Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight nor the song Daybreak. I am only borrowing them from Meyer and Digby. Some lines were also borrowed from Breaking Dawn.

A/N: 1003 faves! Woohoo! Thank you so much for liking my story enough to consider it a favorite.

As always, thank you to Katmom for the quick beta work she did on this.

Chapter 36

Flight

The Cullens walked calmly out of Volterra. As it was still dark out, they were unnoticed by the sleeping mortal inhabitants of the city.

Though they appeared composed as they left the castle, they were anything but. No word was uttered among the group of travelers. Each regarded some other in silence; thoughts running through their minds at a dizzying pace.

"Can you all please just stop?" Edward spoke as soon as they were on the outskirts of the small town. The desperation in his tone was as clear as day, making Bella look at him in concern.

"What is it?" she asked.

"Not you, love. Them; they're all thinking too much. It's driving me insane," Edward admitted.

"Can you blame us?" Rosalie snapped.

"Please, let's not discuss this here," Carlisle ordered.

Jasper agreed. "Yes, let's go someplace else. I feel like we're being watched."

"Oh, I'm positive they're keeping track of us," Rosalie added.

"Enough," Esme admonished coolly. "If you're all so adamant to talk, figure out a way for us to get home."

"No stealing cars, Alice," Bella suddenly blurted.

"What? But…" Alice looked at the surprised faces around her. She, too, was bewildered at the accusation.

"Yes, it happened. I'll tell you more later," Bella promised.

Alice looked puzzled, but at Bella's statement, she knew it was another detail of her dream.

"Well, what now?" Emmett questioned. "Do we just run?"

Bella winced, but Edward chalked it up to her being afraid of getting motion sickness.

"I guess. Good thing people are still asleep. We can go to the airport and just buy tickets back to Forks. I, for one, can't wait to get home. I want to get out of here as soon as possible," Jasper said. Everyone was quick to agree.

Edward hoisted Bella on to his back, where she held on tight around his shoulders and neck. And the Cullens began to run.

Once they were in the airport, they bought eight first class one-way tickets back to the States. They didn't want to risk being too cooped up with humans and concluded that there wouldn't be too many people in the first class cabin on a red-eye flight. Alice was snickering when she purchased the tickets with Carlisle and realized the type of flight they were on. How ironic.

As they waited to board the plane, Bella kept wincing and squinting. She leaned back and closed her eyes.

Edward was getting her something to eat and drink, but when he returned, he was surprised that Bella seemed paler than usual.

"What's wrong?" he asked as he sat beside her, putting the food on the empty seat on his other side.

"My head hurts," Bella whispered. Loud noises were making her headache worse.

"Come here." Edward drew her close, making her place her head on his lap. He ran his fingers through her soft brown locks. His cold hands were such a welcome to the prickling pain Bella had started feeling when Aro was saying goodbye to them.

Edward looked at his family. Though they were not sitting near Bella, he knew that they were keeping an eye on his beloved. However, after what they endured, they wanted some quality time with their own mates. He knew without a doubt it would be a noisy homecoming back in the Cullen house.

His gaze locked with Carlisle, beckoning him silently to check on Bella. He had already noticed her wincing when they were running toward the airport.

Bella moaned. "That feels so good; please keep doing that, Edward."

Carlisle walked toward Bella and Edward, with Esme right by him. The few people who were in the airport that late at night couldn't help but stare at the older Cullen. But their eyes bugged out more, especially those of the women's, when they saw Edward as well.

"What's wrong?" Carlisle asked upon seeing the worry etched on his son's face.

"I don't know. She seemed fine when we got here. I noticed her grimace when we were running here, but I thought it was because she was dizzy from the speed," Edward informed him.

Carlisle placed his hand on Bella's forehead. She had fallen asleep from Edward's ministrations. "She feels a little warm, Edward."

"She's sick? Why… how?" Edward's worry had increased ten-fold, making Jasper, with Alice, move closer to them.

"Edward, what is it?" Jasper asked.

Edward's eyes were wide with fear. He'd never had to deal with a human falling ill since his parents were struck with the Spanish flu back in 1918. "She's sick. And we don't know what's causing it. She was fine a few minutes ago." He then turned to his sister. "Alice?"

Alice's eyes glazed as she looked into Bella's future. When the vision formed, it was only then did Edward relax slightly upon seeing it all in his sister's head.

