What did you think of the last chapter? The big reveal? I enjoyed writing that chapter more than the rest so far, as I said in my last AN's, it was the idea that brought my whole story together. Now on with the action, I hope you like - I've tried very hard to describe the way it plays out in my head, and believe me it's not easy, but I hope I have succeeded. Enjoy! x

Disclaimer: - I do not own Twilight, or anything Twilight related.

Chapter 14 - Making new friends can sometimes be hard work

She gave up screaming and punching and kicking just minutes after they had left her house. None of them paid any attention to her, as if she were not there - all except the one with the long black hair. He looked over every now and again, his eyes showing he was very excited. It reminded her of Manny, when he was a child at Christmas. He would keep looking longingly over at his toys as he was made to sit and eat his Christmas dinner with the rest of the family, eager to get up and play again. But no, that was not right; Manny was not evil like this man was.

Hannah tried to not panic, as she was slung over the shoulder of the large one they all kept calling Felix. She felt scared, but something deep inside told her that fighting was no good against these people, who were abnormally fast and strong...and strange.

"We will soon be home young one, don't worry" said that black haired one. "I think you will enjoy living with us". He reminded her of a raven, black on the outside, and just as black on the inside.

"What - are - you - talking - about?" she stammered, as the usually graceful Felix bobbed her up and down, whilst he was walking. He did not like to walk at a human pace, he found it almost insulting - that he had so much speed, but he was reduced to such a slow pace. Felix had considered himself above humans, seeing them as merely a food source. This mirrored the way most of the vampires in Volterra felt.

"Felix?" said Aro.

Felix stopped and gently placed her on her feet. He gave her a smile and a sly wink, as he walked past her, leaving her stood with Aro, and his companion, who she noticed, never left his side. He looked curiously from Hannah to who Hannah was looking at.

"Oh, I'm sorry, how rude of me. In all the excitement, I had forgotten to introduce myself. I am Aro".

"Aro what?" she asked, intentionally trying to be rude. If these people were kidnapping her, the last thing she was going to do was be nice. Aro, however, kept smiling, as if he had not noticed the tone in her voice - as if she had asked him as sweetly as he was about to respond back to her.

"We do not like to use surnames. We are all family, so there is never a need to be formal. Let me introduce them". He started with the small woman beside him. She was about 25 years old, beautiful - as were the rest of them - with brown hair in waves to her waist. She looked as though she was concentrating, but Hannah could not see on what.

"This is Kiana, my...let's call her my personal assistant" and Hannah saw Kiana smile at this. Clearly she adored her 'boss' and his introduction has pleased her. "Then, we have Felix, who you already know", and Felix gave her another wink. She shivered on the inside. She did not like the way he looked at her, it made her feel like she should immediately start running, but her legs would not move an inch.

"Over there is Demitri, very talented man, but doesn't like to say much". He tried to keep it light, informal, so not to scare her anymore than she already was, but Hannah wasn't buying it.

"And lastly, but by no means least we have Jane here, and her brother, Alec". Hannah noticed that he hadn't mentioned the ten or so other people behind them, all wearing the same black cloaks, all with the same red eyes. She figured that they must not be important to Aro; he must not consider them 'family'.

"Hmm, well, I'd love to say that it's nice to meet you all, but I'm not big on being taken from my home - against my will, may I add - and told that I am going to be living somewhere else. It's not what normal folk do, you get me?". She had no idea where that had come from, but she kept her face hard. "You can't just go around doing whatever you please, you don't make up the rules". The sniggering from behind her became raucous laughter, and she turned to see them laughing at her. They had kidnapped her…and now they were laughing at her? She felt the white hot fury boil up to her face. "Is something funny? Because it would be great if you could share the joke with me!"

Aro raised his hand, and the laughter immediately stopped.

"I'm sorry about the way this has been done, but your gift is one that has fascinated me for centuries, and this is a very rare opportunity. I have attempted to persuade someone like you to join us, for a number of years now, but she has not yet succumbed. Well, now we have you, and there is no need to bother Alice anymore. Edward would be a nice addition also though".

