Disclaimer: I don't own the Twilight characters, I own my characters and ideas. Shaboom.

Prickle

"Fucking great," Victoria growled under her breath. "Just what we need."

"They'll want an answer," Jasper remarked. "Unless we simply kill them."

"I like that idea," Victoria said with a devilish grin.

"So do I," Emmett agreed.

Esme and Carlisle both looked uncertain as Jane and Riley came downstairs looking particularly disheveled for reasons that were beyond obvious to most of us. Jane straightened her hair a bit as the duo sat down, glancing around the room when all eyes fell on them, including mine.

"What?" Jane asked. "What's the big deal?"

"You missed Carmen and Eleazar's visit," I informed them. "And the Thornes are coming."

Jane grinned. "Sweet. I can make them feel pain this time, right?"

"Let's make that decision now, shall we?" Carlisle offered, clearing his throat. "Cynthia, Alice, because you're guests in this house, your opinions matter too. Feel free to voice them should you disagree or agree with anything stated in this discussion, alright?"

"Sure," Cynthia replied. "Is it about what to do about those vampires?"

"Yes," Esme replied as she and Carlisle seated themselves. "I'll cut to the point. Alice has foreseen the Thornes coming here within the hour, and it's obvious they'll want an answer to their previously asked question. We have two choices—either accept their offer of assistance or turn them down. The consequences that follow are numerous regardless of the choice."

"We will stand together as we always have," Carlisle added. "Even if the worst should occur, we will do what must be done to protect each other, even if it means fleeing Washington. I don't want to start a war with the Volturi, but I won't risk the safety of any of you for that reason. What is the vote of each of you on the subject at hand?"

"I vote no," Victoria said with a growl. "The Thornes betrayed me once; I won't let them do it a second time, and I don't give a shit what the consequences are because I'll face them myself if I have to. Damn the Thornes to hell."

"Hell no!" Emmett boomed. "We don't need their help to kill that creep, so I say we tell them to fuck off, kick their asses, and go hunt that bastard down ourselves!"

"I hate to say it, but I'm going to have to say yes," Rosalie admitted begrudgingly. "My reasons now are the same I gave before. The Volturi are a big enough pain in the ass—having them come here would only fuck us over. Unless we decide to kill them…"

"No," Jane said with a snort. "Fuck 'em. We can kill Edward on our own. We don't need their stinking help, so tell them to go to hell, like Tori said."

Riley sighed. "I'm with Rose, regrettably. My reasons still stand as well."

"I'm not sure what to think," Cynthia mumbled when the room fell silent. "I mean, I don't want some creepy ancient vampires coming after your family, especially for my sister, but I don't want to cause unnecessary trouble." She paused and bit her lip. "I guess…yes." Her eyes flashed to Alice's, worry pulsing in them. "I have to protect my baby sister."

"That's alright, dear," Esme said. "No one's going to get mad at you for it."

Alice scoffed. "I'm not a 'baby,' Cynth. I'm eighteen, for crying out loud!"

"You know what I mean," Cynthia chuckled, tousling Alice's hair. "You know, I like your new hairdo, but I miss being able to mess your hair up."

"Stinks for you," Alice replied, sticking her tongue out.

"What're your thoughts, Alice?" Carlisle inquired politely.

Alice considered the question for a moment. "No. I don't like the sound of these Volturi people, but I don't trust the Thornes either. My gut's telling me to avoid both of them, if at all possible."

"My vote is no," Esme said. "I refuse to be involved with a coven I don't know, and I haven't forgiven them for their snide remarks towards Victoria, nor do I trust them. Therefore, I would rather deal with the Volturi, whom I know enough about to know what their weaknesses are, rather than make a deal with vampires I don't know."

Carlisle pursed his lips. "I'm mixed on what to decide, truthfully. Neither choice feels right, but I would have to say yes, if only because we may be able to use the Thornes to our advantage."

All eyes fell on me at that point, and I tossed around how I felt about it. In the end, the family's vote always came down to me. I was the "center" of the family in the eyes of everyone else, and as such, whatever I decided was often what everyone went with regardless of whether or not someone voted against the idea, something I always felt bad about.

In this case, I didn't trust the Thornes, but I didn't want them to go to the Volturi. Either way I would be playing with fire, and it would take a miracle for me to avoid burning myself and everyone else because of the decision made in the end. However, I knew in my gut what the right choice would be, and I had to stick with my thoughts.

