Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight nor the song Daybreak. I am only borrowing them from Meyer and Digby.

I think there are lines in this chapter that were borrowed from the books.

A/N: Thank you to Kathie aka Katmom again for being such a wonderful editor. I really hope you'll all enjoy this one.

Chapter 35

Volterra

Cloaked by the night, several figures ran toward a castle. After landing, the Cullens and the Volturi guards rapidly made their way to Volterra, Italy. No pretenses were required. It was the middle of the night, and all the humans were asleep. There weren't any witnesses to the group of pale-skinned beings running in the direction of the old structure.

Bella had been asleep in Edward's arms as he and the rest of his family dreaded meeting the rulers of their world. But the closer they got, the more she stirred.

Each of the Cullens held on to their mates' hands as tightly as they could.

When Bella awoke, she was a little disoriented, and then she remembered where they were.

"Edward?" Bella gasped.

Edward only stared at her, his face showing how truly sorry he was that they were in such a predicament.

Bella looked around and saw the looming clock tower atop the hill. Her eyes widened and she couldn't prevent the gasp that escaped her lips. She held on tighter to Edward, willing her mind to dispel the thoughts from a dream.

"What is it?" Edward worriedly asked.

She looked at him as if she was trying to memorize his face. "Nothing."

"You sure?"

Bella nodded and motioned for Edward to put her down when they came upon the plaza.

"It wasn't supposed to be like this." Bella held on tight to Edward's hand. She was close to panicking as they continued their trek.

Edward could only nod. "I know. I'll keep you safe, Bella. I promise." He put an arm around her, trying to somehow ease her fears.

Jane scoffed at Edward's vow of protection, causing some of the younger Cullens to sneer. "We're here," she announced.

And there they were, right in front of the hallway where dream Edward attempted to expose himself after thinking that Bella had died.

They passed the square fountain at the center of the plaza. Bella's gaze flickered to it briefly before concentrating once more on the Palazzo dei Priori.

They walked into the dark hall, going deeper and deeper into the Volturi lair. They reached the open hole in the street, the guards sliding down. Carlisle followed, then Esme. Rosalie was disgusted at how murky it looked, but knew she had no choice and did the same. Emmett followed his mate, but paused at the bottom when it was Bella's turn.

"Don't worry, Edward, I'll catch her," Emmett said.

Edward held Bella's hands, watching her intently. "Ready?" he asked.

Bella drew a deep breath, then nodded. She was being lowered into the hole, she knew she should feel afraid, but she didn't. She was confident that Emmett, and all the Cullens, would be there for her.

She gasped when Edward let go, but it was a quick drop. She was in Emmett's arms in a second.

"You okay, Bella?" Emmett asked as they waited for the rest of their family to come through the hole.

"Yes, thanks, Emmett," Bella replied as she was set back on her feet once more.

Edward drew her in his arms as they proceeded further into the tunnel. The path went deeper underground, and Bella gripped Edward's hand tighter, not knowing what fate had in store for them at the end of their journey.

They went through two doors, another long hallway, inside an elevator, coming to a reception area, and through a couple more double doors.

For those who had never been to the Volturi's lair, part of them marveled at the ancient castle. Although, they also felt the remoteness and superiority it presented.

Finally, they were in a round room. Bella didn't know if she should tense or relax. She was glad that long walk was over, but she knew exactly to whom they were being brought before.

"Ah, our dear friend has returned." The long black-haired Aro greeted the head of the Cullen family. "How have you been, Carlisle? I see you have gained quite a coven."

Carlisle stepped forward. "Aro, let me introduce you to my family. My wife, Esme." The Cullen matriarch smiled at Aro and the rest of vampire royalty. "And my children, Edward, Bella, Rosalie, Emmett, Alice, and Jasper."

Aro turned to look at Marcus, who nodded slowly. He returned his attention to the Cullens and spoke, "You're all mated." Then his eyes narrowed at Bella and he drew his hands together, as if in prayer. "What do you have here, Carlisle? You know our rules."

"Yes, but she is my son's mate. They will be wed and she will be changed soon," Carlisle informed them.

"Soon? Why must a date be set? Why hasn't it been done the minute you knew she was to be with your son?"

"She will reveal our secret! She cannot leave," Caius said in outburst.