"Alice? Edward? What, you mean Cullen? Alice and Edward Cullen?". She tried to sound sane, but she imagined she sounded the complete opposite. Her heart began to beat a fraction faster, she was getting nervous. Her previous confidence had left her – just at the time when she needed it the most. Hannah realised Aro had noticed the change in her stance, as she shifted slightly.

"Yes, the very same. She has turned down our offers for almost a hundred years now, and I must admit, I thought she would have joined us by now...so to see your gift, it is refreshing. It will be nice to have some new blood in the family", and Hannah could hear sniggering coming from the others once more. "Sorry, please pardon the expression!" said Aro, stifling a little laugh himself. Hannah failed to see what was so amusing, and was struggling to take in all this new information. It didn't seem to be making any sense.

"Hold on - what gift? How long did you say you had been trying to persuade Alice?...Wait – persuade her to do what? Just exactly who - or what- are you? Urgh, this makes no sense!" she spat out. She sat herself on a nearby rock, huffing loudly and letting her head fall into her hands roughly.

"I can see you are frustrated…"

"Too right! You can bet your life I'm frustrated"

"Then, please allow me to explain. Hopefully things will become a little clearer". She could see that the others had heard this plenty of times before, as he began to tell his story. The weary faces were hidden behind the hoods, but she knew what they were thinking.

Aro crossed over to her, far lither than any ballet dancer she had ever seen. As he sat next to her, she could see his features more definitively - his straight nose, his thin lips, his pale, smooth skin...although he was frightening, she could see the beauty in him. The only thing she couldn't see that was beautiful about him was his eyes. Getting lost in the was very easy, but not out of admiration- it was in the way that you could not release yourself back from them until he allowed you to. You were not in control.

"We are the Volturi. An ancient family, who live in Italy. Volterra to be exact. You will meet my two brothers, Marcus and Caius, when we arrive. We like to keep an eye on things, to make sure that our...erm...'friends'...are behaving themselves, and not becoming too much a nuisance. I guess you could call us a different brand of law enforcement. Anyway, we happened to come across Carlisle a few centuries ago, and he spent a short time with us, before leaving to pursue his career in the medical profession. Carlisle has always been the giving kind; he's a very compassionate man, so I suppose you could say that becoming a doctor was his calling. That is when he decided to help Edward and the rest of his brothers and sisters. A touching story really, if you think about it...".

"Wait - you said 'centuries'? You met Carlisle centuries ago?" interrupted Hannah. She immediately regretted butting in, but she could not stop herself from blurting it out. She deducted that things were definitely turning weird now.

"Yes, centuries. Carlisle is over 300 years old, my dear", he smiled sweetly. Continuing on, "Anyway, we all have our own little gifts. For example, Kiana here has a knack for seeing bad decisions and wrong paths. Jane can inflict any amount of pain on a being. Demitri over there is the finest tracker I have ever met…". Demitri gave Aro a small, courteous nod, in response to his recognition. "…And I am able to read people's minds, see any thoughts they have every had, and any feelings, just with one simple touch". He looked proud of himself. "I, or should I say we, have been searching for someone like you for a long time now, someone who can see the future".

"See the future?". The realisation had hit her like a tonne weight. "That is why you took me? But, I cannot see the future, I just dream stuff, and sometimes it comes true...it's not seeing the future, it's just a bunch of coincidences!". She was hopeful that what she had just said would make a difference, and they would happily take her back home and leave her be. But she knew better than that.

Aro threw his head back, and gave a small laugh. "Hannah, there is no such thing as coincidences in our world, and once you are turned, it will all be understood". His voice was so soothing and gentle, but Hannah still had questions. So much of what he had said did not make sense. She was starting to think she may have been kidnapped by people who should be in a mental asylum…or may have escaped from one anyway.

