Skye's POV

Bella was visiting Black, and I had come with her for two reasons. One, somebody had to make sure she didn't break down while getting back to the line, and two, I had some business to attend to with Sam.

The alpha knew the second I was here, and he was waiting for me while Bella ran off to Black's place. I walked over stiffly, not entirely over my total animosity toward the wolves. The stitches had been removed from my shoulder now, my skin was getting back to normal, but the scar would forever remain, I knew that.

"Hello Skye." Sam greeted me politely, his expression was polite too, but serious. I had my reserves about coming here alone, but I shoved it aside, relying on my old self. I needed that confidence.

"Sam." I replied just as politely, nodding to him. I didn't need to read minds to know what was on his; he was curious to my being here. And somewhat expectant. I cut right to the chase, I didn't want small talk. And it wasn't a light favour I was asking him either, I could get myself killed if I didn't go about it properly.

"So I assume you made up your mind."

"Yes."

"What is it?"

I took a deep breath. I wouldn't say it directly that was the line I had to walk carefully. But if I beat around the bush too much he'd get frustrated with me. I had to do this carefully. I spoke slowly, calmly, hiding my nervousness rather effectively. "It took me awhile to figure it out... And I'm sorry about that, I know it must have gotten you frustrated."

Good lot of help it'd do, placating him. I wasn't his friend, I wasn't even an acquaintance. But he took it in stride, nodding with what I said.

"I only have one request, and it's all I want." I said quietly, confidence gone. There wasn't an easy way to say it, and there was no way I would be able to do it lightly. I took another deep breath, speaking calmly, trying to sound nonthreatening, but it failed. "And if you deny it, I'm going to hold you to your promise, so you'll owe me. Whenever I ask for you, you'll have no choice but to be there if you've got the honour."

Now he was suspicious, dark eyes pools of shadow as he stared at me. "Out with it." All politeness was gone from his voice.

"Give the Cullens a free pass for Bella." I said firmly, and he stared at me with wide eyes for a long moment. He half-hoped I was joking, but my expression made him serious again. His arms were shivering, he was controlling his temper in a magnificent effort. I continued as calmly as I could, "Let them change her. Whether it's here or whether it's away from here, leave them alone when she's changed. It's all she wants, and it's all I ask."

"It's against the treaty." Sam ground out between his grit teeth, arms still shivering.

"And I bet fighting alongside them was probably not in your list of things you wanted to do." I replied cooly, trying to keep my temper in check. "You can be a common ally, you just need to get over your hatred of each other. The Cullens are willing to cooperate with you, they don't have any animosity with you. Its you, the pack that hates them. They've already proved their side of the bargain dozens of times over. You shouldn't be sticking to your petty squabbles with them."

He said nothing, but his arms were still shivering like mad. Slowly the shivering began to subside as he gained control over himself. "Do you understand what you're asking?"

"Yeah, I do."

"No, do you really appreciate the gravity of what that will do if we allow them this 'free pass'? Do you see what chaos that might cause for everybody?" He asked me seriously, eyes dark.

"You're the Alpha, regardless of your elders. You make the decisions, it doesn't matter what anyone else says. If you don't trust the Cullens, that's your problem. But she will be changed, and there's nothing you can do about it. I'm asking you this to save everyone a lot of grief. And it's your job to take this tradition to a new level." I answered him quietly. "You have to trust them. Bella will be taken care of, and nothing will happen to her. And if you refuse me this, you'll still owe me one favour. And you won't be able to deny me then."

He debated this for what seemed like forever, frozen where he stood. I watched him, not tearing my gaze away to give the impression of weakness. I knew time was passing, and I saw on his watch that Bella would be expected home soon. Had we really talked for that long or was my mind playing tricks on me?

Silence.

"... I..." Same spoke quietly, forcing out the words, "I accept your request, and I will honour it completely. The Cullens get one free ride with Bella, we won't start war on them when she is changed." I sensed the but coming, and I wasn't disappointed. "But... If she is killed..."

"If she's killed, in the biological way," I added, emphasizing my words so he wouldn't find a loophole and exploit it, "Then what happens is up to you. But if she's changed successfully, and becomes a vampire, you leave them alone. If they kill her, then be my guest and do what you want. I'll agree to those terms."