"No!" Esme took a step toward Bella, but Carlisle held her in place by holding her around the waist. Emmett was itching to start a fight, but Rosalie was holding on to him tight to prevent him from doing something stupid. She knew a fight in the Volturi's territory would prove futile.

Edward wrapped his arms tighter around his beloved, a sinister look on his face. Alice looked at Edward, willing him to see the vision she had back at Forks once more. Edward relaxed a little after that, albeit slightly. Jasper was taking in the emotions in the room, calming everyone down just a little to avoid being noticed. He wanted them all to hide their powers, lest Bella's dream was correct, and Aro would want Alice and Edward for his guards.

He talked to Edward mentally, trying to ease his brother's murderous intention toward the guards. Stay calm, Edward. Bella had dreamt of being in front of the Volturi as a human. She got out safely then, and that's what will happen this time, too.

Carlisle was quick to explain. "Aro, Caius, I assure you Bella is not a danger to us. She knows this life, she wants it. Once she is turned, she'll have to disappear. We are trying to do this with as little suspicion as possible to prevent her father from looking into it. He's the chief of police in the small town that we live in, and if Bella would disappear suddenly, he will stop at nothing to find her."

Upon hearing that, Bella began to worry about Charlie. She left so abruptly. While she was able to call him on the plane en route to Europe, she hoped that he wouldn't check on her at the Cullens after she gave him the sleepover excuse.

She then looked at the kings one by one. Marcus was as indifferent as ever, Caius wanted her dead, and Aro… he seemed to be biding his time, but for what?

"You've still gone against one of our laws, Carlisle, one that deems grave punishment. We cannot let this pass," Caius insisted.

"Bella is one of my daughters already. We're only waiting for a year. Just until she graduates from high school," Carlisle pleaded with the Volturi leaders.

Caius jeered. "Why must you put up the sham of making your coven go to school with humans?"

"Like I've told Jane, we all have our own charades to play," Carlisle answered.

"You and your misplaced compassion, Carlisle. How long will you deny our nature?"

"This is who I am, Caius. This is my nature."

"Enough. We're only going around in circles, brother." Aro looked at Caius. He was tired of the run-around, he wanted to know more about the human, and more importantly, what to do with her. While he valued Carlisle's friendship, he also knew they couldn't be lenient just because they favored him. On the other hand, he was their leader, and if he wanted to give pardon to his dear friend, he could do so without question.

"Edward," Aro called. He stretched out his hand. "May I?"

At this, Edward tensed. One touch and Aro would know everything. But he knew he had no choice. He hesitated, looked at Carlisle who gave him a short nod, then took one step. He then felt the tug on his shirt when he tried to take another. He turned to Bella.

Bella was shaking her head vehemently. Tears were pooling in her eyes. She was so scared that she was shaking.

"It'll be all right, Bella." Edward pried the firm hold she had on his clothes, kissed his love chastely, then once more walked toward Aro.

Esme went to offer her comfort. Everyone could see how badly Bella was affected by the Volturi.

Bella hugged herself, trying hard to keep her composure. She had to stop herself from screaming and throwing herself in front of Aro so he could attempt to draw out her thoughts, than those of the Cullens. She knew she shouldn't have talked about her dream. She knew when things started happening in somewhat the same way, they were destined to go to Volterra. And now, Aro was about to learn everything from her dream, especially about their confrontation in the end. She was certain that the Volturi king would want them dead once he saw that.

Bella closed her eyes with each step Edward took, making her tears spill.

However, in the next instant, everything turned into bedlam.

Edward placed his hand on Aro's, and the older vampire beamed with delight. But then after a split second, his grin turned into a frown. He looked Edward in the eyes, gold against red. He then looked at their joined palms, then back at the young vampire once more.

Aro then looked at Carlisle, confusion marring his face. No one spoke, everyone wondering what was going on.

"What is this?" Aro demanded as he let go of Edward's hand harshly.

Edward's eyes were gleaming. He knew exactly what was happening.

"Carlisle!" Aro beckoned.

The blond vampire was quickly beside Edward, baffled at Aro's change of mood.

Aro grabbed Carlisle's hand, his eyes growing wide and wary. Then he hastily withdrew his hand, anger and perplexity was consuming him.

Jasper was doing everything he could to ebb the emotions swirling within the leader of the Volturi. He couldn't calm him down too swiftly, or he would be discovered. But he, too, couldn't understand what was happening.