"But you said that Carlisle is over 300 years old...and that you had been trying to persuade Alice for a hundred years...but I have seen them - I know them...and you're wrong. I mean, Carlisle can only be in his thirties at least, and Alice goes to my school, she is the same age as me"

"Or so they would have you think. You see, Alice was turned at a young age, and Carlisle whilst he was in his twenties actually, so they will always remain so. It will also be the same for you, that is what happens to our kind".

"Your kind?"

"Yes, our kind. Vampires" he said, plainly...simply.

Hannah thought she had heard wrong. "I'm sorry, I thought you said vampires", and this time it was Hannah giving a small laugh. A nervous laugh.

"That is correct. All present here - besides your good self that is - are vampires. As are the Cullens. I must say, I am very surprised that you had not noticed how strange and different they are from everyone else. How they all have the same eyes, or that they do not eat?"

"They are not strange, they are all really nice people, and I like them. All of them. And anyway, Nessie and Jake eat!" she defended, as if she had somehow proved Aro wrong. The thundering in her chest had subsided slightly, but she still felt it strongly.

"Of course Renesmee and her companion eat. She is only half-vampire, and therefore has human needs too...and as for...", he seemed to struggle saying the name, "...Jake, well he is werewolf, and so he has no need for blood. He eats just as she does. But don't be under any illusion that they are anymore innocent than the rest of us. They still hunt for blood, only they hunt animals instead of humans".

Hannah secretly wondered to herself why she was not afraid. She had spent lots of time with the Cullens, sometimes alone with them, and they had never caused her any harm, even though they had had plenty of opportunities to if they so wished. She didn't care what they were - she liked them, and liked being around them and that was that, as far as she was concerned.

Aro stood up, and looked down at Hannah. "I can see you are trying to piece this all together, and I am truly sorry for...well, for want of a better word...kidnapping you. But once Marcus has done what he needs to do, you will see".

"So let me get this straight" said Hannah, now mimicking Aro and standing up too. "You are all vampires, well apart from Jake, who's actually a werewolf! You are all really old! And you all have powers!"

Aro let out another small laugh again. "Well, we prefer to call them gifts, but yes, that is more or less it. You have caught on very quickly, I'm impressed"

"You're nuts!" she replied manically.

"Would you like me to demonstrate my particular gift Master?" asked Jane, throwing a look of pure hatred in Hannah's direction. Despite her face, her voice was like a beautiful song, so delicate, so inviting.

"That won't be necessary Jane, thank you. Hannah is just a little shocked, I imagine. She will be fine in a few days", and Jane's face changed from loathsome to sneering, as she knew what was in store for Hannah over the next coming days. The pain, the burning, wanting for it all to be gone...although, she didn't remember it well; she remembered it enough to know Hannah was going to suffer. That thought made her smile. She did not want another girl joining their coven. They did not need her.

"Well, unless you have any other questions, we must be off" said Aro.

"Just one more - what if I refuse to go?"

"I'm afraid it would not make a difference. With our strength, speed and numbers, we would have no trouble. Now, we really must be going, we have stalled enough".

He turned from Hannah to give Felix his silent order again, and before Hannah could run far, she was back over Felix's shoulder, feeling the same bumpy motion as before.

Aro knew that even Jane, petite and childlike, could have just as easily carried Hannah, but as Felix was the largest of the group, it somehow seemed more fitting for him to do it.

As he walked on, Aro felt elated. Pleased with himself, that he had not let such a good opportunity pass. He had never been a risk taker, preferring to assess a situation first, before acting on it, making sure that it would go in his favour - but this spur of the moment decision had gone well for him.

He knew that Marcus would not object to turning Hannah when they arrived in Volterra. He may not be as passionate about finding a 'seer' as Aro, but he would never refuse his brother.

They walked on, through the trees, towards the other side of the forest. The shadows of the dark, cloudy sky looming over them, making the surrounding vampires even more terrifying to Hannah.

Felix let out a gloating laugh, as he not only heard, but also felt Hannah's heart begin to race. The blood began to rush to her head, making her cheeks glow, red hot, and her head go light.

