A/N - Okay I'm trying to stick with my desire to get this thing done. I think the worst of it has passed (I hope)

This chapter will be graphic and uncomfortable - you've been warned. DON'T READ IT IF YOU CAN'T HANDLE GRAPHIC STUFF. PLEASE.

SM owns the copyright, I'm just expanding on her genius...

Chapter 25: MEETING

After that first night, Bella never cried because of Alain and his performances again. She steeled herself instead with a desire to save as much money as possible and get as far away from this life as she could. Alain let her stay after the DeWinter performance, even gave her a quid for her work, but was not one to hand out encouragement. His only words to her or any of the others were always orders and instructions. They could have anywhere from two to three engagements a week, and after a month of participating, Bella knew the whole show and Alain was working on a new one, along with plans to travel to Italy. Word of Alain's little group had reached an ancient town there named Volterra, and Alain's eyes were alight with the prospect of Rome's fabled streets and the Italians' love for debauchery. Rome was, after all, the city of orgies - at least once upon a time. With the fire that moved Alain, you would think he planned to bring back those days himself.

At the end of her second month with Alain, Bella had lost all ties with her former life and was completely immersed with the troupe. They weren't friends, but they were held together because of their circumstances. None of them trusted the other, all knowing that if they had a chance to jump ship and leave, they would without a second glance. However, there was still some strange sense of a team, and after a good performance, they would stay up late into the night drinking wine and laughing. Horribly enough, these few stolen moments of pretend friendship where the high points during these months for Bella. Her efforts to save money were proving difficult at best, as Alain was constantly making up ways to get the money he paid them back - by charging randomly for food, clothing and board - usually when the week was a slow one.

Having never left London before, Bella was amazed at all the new sights on their journey to Italy. The beauty of the sea, then the countryside of Europe made her wish she had some skill with a pen and parchment. Their first week in Italy Alain was out and about spreading the word of their arrival, trying to book dates for the following months. They already had the one in Volterra, but it wasn't for another couple of weeks, and Alain was eager to bring in more money.

Bella knew absolutely nothing about Volterra other then what Alain mentioned and what she heard whispered on the streets. It was an old, old city, rumored to be cursed by an evil no one dared mention, but everyone somehow knew about. Alain shrugged this away when she or the other performers voiced apprehension. As the night drew closer, they took up a custom of rubbing themselves down with garlic and wearing crucifixes around their necks. The locals they had spoken with seemed to think these precautions may help.

"They've only been seen at night, you know," cackled the matron of the boarding house they were staying in. "Seems you have that in common." Their choice of lifestyle wasn't something she had approved of, but she needed their money. Bella had taken to feeding some food to the boarding house's dog every now and then to make sure it wasn't poisoned.

The date of their visit to Volterra arrived, and Alain was literally jumping with excitement. The Volturi who ruled the tiny stone city had booked two nights of double performances, and an unheard of amount of money had changed hands for the deposit. Bella had small hope that her pay would be any more then usual, but perhaps this once, Alain would find a heart somewhere in that slick, cold appearance of his.

The minute they arrived, greeted by a young girl in a large cloak who silently led them through many dimly lit passageways, Bella knew something was terribly, horribly wrong. Everything was cold, still and stale, as if the world had taken a deep breath in and never exhaled it. They emerged in a large circular room that appeared to be in one of the towers she had noticed from outside. All the windows were high up on the walls and chairs were situated in a circular pattern around the outside of the circle - three much larger and ornate then the rest. "Wait here," echoed softly around the room as the door shut behind their guide as she left. Alain began telling them where to set up the props they had brought with them, commenting on how a circular room was a great venue for a show such as theirs. Bella was chilled down to her bones, and had no idea how she was going to be mostly undressed in such a place without her teeth chattering together.