He extended his large hand to me, obviously meaning to seal the deal like that. I slid my small one into his large hand, my pale skin contrasting mightily with his tan. He squeezed gently, giving me slight pressure to weakly return. I saw Bella coming out of Jacob's home out of the corner of my eye, and both Sam and I stepped away from each other quickly.

Bella hurried to my side when she saw me waiting, and together we walked back to the line, not speaking. I had no intentions of telling Bella what I'd just done, she'd have been furious with me. And with how things were now... I couldn't be certain that she'd even appreciate it if she could.

She had visited Jacob Black twice since the end of the battle. The first time he'd been unconscious still, and the second was now. I didn't ask her what had happened between them, but I knew from the tear streaks on her face that it hadn't been good.

I was torn. Part of me knew I had to be going, and I was. My things were packed, and Justin and I had set the date to today. We'd be leaving at five promptly, and that was only two hours from now. I wanted to stay.

I wanted to stay so fiercely it scared me. The thought of leaving literally hurt. I didn't want to leave Bella again. But I had to. The Volturi would be coming to check up on us if I stayed and I wouldn't risk it. But that didn't ease the pain.

Justin was waiting for me, and Edward was waiting for Bella. I trotted over quickly to Justin's side, instantly feeling better when his arm snatched me and pulled me to his chest.

"Will you be coming back to the home or will you just be leaving?" Bella asked, and I wriggled around to look at her.

Her expression was heartbreaking, though she was trying her hardest to keep it calm. I smiled at her, trying to ease her pain and mine. "I'll be back, I can't leave without saying goodbye to everybody, can I?"

"We'll be waiting then." Edward said formally, hoisting Bella onto his back and taking off into the forest without another word.

I peeked over at Justin. We still had some minor affairs to attend to, but we'd talk about that once we got home.

The ride was fast, and silent. Neither of us seemed to want to talk. It was an overcast day, so Justin and I could walk together in public. We made it to the apartment, which looked ever the same. We'd decided to leave with two bags, one for me and one for him, and that'd be it. Everything else would go to whoever moved in next. The bags were sitting on the bed, looking huge despite the fact that they were really pretty standard.

Justin had managed to get in contact with Stephen again, telling him the bad news. I'd seen Justin's face when he was talking to his friend, the pain there made me breathless. It was all I could do to stop myself from putting my arms around him. But if Justin felt that bad about what he'd done, I could only imagine what Stephen was going through.

Stephen had managed to sound polite according to Justin, and he said that my bed was still waiting for me there. We had a home in the north if we ever wanted it again, and he'd inform the girls of us coming. I could only imagine how they'd react, apparently they'd been hunting when Justin managed to get through to Stephen.

Everything was set now. Everything but out goodbyes.

The trip to the Cullens' home took forever, even though we were running. I don't know if he was delaying it for my sake, or he actually liked being here either. But I appreciated it either way.

By the time we got there, the entire family was outside, lined up, waiting expectantly for us. I slid from Justin's back, not at all surprised to see Bella standing between Edward and Alice, her face still a mask. I smiled sheepishly at all of them, at a loss for words. I'd expected a few of them to come out, maybe Alice, Esme and Carlisle, Emmett maybe, not every single one. Though Rosalie looked like she was being held there against her will, and I winced at the thought.

"Skye. Justin." Carlisle greeted us pleasantly, nodding towards us. "I'm glad you came."

"Wouldn't have missed saying goodbye to you for the world." I mumbled, wishing I could make my words stronger. I couldn't though, my throat was tight, it was hard to get past the sudden wave of sadness that crushed me. Who knew when I'd see these genuinely warm people again?

"Are you sure you have to leave?" Esme asked me softly, her voice like melting honey. My heart literally caught in my throat, now I was scared to speak.

It made me long to stay. To forget about everything else and let myself give in and pretend I had a family again. To just stay in one place for as long as I could, and be accepted. It was murder to tell myself a resounding no, to force the dream from my mind and shatter my already frail heart. I could wish, long for the things that would never be mine, but I wouldn't fool myself. I smiled warmly at Esme, real affection warming my chest. "I'm sorry. I wish I could."