Continuing on, they could see the light of the clearing ahead of them, when a shadow suddenly shot across the gap, taking out the first guard. Then a second shadow, but this time it was a little slower, and they could see it was not black...but grey. Aro's eyes were in every shadow of the forest, picking up every movement, for fear of being next - every leaf blowing in the wind, every bird flying from the trees...if his heart was not silent, he was sure it would have leapt from his chest.

"Werewolves!" screamed Demitri.

It took a second, before they were all running at an unbelievable speed, desperate to escape from the rivals that they knew nothing about. They ran together, in their own little pack, trying to avoid being picked off one by one like sitting ducks.

Hannah held onto Felix, reluctantly. Not wanting to be dropped, she took hold of his cloak, both hands full of material. She bent her head into his cold neck, to save from seeing the ground moving so fast beneath them, it was making her feel sick. She was afraid she was going to slip from his grasp, chancing a glance up. She saw two very large and angry wolves tearing behind them, getting closer. She figured she would rather stay with a group of half-civilised vampires, than a bunch of wild, crazed wolves.

Leaving the tress and shadows behind them, they spilled out into the clearing, closely followed by their furry predators.

Running on, they were greeted at the edge of the cliff by a wall of more wolves, each looking menacing and ready for action. They came to an abrupt halt, as one single Quilete man stood in the centre, shirtless and in cut off jeans. He was wearing the same mask of anger as the wolves.

"We cannot let you pass" said Jared, taking a few steps forward - his bare feet moving across the wet grass.

"That is not your decision to make I'm afraid. Do you have any idea who we are? Just exactly how powerful we are?"

"Yeah, I know you, but my previous statement still stands. You are not passing through"

"I was not asking permission!"

Jared looked at Aro with hard eyes. "That is just as well then, as we are not giving it!" he retorted back, showing no fear. He looked almost relaxed.

"Then, we will have to force our way through" bluffed Aro. He was aware of how strong his coven was, but he had not seen the full extent of the werewolves' strength and strategies. He had never thought enough of the werewolves to actually learn anything about them.

"That would not be a wise move" and Aro turned in the opposite direction, as did the other vampires, to face the Cullens and Jacob.

Felix set Hannah back on her feet. He looked as shocked as the rest of his allies, turning back and forth, looking at their surrounding threats.

"Hannah!"

"Ness!"

Edward had to restrain Renesmee, as she tried to run over, stopping her in her tracks. He didn't realise that Jacob had took hold of the back of her jeans with his teeth too. He held onto her for a few moments longer than Edward did, and Edward could hear his thoughts. He was worried about letting her go, for fear of losing her. He had come so close before -too close in fact - and this time, he had the power to do something about it.

"Jake, it's fine. She's not going to go anywhere. Trust me, it's ok" he reassured him. Turning back to face the Volturi, he spoke again. "Aro, you know this is not right. You cannot just take away her life - her choices - just like that".

"And what is it to you?" he responded rudely. More rudely than Edward had heard before.

"I don't follow!" said Edward, through bared teeth. He did not appreciate Aro's tone, especially in front of his daughter and his wife.

"Well, we all know the dietary lifestyle that the Cullens lead, but let's not be shy here - we all know the dietary lifestyle the Volturi lead too! So, what I am asking, friend, is why do you not try to save all of our...meals...from certain death. Why is this one so special?"

"You know why Aro! She is my daughter's best friend, and an innocent. She has done nothing wrong to you".

"And she's family!" shouted Alice. Jasper had his arms around her in a vice-like grip, holding her back, whilst her face was angry, and her fists were balled up tightly. She was visibly shaking. Renesmee could see the corner of the sepia photo sticking out of her jacket pocket, as she struggled against her husband's hold.

Alice may very well be small, but her fury knew no bounds when it came to her family.

"Family you say? Well, as interesting as all that is Alice, I'm afraid it does not make a difference. She is still coming with us. And really Edward, do you think they have to be guilty of something before we make them our next meal? Surely you can understand that? Most of the people we prey on are innocent". His face was wearing a pleasant, victorious smile, yet his features were not as happy. His eyes said the complete opposite to his sickening grin.