The temperature became the very least of her worries in the next few moments, as other cloaked figures began to enter the room. Although instead of alleviating the chill, as lots of warm bodies tend to do when they gather in one area, it only seemed to get even colder. One hooded figure, larger then the rest, approached Alain. Bella and the others stood to the side as they spoke for a moment - this tall one was apparently in charge - and then Alain waved them over. "Everyone, this is Aro, our client. Aro, this is my troupe." Aro lowered his hood and met each one of their silent gazes with his own - when he reached Bella, she couldn't stop the gasp that escaped her throat. Aro's eyes were red - blood red - but with a film over them, like a smokey stained glass window. The skin on his face was pulled tight and looked as if it might crack it was so dry. When she glanced around to see if anyone else noticed this, they all seemed entranced, still staring at Aro with normal, almost bored expressions on their faces.

In a movement, Aro was next to her, staring down at her intently. She hadn't noticed him make any sort of step toward her, but there he was before she had taken a breath. "And who, may I ask, would you be?" His voice made sent tremors from her head to her toes, but she didn't break the stare.

"Bella - Isabella," she managed to respond, again noticing that no one else seemed to think Aro was behaving strangely. In fact, Alain had returned to making the others finish setting up. Bella tried to use this as an escape, "I need to help..."

"No, stay here a moment," Aro wrapped two long, icy fingers around her wrist and she stifled the urge to scream. They were barely an inch apart now, his lips against her forehead. She heard him inhale very deeply. "Mmmmmmmmmm. So nice, so very very sweet. Never smelled anything like it. Now tell me child, why is it that you recognize my true nature but your cohorts," he gestured in Alain's direction, "do not?"

"I - I - don't know, sir," she stammered, finally looking down, no longer able to fight the fear that was knotting up in her throat and stomach. She had no idea what he meant by the term True Nature. His grip on her wrist tightened.

"Marcus, Caius," Aro's voice was hardly loud to her ears, but two others, who Bella knew had been nowhere close by, appeared by his side in an instant. Marcus and Caius eyed her greedily but Aro seemed to read their thoughts. "No, this one is mine. I'm laying claim right now - I do not need your permission, but I am asking for it."

Not knowing which was Marcus and which was Caius, Bella didn't know who spoke next. They circled around her and Aro, like vultures surveying a carcass. "Yes, she is rather pleasant, isn't she? And she isn't tricked by our glamour?" at this, the other two both lowered their hoods and Bella noticed their eyes glowed an ugly red just like Aro's. The urge to turn and run had never, ever been so strong in her life. But where could she go? She had a feeling her attempts to run would only excite these creatures, as if she was adding some fun to a boring game.

"She is special, this one," Aro leaned forward, brushing her face with his lips and sighing. "Ah, yes, I like this one very, very much." Involuntarily, Bella shivered in Aro's grasp. A low chuckle escaped him. "You think you're cold now. Just wait." And with that, he whirled away in a flick of his cloak and he, Marcus and Caius were suddenly seated in the largest chairs of the circle. Alain was signaling her they were ready to begin.

The room had filled to standing room only while Aro had been speaking to her. She rushed over to Alain, feeling she should warn him, say something. But he brushed her off, shoving her to the middle of the room. "Not now!" he threw at her. She removed her traveling clothes, stripping down to her costume, and took her position amidst the makeshift stage.

Everything went normally and Bella had just started to feel the fear release in the back of her throat when, in the moment it took her to blink, Joseph was yanked off of her and Aro's brittle face appeared. For some reason she couldn't fathom, his mouth was covered with blood. She screamed and then a pain that she couldn't have ever imagined ripped through her body, through her veins, as if someone was injecting liquid fire into her being.

For what felt like days, weeks even, she screamed and screamed, unable to open her eyes or move any of her extremities. She didn't know where she was or what had happened. Then, like a candle being snuffed, everything went completely and totally black and silent.

When she awoke, Aro was waiting for her, and her new life as vampire had begun.

Antheria lifted the visual enchantment off the Cullens, abruptly bringing everyone back to the present. Bella turned her back to them, unable to face this lovely little family who had accepted her so easily. The would never let her see Edward again now that they knew the truth. She was certain of it. Antheria bowed to the Cullens and Bella followed her out the door and into the woods. No one called after them. No one tried to stop her.