationship. I can make us, the Volturi, disappear from your lives forever. This is my chance to prove that even though vampires are the pure descendants from hell, that we have compassion and the power of love, just like a mortal. And with that, Bella, Edward, you have my blessing—go and be free, love each other for eternity."

He began to speak to someone else. "Aro, can't you see? Bella would never dare leak word of our devastating secret—she loves Edward and his family far too much to ever be able to give them up. I don't think it matters anymore whether or not they choose to turn her into one of the eternal damned—she should have a choice in the matter." He apparently turned back to us. "Bella, Edward…you shall have no more interruptions from us. You are free to roam this earth without our compensation."

My jaw hit the floor. I couldn't breathe. I couldn't speak. I couldn't even think.

There was a short silence as I tried to gather my sanity back together. Marcus lapsed back into silence. Would I ever hear him speak again? The thought was absurd—though I would be forever grateful to this kind stranger…

"Marcus has spoken," Aro said, cheerfully, yet with a tinge of disappointment marring his tone. "You may leave in peace."

Edward picked me up again, spun around, and began to run. I had no idea where he was taking me—I didn't care. Why should I care? I was with Edward! I am with Edward, we are going to live, and we are going to be all right. I sang those words like a song in my head.

My heart soared—Edward and I are free to live a life together without any more interference from the vampires of Volterra. But that thought was cut off suddenly, as my air supply was cut short. I gasped as Edward's mouth molded itself to mine in a glee that had me wanting to skip around whistling. I felt a smile on his lips as he deepened the kiss, making my heart pound a hole right through my rib cage.

So this was what it was like to be completely happy? The feeling was amazing. I felt as though I were flying.

"Edward!" I gasped when he let me breathe. "Edward, we're going to live!"

He laughed heartily, putting me down, but holding me so recklessly close. "Yes, Bella love. It's over. We are free of them." He buried his face in my hair.

I joined in on his contagious laughter—I couldn't help it. This was a time to rejoice. How could I possibly not be happy?

"You know what I want to do now?" I asked Edward, pulling back a little so he could see my expression.

"Oh? What might that be?" he asked, a smile in his voice.

"I want to go to our meadow," I confirmed, grinning.

"Yes, your heiness," he chuckled. But then he became silent. "Oh. Um…that may not be possible for a while," he admitted. "We're still being hunted down by werewolves."

I flinched as other memories flooded back to me. "Of course," I muttered. "I forgot about them."

"As did I, for a little bit. But Carlisle has a plan to get back on their good side," he explained. "Of course, we can never be sure…Alice couldn't see if they would agree. But she did see us back in our old home, in Forks. So that means that it most likely worked. Let's hope so."

I let out a gust of air I didn't know I was holding.

"Right," I agreed. "But…first things first. Just because we no longer have a deadline for my change, that doesn't mean that it isn't going to happen soon. My nineteenth birthday is soon," I realized with a sickening start. My head swam.

He sighed. "Alice says that we will still have the wedding…soon. We can still have it on August thirteenth," he explained, smoothing my hair with a hand. "Don't worry, love. I will not forget."

"I believe you," I said. "I was just…making sure," I explained.

"Okay. But can we please focus on getting home before we talk about this any more? You need sleep so very badly," he observed.

"Okay," I agreed easily.

I would have agreed to anything he had asked me. I am a silly, foolish girl who is far more than head over heels for a vampire. But, according to an old and wise vampire who is thousands of years old, the love Edward and I share is the most powerful he's seen yet. Can love truly overcome anything?

A/N Holy. Crap. That was so much longer than I ever expected it to be. But…was it good? I am dying to know, you have no idea! Please, please, please review and tell me! A couple of things. One, I used a quote from Melanie Stryder of The Host: "You never know how much time you'll have." It seemed very appropriate, and I give Stephenie Meyer full credit of the quote.

Two, I know that Marcus's mate was never really talked about, and her name was never revealed. But, for the sake of me not having to call her "her" and "his mate" all the time, I named her Rosemary. I hope no one has any problems with that.

Three, I know I haven't updated in a long time—two and a half weeks, maybe? I'm sorry! I haven't been home…I was literally dying because I couldn't write for this story. So I've rewarded you all with (I think) the longest chapter of this story so far!

And four, I deeply hope that there are no slips of Bella being able to see. I know that very early in writing this chapter, I was getting so carried away, and when I reread it later, she was able to see Edward. I've reread this a few times, but I always tend to make mistakes. If that did ever happen, please tell me, and I'll fix it immediately.

So, to end this supremely long authors note…PLEASE REVIEW!!