"It's because of what she did, Carlisle. It wasn't supposed to happen that way," Alice informed them.

All of a sudden, Emmett was beside them. "Are we finally talking about what the hell happened in Volterra?"

"Emmett, language," Esme scolded. "And no, we are not. We're talking about Bella."

"Bella? What happened to her?" It was only then that Emmett noticed Bella asleep.

"Her temperature's a little higher than normal, nothing to fret about," Carlisle answered Emmett, though he was addressing Edward with his last statement.

Edward glared at the older vampire. "Of course, I worry. I always do. Especially with what happened, and now this," he hissed cryptically.

People's thoughts were becoming more occupied about the Cullens and their beauty, much to Edward's annoyance. This was the reason why he had never been interested in a mate until Bella came along. Whether human or vampire, their thoughts were always tainted by their shallowness.

Then, the PA system announced their flight. They all sighed in relief for they were one step closer to home.

Edward gently woke Bella up. He knew carrying her would be out of the question, though he really wanted to. But he didn't want to arouse suspicion; he, too, couldn't wait until they were back on American shores.

"Are you all right?" Edward asked as he gave their tickets to the attendant. The airline employee was briefly startled by Edward's appearance and tried to flirt, but his attention was completely focused on Bella.

"Just a headache," Bella answered.

"I should've run and got you something for the pain," Edward berated himself.

"It's fine, I'm sure we could ask for some on board," Bella replied.

They boarded the plane and true enough, the family were the only ones in first class.

Bella's forehead wrinkled as Edward led her to their seats. "What is this?"

"What is what?" Edward asked as he got a blanket for Bella.

"This, our seats."

"What's wrong with them? Are they not comfortable enough? You'll be able to recline your seat all the way. It's better for you," Edward explained.

"You got first class tickets because of me?" Bella whispered harshly.

"Well, not just you. We can't exactly fly in coach, too close to… you know . . ."

"Oh, right." Bella blushed fiercely for jumping to conclusions.

"Just relax, Bella. Sleep. When you wake, we'll be back home." Edward helped Bella settle in her seat. The second he walked on that plane, Edward had already asked the flight attendant greeting them at the door for some painkillers for Bella, attributing her headache to waking up early to take the flight.

He gave Bella the pills given to him by the attendant, along with a glass of water, and fluffed up a pillow on her head. As soon as the plane took off, he reclined Bella's seat. She had fallen asleep before they reached cruising altitude, thanks to the painkillers she took.

oOo

At last, they were home.

Alice pranced through the door, happily twirling with Jasper right behind her. "I've never been happier to see this house."

"I know exactly what you mean," Esme said with a grin, walking into the home she had lovingly decorated.

"Do you want to call Charlie, Bella?" Carlisle asked, turning to the human girl after seeing his family so happy to be back in Forks.

"Oh God, Charlie; he'll ground me for life." Bella still felt a little out of sorts, but her fear at being reprimanded by Charlie weighed heavily on her mind.

"Don't worry too much about it, Bella. I called him yesterday and told him we were going out of town for the weekend. I knew he'd be out fishing with Billy Black so I told him I'd bring you along with us rather than have you stay at home alone," Alice explained.

At that, Bella breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh, okay, that's good. So he won't be mad at me for disappearing for a few days?"

Alice shook her head after watching a vision. "Not at all."

"At least he won't ban me from seeing you," Edward commented.

"Yes, that's one less thing for us to have to deal with," Bella agreed.

"Okay, now that we are in the privacy of our own home, can we finally talk about what happened in Volterra?" Emmett asked exasperatedly. "I've been waiting for hours already."

"You're such a gossip-monger." Jasper uncharacteristically rolled his eyes at his brother.

"Well, not to sound impatient, but I would like to know, too," Rosalie added.

"It was all Bella," Edward declared, causing Bella to blush.

"Yes, we all gathered that. But I thought she wouldn't have been able to shield us all until she had been turned and trained by other vampires from the covens we had called in that dream," said a baffled Jasper.

Everyone looked at Bella, awaiting her account of the events. She was shaking her head. "I don't understand it either. I didn't even know it was happening."

"Maybe it was due to fear. Were you afraid of what the Volturi might do to you, Bella?" Carlisle asked.

"No, not to me. In my dream, it was just me, Edward and Alice who went to Italy. When we were all… uh, coerced to go, I didn't know what was in store for us, for you. And that was what I was afraid of," replied Bella.