Alice held on to her mate to keep herself from bouncing. She needed to be as complacent as she could be in front of the Volturi. Carlisle was right when he said they all had their charades to play, and she was playing a huge one at that very moment.

Carlisle couldn't understand it; neither could anyone else in the room. The only people who knew what was taking place were doing their best to keep quiet until it was necessary for them to speak.

"What is going on? How? How could you hide your thoughts from me?" Aro demanded furiously.

Rosalie gasped. She thought Aro could read every thought a person ever had with just a single touch… everyone, except Bella.

She looked at her sister and saw that the human girl was as still as a statue, breathing deep and hard.

She then heard her name. Alice called to her in warning not to reveal anything.

Rose narrowed her eyes at the other brunette. The little pixie knew. Alice had seen this, which meant…. She then turned her gaze to Edward, he did, too.

Edward gave her an almost unnoticeable nod. He had certainly seen this meeting play out in Alice's vision before they left Forks. But he knew he also had to get them out of there quickly. Bella's shield can't work for such a long period, she was still human after all.

"What is happening, brother?" Caius asked.

"I can't read their minds," Aro replied softly.

"What? How is that possible?" Caius looked at the Cullens, wondering how they were able to elude Aro's power. "Answer me!" he yelled.

"It's Bella's shield," Edward spoke.

A number of the Volturi gasped and all looked at the human, who still held the same pose.

"That's impossible, she's human!" Aro exclaimed.

"Yes, she's prevented me from being able to read her thoughts from the beginning. She's quite extraordinary, which only shows you that I do not plan to keep her human for long. She's my mate, and I intend to spend my existence with her forever," Edward said passionately.

"Well, then, this changes things," Aro said.

Alice and the rest of the Cullen coven brightened at that.

"No, it does not. They've still gone against our law," Caius insisted.

"Carlisle, due to our long-standing friendship, I will grant you and your coven pardon for this insolence," Aro began, ignoring Caius' ire.

The head of the Cullen family remained stoic. He knew they did commit an offense, but he also knew that Aro had a scheme brewing. He was certainly glad Bella was able to defend them from Aro's intrusive ability. If Aro knew what he knew, he doubted if he would have been able to leave with his family intact, if at all, had Bella not protected them.

The Cullens were now smiling, and Edward was waking Bella up from what seemed like a trance.

"Bella, open your eyes, love."

Bella's eyelids slowly lifted and her breathing returned to normal. "What? Edward?"

"Hush, it's okay. I told you we would be all right." Edward was gazing at her lovingly.

Though she could feel a huge headache coming on, Bella hugged Edward tight; the sense of relief was greater than the discomfort that was starting. They were still in the presence of the Volturi, but if Edward was smiling, then it meant he was telling her the truth.

"However," Aro continued, "I want Bella turned as soon as she has finished her schooling."

Carlisle nodded. "You have my word, Aro."

Aro nodded. Then he grinned. "Oh, I want to try something." He turned to one of his guards. "Jane?"

"Yes, Master." The little imp smiled wickedly then targeted Bella.

But Edward was quick to jump to his beloved's defense. "No!" He fell writhing on the floor in extreme pain.

"Edward!" The Cullens screamed. Bella fell to her knees, trying to find a way to comfort her boyfriend, begging anyone to make it stop. Alice was holding on to her, knowing that they could do nothing until Jane had released Edward from the torture. Esme and Carlisle went to their son. Emmett and Rosalie were growling. Jasper was striving to ease the pain his brother was feeling but he was unsuccessful.

"Jane," Aro spoke, like a master calling off his guard dog. Jane looked at Aro, all angelic and childlike.

Edward slowly got up, Emmett helping him. Bella was in front of him, looking at him worriedly.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," he spoke breathlessly.

"Well, it seems Bella's shield is not immune against everyone," Aro said arrogantly. "Still, it would be nice to see how powerful a vampire you will be, dear Bella. I might be inclined to ask you to join our guard."

"Uh, no, thank you," Bella said meekly.

"Yes, well, you still have time to change your mind. I'll be seeing you again, and hopefully, you'll be more attuned to our… existence. Farewell, Cullens. It was nice to see you again, old friend." Aro dismissed them.

"You too, Aro," Carlisle answered.

And with that, the Cullens headed straight for home.