Edward didn't respond. He could not think of an appropriate answer he could give Aro, without inflicting harsh language upon his family's well-tuned ears, and he was not that sort of person. He had more manners than that.

"Edward..." thought Alice, "...I cannot see anything now. Now that Nessie and the wolves are here, I can't see how this is going to go". Even in her mind, her voice was shaky. He took a quick look into Esme's mind, as she was looking at Alice, and he could see Alice's eyes wide, and fearful. Even in her thoughts, Edward could hear she was panicking, and on the verge of acting out.

He shot his sister the quickest of looks, to confirm that he had heard her.

"So, where does this leave us?" he asked, stalling for time, hoping he could come up with a plan. Hoping that Aro was too distracted with getting away, so that he wouldn't ask to touch Edward, his eyes and senses reading his thoughts and the thoughts of all of those around him.

"I don't know Edward. Carlisle?" and he turned his attention politely to the head of the Cullen family. His old friend.

"I'm sorry Aro, but I must side with my family, naturally. You cannot just simply take Hannah, and expect us to do nothing. Alice is right - she is family, one of us, and therefore we will fight for her if needs be".

"And you want that?"

"You know that I don't, but you also know you have left us with no choice".

"Well, I must say I'm very sad to hear that Carlisle" and for a split second, he had a genuinely sad look in his otherwise soulless eyes. "…such a shame that we have to end you all. You have always been a friend to us Carlisle, and I'm sorry it has to end this way".

"Are you?" asked Carlisle, in an unusually sarcastic tone. He had never spoken to Aro like that before - not out of fear for him - but out of respect for a friend. He could see that Aro did not care for their friendship anymore, now that he had his own little 'seer' to play with, and Carlisle had also grown tired of his games. He had seen too many threats thrown at his family from Aro and his coven, knowing that friends do not do that. Forgiveness was something that Carlisle believed was earned, and as far as he was concerned, Aro has not earned the forgiveness from their last encounter yet. As much as he knew their main priority was to keep Hannah safe, he also knew that if she became a member of the Volturi, her gifts would make Aro unstoppable.

"We need a distraction Edward" thought Alice again. "You are the fastest. I'll pretend to have a vision, and you grab Hannah. It's the only way Edward; we need to get her away from them. You know what they will do to her if they get her to Volterra. Are you with me?" Again, he looked out of the corner of his eyes at her, not even lasting a second, and as before, it was their own private confirmation that he was on board with her plan.

Knowing his sister as well as he did, he knew she would not want to wait long, and after a couple more seconds, he heard her gasp from behind him. Half a second had passed before he heard her scream in his head "Now!" as loudly as if she had stood next to him, and screamed it directly into his ear.

Edward didn't waste any time looking back at her, and moving as fast as he could, sprinted over to the Volturi, who had all stopped to look at Alice. Her distraction was dramatic, and knowing Aro's fascination with seeing the future, he was thoroughly enthralled. It made it easy for Edward to take hold of Hannah, and retreat back with her. He placed her next to Alice and Renesmee, as gently as he could.

Aro's attention had broken free of Alice's acting, to see the vital mistake he had made - he had taken his eye off his enemy. "So, that is how it is going to start, huh Edward? Well, then we must take one of yours as a swap. That's only fair wouldn't you say? Felix, go and fetch young Renesmee!". Felix moved forward, and as he did, Emmett moved also.

"Over my dead body!" he joked, with a menacing tone, as he grabbed Felix by the shoulders and they began to grapple, resembling two huge bears.

As if reading each others minds, everyone else moved at the same time - the Cullens, the Volturi and the Werewolves - all became mingled into one big mess of hatred, with Bella throwing her shield around her family, so to block Jane and Alec's powers.

"Jake, follow me!" whispered Edward, as the fight broke out. He took hold of Renesmee around the waist with one arm, and with the other arm, did the same to Hannah, and began to run to the shadows of the trees a short distance away, closely followed by Jacob.