"No," I said. "It's too risky to trust vampires we don't know, and I won't take the chance that they're working with Edward or something worse. We have no way of knowing, so I'd rather refuse their offer and deal with it later than be stabbed in the back."

"Good choice," Victoria remarked. "Then it's settled. We tell them no, and they'd better fucking leave, or I'll start ripping heads off regardless of what anyone tells me."

"I'm curious about something, Victoria," Riley said. "If we do end up fighting these individuals, do any of them have gifts we should be wary about? Tell us about how they fight, too. It may come in handy for the future."

Victoria narrowed her eyes in thought. "You want to know how they fight, huh? That's not a question I can easily answer, since I never paid attention to the way they fought during battles—I was always focused on what I was doing. I did learn a bit from Nikala and Asher, however. I can say without a doubt they are the most vicious combatants I've ever seen before.

"Nikala is the worst. She'll use any means she can to win, even if it means using cheap tactics like going after your mate. It doesn't matter to her, so long as she wins. Asher is no better, but he's more calculating than he is menacing. I'd say he's as smart as both Carlisle and Esme combined, and he isn't afraid to make sure you know it, either."

"As far as the others go, Adira is the most bloodthirsty, Erykah is extremely cocky, Cathal is just as bad, and Dante is…difficult to follow. He's smart, too, and thinks on his feet like Jazz. In terms of gifts, I know Adira has one, but I've never seen it despite her constantly gloating about it. Cathal can make physical barriers around himself or others, though. Be careful with that.

"Erykah is super strong, but doesn't really have a gift outside of that as far as I know." Victoria paused briefly in thought before continuing with the last Thorne. "Dante can manipulate shadows for a variety of purposes, like hiding himself or freezing you in place. I've seen his gift in action before, and I have to say, it's creepy as hell."

"Interesting," Jasper remarked. "At least we know what to expect."

Emmett snorted. "Who cares what gifts they have? We're still better."

"We still shouldn't underestimate them," Riley stated. "You should know by now that if we overestimate our own abilities, it'll bite us in the ass in the long run."

"Why do you have to suck the fun out of it?" Emmett asked, scowling. "It's not all that complicated when there're fewer of them than there are us. I mean, shit, all we gotta do is turn Alice and Cynthia, and then we'll have even more vampires in the family!"

"Quit giving them ideas, Em," Rosalie chided. "You know it wouldn't work."

Emmett shrugged. "I'm just saying."

"I wonder how they'll react when we give them the bad news," Jasper mused.

"They'll likely pretend to take it fine," Victoria said with a scoff. "Just wait. They'll act like nothing's wrong, but I know for a fact that Asher and Nikala will be pissed. One thing they hate more than weakness is being refused by somebody. Not even they can hide their irritation. As for what they'll do after, I'm not sure. That's anyone's guess."

"What are the chances of them going to the Volturi?" I asked.

"Hard to say," she replied. "The Thornes have never liked the Volturi. They even killed a pair of Volturi guards years ago for no reason at all. I doubt they've ever been to Volterra because they've always been good at hiding and erasing their tracks. I'm pretty sure they used me as a means to avoid the Volturi as well since, I always knew when trouble was near."

"So if they did go, then the Volturi would know what they thought," Emmett said, grinning. "I bet Aro and Sulpicia would be pissed as hell to know their guards were killed by a couple of wanna-be posers like these Thorne jackasses."

"They probably know," Rosalie remarked. "Or at the very least, they're searching, since every guard is like a fucking baby to those freaks."

"Are these Volturi folks really that bad?" Cynthia asked. "I mean, didn't you say they were the body of law for all vampires or something, Carlisle?"

"In a way, yes," Carlisle replied. "Unfortunately, that law is corrupt. The Volturi have very strict rules, and they tend to break them themselves rather frequently. I believe what Aro and Sulpicia are trying to do is build an army strong enough to take full control of the world. They're growing steadily year by year, but I'm not sure either will ever be satisfied by the number of guards."

"They go after gifted vampires," Esme said. "That's all they care about. If you have a unique, exploitable gift, you're fair game for the Volturi. And usually you don't have a say in whether or not you want to join; one of their coven members will force you to regardless of what you want."

Alice looked terrified. "They have a vampire who can do that?"

"Her name's Chelsea," I said, wrapping my arm around her. "Her gift allows her to bend the bonds of any vampire she wants, forcing them to ally with the Volturi. That's the only reason the Volturi even exists. Without Chelsea, it would just be Aro and Sulpicia. Chelsea is the centerpiece, the glue that holds that madhouse of monsters in place."