She frowned just a little, and I stabbed myself for causing that look on her face. Too warm. Far too warm. "Alright..."

I swallowed. Might as well say my goodbyes while I was on a roll, if I didn't I'd never let myself go. I started with Rosalie, getting the worst out of the way. She didn't even want to look at me, but grudgingly she did, her expression pure stone. I sighed and extended my hand, taking the high road.

"I know that you don't like me. And I'm sorry we didn't get the time to talk and sort things out... I want you to know that I'm sorry for all the trouble I caused. Hopefully we can see each other again on better terms." I was sincere, and the words came easier than expected, I honestly thought I was going to break down already.

Rosalie stared at me, her expression hard to figure for a moment. Then she nodded and shook my hand, her cold grip sending a chill up my arm. "Yes. That would be better." She released my hand quickly, but the gesture was slightly comforting.

I moved onto Emmett, I'd enjoy this one. I playfully nudged his shoulder with my fist, it did nothing but probably bruise my hand. I grinned at him. "Behave, and don't get into any fights I wouldn't get into."

Emmett grinned like a kid with his hand caught in the cookie jar, and ruffled my hair in a surprisingly gentle gesture for the bear. "I'll try my best then."

"I mean it." I warned him with a laugh, shrugging off his large hand, my hair now a mess. "I'll come back here and kick your ass if I found out you did something stupid."

"Ooh, scary." Emmett snorted, and he tapped my head gently before extending his fist to me. I bumped it with my own, and we both shared a laugh.

Jasper. He smiled at me, though he kept his distance and I didn't attempt to close it. I nodded at him, I didn't need to speak. He didn't need to say anything either, he just returned my nod and sent a flood of calm over me to soothe my jitters. I laughed, I couldn't help it. I'd miss that. "Thanks." He nodded again, and I moved onto his little pipsqueak of a wife.

"I'm going to miss you." Alice said sadly, wrapping her short arms around me and I laughed, hugging her back and kissing her spiky hair. She pouted and whined, "Really, Bella makes shopping no fun, I can actually pick stuff out for you and you don't complain!"

"On the outside." I joked, and she scowled playfully at me, baring her teeth and growling softly. I giggled, I was going to miss her. She reminded me so much of Cait, maybe that was why I loved her so much. "I'll miss you too Alice. You behave, don't kill Bella's wedding, I want to be there too."

Alice's reply was a broad grin and literally spread from ear to ear, and I heard Bella moan beside her. I skipped Bella, I'd save her for last, I went right to Edward. He watched me silently, trying to read my mind. I thought of nothing and he frowned a bit. He muttered quietly, "Can't say that I'll miss that part of you..."

I shoo my head, smiling at him. I extended my hand again, and he looked at it curiously. "Thank you. For everything. You did what I couldn't, so I owe you. Take care of her." I didn't even need to ask him that, but it felt better now that I had. She was in good hands.

He smiled and nodded, reading the last part of my thoughts. "Yes. She is in good hands." He took my hand, shaking it. "You be well also."

"You know me."

Next Carlisle. He gave me his hand first, smiling politely as I shook it. He spoke softly and gently, voice ever so serious and calm, "I hope we can hear from you soon, perhaps we could make a visit to the north and meet this coven you speak so highly of." He actually sounded hopeful, I had to hide a smile.

"You'll need to take that up with Stephen, but seeing as he's a huge admirer of yours, I doubt that'd be an issue Dr Cullen." I answered respectfully, nodding. Stephen was an avid supporter of the Cullens, it had been what motivated him to be what he was. Word got around the vampire world, much quicker than any network I knew of. "He'd like that, and so would I."

I moved to Esme, this would be hard. Esme stepped forward and hugged me without a word, and I gave in to the little girl inside of me. I hugged her back, closing my eyes for an instant as I did it. I broke away before I could get too wrapped up in myself, and I smiled at her. "Thank you too."

Esme smoothed out my hair in a maternal gesture, straightening my clothes and she made her small fuss. I let her, knowing she wanted to do it, why deny a woman like that anything? "Be safe. I wish the best for you..." She sighed a little, and a look of intense disappointed crossed her features for a swift moment. "I still wish there was something we could do to change your minds..."