He set them both beside a large Bigleaf Maple tree, "Stay here! Jake, your job is to make sure that these two are unharmed. No matter what you see or hear from over there..." and he looked back, seeing his family - Bella concentrating on keeping her shield intact, and trying to cover everyone, Alice running towards Alec with malice in her eyes, Esme and Jasper teaming up taking on two very large guards...he squeezed his eyes shut tightly, and turned away, "...you must never leave them. You must protect them with everything you have!"

"Yes sir!" obeyed Jacob's thoughts, and all three of them watched as Edward returned to the fight.

With Bella's shield now carefully wrapped around each and every Cullen, and there werewolves being immune to Jane and Alec's powers, it made the fight more even.

Renesmee clung onto a trembling Hannah, and watched her family battle on. She realised now why they wanted her as far away as possible only hours before - it was terrifying to watch.

Seeing one of the guards get free of Jasper's bear-hug of a grasp, he bounded over to them, his red eyes determined. Jacob, however, was ready and waiting for a piece of the action to finally come his way.

Hannah was astonished, as Renesmee let go of her, went over to the nearest tree, and yank it out of the ground - roots and all. She had never seen this side of Renesmee before, but she was not scared, she just felt proud of her friend.

He got closer and closer still, pushing on towards them, and she braced herself, hearing a loud crack, as Renesmee ran in front of Hannah and Jacob and swung at the nameless vampire, treating his head like a baseball. It only momentarily knocked him to the ground before he was back on his feet, even angrier than before.

Rounding on Renesmee, two huge hands suddenly found their way either side of his head, and it was pulled cleanly from his body.

"Uncle Jasper!" cried Renesmee, joyfully, as Jasper threw the head on the ground. It landed by the body it had once belonged to, black curls falling over the open eyes, blocking them from view. It took all of a second for Renesmee to grab both of the guard's arms and yank them out of their sockets, before the limp torso fell to the ground.

"Uncle?" said Hannah, confused.

"Tell you later…" replied Renesmee, as she caught the lighter that Jasper had tossed her, before joining the fight again.

She took hold of a handful of leaves on the floor, and set them alight, looking like a beacon in the darkness, before throwing them on what was left of Aro's minion. She returned to Hannah, who was crouched on the ground, not quite believing that her friend had just set fire to someone's body.

"It's what we have to do, otherwise they just come back...it's all really complicated...and really long winded, it will take me forever to go through. Look, trust me - if we get out of here alive - I will explain everything. Now, stay here and don't move!".

She turned to the russet wolf behind her. "Jake, don't argue! Don't follow me! Just stay here and protect Hannah!", and as Jacob took a step forward with his huge paw, Renesmee put a hand against his chest, stopping him from going any further. "Jake, she means more to this family than before, please understand, and get her to safety if things get bad. And before you start, I will be fine out there – I've had some very good teachers". Then kissing him, and hugging Hannah, she ran into the mix of bodies in the opposite direction, leaving Jacob whining in pain.

Jacob took a moment to think. He knew that Edward would never let Renesmee get hurt and she had asked him to keep Hannah safe. He knew he had to put his feelings and anguish aside. He had a job to do, a duty to fulfil.

He turned his head to face Hannah, who had been staring at him the whole time with her eyes wide, and her mouth open. He whined gently, his attempt at conversation, although he wouldn't know what to say if he had been in his human form, so he was thankful for the language barrier that being a wolf brought.

With her face unchanging, Hannah said breathlessly, unbelieving "Jake, is that you?..."

AN's : I'm sorry to leave you all in the middle, but this was so long, it had to be split into more than one chapter. Please stick with me; it will be worth it in the end! I promise!

Please review also – if you like what I write, tell me about it. If you don't…well, tell me about that too! Ha ha. I enjoy hearing from you guys and what your thoughts are; it keeps me writing when I read that you enjoy it. I will reply to your reviews and as with the previous chapter – anyone who sends me a review will get a sneak peak at the next chapter! Go on, you know you want to!

Until next time, much love guys. x