Aw, you know what I just realized? This story is almost done...aw, sad day!!!!!!!! But, good news is that then I'll be able to post the sequel 'Caged Nightingale'. Excited? I really hope that you are. Show me with reviews please!!!!!!!!!

~*~

William ran ahead of the group eagerly, his eyes focused on the all too familiar castle. He could smell Noel, and he was outraged to smell that her scent had changed. She smelled like that damn boy, but she also smelled like the essence of Italy. So it was true, they had made her their leader. He had hoped that she would smell like that, but that she would also be at his side as his doting wife and mate. Sometimes he cursed himself for that day in the music room and often wondered if things might have been different if he hadn't let his passions take over. Perhaps he would still have the well-mannered and obedient Noel that he had turned? Maybe she would be beside him, fighting in this battle alongside him. The memory of that day still lingered in his mind. While it had been incredibly pleasurable for him and he had indulged in her multiple times that day, that was probably the moment that had changed her completely. After that, she had started dressing like a boy, even going as far as to cut her hair. Obviously she was trying to make herself as unattractive as possible.

It didn't work.

William continued to pursue her up until the day that he was forced to kick her out. He wanted her again as she had been: on her back and letting out those sweet screams. That had come up countless times in the past few weeks. He had made his problems known to Lord Voldermort, and the man was more then happy to help him. He swore that when the battle was won, Noel would be returned to William, bound to him by spells and potions. She would be forced to forget that stupid human, after he was killed in front of her, of course. He would make her suffer before forcing her to finally take her rightful place beside him. William would finally love everything that he had ever wanted.

The clouds rolled in and began to weep fresh tears upon their black hoods. One of Lord Voldermort's closest attendants, Lucius Malfoy, came alongside him, stroking his shining cane with a wicked smirk.

"The woman you seek, she's inside, is she?" William nodded.

"She has befriended those damn wizards…and I want her back."

"Yes, well I'm quite curious to see the beautiful woman that has so aggressively captured your attention." William sighed as the remaining Death Eaters and vampires caught up with them.

"She is the loveliest creature that I have ever laid my eyes on, and she has an even more astonishing voice…she could reach into your body with that voice and pluck the very strings of your heart." Lucius chuckled as they began approaching the castle again, their footsteps much slower.

"Tell me, would you share her?" William cocked an eyebrow.

"What do you mean?"

"Would you allow her to come to my bed? You're welcome to watch, but I've always wondered what it would be like to fuck the dead." William started to growl, but Lucius wasn't going to back down.

"She is mine."

"We can trade, if you'd like. I have many lovers, and my wife is quite skilled. You can pick from any woman that I have, simply allow me to try your Noel." William lashed out, grabbing Lucius by the throat and slamming him against a solid pine. Death Eaters rushed to try and help him, but they were aggressively pushed away and forced to watch.

"You humans disgust me." He growled out through bared fangs. "You're lucky that I haven't killed you already, but now I seriously consider killing you." He slammed Lucius against the tree as a roar ripped its way from his throat. "Never touch my Noel, don't even think about touching her!"

A brave hand suddenly grasped William's shoulder, instantly making William drop Lucius to the ground. The overwhelming smell of death invaded his senses and he felt light-headed.

"Forgive me, but I do not appreciate anybody thinking about soiling my Noel. If he ever tries anything like that again-"

Lord Voldermort held up a hand as Lucius shakily stood up, grasping his cane heavily.

"Don't worry, Lucius knows better then to make the same mistake twice. And I trust that you will not harm my Death Eaters." William slowly nodded. The air was still uneasy around them, but they all perked up when they heard cries coming from the castle. William jumped up branch after branch until he was at the top of the pine tree and scanned the castle with narrowed eyes. Dear Lord, their forces were monstrous. And there stood Noel at the very head of their forces, pointing and commanding in a pair of deliciously seductive skinny jeans. God he was going to fuck her hard when he got his hands on her. She would be screaming and begging for more by the time that he was done with her.

Noel shuddered and glanced over at Kathleen and Peter with a confused expression.

"I just got the weirdest feeling." She muttered as a creepy chill went down her back.

"That's the effect that William has on people, even from far away." Peter said smartly.

"It's the energy that William gives off when he really wants something." Kathleen explained. Peter started to chuckle.

"It means he wants your body!" Noel shuddered with a look of pure disgust on her face.

"He's going to try and molest me, I just know it." She marched away from them and went to the front of the lines with a raised eyebrow. She could see them approaching and her knees were knocking together. She should have taken a drink from Neville to calm her down. The possibilities of what could happen were running through her mind, but the one that stuck out in her head was how Neville could die. The one that scared her the most was William twisting his head off and taunting Noel with it. Clearly Noel had had a lot of time to think about this.

Joseph and Kathleen approached Noel, making her jump and let out a small scream.

"What the fuck is wrong with you? You don't sneak up on a person who's about to have a heart attack!" Kathleen smirked.

"Don't worry, the human will be heavily guarded."

"I can put a member of my team on him if you'd like." Joseph offered, his voice surprisingly calm.

"Put two." Kathleen said for her when she saw Noel's expression start to drop as William finally emerged from the woods. "And watch the pale blond man, he'll be the one to try and kill him." Noel quickly shook her head.

"No, William promised that he wouldn't hurt him." Kathleen scoffed.

"That promise is probably the last thing on his mind. All he cares about is getting you and killing the human." Noel stared at her with a raised eyebrow.

"His name is Neville. It wouldn't kill you to refer to him by his name."

"You don't know that." Kathleen shot back. "If I say his name, a meteor could come out of the sky and crush my body." Noel started to laugh, but clearly Kathleen was dead serious.

"You won't die." Noel insisted.

"We'll all die if you two don't stop fighting and pay attention to what's happening." Joseph said through clenched teeth. Noel let out a heavy sigh as William finally came within earshot, surprisingly that's where he stopped. Noel raised an eyebrow.

"Do you think that he's trying to be dramatic?" She whispered to Kathleen.

"Probably."

"I am not trying to be dramatic!" William called over to them. Noel rolled her eyes.

"I think standing twenty feet away and screaming at me is fairly dramatic."

In the blink of an eye, William was suddenly inches in front of her with his red eyes flickering with lust. She jumped back slightly with a little squeal, but he grabbed her wrist and pulled her close.

"Hello Noel." He whispered low, his chest vibrating and making Noel feel very uncomfortable.

"You're such a creeper!" She screamed, kicking at him and pulling away. "You stalking perv, what the fuck is wrong with you? Don't you understand get away, I hate you?"

"Please, you don't hate me." Noel scoffed.

"Then you obviously don't know me very well." She aggressively pushed him away, making him stumble back. "Why don't you stand with your new friends, we don't want you." William stared at her, a curious expression on his face. Noel had grown in the time away from William. Perhaps it was the fact that she had been made their leader and that she had been placed basically at the same level as William. Before she had stood up to William, but she'd never had the power to back it up. Now she did…and that scared William. The last bit of control that he had over her was gone.

It was painfully obvious to everybody that the power struggle between William and Noel was over.

With faltering footsteps, William stepped back with his forces and Noel felt the thrill of power pass through her body.

"You broke him." Kathleen whispered into Noel's ear. Noel nodded, suddenly wondering where Neville was. If William was in an emotionally vulnerable position, he was going to lash out and do whatever he could to hurt Noel. The only way to hurt Noel would be to hurt or kill Neville.

"Cover Neville, William is going to try something drastic."

"Yeah, he'll lash out like an animal backed into a corner." Noel trembled slightly as the forces started to line up and arrange themselves. This wasn't a joke. This was happening and it was happening now.

There was no going back…