"So…she could make us…" Alice trailed off, and I kissed her cheek to reassure her.

"Alice, she won't get you or your sister," I said. "I wouldn't let her. Besides, the assholes at Volterra may want some of us for their "collection," but luckily, not all the Kings and Queens are borderline psycho enough to let that happen. Marcus and Didyme are the only decent rulers over there, and they're content with us being left alone."

"How long will that last for, though?" Cynthia asked. She was just as worried as Alice.

I sighed and turned to Carlisle and Esme for some aid.

"I wouldn't worry about it, dears," Esme said in a gentle voice as Jasper sent out waves of calm. "The Volturi are too preoccupied with their own problems to think about us. If something should happen, we'll find a way to deal with it. Rest assured, you're both in good hands, I promise."

Alice and Cynthia visibly relaxed, but then Alice frowned. "They're here."

A few seconds later, there was a knock at the door. Carlisle and Esme shared a look before standing and going to answer it while I turned to Alice and Cynthia.

"Do you two want to head upstairs?" I asked.

"Yes, please," Cynthia replied, taking Alice's hand. "We need to talk, anyways."

I nodded and wrapped one arm around each girl before trying to tap into my gift. I concentrated hard like I had the previous two times, and to my surprise, it worked. Everything seemed to slow down a drastic degree around me as I stood and carried the two humans upstairs to their room. I set them down on their bed, kissed Alice's forehead, then moved out of the room.

Things went back to normal the second I shut the door, at which point I blurred downstairs to rejoin my siblings. Not a second later did Carlisle and Esme walk back in with the Thorne coven following behind, much to the disdain of my siblings, especially Victoria.

The Thornes remained standing, as did Carlisle and Esme, as Jasper sent out a wave of calm to envelop the area, preventing tempers from flaring too much. Asher and Nikala noticed this and frowned in confusion for a brief moment, then their faces returned to normal.

"Hello, Cullens," Nikala said politely. "Where are the humans at?"

"We ate them," Rosalie replied. "What's it to you?"

While I didn't like the idea, I said nothing and simply watched their facial reactions. Their faces were difficult to read, however; it was almost like they were incapable of truly reacting to anything whatsoever, even Rosalie's remark, which sounded true.

"A shame we missed it," Asher remarked, smiling. "At any rate, we came to see—"

"We know why you're here," Victoria interjected. "Our answer is no. We don't want your fucking help, so beat it, and don't ever fucking come back to Washington, or I swear on my life and my sister's, I'll rip every last one of you into pieces."

By the end of her sentence, she was standing and seething mad, her eyes jet black and full of fury to the point where Jasper had to stand and hold her in place. Even with his calming power, however, he was barely able to hold Victoria in place given how strong she was.

"Is this true?" Asher asked, glancing at Carlisle. "You've chosen to turn our offer down?"

"Yes," Carlisle replied. "I'm afraid so."

"Don't take it personally," Esme said in a mock sweet voice. "We're simply more than capable of handling our own affairs, not that we don't appreciate the offer."

Nikala shook her head in disdain. "A shame, really. We would've worked well together."

"Yeah, right," Rosalie snorted. "Your reputation for betraying others makes you real good candidates for teamwork, I'm sure."

"What a load of shit," Adira, the creepy-eyed blonde, scoffed. "Is that what Victoria told you?"

"It's all lies," Cathal, the redhead, stated with a chuckle. "She's simply bitter, that's all."

"Oh?" Jasper replied, lifting an eyebrow. "Then please, fill us in on the truth."

"Years ago, Victoria was a loyal member of our coven," explained Dante, the intelligent one who could manipulate shadows, from what Victoria had told us. "She fought alongside us for many years until she started to grow detached from our group. The appearance of her sister caused her to lose focus, and she effectively betrayed us when we needed her most."

"You're deluding yourselves if that's what you think," Victoria hissed. "Don't try to lie to save face with my family, fools. They know what really happened, and they know what I said was true because I would never lie to them. You used me for my gift, and when I started to break away from your manipulated mold, you turned on me, plain and simple."

"Does it really matter?" Erykah asked. "Quit whining like a little bitch, Victoria. You're just mad that we kicked you out of our coven, that's all. It's your own fault for being pathetic and caring more about your sister who's probably dead than you did about us. We did everything for you."

"You've gone soft, Victoria," Cathal taunted. "You used to be a real killer. Now look at you."