"So do I, but I'm too stubborn to let it happen." I murmured unhappily, and swiftly gave myself a hard kick in the ass. No need to make her more disappointed.

She smiled again and hugged me for the second time. "If... If and when you do go through with your change... Both of you," She glanced meaningfully at Justin who smiled and nodded back, before fixing her gaze on me again, "are welcome here whenever you need a home. Our family is your family."

A burning sensation caught in my throat and I felt a stone lodge there to bring tears into my eyes. By sheer force of will I swallowed the stone and forced my tears back. "Thank you."

Now Bella. I turned slowly towards her, not sure if I really wanted to look into those brown eyes and see what I knew I was going to see. She was staring at me like she wanted to both hit me and hug me at the same time, and the smile came naturally. Half-heartedly opening my arms, I mumbled, "If you want to hit me you might as well go ahead."

"Idiot." She muttered, but she hurried forward and hugged me anyway, with surprising strength I might add, I toppled backwards a good two feet. Then she hit me, a sound and rather solid hit to my stomach.

I actually gasped, stunned for a second by the blow. It didn't hurt as much as I figured it would if she'd actually nailed me, but ti was enough to probably give me a bruise. I coughed for a second then shook my head. "Weakling." She smiled and we hugged again. "Good shot though."

"Don't come back for the wedding." She growled in what she probably thought was a threatening voice, glaring at me.

I couldn't help it, I grinned. "You kidding? I'd rather stand up to the Volturi by myself than miss it. I'm taping the entire thing too, it will be the funniest thing I've ever seen." She growled at me, mocking throwing a punch at me, and I ducked out of her range just as playfully. "I love you, okay? And I'll be back as soon as I can. Behave. And don't do anything stupid, like fall down the stairs."

"Your concern is staggering." Bella griped, but she still hung onto me, eyes closed and arms wound tight. I hugged her too, choking back any teary words that would have embarrassed the living hell out of me. "Be careful too."

We broke apart, and I breathed in hard to calm myself. I shot smiles at the coven, and watched Justin say his own goodbyes, which were much shorter than mine had been. I finally hoisted my bag over my shoulder, glancing meaningfully at Justin. He nodded and waited for me to slide onto is back.

I did, not sparing a glance over my shoulder. I knew if I did, I would start crying and I didn't want them to see it. I held on tightly to him, and he took off, bounding quickly through the forest. I sighed, opening my eyes once I knew we'd left them far behind, staring at the woods ahead of us.

Victoria was dead. The Volturi were sufficiently distracted for a little bit longer. I had my Justin back. And my friend was safe. I could breathe easy for now. All that was left was to keep moving forward.

I smiled a little, tightening my grip on Justin's shoulders. Stephen, Cait, Sara... Here we come.

AN

Dun dun dah, lol. Lol, that's the end of Dusk, I can't believe I managed to finish this before Breaking Dawn came out. (stunned) I'm even amazed I got reviews XD. Anyway... So yes, sequel. I've decided I won't start it till after I read Breaking Dawn, so I'll be able to make some things correspond to the book, just for background information, you know?

Anyway, thanks are in order here... Special thank you to these people who've put this story on favourites and story alert, sorry if your name shows up twice or I made a mistake in spelling, lol.

Thanks to: -Edward.and.Alice.4ever-, Cyndlu, JessieMay, KuroSakura99, RebeccaRiot, Vera-Lynnemerald, blacklace19, youloveme, Bevtan888, Cyndlu, KuroSakura99, Oxygen.and.Cucumber, TwilightSagaLover, black rose and dark angel, brezy bri, and mari alice.

Special thanks to Oxygen.and.Cucumber and brezy bri, without your faithful reviews I wouldn't have had the courage to finish this! Honestly, I love you readers and I love you all for putting up with me!

Please leave me a review to tell me your thoughts, and I hope you all have a great time scouring the fanfiction world for better stuff than mine! And just because, you aren't alone in the impatient waiting for Breaking Dawn. XD

See you later with more stuff!

Evie