Edward took her in his embrace and led her to the couch. He then kissed her forehead. "We're all safe now, Bella. Thanks to you."

"I don't even know what I did, or if it was even me." Bella was as confused as the rest of them.

Carlisle took a seat opposite the couple and looked intently at Bella. "We need to figure out what happened. What did you feel when Aro asked Edward to see his thoughts?"

Bella's eyes were unfocused as she recalled the events. "I was scared for Edward. I was scared that Aro would know about my dream and that he would kill all of us… or that he would force me and Edward to try for the baby… like some sort of experiment. I remember in my dream, Aro was intrigued by Renesmee and said that she was a great addition to the vampiredom's histories."

"An addition to our histories?" Rosalie asked.

"That's what he said in my dream, pretending that it was such a wonderful find. He was trying to save face with the witnesses he brought. If they continued to punish us for the lie of having an immortal child, everyone would know that it was all a show to gain power," Bella added.

"Okay, so what happened back in the castle?" Emmett reiterated.

Bella continued, "I knew if he touched Edward, he would find out everything. I was so terrified that I was shaking. And then suddenly, I felt something shift, and when Aro said he couldn't read Edward's thoughts, I knew we were safe. But then he moved to Carlisle, and the fear became too much again. I don't know anything more after that."

"You didn't hear what was going on?" Esme asked incredulously.

Bella shook her head meekly. "I could hear stuff, but I wasn't sure what was going on. Everything sounded muddled, like people talking underwater."

"It was madness, Bella," Alice told her. "Aro was so pissed that he couldn't hear their thoughts. Edward told them it was your shield."

"But Jane…" Bella fretted, turned to face Edward. "I'm sorry I wasn't able to protect you from her."

Edward looked amused. "Protect me? I should be the one protecting you, and yet, you saved us all. I think what happened with Jane is actually a blessing in disguise."

"A blessing! How could you even think that? She zapped you till you were writhing on the floor in pain," Bella cried.

"Aro was a little smug when he saw that Jane affected me. He thought your shield was still in effect. And I think that will serve as an advantage to us. If he thought you were immune to all their powers, he would be salivating to turn you. All that power would make him greedy, more so than he already is," Edward told them.

"Yes, I'm with Edward. Him getting hurt by Jane would prove beneficial if we do get to that point in your dream where Aro and the others come here due to your child," Jasper said.

"All right, let me see if I have everything," Carlisle interjected. "You were so afraid, Bella, that you were able to use your shield on us. In your dream, it was your anger that triggered it, right?"

Bella nodded.

"And then after you used it at the castle, you started getting these headaches," Carlisle added.

Bella nodded once more.

"So, it seems that extreme emotions helped you control your ability. And the energy you expended triggered the headache," Carlisle concluded. "Now you know what to look out for when you need to use it."

Bella pondered those words. "Do you think that when I become a vampire, my shield will be stronger?"

"We don't know for sure, Bella, but knowing this might help you learn to control it better." Carlisle smiled at the human. "You're going to be an amazing addition to our history, Bella, but more importantly, to this family.

"Thank you, Carlisle." Bella beamed.

"Ready to go home, love?" Edward asked. It didn't matter to him whether Bella stayed in their house or hers, he wouldn't leave her side.

"Yes, I think it would be best to show my face around Charlie." Bella's mood was definitely lighter.

"All right then, let me just get a change of clothes; then we'll run to your house." Edward used his unnatural speed to go to his room and pack.

A short while later the couple was in the Swan residence. Both Bella and Edward were lying in bed; Charlie's snores sounded just down the hall.

"I'm surprised Charlie didn't get mad," Edward commented.

"Alice really has him wrapped around her finger," Bella replied.

"Just like everyone else in the family." Edward and Bella laughed at that.

"You know, once we're married, Charlie will be part of the family," Edward noted.

"You're right." Then Bella looked at her love shyly. "So, we have a year…"

Edward's brows were drawn together. "No, Bella. You were right. We can't let our marriage be dictated by fear. We'll get married when we want to, not because Aro says so."

"I don't want to be too old. I'm already eighteen, a year older than you."

"That's just a technicality, Bella. If it'll make you feel better, I'll ask Jasper to have it changed so we can be the same age."

"No, that's not necessary. But I still do want to get married before I turn twenty. Let's just stick with the dream. For once, there's an event that I don't mind happening."

Edward grinned widely, he was glowing from within. "I feel the exact same way."