"It's no wonder your sister left you," Adira snickered.

"Shut the hell up!" I snarled, jumping to my feet. "Don't you dare talk to my sister that way, you bitch! Who the fuck do you think you are saying those things in our house?"

Jasper sent out an even stronger wave of calm that enveloped the entire room, but it did little to keep Victoria from growling and continuing to struggle in his grip. My rage was subsided for the most part, but the others were on their feet as well, clearly waiting for someone to make a move.

"What're you going to do about it?" Adira mocked.

"I think you should leave," Esme stated firmly before I could answer. "Now."

Asher held his hands up. "Yes, it would seem our presence is no longer tolerable. Come along now, let's leave and go elsewhere, hmm?"

"We might as well," Nikala replied.

"Good luck finding your sister, Victoria," Cathal said sarcastically. "I hope you at least find a shred of her when you realize she's probably dead, since she's no smarter than you are."

That was the final straw for Victoria. With every strength of her being she broke free from Jasper's arms—nearly tearing them off in the process—and lunged with an opened mouth for Erykah, the nearest Thorne. The raven-haired woman narrowly dodged Victoria's attack and attempted to grab her, but Victoria moved aside and backhanded her in return.

Within seconds there were growls erupting all over the place and fists flying at lightning speed as my siblings jumped in to brawl with the Thorne coven members. The only two who didn't bother budging an inch were Nikala and Asher, who remained completely unscathed by the fighting going on around them as Jasper tried his best to calm his wife down.

I wasn't sure what to do as I watched the various brawls unfolding—a part of me wanted to join in and beat the crap out of the Thornes, but at the same time, I worried that causing too much of a ruckus would worry Alice or Cynthia, and they would come down to see what was going on.

Esme and Carlisle seemed reluctant to step in to stop the fighting, but they did so eventually and managed to halt the fighting by pulling everyone back. I reluctantly decided to join in and held Jane back, who was hissing wildly to try and claw at one of the Thornes' faces.

Poor Jasper looked like he was straining himself to keep the tempers in check, and I noticed that Esme and Carlisle were both holding onto Victoria, who was still seething were she stood. The Thornes seemed to wait for a moment before Nikala and Asher turned around to face their "children," most of whom seemed to be grinning in amusement at what just happened.

"Come along now," Nikala said. "The last thing we need to do is cause more chaos for the poor Cullens, who I'm sure would prefer we don't destroy their house."

"I think it best that this be the last time we speak," Carlisle said bluntly, the usual compassionate demeanor nearly entirely gone. "You've caused nothing but trouble for this family with your callous lack of manners and understanding, and should you return, I can't promise my wife and I will be willing to prevent our children from killing you."

"In other words, get the fuck off our property," Esme hissed, not even bothering to hide her rage.

Asher was about to reply when Adira sniffed the air. "I smell human." She licked her lips and grinned dangerously at us. "I think you were lying when you said you ate them."

"Oh dear," Asher said. "Lying to us? Why would you do such a thing?"

"We weren't lying," I growled. "Get the hell out of here."

"You weren't, were you?" Adira asked. "Let's just see, shall we?"

The second the words left her lips, my body went into panic mode, and all I could think about was her rushing upstairs and finding Alice and Cynthia. Immediately I focused on finding that strange sensation lurking in the back of my mind to try and use my gift, this time for something that was extremely important and urgent.

Adira started moving, and I frantically pleaded with whatever force lay within me to help me out, because I had to protect Alice and Cynthia from Adira and her twisted family. I needed to.

Work, damn you! I shouted in my head.

Just as Adira sprinted up the stairs, my gift finally kicked in, and time slowed to a complete stop, allowing me to dash like a mad woman upstairs to where Adira was. Her pale hand was slowly starting to reach for the door where Alice and Cynthia were staying, making me growl. Instantly I swatted her hand away and kneed her hard in the chest, but I wasn't done with her yet.

I grabbed her roughly by the neck and speedily dragged her ass downstairs, holding onto the sensation coursing through my body all the while. I opened the door and flung Adira out like she was a bag of trash, then slammed the door shut. My body started to feel funny, at which point I recalled Eleazar's warning about my gift still being new to me.

Realizing this, I sped over to where I'd been standing and assumed the same stance I'd been in as time reverted back to normal. The Thornes quickly appeared puzzled at the absence of Adira, who was still outside, though they didn't know that.

"Beat it," Emmett threatened, pounding his fists together.

Jasper sent out a wave of fear into the Thornes which finally got a reaction from Asher and Nikala, who scowled and hastily pushed the rest of their coven out the door. Once they were outside, Esme sped to the door and locked it shut with a low growl before returning.

"Assholes," she growled under her breath.

The tension in the room was slowly lifted as everyone sat back down. Jasper ran a hand through his hair as he poured out calmness and relaxation to ensure that no one went crazy with anger, especially his wife. Victoria seemed reluctant to sit, but she eventually did so, snuggling up to Jasper as she silently apologized to him with her eyes.

"Don't worry, darlin'," he said. "I understand your rage. Trust me."

"Why didn't you let us just kill them?" Emmett complained.

"Three reasons," Esme replied. "First off, this our house, Emmett, not an arena, and no matter how pissed off any of us may get, the last thing I need is for our things to be broken. Secondly, killing them would be a waste of time and energy. They're not worth it. And lastly, our human guests might have become worried, and they could have gotten mixed up in it."

Carlisle appraised me curiously. "Did you use your gift to throw that girl out?"

"Yeah," I replied. "But I think I'm a little worn out from using it."

"Eleazar warned you not to, dumbass," Rosalie chided.

"I couldn't let that bitch get to Alice and Cynthia," I said, shrugging. "I'm sure all I need is to hunt later and rest, and I'll probably be fine."

My words were true, but my body wasn't exactly agreeing with me in full. Everything felt heavier and tired, a sensation that meant I would need to enter my "sleep" state soon to regain my strength. I didn't want to, since I had more important things to deal with, however, which is why I would hold off on it for the time being.

That was the funny thing about being a vampire and the term "sleep": we didn't need it because we were technically dead, yet even our bodies could become fatigued over time. When our bodies reached a certain limit of fatigue, we would need to "shut down" in order to regain our strength, which never made full sense to me no matter how many times I did it.

I can hold off for a while, I told myself. It wasn't necessary right now—I just had to hunt, and the blood would help replenish my strength. That was the other thing about the sleep state: it wasn't mandatory for vampires to enter it in the slightest—it simply helped out.

"Someone should go see if Alice and Cynthia are alright," Esme said.

"I'll go check," I said, standing and running upstairs. I stopped at their door and knocked on it as I thought about how close Adira had come to finding them, a frightening thought.

It opened seconds later, and Alice flew out of it, crashing into my body before I could react. I wrapped my arms around her and kissed her forehead as my eyes met Cynthia's, who was looming near the doorway with obvious concern in her eyes.

"What the hell happened down there?" she asked.

"A fight broke out," I replied. "It's okay, though. We kicked them out."

"Was someone at our door?" Alice asked, looking up at me. "I saw…a brief flash of red eyes and I could've sworn someone was going to bust down our door."

I ran my hand through her hair. "I took care of her, Alice. It's okay."

"It was crazy," Alice said. "One second I had my vision, the next it's gone, and I have a vision of you coming up to check on us. That gift of yours is something else, Bella. I thought my visions glitched out on me or something."

I chuckled. "Sorry about that; it wasn't intentional."

"I'm just glad you're okay," she breathed, nuzzling into my neck.

"You can come back downstairs now," I said, lifting Alice with ease. "They won't be bothering us again, I'm sure. And if they do, they're not going to be walking away." I turned my attention to the beautiful girl in my arms. "I think you and I should cuddle on the couch for a while."

"I like the sound of that," Alice said with a gentle smile.

"Do you know how weird you look holding her like that?" Cynthia chuckled.

"Doesn't bother me," I replied, slowly walking downstairs with Alice in my arms, Cynthia following close behind. We entered the family room, and the tension was gone altogether. Emmett was playing his video games with Riley, Rosalie, and Jane, while Jasper and Victoria were gone, likely out hunting to quell their frustrations.

I sat down with Alice and lay back with her still on my chest, snuggling with her, as her sister sat down near the others to give us a bit of space. I rubbed my nose into Alice's hair and breathed in her rich scent, using it to relax my body as we fell into a comfortable silence together while watching my siblings curse and shout out threats at each other, which was always amusing.

"Damn," Alice huffed.

"What?" I asked, glancing at my girlfriend curiously. "What's wrong?"

"I glanced into the future to see what the weather would be like," she replied. "It's back to being cloudy tomorrow, which likely means we've got to go to school. Speaking of which, what's going to happen to Cynthia and I since we've left our parents? They've probably written us out of their wills or something like that by now, so…"

"Yeah, we're going back," I said, sighing. "We have to."

"What about Cynthia?" she asked.

"Cynthia gets to stay home, I'd imagine," I replied. "You were homeschooled, right, Cynthia?"

"Yup," Cynthia answered. "Our bastard father took me out of school when I got into a fight with someone over Alice, and they never let me go back. They hired professional tutors to come and teach me instead, which was even more boring. Now, though, I'd rather stay here in your kickass home and laugh at my sister for having to suffer through school."

"You stink," Alice complained, scowling at her sister.

Cynthia grinned. "It's not my fault, Alice. I got off lucky, that's all."

"You got off?" Emmett questioned with a snicker. Cynthia's cheeks reddened a little as Rosalie playfully smacked Emmett's shoulder. "What? I couldn't help myself!"

"You never can," Rosalie replied.

"Sorry, Cynthia," I snickered. "You'll have to get used to that, though. This is normal for us."

"I guess I'll have to," she mused, running a hand through her hair.

"I love it," Alice said with a smirk. "We get to live with vampires, there's always something new to learn, and the chance of danger lurking around the corner is exciting! It makes me want to be a vampire all the more, especially if it means getting to experience all of this at a new level!"

I appraised her silently for a moment. "Are you sure you want to be a vampire?"

"Of course!" she replied, meeting my eyes. "Bella, I knew I wanted it the second I found out that's what you were. How else will I be able love you and be with you all eternity? Besides, being a human stinks. It's boring and dull now that I know about vampires. I'd much rather be immortal and deal with all the bad shit that comes with it since I'd have you to help me."

"I'll talk with Carlisle and Esme about it," I said. "For you and Cynthia."

"Hell no," Alice scoffed. "Fuck her, I want immortality!"

"Excuse me?" her sister asked.

"You heard me," Alice shot back teasingly.

Cynthia jumped up. "Bella, would you be a dear and throw my sister off of you so I can tickle her, please? I think she needs to be taught a lesson."

Alice snuggled further into me. "Nope, my Bella will protect me from you, evil sister. Your wicked plans to torture me have been thwarted!" She giggled like a school girl. "So why don't you sit down and go back to staring into space, okay?"

Cynthia scowled in frustration as I laughed. "I love you, Alice," I said, pressing my lips to hers.

"I love you too," she replied, smirking at me.

"Unfortunately, I love torturing you more," I replied, speedily scooping her up and setting her on her feet as Cynthia practically pounced at her. Alice squealed and started sprinting through our house with her sister hot on her heels and the rest of us laughed, especially Emmett.

I knew Alice would be pissed at me for it, but it'd be worth it in the end. And as I stood up to help Cynthia torment her sister, a thought crossed my mind: with Alice as a part of the family, we'd always know whenever trouble would be coming, including Edward.

Since Edward was after both Alice and me, that meant he had double the reason to come after us now, and when he did, she would see him coming. With her gift, not even Edward could stop her from knowing when he'd make his plans, and if she were to become a vampire, her gift would become even stronger leaving Edward completely outmatched.

I grinned as I pinned Alice's arms down. "I'm really starting to enjoy this."

"You bitches!" Alice cursed as Cynthia started tickling her mercilessly, causing her to howl with laughter as her legs thrashed about wildly.

I leaned down to kiss her forehead. "When this is over, we'll cuddle more, I promise."

"That's if I decide to stop," Cynthia crooned. "This is too much fun!"

I giggled as Alice continued to shriek in laughter. Having her around was definitely interesting.

A/N: Ah, tickling. I hate being tickled. Don't you?

Anyways, the Thorne saga continues. Will they be back? Chances are, they probably will, but in what capacity? I'll leave that to your imaginations.

Now, my question to ask those of you who indulge me in replying...hmm...ah. I have two. One, how do you picture Amara when you read her? Like, do you see her as a specific actress or something else entirely? And two; how many of you are true Amara fans and what do you like most about her? I'm asking out of curiosity because I've often wondered what qualities people like most about her. It helps for me to know so I know how to develop her when I can, such as in my book, for instance.

Thank you to anyone who reviews and has reviewed in the past, I appreciate it more than I'm able to show. On a side note, I'm actually amazed at how close to a thousand this story has gotten. It's pretty cool, I think, and it gives me a mild confidence boost despite a few changes that have befallen me since I stopped updating. I only wish more of my old readers were still with me. Ah well, such is life. Until next time, folks.